FBI to revisit fatal beating of California transient after police cleared
Source: Reuters
FBI to revisit fatal beating of California transient after police cleared
BY DAN WHITCOMB AND DANA FELDMAN
LOS ANGELES Tue Jan 14, 2014 3:29pm EST
(Reuters) - The FBI said on Tuesday it will re-examine the beating death of a mentally ill homeless man in the California city of Fullerton, following the acquittal of two former police officers on state charges in the case.
An Orange County Superior Court jury found ex-Fullerton officers Manuel Ramos and Jay Cicinelli not guilty on Monday on all charges in the death of 37-year-old Kelly Thomas, after a monthlong trial.
Prosecutors had accused Ramos and Cicinelli, who approached Thomas near a bus depot in July 2011 to question him about reports of vandalized cars, of turning a routine law enforcement encounter into an unnecessary and savage beating that cost the unarmed homeless man his life.
Defense lawyers argued that Thomas was dangerous and that the officers responded according to their training.
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http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/14/us-usa-beating-police-idUSBREA0D1FA20140114