Latino Man Blasted by Shelbyville Police at Cookout: Victim's relatives deny he shot at police

 
Two sons and the daughter of a Shelbyville man shot dead by a policeman's bullet on Saturday remembered their father yesterday as a happy man who helped people. Fermin had been cooking fajitas and making tacos crisp on a grill because classmates from school, years ago in Mexico, came here from their home in Dalton, Ga., to see Fermin, his family, the land he bought and the house he owned, relatives said. "Man, we were having so much fun before they came," said William. "When you're happy, you're like a song," he said, and he explained, like others at the house yesterday, "A ballad had started playing and he was walking and he shot some shots to the ground, and that's when we saw the officers. "At no time did they yell or say anything. When he turned around, he went down. I saw him go down," Williams said in contrast with Shelbyville Police Chief Austin Swing's report Saturday night that "[Estrada] turned toward the officers and fired in their direction." William countered: "They say my father shot back at them, but how could he? He had shot all the bullets to the ground before he realized they were behind him. When he turned around, it was square in the face. "The way they came onto our property, they should have come on the driveway. They came through the woods. They came across the back fence. The man who shot the rifle, he looked like he was hunting," William said.moremore

NAACP Urges Review of Baton Rouge Police: NO Answers in Shooting of Unarmed Black Man, George Temple

 
A predominantly black audience lent their signatures and their voices Tuesday to the Baton Rouge NAACP’s call for an independent review of the Police Department amid recent  allegations of brutality. More than 200 people filled Elm Grove Baptist Church on North 38th Street where Metro Councilmen Ulysses “Bones” Addison and Byron Sharper pledged to bring an end to “injustice.” Sharper said the city-parish has paid out more than $5 million in lawsuits against police officers accused of using excessive force. “That’s your money going toward lawsuits instead of helping the community,” he said. “We definitely have a problem in this city.” Each person in attendance was given two copies of a letter — one for themselves and one for a friend — addressed to Mayor-President Kip Holden and two stamped envelopes. The letter calls for the establishment of a citizens oversight board to “investigate allegations of police misconduct and recommend actions to the chief or sheriff.” Asanté also called for volunteers to get 20 signatures each on a petition, calling local government to action in regard to the shooting death of black businessman George Temple III during a traffic stop and the alleged beating of a 21-year-old Southern University student, Aaron Davis,  also during a traffic stop. Temple was killed last month by a white bystander as he fought with a white police officer after being ticketed during a funeral procession. A The officer, 32-year-old Brian Harrison, has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.more

• Pictured above: George Temple II, center, poses in a 2005 Christmas photo with his sisters Tiffany Temple, left, and Candace Temple. He was shot dead in a parking lot after a scuffle with a Baton Rouge police officer. [more] 

Lawsuit Against Waco Police & Taser Company for Shocking Black Man to Death Moves Forward

A district judge today refused to dismiss the city of Waco from a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a disabled veteran who died after being shocked by Waco police with electrical stun guns. Judge Vicki Menard of Waco's 414th State District Court ruled against the city a day after hearing arguments from attorneys for the city and the family of Robert Earl Williams Sr., who died June 14, 2005, after being subdued by police during a disturbance at his sister's house. Waco attorney Charles Olson, who represents the city, argued Tuesday that the city should be dismissed from the suit because it has sovereign immunity against claims arising from intentional acts, as opposed to negligent acts, by city employees. Olson charged the plaintiffs were trying to skirt the city's immunity against such claims by alleging that the officers acted negligently instead of intentionally. Vic Feazell, one of two Austin attorneys representing the Williams family, said he found the city's argument interesting but flawed and that the judge made the right decision in denying the city's move to dismiss the case. Olson had argued that the city also was immune from lawsuits concerning the results of discretionary law enforcement decisions, such as the use of Taser devices. Besides the city, the lawsuit also names as defendants Taser International and Affordable Realistic Tactical Training, a company that trained Waco officers to use the Tasers. Waco police have confirmed that it took five officers and multiple shocks with the Taser device to subdue the 6-foot-1-inch, 280-pound Williams after they were called to the 1900 block of South 22nd Street because of a domestic disturbance involving Williams and his sister. An autopsy showed that Williams died from “acute physiologic stress associated with multiple electrical shocks during attempted restraint by police for schizophrenia with excited delirium.” [more]

AP Erases Video of Israeli Soldier Shooting Palestinian Boy

 
In the midst of journalism’s “Sunshine Week” – during which the Associated Press and other news organizations are valiantly proclaiming the public’s “right to know” – AP insists on conducting its own activities in the dark, and refuses to answer even the simplest questions about its system of international news reporting. Most of all, it refuses to explain why it erased footage of an Israeli soldier intentionally shooting a Palestinian boy.  AP, according to its website, is the world’s oldest and largest news organization. It is the behemoth of news reporting, providing what its editors determine is the news to a billion people each day. Through its feeds to thousands of newspapers, radio and television stations, AP is a major determinant in what Americans read, hear and see – and what they don’t. [more]

• Pictured above: Footage of this boy being intentionally shot by an Israeli soldier was erased by the Associated Press. [more]
  

Brownsville Police Block release of Documents in Shooting of Latino Teenager

Brownsville police filed a request with the Texas Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday to prevent the release of videotapes that show a Feb. 25 chase that ended with the shooting death of an alleged car thief. Three customs agents and two Brownsville police officers shot 17-year-old Edgar Ivan Lopez to death following a chase that ended at the B&M Bridge, police said. Lopez allegedly tried to evade arrest and run over a customs agent in an attempt to escape into Matamoros, police said. The teen’s family filed a wrongful death and excessive force lawsuit with the 103rd state District Court less than 72 hours after his death. Both The Brownsville Herald and San Antonio Express-News requested copies of the reports and the videotapes taken from police cars involved in the fatal chase. In letter dated March 7, the Brownsville Police Department asked Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott to consider its request to withhold the video recordings. Brownsville Police Chief Carlos Garcia said his agency is expected to release the written reports today but was advised by the department’s attorneys to withhold the video recordings based on the ongoing investigation and pending litigation. [more] and [more]

• Officers named in teen’s death: Officials release report of shooting [more]
  
• Five officers fired at car during fatal car chase [more] 

Alameda County Police Conspired to Keep Quiet the Murder of Martress Rogers: Black Man Shot by Off Duty Cops

 
Authorities say the officers knew their complicity in the slaying of Martress Rogers would destroy their careers and ruin their lives. So the men allegedly gathered in mid-November and made a secret pact: "They conspired not to tell," Alameda County sheriff's Cmdr. Greg Ahern said. For four months, it seemed as if the plan might work. At least one of the men, a 27-year-old Ashland resident, managed to get a job as a police officer at a Richmond high school. But anonymous tips and a trail of blood caught up with them. On Friday afternoon, after a series of arrests, Hussam "Sam" Elhosseiny, 25, of Ashland was arraigned in the Hayward Hall of Justice and charged with fatally shooting Rogers on Nov. 12. Ahern said Rogers — survived by a 2-year-old son and a fiancee pregnant with his child — was in the wrong Ashland neighborhood at the wrong time. "We believe it was just an argument that ensued over an SUV that was illegally parked." The group of friends had just arrived back at their apartment complex in the Ashland area after a night of drinking. It was about 4 a.m. They pulled up to the Ashland Garden Apartments — home to Lee and Hussam Elhosseiny — in a Ford Excursion. Whoever was driving temporarily double-parked the SUV in the middle of Ashland Avenue. Seven people are believed to have been present, and some of them remain under investigation as possible accomplices, Ahern said. Rogers came driving down the street in his red Chevrolet Corsica, apparently heading home. He found his route blocked by the SUV. Harsh words were exchanged between Rogers and the men in the Excursion. Police say Lee came over to the Corsica and allegedly attacked Rogers in his vehicle. Ahern said Lee cut his hand in the melee, and detectives say that helped them trace the blood back to Lee's nearby apartment. At some point, detectives say, Hussam Elhosseiny fired a semiautomatic pistol into the Corsica. Two bullets struck Rogers, one in his torso. He attempted to escape, driving nearly two miles before he crashed on Tropic Court near Lewelling Boulevard. Police officers found him lying outside the car. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. His maternal grandmother, Deloise Quarles, said outside a courtroom Friday that Rogers was "intelligent, attentive, and he loved his family. He was fixing to get married, and it all went down the drain. He didn't bother anyone. It's not fair."moremore

• Martress Rogers R.IP. [more] 

Richmond Police Officer Indicted again in Shooting: Facing Manslaughter Charge in Shooting of Unarmed Black Man

 
Still NO JUSTICE for Santanna Olavarria
A Richmond grand jury yesterday indicted former police officer Michael Couture on a voluntary-manslaughter charge in the 2004 shooting of Santanna Bryant Olavarria. "I intend to clear the air by giving a jury the opportunity to resolve this once and for all," Commonwealth's Attorney Michael N. Herring said, confirming the indictment. Trial is scheduled for May 23. Last year, a special grand jury indicted Couture, 31, and his rookie partner, Edward Aeschlimann, on second-degree murder charges in connection with the shooting. It took place May 29, 2004, after the officers pulled over Olavarria, 21, near Mechanicsville Turnpike and Fairfield Way in Richmond's East End. When a jury in November deadlocked in Couture's case, then-Commonwealth's Attorney David M. Hicks, who tried the case, postponed Aeschlimann's prosecution. He left the decision on Aeschlimann's trial and a possible retrial of Couture in the hands of Herring.  Couture has said that he jumped into Olavarria's moving car during a struggle with the suspect, who had been pulled over for running a stop sign. On his back in the passenger seat of Olavarria's car, Couture said he fired at Olavarria because he feared for his life. Hearing the shot, Aeschlimann said he feared for his partner's life and fired four times into the vehicle from behind, striking Olavarria three times. An autopsy determined both men fired a shot that could be considered fatal. "I'm grateful -- I'm elated. I want somebody to fight for my child, and he did that today," Olavarria's mother, Annette, said last night about Herring, who will try the case himself. "Of course, I wish it was a second-degree charge, but I will accept manslaughter. I will accept anything that, God willing, will bring justice. [more]

• Officer who killed man resigns [more]
• Officer won't be prosecuted [more]
• A question of deadly force. Richmond police shooting case has been forwarded to the Justice Department. [more]
  

$20,000 Settlement Accepted in Excessive Force Suit: Black College Football Star Killed by Sacramento Deputies

 
The parents of former college football star Anthony Vontoure, who sued Sacramento County sheriff's deputies alleging that excessive force and negligence killed their 22-year-old son four years ago, have accepted a $20,000 settlement to their wrongful death suit. According to terms of the settlement, the amount will be given to De La Salle High School in Concord where Vontoure was an all-state football player. He went on to become a standout cornerback on the University of Washington 2001 Rose Bowl team. The money is "for the purpose of funding an academic or sports scholarship in the Vontoure family name," said the four-page settlement agreement obtained by The Bee in a public records request. The parents sued the county, Sheriff Lou Blanas, deputies Timothy Wetzel, Gregory Saunders, Jay Newton, Jeff Brace and Jeff Long seeking $25 million. [more] and [more]

Dept. of Justice Contines to Investigate Spartanburg Sheriff Killing of Aaron Gray

• Unarmed Black Man Gunned Down 

It turns out two Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Deputies who were cleared in the shooting of a suspect earlier this month aren’t off the hook just yet. Back in February 2005, two narcotics officers shot and killed Aaron Clark Gray during a drug sting in Boiling Springs.  About two weeks ago the SC Attorney General’s Office said a state and federal review of those officers was over, but the US Department of Justice says that’s not the case. The confusion started March 2, when the spokesman for the Attorney General said state prosecutors would not pursue criminal charges against Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Narcotics Officers, Chris Raymond and Glen Stewart.  The spokesman says the announcement came after the federal decision not to take action in the case. But, a federal civil rights review is still open, and the Department of Justice says miscommunication between departments is responsible for the mix-up. The State maintains they received information that the federal review was to be closed and were not aware of any changes by the Department of Justice. The two officers say Gray tried to run them over with his car and they were acting in self defense, the state found the shooting justified.  However, Gray’s family and friends say he was unarmed and his car wasn’t headed in the officers’ direction.  The officers fired more than 14 shots at Gray. The Rev. Jesse Jackson criticized the officers' actions in 2005 during a visit to Spartanburg, saying the  shooting was racially motivated because Gray was black. State Rep. Karl Allen, a Greenville attorney who represents Gray's mother, said he was confident a  proper federal review would show the officers used excessive force.  [more] and [more]

•  Jesse Jackson Demands Action in Police Shooting of Aaron Clark Gray [more]
  

Answers sought in killing of Mexican national by state trooper

• Parents, wife suspect violation of civil rights; DPS says investigation under way 
  

A grand jury in Starr County has not made a decision in a DPS shooting. A couple of months ago, police say a DPS trooper shot and killed Ismael Segura in Escobares. Segura was an immigrant from Mexico. Reports state the trooper believed Segura was pulling something out of his pocket during a foot chase. The District Attorney plans to present the evidence to a new grand jury in April. Some townspeople said they were angry because they thought the slaying could have been avoided. But it wasn't clear during the chase that the victim was unarmed, DPS spokeswoman Lisa Block said. She said O'Connor and a second trooper pulled Segura over on U.S. 83 on suspicion of drunken driving. When they tried to handcuff him, Segura broke free, pushing O'Connor to the ground. He ran about 1,000 yards, stopping between a house and brick wall. "O'Connor repeatedly warned him to stop and Segura Mendez ignored the warning and proceeded toward the trooper in a threatening manner," she said. Segura died in a hospital. At his beauty salon, José Pérez Guerrero, 55, said he thought the killing could have been avoided. Customers there on a recent afternoon agreed. "It was negligent because he shot an immigrant without a weapon," Pérez said. Sandra Mendoza, a vice consul at the Mexican Consulate in McAllen, said she expects the investigation will be complete in a few weeks. "What is clear, is that Ismael did not have a gun or something to put the police officer's life in danger," she said. "There may have been an excessive use of force."[more] and  [more] and [more]

• Mexican government asks for investigation of death [more]
  
• Autopsy reveals bruises [more]