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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMan Shoots at Intruders, Turns Out it was a No-Knock Raid. Now He Faces the Death Penalty
http://thefreethoughtproject.com/prosecutor-seeking-death-penalty-officer-killed-knock-raid/Dinwiddie, along with three other officers were shot while attempting to breach the windows to the home, according to the departments press release....
Since the shooting occurred during the break in, a reasonable person would assume they had not yet identified themselves as police officers. How on earth is this not self defense?
Prosecutors are now seeking the death penalty against Guy. He is charged with capital murder in Dinwiddies death, as well as three counts of attempted capital murder for firing on the other officers during the shootout, injuring one other officer. Body armor protected others who were hit.
And in case you were wondering...
BuelahWitch
(9,083 posts)Don't they have "castle law"? I guess that doesn't apply when shooting while black?
Rozlee
(2,529 posts)Off Rigsby on the East Side. Delicioso!
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)"Tamale ladies" selling homemade tamales out of carts are commonplace out here. One in SF hits the bars!
yuiyoshida
(41,765 posts)They were so good I bought four of them, and stashed the other three in the fridge!!
Rozlee
(2,529 posts)I'll give Californians the tip of the hat over their chile rellenos. We can't make them for hell down here.
DBoon
(22,288 posts)Yummm......
marlakay
(11,370 posts)Anywhere the vineyards or orchards are there are lots of great mexican places, not just restaurants but cash only just like mexico joints.
LibertyLover
(4,788 posts)shooting while black, I'm sure that Texas' castle doctrine will be found not to,apply.
TheBlackAdder
(28,076 posts)Comrade Grumpy
(13,184 posts)He was white, though:
http://www.stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2014/feb/09/texas_man_not_indicted
Texas Man Not Indicted For Killing Cop in No-Knock Drug Raid
Post to: Twitter Digg StumbleUpon Reddit
by Phillip Smith, February 09, 2014, 05:19pm, (Issue #821)
It happens on a regular basis. Police conducting no-knock drug raids shoot and kill residents, claim they feared for their lives, and walk away free. But now, the shoe is on the other foot.
A Central Texas grand jury has refused to return a murder indictment against a Burleson County man who shot and killed sheriff's Sgt. Adam Sowders as Sowders led a group of law enforcement raiders through the door of the man's mobile home in a no-knock, pre-dawn drug raid on December 19.
The raiders had a search warrant for the home of Henry Goedrich Magee and were looking for marijuana plants and guns. But when they burst through the door, Magee, who was sleeping with his girlfriend, feared a home invasion robbery, grabbed a gun from his bed side, and opened fire, killing Sowders.
"This was a terrible tragedy that a deputy sheriff was killed, but Hank Magee believed that he and his pregnant girlfriend were being robbed," Magee's lawyer, renowned Texas criminal defense attorney Dick DeGuerin told the Associated Press. "He did what a lot of people would have done. He defended himself and his girlfriend and his home."
DeGuerin added that he could not recall another instance of a Texas grand jury declining to indict a defendant in the death of an officer.
The grand jury did indict Magee for the possession of a small number of marijuana plants and for having a gun while growing the pot plants. That charge is possession of marijuana while in possession of a deadly weapon, a third-degree felony. Conviction on a third-degree felony charge is punishable by from two to 10 years in state prison.
Burleson County District Attorney Julie Renken said after the grand jury decision that she thought the shooting had "occurred in a matter of seconds amongst chaos" and she thought the sheriff's office had done things correctly, "There is not enough evidence that Mr. Magee knew that day that peace officers were entering his home," she conceded.
Renken vowed to "fully prosecute" the remaining case against Magee, who has been jailed without bond in nearby Washington County. DeGeurin said Magee will likely be released soon, since he faces only the marijuana and gun charge.
This was all over some pot plants.
Caldwell , TX
United States
malaise
(267,844 posts)I can't take much more of this
Zeteticus
(23 posts)More casualties of the penitentiary-industrial complex.
Damansarajaya
(625 posts)Remember the old Dan Akroyd SNL skits?
billhicks76
(5,082 posts)We should hold those accountable who have corrupted our system of law by exploiting marijuana laws.
hughee99
(16,113 posts)Prosecutors went for murder indictments against the guy in your story and didn't get them from the grand jury. Now they're going for those same charges again. It will be interesting to see what the grand jury says in this case.
uponit7771
(90,225 posts)... I do hold out a little for Nor Texas though... not much
SorellaLaBefana
(139 posts)Which, in Texas, makes all the difference in the world.
However, the root of the problem is not simply the blatant and unremitting racisim of many police departments (any other recent news reports come to mind?) but the more dangerous and insidious embrace of military weapons and tactics by state and local police departments throughout the nation.
In either case, had the cops simply knocked on the door and announced that they were the police it is unlikely that anyone would have been killed.
Which is the Cop Killer, and which the Man Protecting his Family?
Elmer S. E. Dump
(5,751 posts)🅿️
gordianot
(15,226 posts)Like Presidenten, no standing your ground if you are not the right demographic.
AZ Progressive
(3,411 posts)FiveGoodMen
(20,018 posts)VanillaRhapsody
(21,115 posts)gordianot
(15,226 posts)TexasProgresive
(12,148 posts)The breaking and entering can be seen as destruction of property.
Dustlawyer
(10,493 posts)Louisiana1976
(3,962 posts)uponit7771
(90,225 posts)TexasProgresive
(12,148 posts)And what about someone violently breaking into your home, day or night?
Dustlawyer
(10,493 posts)bodily harm or fear of death justifies the use of deadly force day or night as long as that fear is "reasonable." It is only in defense of property does it have to be at night.
TexasProgresive
(12,148 posts)I would call that night, even though I am up at 5AM every morning even when I don't have to.
§ 9.42. DEADLY FORCE TO PROTECT PROPERTY. A person is
justified in using deadly force against another to protect land or
tangible, movable property:
(1) if he would be justified in using force against the
other under Section 9.41; and
(2) when and to the degree he reasonably believes the
deadly force is immediately necessary:
(A) to prevent the other's imminent commission of
arson, burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, theft during the
nighttime, or criminal mischief during the nighttime; or
(B) to prevent the other who is fleeing
immediately after committing burglary, robbery, aggravated
robbery, or theft during the nighttime from escaping with the
property; and
(3) he reasonably believes that:
(A) the land or property cannot be protected or
recovered by any other means; or
(B) the use of force other than deadly force to
protect or recover the land or property would expose the actor or
another to a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, § 1.01, eff. Sept. 1,
But 9.31 1A does not seem to restrict to night time if there is forced entry into dwelling, vehicle or place of business. It does say "unlawfully" entered but how is one to know that it is L.E.O. forcing entry-especially if one is awoken by breaking glass or wood?
Sec. 9.31. SELF-DEFENSE. (a) Except as provided in Subsection (b), a person is justified in using force against another when and to the degree the actor reasonably believes the force is immediately necessary to protect the actor against the other's use or attempted use of unlawful force. The actor's belief that the force was immediately necessary as described by this subsection is presumed to be reasonable if the actor:
(1) knew or had reason to believe that the person against whom the force was used:
(A) unlawfully and with force entered, or was attempting to enter unlawfully and with force, the actor's occupied habitation, vehicle, or place of business or employment;
(B) unlawfully and with force removed, or was attempting to remove unlawfully and with force, the actor from the actor's habitation, vehicle, or place of business or employment; or
(C) was committing or attempting to commit aggravated kidnapping, murder, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, robbery, or aggravated robbery;
(2) did not provoke the person against whom the force was used; and
(3) was not otherwise engaged in criminal activity, other than a Class C misdemeanor that is a violation of a law or ordinance regulating traffic at the time the force was used.
(b) The use of force against another is not justified:
(1) in response to verbal provocation alone;
(2) to resist an arrest or search that the actor knows is being made by a peace officer, or by a person acting in a peace officer's presence and at his direction, even though the arrest or search is unlawful, unless the resistance is justified under Subsection (c);
(3) if the actor consented to the exact force used or attempted by the other;
(4) if the actor provoked the other's use or attempted use of unlawful force, unless:
(A) the actor abandons the encounter, or clearly communicates to the other his intent to do so reasonably believing he cannot safely abandon the encounter; and
(B) the other nevertheless continues or attempts to use unlawful force against the actor; or
(5) if the actor sought an explanation from or discussion with the other person concerning the actor's differences with the other person while the actor was:
(A) carrying a weapon in violation of Section 46.02; or
(B) possessing or transporting a weapon in violation of Section 46.05.
(c) The use of force to resist an arrest or search is justified:
(1) if, before the actor offers any resistance, the peace officer (or person acting at his direction) uses or attempts to use greater force than necessary to make the arrest or search; and
(2) when and to the degree the actor reasonably believes the force is immediately necessary to protect himself against the peace officer's (or other person's) use or attempted use of greater force than necessary.
(d) The use of deadly force is not justified under this subchapter except as provided in Sections 9.32, 9.33, and 9.34.
(e) A person who has a right to be present at the location where the force is used, who has not provoked the person against whom the force is used, and who is not engaged in criminal activity at the time the force is used is not required to retreat before using force as described by this section.
(f) For purposes of Subsection (a), in determining whether an actor described by Subsection (e) reasonably believed that the use of force was necessary, a finder of fact may not consider whether the actor failed to retreat.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974. Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept. 1, 1994; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 190, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.
Amended by:
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1 (S.B. 378), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2007.
Dustlawyer
(10,493 posts)from law school more than a few years ago. I have never practiced crimminal law, but that was one rule I thought I might need to know for personal use. I would never shoot someone fleeing with my stuff, but if they are coming in my house uninvited at night I would air them out if I could get to my gun and bullets in time.
Thanks for looking this up.
Shrike47
(6,913 posts)Interesting that the Texas legislature envisioned a situation where a cop is trying to get into your home, and outlined the force you are allowed to use to resist and when you can use it.
TexasProgresive
(12,148 posts)are they allowed to respond with deadly force? The situation I am envisioning is the cops say "police" and break down the door or window. The homeowner is asleep hears the crash but never heard the announcement and responds with deadly force. I don't think the police give enough time for a person to wake up after announcing their presence.
I really think that "no-knock" warrants are a disaster waiting to happen. I suppose that the reason for them is to prevent the destruction of evidence but if it is to prevent the escape of a suspect I think there are better alternatives.
Edited to add: This did not involve police but a repo driver in 1994 Houston, TX
March 26, 1994
HOUSTON A Harris County grand jury decided Friday not to indict a Houston resident who shot and killed a wrecker driver last month as he was repossessing his vehicle for being late with a payment. Jerry Casey, 35, killed wrecker driver Tommy Dean Morris, 54, about 3:30 a.m. on Feb. 25. Jurors apparently believed the testimony of Casey, who said he thought his truck was being stolen, a prosecutor said. Under Texas law, residents can use deadly force at night to protect their property. The case is the second this year in Houston involving a shooting by a homeowner. A businessman from Scotland was shot to death in January by a homeowner who said he was afraid the man was trying to break into his house. The homeowner was not indicted on murder charges.
http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1994-03-26/news/9403260470_1_homeowner-indicted-on-murder-houston-man
pscot
(21,023 posts)NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)It's sickening.
Maraya1969
(22,441 posts)Do they really think that is better than knocking and then using that big bullet thing to break the door down? If they have cops stationed around the house who is going to get away? And what are the people inside going to do with a bunch of drugs except flush them and seriously how much can you flush in a very short time without clogging up the toilet and having all the evidence out on the floor for all to see?
Have any cops been killed in a raid like I explained?
1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)Why not just shut off the water before the raid?
iscooterliberally
(2,849 posts)Why not repeal the controlled substances act and end the DEA and Law Enforcement's reign of terror in this country? That is what really needs to happen. The drug prohibitionists in congress are pro crime and anti-freedom.
7962
(11,841 posts)1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)But I largely agree about the "war of drugs. Far better to legalize/decriminalize drug usage and treat it as the public health issue that it is.
jeff47
(26,549 posts)killbotfactory
(13,566 posts)If you have so few drugs you can flush them at a moments notice, why would they bother sending in a swat team?
They risk their own lives and the lives of anyone in the house by doing this shit. How can they possibly justify this?
heaven05
(18,124 posts)Feral Child
(2,086 posts)that joint down the toilet and there goes the evidence!
Feral Child
(2,086 posts)The above was meant as a joke, that is, that the homeowner would only have one joint, hardly an excuse for a full-bore SWAT assault.
Cops are emotional adolescents looking for any opportunity to break out their toys and play War.
Logical
(22,457 posts)Louisiana1976
(3,962 posts)cascadiance
(19,537 posts)... so that it would be hard to get a jury pool where someone doesn't know about it...
http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/23929-jury-nullification-why-every-american-needs-to-learn-this-taboo-verdict
Havent heard of jury nullification? Dont feel bad; youre far from alone. If anything, your unfamiliarity is by design. Generally, defense lawyers are not allowed to even mention jury nullification as a possibility during a trial because judges prefer juries to follow the general protocols rather than delivering independent verdicts.
...
Milliesmom
(493 posts)Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)waiting the the nra to fund his defense.....
i know they won't
just saying
kelliekat44
(7,759 posts)And I didn't even need to scroll down to know the guys race.
Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)valerief
(53,235 posts)He's black. State is Texas. No hope.
Cali_Democrat
(30,439 posts)toby jo
(1,269 posts)Man from Pickens
(1,713 posts)SWAT raids should be reserved for active, life-and-limb-at-risk, crime-in-progress situations. Anything less constitutes a de facto military occupation.
Louisiana1976
(3,962 posts)LittleBlue
(10,362 posts)It's ridiculous to expect people not to defend themselves when unidentified men are breaking into their house.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)WTF ever happened to the Castle Doctrine? ... Presenting a search warrant?
7962
(11,841 posts)He doesnt care for my opinion on no-knocks. But he also knows I support the death penalty, so he cant quite figure me out.
I bet this guy didnt announce when he broke thru that window.
iscooterliberally
(2,849 posts)Anthony Andrew Diotaiuto
23 years old
Sunrise, Florida
August, 2005
Anthony worked two jobs to help pay for the house he lived in with his mother. He had permit for a concealed weapon because of the areas he traveled through for his night job. Sunrise police claimed that he had sold some marijuana, and because they knew he had a legal gun, decided to use SWAT. Neighbors claim that the police did not identify themselves. Police first claimed that Anthony pointed his gun at them, and later changed their story. Regardless, Anthony was dead with 10 bullets in him, and the police found 2 ounces of marijuana. Article.
http://www.drugwarrant.com/articles/drug-war-victim/
lunasun
(21,646 posts)I have seen the drug war and the enemy is us
http://www.drugwarrant.com/articles/drug-war-victim/
noiretextatique
(27,275 posts)not a war on drugs. in any case...it must be stopped.
yeoman6987
(14,449 posts)How would they know? If my neighbor was getting a visit from swat, I would have absolutely no idea if they identified themselves or not. Something doesn't add up on that at all.
iscooterliberally
(2,849 posts)Some of the neighbors were leaving for work. There was a big uproar and protest at city hall after this. The cops who did this were sued too, but they got away with it. It adds up. The cops who did this prey on young people. They are thugs with badges. You might be able to find some of the old articles that were written. Unfortunately the links don't work anymore.
winter is coming
(11,785 posts)If someone shouted something as they broke into my house, I doubt I'd parse what they were saying before I reacted, especially if I were asleep at the time.
xocet
(3,870 posts)...
On May 5, 2011, the SWAT team, primarily from the Pima County Sheriff's Department, raided the home of Guerena, a 26-year-old father of two. Guerena was asleep at the time, along with his wife Vanessa and their 4-year-old son. According to Guerena's wife, he woke to the sounds of men breaking into his home and believed they were home invaders, the family's attorney says. Guerena rushed his family into a closet, then grabbed his rifle. When police smashed open the door, they saw him with his weapon and opened fire, unleashing a barrage of 71 bullets. They initially claimed to have seen a muzzle flash from Guerena's gun, but ballistics tests later show his gun was never fired. In fact, the former soldier still had the gun's safety engaged, the police report states. A video of the raid shows roughly 38 seconds expired from the time the police briefly sounded a siren upon pulling into Guerena's driveway until they shot him. The family's home was riddled with bullets. Neighboring houses were hit as well.
...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/26/jose-guerena_n_3988658.html
iscooterliberally
(2,849 posts)malthaussen
(17,066 posts)We used to have this thing called the Bill of Rights... it had some good ideas in it, but since the law-and-order crowd didn't like it, it's now toilet paper.
-- Mal
rhett o rick
(55,981 posts)SoapBox
(18,791 posts)Beyond outrageous.
bluestateguy
(44,173 posts)nt
tblue37
(64,982 posts)7962
(11,841 posts)I dont like it even when they come in thru the door, but how would you ever know it was a cop coming thru the WINDOW.
cstanleytech
(26,087 posts)Now I could maybe agree with an indictment from the grand jury in this case to be honest if it turned out that there was evidence that the officer had identified himself before he was shot or if Guy knew it was a police officer before he shot him but I havent seen or read that such a thing happened.
tomm2thumbs
(13,297 posts)I hope they keep that on the back burner
Comrade Grumpy
(13,184 posts)Separation
(1,975 posts)Hopefully there are people out there watching this and he has lawyers lining up for him pro bono.
A huge disservice to mankind if this man does not get a proper defense.
Matrosov
(1,098 posts)onecaliberal
(32,489 posts)If you're skin is white.
Hulk
(6,699 posts)This is so wrong.
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)JI7
(89,182 posts)rhett o rick
(55,981 posts)JI7
(89,182 posts)rhett o rick
(55,981 posts)It just dawned on me that "wasn't necessary" can be taken more than one way. I took it for granted that since he was charged he wasn't White.
FiveGoodMen
(20,018 posts)Season 2 Ep. 18 of Picket Fences:
"System Down" David E. Kelley Alan Myerson April 1, 1994 1K18
A high profile murder trial in which the defendant is accused of murdering two police officers is transferred to Rome. Sheriff Brock winds up as the foreman of the jury that must decide the defendant's fate.
In the end, Brock talks them OUT of convicting(!) It was a raid by non-uniformed officers and the defendant had no way of knowing they were cops when he fired.
Unusually good episode.
corkhead
(6,119 posts)FiveGoodMen
(20,018 posts)(Love your sig line!)
BobbyBoring
(1,965 posts)Usually, that action would get a black man filled full of holes.
Rex
(65,616 posts)You are MAGICALLY supposed to know when a no-knock raid is occurring! Sadly he will get the death penalty. This is Texas and we LOVE to kill people in this state. Our governor likes to brag about our death count.
xocet
(3,870 posts)christx30
(6,241 posts)However if it shows the cops did anything wrong, I suspect some kind of computer problem will destroy the video. Purely an accident, of course.
NickB79
(19,114 posts)Eight Minneapolis officers received medals in City Hall Monday for their valor in a botched raid that the city apologized for last year. That isn't sitting well with the family shot at multiple times by the officers.
"I'm shocked that they're receiving awards for that night," said Yee Moua. "My family is a mess right now. My [9-year-old] son, who saw the shooting, still has nightmares and has needed therapy. They've ruined a life, and I don't understand why they would get rewarded for that."
The awards stemmed from a high-risk search in December. The eight officers -- who had SWAT training -- entered the house expecting to find a violent gang member. Instead, they found Vang Khang, a 35-year-old homeowner who thought he was being robbed. Khang shot through his bedroom door at the officers until he understood who they were.
I'd be giving the commanding officer the death penalty for sending his officers into this bullshit raid, not the homeowner.
GETPLANING
(846 posts)The prosecution is trying to scare the defendant into pleading guilty at the trial in exchange for life rather than death. As usual in the American "justice" system, it isn't a matter of justice, it's a matter of winning. Even if a man who was defending his family against armed intruders crashing through his windows in the middle of the night has to die. Heaven forbid the prosecutor has a loss on his record.
jen63
(813 posts)are aware of this case, so this man can have some good legal counsel. This is beyond unbelievable.
DBoon
(22,288 posts)You think they would defend the rights of a private citizen against jack booted government thugs
jen63
(813 posts)But alas, he has the AA thing to overcome. They aren't foolin any one.
kath
(10,565 posts)it's just gotta stop.
blkmusclmachine
(16,149 posts)heaven05
(18,124 posts)Texas, Florida, Mississippi, Missouri, Utah, NYC, oh hell, USA, it figures......
Baitball Blogger
(46,576 posts)Last edited Sat Sep 20, 2014, 12:18 PM - Edit history (1)
Otherwise, the ramifications to the rest of us will be devastating. It means that the powers that be can decide who gets to defend their castle, and who does not.
In the wake of the Trayvon Martin and Mike Brown incidents, can you see a world where people of white persuasion can shoot any person of brown skin, anywhere, based on police protocol and Stand your Ground; and brown skinned citizens cannot even defend themselves in their own home? That's the message a guilty verdict will bring.
Edited to correct name.
noiretextatique
(27,275 posts)Baitball Blogger
(46,576 posts)Elmer S. E. Dump
(5,751 posts)PumpkinAle
(1,210 posts)but as others have pointed out Guy is black, this is Texas and history keeps repeating itself on those two points.
We hear of the police going into the wrong houses on these stupid dumbass warrants - with the militarization of the police it can only get worse.
krispos42
(49,445 posts)First off, he owns guns, so right away he's "iffy" in terms of mental fitness. Anybody that would own a gun, knowing the multiple studies that show how dangerous it is to the residents of the house, can't be too rational. Obviously he's a threat to his family and anybody else he gets angry at.
Not only that, but he keeps them where they can be quickly accessed. Obviously, then, he's a gun nut, an ammosexual, a guy looking for a chance to kill with legal impunity. To protect ourselves, we have to put people like him in jail whenever possible.