Former N.C. deputy charged in PS3 shooting.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

This story was subject of much argument in LBN last week. This is quite a follow-up, but it's over twelve hours old, so I thought I'd post it here.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16160104/

WILMINGTON, N.C. - A former New Hanover County sheriff's deputy was charged with second-degree murder Monday in the fatal shooting of an unarmed teenager accused of stealing PlayStation 3 video game systems, the district attorney said.

Cpl. Christopher Long, 34, was indicted in the death of 18-year-old college student Peyton Strickland, who was shot Dec. 1 when deputies and police from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington raided a house he shared with roommates.

[Mythsaje]

1. Now I'm curious...

Why the argument here at DU?

Or was it like the 92 y.o. grandma who was gunned down in her house...the one where several of us were sure it was a no-knock warrant and the police were lying, and that turned out to be EXACTLY the case?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

2. The long and the short of it was...

the police were justified because the little punk had it coming.

:shrug:

link:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=2640256

[Blackhatjack]

4. In light of State Bureau of Investigation findings would you like to change your response?

Otherwise, you just appear to be woefully uninformed and oblivious to standard police procedure.

Shooting through the door before it is opened AFTER you have just instructed the occupant inside to open the door is total violation of police procedure, and could have killed a child wandering inside as easily as this teenager was killed.

Is this the procedure you would like them to use if they arrive at your door by mistake?
There are good reasons behind the rules that govern the use of deadly force, which were not followed here.

[Mythsaje]

9. I didn't get that impression from his post at all...

It sounded like he was disagreeing with the people who seemed to HAVE that reasoning...

[cwydro]

11. I think hooligan was referring to the other thread. nt

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

12. Misinterpretation.

I think the cops murdered the kid.

[Mythsaje]

8. Why did they assume he'd be dangerous because he robbed someone with a baseball bat?

Going up against an unarmed civilian isn't quite the same as going up against the police and it would take a pretty stupid guy to fire on cops for a PS3.

Or didn't the cops know anything about the kid and that his father was an attorney before they went to serve the warrant? There should be some kind of rational response based upon some level of understanding of the person they're going to arrest and the circumstances of each case.

They get to the point they're shooting first and asking questions later, if at all, when the SANE thing to have done was knock on the door, wait for a response, and deal with him as if he were any other human being who's accused of a crime.

Unless they have REAL reason to believe they'd be endangered, not some vague impression that he MIGHT be dangerous, I can't see why anyone would think breaking his door down and coming in with an assault team would be in any way justified.

It's easy. Knock. "It's the police. We'd like to ask you some questions."

Open door. "What's this about?"

"We have a warrant for your arrest regarding blah-blah-blah."

Not even every felony case, and I dare say not even the majority of them, deal with someone who wants to have a gun battle with the cops. These things RARELY end well and I'm sure most people know it.

Now if they're going after some 2nd strike, lifetime offender, ex-con with a reputation for being a flat-out bastard, I can see it.

I think this stems from the cops considering THEIR lives to be more important than a civilian's, under ANY circumstance. They'd rather go in to every situation that might pose the slightest risk with all available force, whether or not the circumstances warrant, than take the chance they might have misread the situation. This may save POLICE lives, but certainly isn't doing much for the civilians.

[Blackhatjack]

3. He was acting as deputy at the time he shot the unarmed teenager...

... the State Bureau of Investigation found that the shots he fired killing the boy went "through the door" and hit the boy as he was answering the door.

The police officers with the search warrant and arrest warrants called in the county's 'swat-team' to assist them. This deputy was part of that unit until he was fired a couple of days ago, and then indicted yesterday by a grand jury for second degree murder.

The victim's father is a well-known North Carolina attorney.

[Lex]

5. The police officer was indicted for 2nd degree murder

after the SBI investigation.

The shooting never should have happened, but the Grand Jury has handed down an indictment and I think that is certainly proper in this case given the circumstances.

[Blackhatjack]

7. This is the deputy's second time violating use of deadly force rules...

... a few years back he fired into a motor vehicle and hit two individuals. He cannot plead ignorance of the rules that apply to using a firearm.

His attorney is floating the story that he mistook the sound of the battering ram being used on the door for someone INSIDE the house firing at him. Right. He is standing right beside the battering ram, and sees no bullets coming from inside the house, so he fires three times through the door at an unseen individual.

He was indicted for 2nd degree murder, and there is ample evidence to make that charge stick.

The fact that the officers were searching for evidence to support a property theft charge is never a justification for using deadly force.

[Eric J in MN]

6. The police should wait until a suspect leaves his home...

...to place him under arrest.

Arrest him as he's walking to his car or to the bus or to the train.

It would avoid the confusion of trying to arrest someone at home, when he's not expecting to interact with strangers.

[Blackhatjack]

10. Firing 3 shots through an unopened door violates use of deadly force rules. period.

It could have been a wife, girlfriend, child, or visitor behind that door.

There are good reasons we make police officers account for the firing of their gun in every situation. Guns fired often lead to loss of life.

It has nothing to do with the charge alleged. BTW there is no proof that the kid killed was the suspect they were looking for who stole the PS3 from a college student. Even so this was a blatant violation of the law, resulted in the deputy being fired, and grand jury returning a 2nd degree murder indictment.

[butterfly77]

13. Wow..that was quick..

could it be because of skin color...

[melm00se]

14. not so fast....

"oops, I checked the wrong box"

http://rdu.news14.com/content/top_stories/default.asp?ArID=96243

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

15. Oh my.

Nothing curious about that.

:eyes:

[Eugene]

16. AP: Charge dismissed in PlayStation shooting

Charge dismissed in PlayStation shooting


By ESTES THOMPSON, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 26 minutes ago

RALEIGH, N.C. - Officials rescinded a murder charge Tuesday against a sheriff's
deputy accused of shooting an unarmed teenager who authorities believed had
stolen video game consoles, after a grand jury foreman said he had checked the
wrong box on the indictment paperwork.

The dismissal came a day after New Hanover County District Attorney Ben David
announced the second-degree murder charge against Cpl. Christopher Long, 34.

-snip-

The grand jury foreman told a court Tuesday that he checked the wrong box on the
indictment form by mistake, according to an order signed Tuesday by Superior Court
Judge Ernest Fullwood. The foreman learned about the mistake after other jury
members heard about the mistake from media reports.

A copy of the indictment filed as evidence Tuesday shows a checked box for a "true
bill" of indictment crossed out, with a heavy mark made through "not a true bill,"
followed by what appears to be the foreman's initials and Tuesday's date.

-snip-

Full article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061213/ap_on_re_us/playstation_theft

Oops!

[Vidar]

17. Glad they're charging the SOB.

[Jack_DeLeon]

18. Good deal, kill two birds with one stone...

Get a bad cop off of the streets, and the thing that does it is killing some violent criminal who likely would have committed worse later in his career.