Posted on 09/08/2006 4:59:53 AM PDT by radar101
PEGGY PEATTIE / Union-Tribune Lisa Maree Gaut was arraigned Thursday in the case involving Chargers linebacker Steve Foley. The charges against her include assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer.
Conflicting versions of the controversial shooting of San Diego Chargers linebacker Steve Foley unfolded yesterday during and after a court hearing in which Foley's female companion pleaded not guilty to criminal charges. The prosecutor painted a picture of drunken, criminal behavior in which Foley was wounded by an off-duty police officer who felt he was “trapped” in a cul de sac near Foley's home and in danger of being rammed by the woman at the wheel of Foley's vehicle.
Meanwhile, the woman's lawyer said she acted “heroically” and that neither she nor Foley realized that the man trying to stop them on suspicion of drunken driving was an officer.
The lawyer said Foley and the woman thought they might have been the targets of a carjacker or “an over-exuberant fan” early Sunday morning before the officer shot Foley in the confrontation.
Lisa Maree Gaut, 25, of San Diego pleaded not guilty yesterday in San Diego Superior court to four felony and misdemeanor charges, including assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer and driving under the influence. If convicted, she could be sent to prison for up to five years.
Foley, who was unarmed that morning, has undergone two surgeries at Sharp Memorial Hospital. He suffered wounds to his hand, upper thigh and lower inner thigh, a source said.
Foley was moved out of surgical intensive care yesterday. He was visited by family and teammates, who said he was in good spirits.
A spokesman for the District Attorney's Office said yesterday there “is no word yet” on whether Foley will be charged with any crimes. Police said Wednesday that Foley has refused to speak to detectives investigating the shooting.
Judge David M. Szumowski set Gaut's bail at $35,000 and scheduled a bail review hearing Tuesday. The judge also scheduled a Sept. 20 hearing at which prosecutors are expected to present evidence in the case.
Meanwhile, Gaut remains in custody at Las Colinas Detention Facility in Santee.
Outside the courtroom, Gaut's lawyer, Raymond Vecchio, rebutted prosecutors' claims that Gaut tried to ram the officer when she got behind the wheel of Foley's Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme during the confrontation. Instead, Vecchio said, Gaut was coming to Foley's aid when she saw the officer shoot Foley in the cul de sac after the officer had followed and attempted to stop them for erratic driving.
Deputy District Attorney James Koerber told the judge that the off-duty Coronado police officer – identified as Aaron Mansker, 23 – was driving home to Escondido from work about 3 a.m. Sunday when he saw the Oldsmobile “weaving all over the road” on northbound state Route 163.
Koerber said Foley, 30, was in the driver's seat of the Oldsmobile and Gaut in the passenger's seat. They had been drinking at a bar in downtown San Diego for several hours before getting into the car, the prosecutor said.
Koerber said the officer, who was not in uniform and was driving his own car, followed Foley and called for assistance by radio. The prosecutor said Foley drove up to 90 mph before getting off the freeway in the Poway area.
When they reached a stop sign, the officer pulled his car up to the driver's side of the Oldsmobile and identified himself, but Foley uttered an expletive and drove off, the prosecutor said.
Foley and the officer stopped two more times before the pursuit ended near Foley's home on Travertine Court, the prosecutor said. He said the officer repeatedly identified himself to Foley and Gaut, both of whom ignored his commands.
After the final stop, Mansker decided to drive away, the prosecutor said. But the officer then realized he had driven into a cul de sac and was trapped.
Foley started walking past his house and toward the officer, Koerber said. When Mansker fired a warning shot into the bushes, Gaut – now behind the wheel of the Oldsmobile – drove around Foley and “tried to ram the officer,” the prosecutor said.
Koerber told the judge that Gaut was arrested in July 2004 in Solano County near San Francisco on suspicion of driving a stolen vehicle, but failed to make any court appearances. According to court records, Solano County prosecutors have also accused her of receiving stolen property and possession of a forged check.
Gaut's lawyer said the facts of the case would eventually show that his client “acted heroically and not criminally.” He said after the hearing that Gaut tried to come to Foley's aid and “lead him to safety,” but never put the officer in any jeopardy.
Vecchio said the officer fired at Gaut twice, but she was not injured. He said the key to the whole case is whether Gaut or Foley understood that Mansker was a police officer.
“It could have been a carjacker; it could have been an over-exuberant fan,” Vecchio said. “He did not know. She did not know.”
Vecchio said he had not received reports yesterday of Gaut's blood-alcohol content the night of the shooting. He described Gaut and Foley as “friends” and said she was not used to driving Foley's restored 1971 Oldsmobile, which may explain the revving sounds of an engine that neighbors reportedly heard.
Her father Terry Gaut, who lives in New Mexico, said he has stayed glued to television news reports and Internet blogs for updates on his daughter's case. “She's a good kid really. She's just had some tough times,” he said yesterday, adding that his daughter is a single mother who works construction jobs.
“I can only imagine what she felt after getting shot at,” he said. “When I heard that, it really scared the hell out of me.”
Staff writers Kristina Davis and Jim Trotter contributed to this report.
I can't think of a single reason I would stop in the middle of the night for someone identifying themselves as a police officer in a civilian car. Paticularly, if I was a millionaire.
This is going to be interesting to follow. Something about the cop's story just doesn't add up (planned on leaving but got trapped in a cul de sac??). I think it may be a case of a trigger happy cop engaging in "road rage". He'd been on the force a year and his prior experience was at a college.
If he didn't think the officer was real he should have called the police himself.
Given all the unmarked and ununiformed money arresters I see on the road, I drive to where there are plenty of people around.
I support the police, and would normally give them the benefit of the doubt. But, this story does not sound right, not right at all.
I can't blame Foley for being suspicious of his pursuer, and since when is walking towards an officer, a reason to get shot...3 times?
What gave this officer the right to drive his civilian car at speeds up to 90 MPH in pursuit of this couple? His car is not equipped with warning signals, I also didnt know police officers were authorised to have a radio with the correct police band to contact their force in their private vehicles.
The picture shown of this woman sure makes her look like 100 miles of rough road.
Agreed, and how do you like this statement:
…Mansker fired a warning shot into the bushes…
Sorry, but this one doesn’t pass the smell test.
Maybe he was going to. He drove straight home, but got shot before he could get inside.
Based on the cop's story, I'd have tried to escape the cop as well - and taken steps to defend myself. There would be NO reason to believe some guy in civilian clothes driving his own car at night is really a cop.
My assumption would be it was a thief and potential murderer, and I would have done whatever necessary to defend myself and my family.
I hope this cop goes to prison. By his own words, he is guilty.
I wouldn't blame anyone for thinking an officer in an unmarked car is an impersonator, but in that case you go to a public area with a lot of people and call the police yourself. I doubt if Foley was in fear. His neck is bigger than most people's torsos.
Sounds like another cop on a "power" high. Strange what that does to some people.
Until there is a more thorough investigation, evidence, and testimony under oath I wouldn't jump to any conclusions.
Yes ,we all know off-duty officers have the power to make an arrest. In fact any citizen has this right. We can all make citizens arrests, However we arent authorised to drive at speeds up to 90 mph to make these arrests, and I dont think P.O.'s are either.
Now lets put ourselves in that officers place. He has already told Foley he was an officer, and Foley blew him off. Now he is chasing the guy at 90 mph. Did he really think a man as big as Foley was going to fold up for him when he reached his destination? The officer had to know he was facing a potentially violent situation when this man stopped. Taking the tag number and reporting this to police would have been the prudent move. In chasing this man he was actually adding to the danger of other people on the highway and doing so without the support of a siren to warn people ahead of what was coming.
A drunk on the highway at 55 is not near as dangerous as a drunk in a chase at 90 mph.
The article says the officer followed Foley, not chased, and that the officer didn't identify himself until they got to a stop. If the officer was in his own personal car without lights, that's probably true.
Where I live, someone making a 'citizen's arrest', or an off-duty cop trying to make an arrest, is likely to face a fight.
Anyone can buy an official looking badge. You can even buy a revolving light to stick on top of your car. Neither makes you a cop.
Folks have died stopping for fake cops. And some guy who is in civilian clothes, who hasn't shown any badge, who is in his personal car, in the night - if he tries to stop me, I'm assuming he's a crook. And if he pulls a gun, I'm assuming he is going to try to kill me and take my stuff or rape my wife.
This 23 year old cop is an IDIOT! He chased a car in his private vehicle and fired shots into the bushes! He is a much greater threat than the folks he stopped and attacked.
According to the article he followed Foley, not chased. The police will find out if Foley was drunk, and had been drinking several hours before the incident. If that's the case, then your dream of seeing the police officer go to jail will be over.
"Four Chicago police officers have been arrested on multiple felony charges after a long-ranging corruption investigation revealed the men allegedly used their badges to intimidate their way into residents' homes, officials announced Thursday."
"The charges against the officers include armed violence, home invasion, aggravated kidnapping and delivery of a controlled substance, according to Cook County State's Attorney Dick Devine."
"The officers are part of the department's Special Operations Section, which focuses on gang and drug crimes, he said. They are accused of using their police badges to intimidate people and gain access to their homes, he said, but he refused to reveal many other details of the case until the officers' initial court appearances on Friday afternoon."
"I think you can see by the nature of the charges, home invasion and kidnapping charges, gives some sense of what we're talking about," Devine said.
She is the reason the cop tried to pull him over. Cop is white and pissed that a man of color has a white girl. end of story... fire that cop.
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