They Don't Always Get Away With It.

Just caught this story: It is nice to see that a Grand Jury has done the right thing in this case.

Former Texas cop indicted on manslaughter after firing 41 shots at suspect after pursuit

A grand jury indicted a former Texas police officer Monday on a manslaughter charge in the fatal shooting of an unarmed suspect following a high-speed pursuit. A judge set bond Tuesday at $100,000 for 33-year-old Patrick Tuter, who’s accused of firing 41 shots at 25-year-old Michael Allen Vincent following a half-hour chase on Aug. 31, 2012. Investigators said Tuter, who stopped to reload twice, struck Allen three times, killing him. Garland police fired Tuter earlier this year after finding that he’d violated the department’s use-of-force and pursuit policies, and Judge Lena Levario noted that and a previous violation in setting his bond well above the typical $25,000 amount for manslaughter. “I’m not concerned about whether he is going to return to court or not,” the judge said. “I’m concerned about public safety.” Levario pointed out that the other officer did not fire and hid behind his patrol car during the fusillade, although defense attorneys claim the other officer was never in any real danger. The chase began just after midnight when Tuter spotted a white GMC pickup that had been involved in an earlier chase with Sasche police. Garland police tried to stop the pickup, but Allen fled as Dallas County sheriff’s deputies joined the chase, which reached speeds up to 100 mph. Allen turned in to a cul-de-sac, where police initially said he turned around and hit a squad car as officers tried to box him in. But dashboard camera video showed that Tuter struck Allen’s pickup with his squad car and then shot him to death. Witnesses said officers gave Allen less than 3 seconds after ordering him out of his pickup before opening fire, striking the vehicle at least 20 times. A police dog then pulled Allen from the vehicle, and officers flipped him onto his stomach and placed him in handcuffs before checking his pulse, witnesses said. A 20-year-old woman in the pickup was not injured. A neighbor said police confiscated his cell phone and deleted pictures and video he shot of the incident but returned the device four days later. As a condition of his bail, Tuter can’t work as a police officer or hold any job that requires him to use a weapon.

Link to Story

reply to post by Mamatus


Now if we could just get more Grand Juries involved in policing the rouge cops the happeir I think we would all be. Don't get me wrong, I have met some great cops (ask me about not getting a 110mph ticket recently) but some of these guys are just simply not worthy of a badge.
Sorry bout second post, wrong buttons

reply to post by Mamatus


Seems like anytime there there's a pursuit, somebody has to turn to into Judge Dredd. If you're firing 41 shots in pursuit of an unarmed person, more likely than not you are the bigger threat to society.

reply to post by theantediluvian


Lets see. Fired 41 shots. He rammed the pickup which meant it was close quarters, only 20 shots hit the pickup and only three the suspect. 3 in 41 at close range! Hmm, not good shooting. What? 8 - 9 feet away and only hit a large vehicle with half the shots? Damn, I agree with the Judge, menace to the neighbors. Just where did the other 21 shots go?

P

theantediluvian
reply to post by Mamatus

 

Seems like anytime there there's a pursuit, somebody has to turn to into Judge Dredd. If you're firing 41 shots in pursuit of an unarmed person, more likely than not you are the bigger threat to society.

We had an incident locally where a man with chainsaw was fatally wounded by the police. The LEOS's fired Over 40 rounds hitting him about a dozen times before he finally fell.

Bullets began to fly. Investigators said the wounded trooper fired first. Then four state troopers and local officers began shooting, in all 40 rounds. More than a dozen of them hit Hinkle, eventually killing him. Even after the first few shots, investigators said, Hinkle wouldn't give up. "I want to stress, after being hit initially, it did not stop him. He did not stop," said Pennsylvania State Police Captain Kenneth Hill.

thefiringline.com...

A neighbor said police confiscated his cell phone and deleted pictures and video he shot of the incident but returned the device four days later. As a condition of his bail, Tuter can’t work as a police officer or hold any job that requires him to use a weapon.

reply to post by Mamatus


What right do they have to confiscate a personal cell phone and delete the photos and video on a personal cell phone that was recorded evidence of the incident. There should be an investigation into who deleted the photos and video. I can understand confiscating the cell phone as evidence, but to delete the photos and video is tampering and destroying evidence. Someone on the force should be held accountable.

reply to post by pheonix358


don't forget destruction of evidence.

after all, if he had nothing to hide...

Personally I feel this story deserves a lot more than local press. Running from the cops is a really bad idea but until the vehicle is used as a weapon the cops should make more use of their radios than their guns.

Some good cops out there, this is not one of them. It makes me wonder how many awful things this officer did before completely losing it.....

Reminds me of Barney Fife....Pow Pow Pow,,"stop or I'll shoot".

3 seconds? This guy had no chance.

Running from the Cops is now an automatic death sentence.

reply to post by Mamatus


If a civilian did half those things it wouldn't be a manslaughter charge.

I will believe there's an ounce of justice when police are held at least at the same standards as everyone else.

41 shots and it's still just a manslaughter charge?

Really?

second degree murder n. a non-premeditated killing, resulting from an assault in which death of the victim was a distinct possibility. Second degree murder is different from First Degree Murder which is a premeditated, intentional killing, or results from a vicious crime such as arson, rape, or armed robbery. Exact distinctions on degree vary by state.

That's the definition that exists for the rest of us.

reply to post by whyamIhere


running from a cop definitely is a death sentence...it seems just disobeying a cop is grounds for a beating if not death.....if cops want to be recognised as the peace officers they are meant to be the good ones need to weed out the bad ones as they are all getting lumped into the one category and rightly so..

reply to post by Rosinitiate


Just because that one guy wouldn't go down after a few shots, it doesn't make everyone the police encounter in situations like this some kinda super human leatherface. I'd hate if an officer had the mentality that that kinda case proves the rule for excessive use of force.

Its not like a single bullet wouldn't stop 99% of us all of a sudden just because it didnt stop that guy.

Not trying to put down your post or anything. Im just saying. Oh and sorry if i just read it wrong and you were just posting it without it being a justification or something.

OrphanApology
reply to post by Mamatus

 

If a civilian did half those things it wouldn't be a manslaughter charge.

I will believe there's an ounce of justice when police are held at least at the same standards as everyone else.

41 shots and it's still just a manslaughter charge?

Really?

second degree murder n. a non-premeditated killing, resulting from an assault in which death of the victim was a distinct possibility. Second degree murder is different from First Degree Murder which is a premeditated, intentional killing, or results from a vicious crime such as arson, rape, or armed robbery. Exact distinctions on degree vary by state.

That's the definition that exists for the rest of us.

Very well put! Guess we could ask a little more from the Grand Jury, but at least it is something. Progress comes not in leaps, but tiny steps. Not not fast enough for my taste though as everywhere I look I am seeing articles regarding excessive force. Someday citizens will have had enough.....

It really makes you think.

reply to post by Mamatus


Citizens have already had enough.

However, we are not the "watchers".

I like that old saying. How does it go? Who watches the watchers?

That isn't us. The cops have no real repercussions for murder and the destruction of evidence because there is and will never be anyone to hold them accountable.

One day one of these cops will murder or hurt someone and the grand jury will refuse to give them real charges and consequences. Someone will then kill them themselves. Who knows, maybe that has already happened. But you will never see it on the news and when you do, guess who will be the bad guy?.

reply to post by Mamatus


"Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?"

"Who watches the watchmen?"

namaste

reply to post by Rosinitiate








The way I heard it, Billy never got near the cops. One had a mark on his uniform.

My LEO buddy here told me it was unjustified, and was actually pretty upset about it.

reply to post by whyamIhere
now thats a fact

reply to post by GreenManXphile


Just to clear up confusion, my post wasn't intended to make me a proponent of excessive force. Just relaying a similar incident, regardless of the post, the way I remember it, and apparently so does flyerFox, was that everyone one of them should be fired and kicked off the force.

Although it says 40 shots and 13 hit, i remember it differently. The FortyFort police got a lot of # for having really bad aim and also excessive force. I heard the "perp" wasn't nearly as aggressive as stated and there was debate if he even went after a cop.

reply to post by Mamatus


He shot with malice of forethought the charge should have been murder.