Officer charged with killing unarmed driver laying facedown

The Salt Lake Tribune ^ | 03/24/2015 | MARK SCOLFORO

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Harrisburg, Pa. • A police officer was charged Tuesday with criminal homicide after investigators concluded she shot an unarmed motorist in the back as he lay facedown after a traffic stop over an expired inspection sticker.

Authorities accused Hummelstown police Officer Lisa J. Mearkle of shooting David Kassick, 59, twice Feb. 2 without legal justification. She was jailed without bail.

They said Mearkle had attempted to pull over Kassick for expired inspection and emissions stickers before he sped away. She caught up to Kassick near his sister's home, where he got out and ran.

[vette6387]

“Mississippi just did away with mandatory auto inspections and stickers. Looks like it’s a good thing.”

So tell us, has Parchment Prison done away with “ringing up” prisoners with a telephone magneto yet? Remember Red is Positive, Black is Negative, and make sure his balls are wet!

[Tennessee Nana]

Harrisburg, Pa. • A police officer...shot an unarmed motorist ...over an expired inspection sticker.
________________________________________________

Boy theyre tough there...

[navyguy]

Exactly!

Gotta have standards...

;-)

[Bratch]

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Jason Leoszewski and Gerald O'Hara, both of Hummelstown, were honored Jan. 10 with certificates of appreciation for their heroic intervention during a domestic dispute on Dec. 19 along Main Street, involving a cache of guns. From left are Hummelstown police Chief Charles Dowell, Leoszewski, O'Hara, and Officer Lisa Mearkle.

TRICIA KLINE, The Patriot-News

 

[trisham]

Horrible. What an awful, awful thing.

[C210N]

It's easy for an officer to accidentally discharge a weapon...

cop accidentally shoots suspect

classroom shooting

[trisham]

She looks grim.

[gr8eman]

I wouldn’t hit it!

[Zman516]

Maybe once, not twice.

[headstamp 2]

Tell me that’s a guy on the left, please.

[Salamander]

She ought to, considering.

[Salamander]

Who really knows, anymore.

We’re all living in Lou Reed’s nightmares.

[trisham]

She should, but with something like this one can at times be dealing with someone who is lacking in normal reactions. She doesn’t seem mentally ill.

[fr_freak]

Women shouldn’t be cops, period. For far more reasons than just this incident.

[Bigg Red]

No flames from this woman; your father was correct.

[mass55th]

She should have put a BOLO out on the guy and his car when he took off on her the first time. It wasn’t imperative to bring him in at that precise moment, especially for having vehicle violations, which was the reason she initially stopped him. They could have issued an arrest warrant that could be executed later. I can understand her frustration over him taking off on her, but she should have called for back-up once he’d stopped at his sister’s house and took off running. If she’d incapacitated him with a stun gun as the article says, she should have immediately cuffed him while he was laying on the ground.

[duffee]

I’m pretty sure they must have done away with that years ago, I don’t believe they chop or pick cotton anymore either. I’ve never had any personal experience with “Parchman” other than to drive through the area but I’ve always heard it would be an experience to avoid..

[duffee]

twice? in the back? with a man laying on the ground face down?

[pa_dweller]

Aw man, the irony -

The folks who write their press releases could use some edumacation!

[C210N]

Sorry, did not make the mark of sarcasm. After my “innocent” comment, my examples were of officer stupidity.