4 more Puget Sound cops gunned down

[VicHockeyFan]

Jesus.

Four police officers shot dead in Washington State coffee shop: reports
National Post
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/b...p-reports.aspx

The four officers were in full uniform with protective vests, a spokesperson told media in a scrum near the scene. No coffee shop staff or witnesses were hurt in the attack. [...]

[sebberry]

[North Shore]

Wow, what a tragedy for their families.

I wonder if there's some bizarre form of gang initiation going on down there?

[LJ]

The title of the thread says four more. Was there an earlier shooting of police?

[VicHockeyFan]

Originally Posted by LJ

The title of the thread says four more. Was there an earlier shooting of police?

Yes.

Police recently shot a suspect in that case.

[VicHockeyFan]

A suspect in this mornings killings doesn't seem all that stable.

Nine years ago, then-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee granted clemency to Clemmons, commuting his lengthy prison sentence over the protests of prosecutors.

"This is the day I've been dreading for a long time," Larry Jegley, prosecuting attorney for Arkansas' Pulaski County said tonight when informed that Clemmons was being sought for questioning in connection with the killings.

During the confrontation in May, Clemmons punched a sheriff's deputy in the face, according to court records. As part of that incident, he was charged with seven counts of assault and malicious mischief.

In another instance, Clemmons was accused of gathering his wife and young relatives around at 3 or 4 in the morning and having them all undress. He told them that families need to "be naked for at least 5 minutes on Sunday," a Pierce County sheriff's report says.

"The whole time Clemmons kept saying things like trust him, the world is going to end soon, and that he was Jesus," the report says.

When Clemmons received the 60-year sentence, he was already serving 48 years on five felony convictions and facing up to 95 more years on charges of robbery, theft of property and possessing a handgun on school property.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...nsought29.html

[martini]

I feel sick.

[amor de cosmos]

Originally Posted by VicHockeyFan

A suspect in this mornings killings doesn't seem all that stable. (etc etc)

was he another right wing nut who thinks Obama is coming to take his guns away?

[LJ]

Well that's just terrible.

I worry also that when something like this happens it makes the police all the more mistrusting of anyone in any situation, rightly so, but may cause them to over react with unfortunate results.

[Holden West]

Just gets crazier:

At the time of his death, Clemmons was facing charges for allegedly assaulting a police officer and raping a child. But he was released from jail after posting bail through the assistance of Jail Sucks Bail Bonds.

Clemmons had been serving a 108-year sentence for a teenage crime spree, but was released in 2000 after the Governor of Arkansas -- then Mike Huckabee -- commuted his sentence.
In a recent appearance on Fox News Channel, Huckabee said Clemmons was released because prosecutors failed to file paperwork on time.

But Pulaski County Prosecutor Larry Jegley, who opposed Clemmons' release in 2000 and 2004, said Huckabee's comments were "red herrings."

"My word to Mr. Huckabee is man up and own what you did," Jegley said.

It is believed that Clemmons evaded police through assistance from friends and family members. Four people have been arrested for allegedly helping Clemmons, including a sister of the suspect who police think treated the gunshot wound the suspect sustained in the coffee shop ambush.

"We expect to have maybe six or seven people in custody by the day's end," said Troyer. "Some are friends, some are acquaintances, some are partners in crime, some are relatives. Now they're all partners in crime."

The officer saw something moving, got out of his car, saw Clemmons and ordered him to show his hands and stop. Instead, Clemmons ran.

"He wouldn't stop," Pugel said. "The officer fired several rounds."

The suspect was declared dead at the scene.

Shot in the back while running? I'm not sad he'd dead, but...

[VicHockeyFan]

Well, they killed thir suspect this morning, case more or less closed.

I really have no issues with gunning this guy down, if they had a positive ID on him and he was running, I don't care if he appeared to be reaching for a gun, he needed to be stopped immediately even if that meant shots into his back.

http://www.canada.com/news/Seattle+k...129/story.html

[Holden West]

Originally Posted by VicHockeyFan

Well, they killed thir suspect this morning, case more or less closed.

Except for throwing his sleazy friends and relatives in jail.

There's going to be a lot of talk about why the cop didn't shoot him in the legs and take him into custody but I understand that's often impossible to do in real life, in fact it's a difficult target to hit even when they are both in daylight standing still.

[davek]

Originally Posted by Holden West

Shot in the back while running?

I would be upset if that were the case, but the link from VHF doesn't say the suspect was running away. If he was running around the vehicle as indicated in the article, under the circumstances it may have been correct to fear an attack, and then to fire.

[VicHockeyFan]

Originally Posted by Holden West

Shot in the back while running? I'm not sad he'd dead, but...

Ya, I think in a case like this it is justified if:

A) You are sure you have the right guy, and

B) There is any chance at all this guy might get away (even temporarily), or be carrying a gun.

He shot 4 cops when he was not in any type of armed-robbery surprise, or while being pursued, he just shot 4 cops for no reason.