Officer testifies teen's shooting stunned him

[Judi Lynn]

Jan. 12, 2005, 10:52PM

Officer testifies teen's shooting stunned him
Ex-partner says he was trying to subdue the boy during their struggle when he heard a 'pop'
By ANDREW TILGHMAN
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

A Houston police officer testified in a former colleague's murder trial Wednesday that he was trying to help subdue a struggling teenage boy when he heard a "pop" and realized the other officer had shot the boy in the head.

Testifying in uniform, officer Ronald Olivo said he was stunned when the shot from Arthur J. Carbonneau's pistol suddenly ended the struggle at a northwest Houston apartment complex on Nov. 21, 2003.

"I heard a 'pop,' and I looked up and I see the boy is bleeding from his head," Olivo told jurors on the second day of Carbonneau's trial.

Carbonneau, 25, is accused of intentionally shooting Eli Eloy Escobar II as the 14-year-old boy screamed and fought with the officers while they tried to handcuff him.
(snip/...)

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2990402
(Free registration is required)

[biftonnorton]

1. Taser Would Have Been Useful

Or, as some members would suggest, sympathetically saying to the young man, "Now, now" until he calmed down ;) . Flippancy aside, this is exactly the type of situation for which the Taser was added to the continuum of force. This tragedy could have been avoided.

[Jack_DeLeon]

5. A Taser...

would probably have shocked his partner if he shot it while they are struggling.

[biftonnorton]

12. I'm sure the partner coulda handled the shock

They get Tasered in training. Taser the suspect, cuff him, buy your partner a make-up beer after the shift, go on with life without having to appear in court about a death. Better scenario.

[jayfish]

14. If He Could Handle The Shock Of A 50Kv...

taser, why couldn't he handle the thrashings of a 14yr-old CHILD in the first place? You don't seem to be concerned about the fact that two grown men, with (hopefully)extensive training in submission techniques, could not subdue a child without the use of weaponry. They both sound like a couple of pussies to me and both deserve all the punishment available by law. I say electrocute them both, then they won't have to fret over a death for the rest of their miserable lives.

Jay

[biftonnorton]

15. Yes, Taser

is better than 2 grown men putting a bruising bloody beatdown on a kid, which is what they'd have to do if kid is not complying and they don't have any other alternatives. Obviously they didn't have the child in control at the time. Should they just put their hands to their cheeks and say, "oh, dear!" and let juvenile offenders scamper off to rob your sorry ass?

[jayfish]

16. Ummm, NO!

They should use the submission techniques they learned in the academy or other certified training program. A "bruising bloody beatdown" is not required either. Police seem awful fragile these days. Oh and I'm so frightened of being robbed by juveniles. :scared: Please, oh please someone call in the military.

Jay

[saigon68]

24. They are PUSSIES

And because the one who shot the kid is a BIG PUSSY. He is now a MURDERER


Kind of like Amon Goethe

[Judi Lynn]

25. That photo makes a person feel so angry and helpless.

They look so damned pompous, self-righteous dispatching someone they have tried to degrade, demoralize who still has his sense of dignity.

Hope they lived the rest of their lives with his face etched inside their eyelids when they tried to sleep at night.

War can really point out who the @$$holes are.

[jayfish]

26. Ya, That Guy Is A Great Actor.

Too bad about the "The English Patient" thing. ;)

Jay

[Judi Lynn]

28. Now, wait a minute...... Duh....... I didn't see "The English Patient!"

Am I seeing a still photo from a scene in a movie and imagining it's a historic picture? Gulp!

Oh, well.

[jayfish]

29. I'm Just Kidding With Ya... -NT-

Jay

[UL_Approved]

2. More police brutality

In this day and age, the encouragement of police brutality is a problem. Not only are corrupt officials put in power, but all members of the law enforcement community are placed in an environment of inflated danger so as to justify excessive force.

[KingChicken]

3. Sorry, I just don't like cops...

They have a tough job but bad things happen when police are around, they are neither your friend or ally, they work for the system.

[Jack_DeLeon]

4. lock the fucker up...

somehow I doubt he will get sentanced as harshly though just because of the fact that he was a police officer, which IMO is bullshit. The police should not be above the law.

If I were the other officer I would have beat this guy down on the spot, what the fuck was he thinking shooting someone who was struggling with his partner. He could have shot his own partner.

I love this snippet.
Carbonneau's attorneys maintain that he did not intend to pull the trigger on his .40-caliber Glock automatic pistol and that the shooting was an accident.

Which we know is complete fucking bullshit. Guns dont accidently fire on thier own, he had his finger on the trigger and he was responsible for it.

Anybody who knows anything about guns know you dont put your finger on the trigger till you are ready to shoot.

[beam me up scottie]

7. Exactly.

<snip>
"Also on Wednesday, a Houston police firearms expert testified that Carbonneau's pistol was functioning properly and its safety mechanisms were intact."
<snip>

I have fired a 40-caliber Glock, this was not an accident.

220 lbs or not, deadly force used against a teen (an innocent one at that, maybe that's why he was struggling?) because of a harassment complaint?

Gee, why are kids so scared of cops?

[Paco]

8. Kill the Bastard!!!!

As they well know in Texas, GUNS DON'T KILL PEOPLE. How about a little Texas Justice for the SOB.

[biftonnorton]

13. Damn Glocks

with their "safety" on the trigger. Sheesh.

[prayin4rain]

19. Yeah, nice accidental aim too. n/t

[0007]

6. This was a big kid. 220 lbs.

"Both officers jumped on the 220-pound teen, Olivo said. At the moment of the shooting, he said, his attention was focused on trying to secure the teen's legs while Carbonneau was crouched over Escobar's upper body, trying to handcuff him."

"It was not clear why the boy became belligerent, Olivo said."

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

9. Big kid or not...

Nothing justifies that kid getting shot, unless that kid was brandishing a weapon or discharging a weapon at the officers. That officer should have had his weapon secured in his holster. If they needed assistance, they should have called for it. That is why they give them radios.

Why did the boy become belligerent? Try scared shitless of Houston Cops. Apparently, for good reason.

[0007]

17. I agree!

[scarpa43]

22. Kind of what I was thinking

First, if the cop did it, put him under the jail.

That said, it is possible that none of this would have happened if the kid did not fight back. What did he expect? In my mind if you fight with a cop, pretty much all bets are off.
Obviously shooting someone in the face is way out of line, but I think the kid started the situation by fighting back.

I think that there is no way the gun fired on it's own, I also do not think the cop killed the kid in cold blood, especially with his partner wrestling with the kid. I think the cop had his gun out (mistake), finger on the trigger (mistake) and something happened causing the gun to fire (he was bumped, nervous and twitched, etc.)

I think he is guilty of something, but not cold blooded murder, but what the hell do I know?

[Samurai_Writer]

10. Houston cops are the worst

I lived there for 26 years, and I raised my son there. Everyone was scared shitless of the cops, even when being pulled over for a simple traffic stop. The legacy of Joe Campos Torres, Randy Webster, and Ida Lee Delaney continues...

Houston police shot Randy Webster, an unarmed 17-year-old, as he tried to surrender. Then they tried to cover themselves by planting a gun near his body. Turns out the department had an official "throw-down" practice of planting weapons after shooting unarmed suspects.

A Houston police officer beat up and drowned Jose Campo Torres and threw his body in the river.

Ida Lee Delaney was shot by drunken Houston police officers who chased her on a 13-mile stretch of highway.

[Gay Ranger]

11. Don't Forget the Kmart Fiasco of a Couple of Years Ago...

When Houston PD raided a Kmart parking lot to nab "illegal street racers" and when none were there, arrested everyone in the parking lot and in the neighboring Sonic. This included people walking out of the store with shopping bags and a 10 year old girl eating ice cream.

[0007]

18. This brings up Cliff Baxter who allegedly killed himself in the Houston

area! I think it was Sugar Land where that creep Tom DeLay is from.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

20. Allegedly.

That was no suicide. That was a hit.

[0007]

21. David Kelly of the UK also comes to mind

Kelly was found dead in woodland near his home in Abingdon, southern England, on July 18. He had slashed his left wrist.

[Judi Lynn]

23. Very unpleasant update to this story.....

Jan. 14, 2005, 12:45AM

Ex-officer: I feared for my life
Carbonneau says he believed teen was armed
By ANDREW TILGHMAN
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle


Andrew Innerarity/Chronicle


Eli Eloy Escobar and his wife, Lydia, parents of
the slain Eli Eloy Escobar II, enter the courtroom
Thursday.

A former Houston police officer said Thursday that he was "freaking out" after realizing he had shot an unarmed 14-year-old boy in the head, but is unsure what caused his gun to fire as the two struggled on the ground.

"It happened so fast. I remember something hit my hand" and the gun fired, Arthur Carbonneau told jurors during three hours of testimony about the killing of Eli Eloy Escobar II.
(snip)

"His hands were going to the small of his back," the former patrolman said.

"What did you think he was doing?" defense attorney Aaron Suder asked.

"Going for a weapon."

Carbonneau was trying to handcuff the teen. He said Escobar violently resisted.

"He said, 'Leave me alone. I didn't do anything,' " Carbonneau said. "I shouted, 'Relax. Calm down. Give me your hands.' I was just repeating it. That's all I remember."
(snip)

Other witnesses have said the boy was crying out for his mother and trying to comply with the officer's demands when he was shot at close range in the forehead.
(snip/...)

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2992024
(Free registration is required)

[saigon68]

27. This cop needs to visit "Ole Sparky"

[jayfish]

30. Isn't It Strange That All He Can Remember Are..

things that can help in his acquittal. Sounds like he has the makings of a good insanity defense. :eyes:

Jay