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Indeed it is if you've been ordered to drop the weapon. BTW, I can hit the 9's with my weak hand at 15 feet. Are you from Riverton? |
Posted on 05/24/2005 3:16:38 PM PDT by bubberland
Sheriff's office awards Medals of Distinction
The Medal of Distinction is given to deputies who perform a distinguished act of courage involving serious risk and danger to save or protect human life or who are exposed to grave personal risk during an investigation and accept those risks. The other deputies who were awarded the medal this year all had used deadly force: Deputy Alan Morrical and his police dog, Chaos, were involved in an incident on April 18, 2004, in Riverton. Morrical fired a shot at Chad Thomson, 32, who had been cornered by Chaos in a neighbor's back yard. Thomson was carrying a loaded shotgun and told surrounding deputies he had his finger on the trigger, deputies and witnesses said. He also raised his weapon toward deputies, according to the sheriff's office. Thomson was shot in the head and died. The incident is the subject of a lawsuit filed in April, alleging the shooting "was wrongful, neglectful and unreasonable." * A month prior to the Riverton incident, Sgt. Jason Johnson and deputies Alexander Bell and Jason Ashment shot and killed a man after they were allegedly fired upon. The man, a known gang member, had earlier fired at a West Valley City police officer.
(Excerpt) Read more at sltrib.com ...
It seems strange that the officer would be honored before all of the facts come out at trial. It may turn out that the officer is, in fact, not a hero. My questions, from the first article, include:
1. Had the deceased communicated his intent to surrender before being surrounded by the police?
2. Had the dog effectively disabled the deceased so he was no longer a threat? (Seems hard to have a finger on the trigger and point a shotgun -- requiring two hands -- with a dog tearing your leg apart).
3. Had the deceased committed a felony or was he attempting to flee?
4. Were there any witnesses whose accounts differ from those of the police? (since the deceased can no longer give his version of events).
5. Just having your finger on the trigger of a gun is not a crime. Did the deceased actually point the gun at the officers or was the gun just pointed at himself or the dog? (would not seem to merit deadly force)
Turns out, that juror was scared sh**less of guns.
Every time some scum is taken out by police, friends or family of these scum sign up on FR to bad mouth the police.
I will bet the percentage of good cops are higher than your type of work.
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Indeed it is if you've been ordered to drop the weapon. BTW, I can hit the 9's with my weak hand at 15 feet. Are you from Riverton? |
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A four million dollar lawsuit. Four million dollars! Woo... cha-ching!! This may be lost on you, but when you're surrounded by deputies and a K-9, and are ordered to drop the weapon, your four million chances decrease dramatically if you tell them you've got your hand on the trigger of a loaded shotgun. |
I loved pegging the 300 meter target in the 'head' with my 16 at the range.
That aside, if the guy has a dog on him, and he still has a weapon in his hands and is still offering resistance, it's a good bet he's up to something.
Especially since he was in someone else's yard other than his own.
And, given the fact that the deceased was a gang member and had earlier fired on an officer, it is well within reason that he is now 'deceased'.
I can put 12ga sabots in a 4" circle all day long at 100, but that's using both hands.
Standing.
With a riot barrel.
And pistol grips.
Haven't fired a shotty since I was 8.
Something else I have to do 'in future adventures'.
Hmm.. a long barrel goose gun with magnum loads aughta toss me good, right? ;-)
'And, given the fact that the deceased was a gang member and had earlier fired on an officer, it is well within reason that he is now 'deceased'.'
This is a different dude. That said, you are surrounded by the cops, have a police dog at your feet, are told to drop your weapon, but you say "I got my finger on the trigger". Cops fault for sure. Shoot the dumb bastard.
If he dropped the shotty, yes.
If not, hmm.
What was he doing in the neighbor's yard with a loaded shotty anyway?
Doesn't comply in that situation; has to have something else going on. Good for the cop for killing him before he did any damage.
He was up to something.
Good that he didn't accomplish whatever it was he was up to.
(xone, any odds on how long until a troll signs up claiming to be a relative or friend of the deceased and slams us for being mean spirited?)
I thought that was the poster!
*scratches chin*
Confusing little cuss he is.
Drats, you're right!
Chad Thompson, 32, whose family said he had been drinking, was upset after learning that his brother's tour of duty was being extended, according to Sgt. Rosie Rivera, a spokeswoman for the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office.God bless Sgt. Thompson for his service. He had a family, and lost control. Sad though it is, things turned out as they did. It appears he lost control at the wrong time.Thompson, a Guardsman for more than a decade, was a full-time supply staff sergeant stationed at Camp William in Riverton.
Thompson's mother-in-law called authorities just before 2 a.m. Sunday, saying her son-in-law was en route to the family residence "on a rampage" and "irate with everyone," Rivera said.
Deputies found the family safe but located Thompson's car in the area and began a search. Meanwhile, another call came in saying Thompson was at the home holding the family at gunpoint, Rivera said.
Thompson fled out a window with a loaded shotgun when deputies returned, and ran into a neighbor's yard, where he was cornered by a K-9 dog. Thompson was shot after waving the gun at the deputies, Rivera said. He died en route to a hospital.
The sheriff's department has placed at least one deputy on administrative leave while a joint investigation with the district attorney's office is conducted
The subsequent District Attorney's investigation cleared the deputy. The issue you raise involves the civil suit, and for you to jump in the Free Republic punchbowl and drop a serious accusation against the county sheriff's office with little more than your opinion to back it up is disappointing. I'm sure his family and Guard unit miss him. It's a sad story all around, and the outcome of the suit will be interesting. Are you from Riverton?
I'm not trying to accuse the officers. I'm just saying that a couple of newspaper articles can't possibly tell all the relevant facts. Even though the police department cleared the officer's conduct, there is still a pending lawsuit. Maybe in the course of that lawsuit additional facts will surface that "clear" the deceased. Maybe not. I just think its premature to award a medal of honor before the lawsuit has been ruled on or dismissed.
The District Attorney cleared the deputy.
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