Deputy Says He Shot 'Irrational' Marine to Protect Kids in Car

Camp Pendleton Patch ^ | February 10, 2012 | Roy Rivenburg

[brityank]

Deputy Says He Shot 'Irrational' Marine to Protect Kids in Car

15-year veteran of Sheriff's Department says Sgt. Manny Loggins was about to drive away, so he opened fire to prevent a perceived danger to Loggins' daughters. One other deputy was nearby at the time.

The deputy who shot and killed an unarmed Marine sergeant after a predawn traffic stop said the Marine was acting so "irrationally" that it seemed dangerous to let him drive away with his two daughters, an official said Friday.

So when the Marine -- later identified as Sgt. Manny Loggins Jr. of Camp Pendleton -- climbed back into his GMC Yukon and turned the ignition, the deputy opened fire, according to Jim Amormino, a spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

Amormino stressed that he was merely relaying statements made by the deputy to investigators and "not defending" what happened.

"This was a very tragic event, we all feel bad for the family," Amormino said.

The deputy, a 15-year veteran, told investigators he was parked at San Clemente High School writing reports when he spotted Loggins driving "at a high rate of speed" before turning into the lot and crashing into a gate near the football field.

The deputy pulled up behind Loggins and radioed for backup. It was about 4:40 a.m. Tuesday.

Loggins, 31, stepped out of the Yukon and walked off into the darkness toward the football field, ignoring a series of commands made by the deputy. His two daughters, ages 9 and 14, remained in the vehicle.

Other deputies soon arrived and formed a perimeter around the back end of the football field in case Loggins was trying to flee, Amormino said. Because it was dark, nobody could see where Loggins was.

"About five minutes later, Loggins walked back toward the Yukon," Amormino said.

The deputy issued "a new set of commands" which Loggins again didn't follow, Amormino said.

"Due to Loggins' failure to follow the commands and his irrational behavior, including statements he made, the deputy had a deep concern for the safety of the children," Amormino said. "In the deputy's mind, it was unsafe for [Loggins] to drive away with the girls."

Amormino said he couldn't disclose what the alleged "irrational" behaviors or statements entailed, but said Loggins didn't appear to be intoxicated.

When Loggins got back into the Yukon and either started the engine or began trying to drive away, the deputy opened fire, shooting Loggins through the driver side window, which shattered. (The girls were in the back seat and not injured.)

Amormino acknowledged that this version of events differs from an earlier account released by the Sheriff's Department, in which the deputy reportedly opened fire because he feared for his own life.

"The real threat was for the lives of the children," Amormino said Friday. In a case like this, "some information becomes immediately available and some takes longer to get because witnesses have to be interviewed," he noted.

Amormino said this account came from the deputy who fired the shots. Another deputy was nearby, but "I don't know what he saw," Amormino said.

Loggins' daughters were also interviewed by investigators, but Amormino said he didn't know what they said or if their story lined up with the deputy's.

"Whatever the truth is will come out," Amormino said, noting that "a complete and thorough investigation" would be conducted by the Orange County District Attorney's office, which investigates all officer-involved shootings.

Results of the autopsy on Loggins probably won't be made public for a few weeks, after toxicology tests are finished and the sheriff reviews the findings, he said.

Loggins' friends and colleagues have questioned official accounts of what happened, describing the Illinois native as a kind and faith-filled Christian family man who would never disobey authorities or jeopardize the safety of his daughters.

[brityank]

Further down in the Comments, Douglas Martin posts this time-line of the OCSD Blotter call sheet:

This is from the OCSD Blotter. It basically says that:

At 0441::26 OCSD Unit 476 pulled over a vehicle.
At 0441::52 - Thirty seconds later a MB (male black) "TOOK OFF ON FOOT THRU GATE"
At 0444::58 - Three minutes later Unit 476 says that the "want" (the reason for making contact) is
for "HIT AND RUN AND CHILD ENDANGERMENT".
At 0446::55 - Unit 476 requests OCFD medics.

Five minutes is a LONG time for all this to go down (count it out: one-1000, two-1000,
Three-1000, etc). Did the SO kill the Marine before or after he made the "child endangerment"
claim? This story is full of loose ends.

Was the shooting before or after 0444?
So far none of the actions or explanations of the OCSD Deputy makes sense - or a good shoot, IMO.

[brityank]

Ping for more info.

[BenLurkin]

ping

[UnwashedPeasant]

I see “irrational” drivers every day. I did not know it was OK to just kill them.

[Fireone]

“it seemed dangerous “
Oh boy, the John Edwards types are going to have a field day with this one.

[dragnet2]

Bookmark

[dragnet2]

Loggins' daughters were also interviewed by investigators, but Amormino said he didn't know what they said or if their story lined up with the deputy's.

Release the kids statements regarding the circumstances here!

I want to see/hear what they have to say.

[dragnet2]

Loggins' daughters were also interviewed by investigators, but Amormino said he didn't know what they said or if their story lined up with the deputy's.

BTW, you just know, Mr. Amormino, AKA "Droopy dog" is FOS.

No sale!

[catroina54]

were the children removed from the vehicle ?
then there’d be no endangerment.

[Georgia Girl 2]

No Kiddding!! I never knew the penalty for leaving a traffic stop was death.

[Dan Cooper]

I guess they couldn’t have retrieved the children from the car while the Sargent was off on foot. Or disabled the vehicle instead. They had time enough to deploy other LEO to block the other end of the football field.

[microgood]

Executed for what he might do?

[driftdiver]

I wonder if there is history between the officer and the marine.

[brityank]

So far there has been zero coverage of this in any of the major MSM outlets. Who’s hiding what?

[Bryanw92]

The bottom line is this: They killed another black man...and later found out that he was a Marine.

[FReepaholic]

...Amormino acknowledged that this version of events differs from an earlier account released by the Sheriff's Department, in which the deputy reportedly opened fire because he feared for his own life...

They make this sh!t up and then get away with it.

[Krankor]

The deputy was parked at a high school at 4:40 AM “writing reports”. Whenever a cop is parked in a secluded area where he can’t be seen, they always claim to be “writing reports”. I don’t know what really went down with this shooting but, dollars to donuts, the cop wasn’t there “writing reports”.

[brityank]

Did the deputy have his light bar active? Use his siren to alert Sgt. Loggins? Know there were kids in the SUV before he opened fire? Too many inconsistencies!

[dragnet2]

To be blunt, the OCSD here is FOS.

They know exactly what the kids said during the course of the investigation.

Absolutely no mention of the marine having a weapon.

Absolutely no mention the dead marine used his vehicle in an attempt to run over the deputy. Never mentioned.

First the deputy feared for his life. Now suddenly the deputy's version changed, and now he feared for the kids life.

Now the OCSD spokeshole says he does not know what the kids version is?

Jim Amormino, spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Department is GD liar!

[babygene]

ping for later