LICENSED TO KILL

In all the hoopla recently about the Houston Police Department's faulty lab work, most people aren't noticing the high numbers of questionable killings associated with local police agencies. Although in nearly every case the police investigate themselves and say they did nothing wrong (imagine that), there are a LOT of cases that raise questions. Since Luis Torres was beaten to death by Baytown Police Officers at the beginning of last year, there have been at least 14 deaths that occurred under suspicious circumstances. There have been many more police killings - these are only the ones that stand out:

MENTALLY ILL: > 3/31/03 Juan Lozano Jr., 31, h/m, mentally ill, shot twice in the chest and killed by Ronald L. Plotner, a 5-yr veteran of HPD, who claims he chased Lozano because he was driving through a residential area with his lights off. Lozano soon crashed and his car turned on its side in a ditch. Plotner then claims Lozano "grabbed an object from his vehicle and pointed it" at him; an eyewitness disputes that, saying Lozano was "on the ground" when he was shot. No weapon was found. He was only a short distance from his house.
PROACTIVE SHOOTING: > 2/6/03 - Willie B. Greene, b/m, 39, shot to death by Harris County sheriff's deputies M.R. Franklin and S. McCoy, who claim he tried to run down McCoy in a stolen car. Officers said the man was asleep in the car, and they "tapped on the window." They claim the man started the car, rammed the patrol car as he backed up, then drove "straight toward" McCoy. Both of the deputies shot several times into the car, killing Greene. Photos showed bullet holes entering from the side, not the front, of the car.
EX WIFE'S BOYFRIEND: > 2/4/03 - Unidentified 26-year-old man shot at least three times, twice in the arm and once in the abdomen, and killed by Pedro Sandoval, 32, a 7-year veteran of HPD. Police reported the man hid in the bedroom of his ex-girlfriend (who is also the estranged wife of officer Sandoval). Police claim the man was killed when he lunged at Sandoval with a butcher knife. The woman was not home at the time.
HEADBANGER: > 1/11/03 - Bobby Constancio, h/m, 35, suffers severe head injury when Harris County sheriff's deputies Donald Tipps and Trevor Windsor, both 11-yr veterans, try to arrest him outside a bar. Police claim Constancio fell backwards and hit his head, but his girlfriend said one of the deputies pushed him face first into a wall before he fell. He remains in a coma in poor condition., and may be "brain dead".
OOPS, WRONG GUY: > 1/5/03 - Truyen The Pham, a/m, 23, shot four times (including several shots in the back) and killed by Precinct 6 constable Cpl. Freddie Castillo, a 10-yr veteran. Police claim Pham fired a gun into a group outside a club, refused to drop the gun and pointed it at deputy constable Danny Avalos; that's when Castillo shot him. However, at least three civilian witnesses, one of whom was wounded in the foot by one of the gunman's shots, said that Pham and another man tried to protect them and tackled the real gunman and when Pham stood up "the cop fired at him…without any kind of warning…I saw Truyen laying there, gasping for air…And they just left him there." Two of the witnesses said the gunman was taken into custody but was later let go by police. Another witness said Pham was trying to get to his feet when he was shot in the back. Test results to determine if there was gunpowder on Pham's hands showed no evidence he had fired a gun. Castillo was cleared.
BLAMES VICTIMS: > 12/29/02 Benjamin Charles Boatman, 19, w/m, killed when the SUV in which he is a passenger is struck broadside by Precinct 4 deputy constable Raul Martinez, 32, a one-year veteran. Police first claim the deputy was pursuing a traffic violator when the driver of the SUV "failed to yield the right-of-way" and turned in front of Martinez; they later admit there was no pursuit. Photos of the severe damage to the SUV indicate Martinez was probably driving at a high rate of speed at the time of impact. All occupants of the SUV were life-flighted to hospital; the deputy and two passengers were in serious condition; the SUV driver was in stable condition. Three civilians were also injured.
SPONTANEOUSLY STOPPED BREATHING: > 12/16/02 Gary Don Powell II, 45, dies while in custody of unidentified Houston police officers, who had arrested him after witnesses said he was "acting strangely". After coaxing Powell from under a house officers claim he "violently struggled" with them and they handcuffed his hands and feet. Police claim paramedics at the scene checked his condition immediately following the struggle and found he had "simply stopped breathing".
GRANTS HER LAST WISH: > 11/23/02 Rachell Michelle Taylor, w/f, 28, shot once in the abdomen and killed by Houston police officer R.R. Lara, on the force just 11 months at the northeast patrol division. Police claim she pointed a gun at them and threatened to shoot, but her mother said Rachel never pointed the gun or verbally threatened them and that she repeatedly told the officers she was trying to make them shoot her. Despite knowing that the call involved a mentally ill person, no officer trained to handle such critical incidents was dispatched. Rachel shouted, "Shoot me, shoot me" at the officers; Lara granted her death wish.
"LOOK OUT, HE'S GOT A NUG!": > 11/4/02 Rodney Ali Baldwin, b/m, 24, shot in the back and killed by Harris County Sheriff's deputy Luis G. Figueroa, a 4-year veteran, who claimed Baldwin pointed a "black object" at him as Figueroa chased him. No gun was found.
SPONTANEOUSLY QUIT BREATHING: > 8/14/02 Edward Tilman McCraw, 38, died after a struggle with 8-year Houston police officer Brent W. Foltz (Westside Patrol Division). McCraw drank some beverages at a convenience store but had no money to pay for them. Foltz was in the store at the time and "began interviewing" McCraw. Believing he needed medical assistance, Foltz called an ambulance for McCraw who "became combative." Foltz claimed he was forced to restrain him, then McCraw "simply stopped breathing"  and died.
SHOT BECAUSE HE WAS LOOKING FOR POT: > 7/21/02 Salome Pineda Garvajal, 41, shot in the face and killed by Pasadena police narcotics officer Isaac Villareal, h/m, 33, a 13-year veteran. Villareal claimed he believed Garvajal was reaching for a weapon in the console when he shot him. Police allege Garvajal and three companions were planning to buy marijuana. No drugs were found in their vehicle.
UNARMED WITH KID IN PARKED CAR: > 7/15/02 Christopher Menifee, b/m, 23, shot and killed by Harris County sheriff's deputy Wallace Wyatt as he sat in a friend's car with the friend's 2-year-old child sitting directly behind him. Menifee was removing his belongings from the apartment he had shared with his former girlfriend when a neighbor called police alleging a burglary. After Wyatt and deputy Richard Montes arrived a phone call at the apartment was received from Jessica Patterson; she told the deputy who answered that Menifee lived there and was asked to come and identify him. Apparently the deputies then tried to arrest Menifee; a struggle ensued. As Patterson pulled into the driveway Menifee jumped into her car and urged her to drive away, but she kept her foot on the brake as Wyatt approached. Patterson told Wyatt she knew Menifee, but he then pointed his gun at Menifee. Patterson told him please not to shoot, that her baby was in the car, and continued to tell Wyatt, "We're not going anywhere." Then Wyatt shot Menifee three times through the windshield.
DRIVING WHILE MESSICAN: > 7/11/02 Mario Romero-Mejia, h/m, 20, shot three times in the abdomen and killed by Precinct 1 deputy constable Matthew W. McCord after he was stopped for speeding. Police claim Romero was reaching for a gun, but witnesses say they saw no gun and that Romero indicated in Spanish that he was reaching for his drivers license. One witness said, "The guy did as he was told, put his hands on the hood…He was kind of confused…. Another witness said, "It just didn't make any sense to me…When he was shot and on the ground the officer kept screaming, 'Put your hands on your (expletive) head.'" After Romero was dead McCord claims he removed a gun from underneath him. Romero is the second person McCord has shot in the past 2 ½ years.
WHO LET THE DOG OUT? > 4/14/02 - Michael Wayne Goodman, 40, is shot three times and killed by Harris County Precinct 4 deputy constable T. Ashabranner, K-9 unit, after the deputy finds Goodman riding his bike in the middle of a street late at night. Ashabranner says he "asked" Goodman not to ride there but that he appeared to ignore the request. He then claims Goodman refused to identify himself and rode down a dirt road into a heavily wooded area. Ashabranner released his police dog to attack Goodman, who allegedly held the dog's head underwater in a shallow ditch. After pulling Goodman off the dog, Ashabranner claims Goodman "pulled something shiny out," and he was "in fear of his life," and shot him. A pair of pliers was found at the scene. Goodman is described as a loving, caring person by family and friends; he was known to help elderly neighbors and others.
MEDICAL EXAMINER SAYS HOMICIDE, BUT COPS CLEARED: > 1/20/02 - the aforementioned Luis Alfonso Torres, 45, h/m, beaten to death by Baytown police officers Bert Dillow and Micah Aldred, both 4-year veterans, and Sgt. Rodney Evans, a 12-year veteran. Family members called an ambulance and advised that Torres was in extreme distress from complications of high blood pressure; he refused the ambulance, whose crew then called police. When the 3 officers found him about an hour later they claimed they only pepper-sprayed and handcuffed him after a struggle. Paramedics treated him for the effects of the pepper spray and started to leave but were called back by the officers, who said Torres had "simply stopped breathing." The medical examiner ruled his death a homicide, stating that Torres died from "mechanical asphyxia" with blunt-impact trauma. Interim Police Chief Byron Jones said the officers acted according to police procedures and did not use excessive force. Photos show massive bruising on his head, front and back torso, and wrists, indicating he was beaten while handcuffed. Soon after Torres' death, officer Dillow was accused of using excessive force in another incident. Photos show massive bruising on his head, front and back torso, and wrists, indicating he also was beaten while handcuffed.
NO REASON: > 8/26/01 - Donald R. Scales, 49, found hanged in the Texas City jail after being arrested for stealing a car and misdemeanor marijuana possession.  Police claim suicide. The family has asked us to investigate the death, and insists Scales' death was not a suicide.

(ALL INFORMATION BASED ON PRESS ACCOUNTS)
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Some of these cases may be justifiable. Maybe in a few of these killings, a rational person would have done what the officers did. But there is no way ALL of these killings are justifiable. They amount to "serial killings" in that they are a series of killings connected to one individual or group, with common circumstances. The number of persons who "simply stop breathing" is way out of line. The number of unarmed suspects who were thought to have a gun is another common occurrence. Persons "acting erratically" are often shot and killed by police officers.
The truth is, a police officer can kill nearly anyone they want, and get away with it.  It is rare to see a policeman indicted for a killing, and they are almost never convicted. Houston's District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal is so far up the Houston Police Department's ass, he wouldn't go after their Lab for falsifying evidence, and refused to recuse himself - thus preventing anyone else from investigating.  It would be sad if he were an exception, but the same can be said for most local entities. The DA and the Police are on the same team, and charges against police are routinely handled lightly, including when an officer is charged with rape, molestation, robbery, DUI, and other crimes. Hollywood has created a new image of cops, and the image, like so many things, has become blurred with reality.
The average police officer will probably never have to kill anyone. Most wouldn't want to. However, somewhere along the line, someone has got to take a stand, and prosecute one of these murders vigorously. Get a conviction. Let all police know that there is a certain line that cannot be crossed, even by a lawman.
The public interest decrees that police ought to be held to a higher standard of accountability than civilians. We expect them to be brave and above reproach in their duties.

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So, here are a baker's dozen of cases that ought to be looked into more thoroughly. Any volunteers? Several of these cases warrant full-scale independent investigations.  Or just wait, because we will soon be hearing that it happened again on the TV news. The suspect simply stopped breathing, or reached for something, or brandished a weapon. It will keep happening until a boundary is set that defines what is "fair game" and what is not. New rules of engagement. The difference between being a killer and being a protector. Most cops are on the right side of that divide, but until the courts set a standard, it is still open season on civilians.
The deaths of the 17 local people mentioned in this story should be respected. None were big-time criminals, most were emotionally disturbed or challenged people. Some did contribute to their own deaths. Was the use of force justifiable under the circumstances? If not, a crime exists.
While the authorities are cleaning house at the HPD lab, they should find out why some of our cops are so trigger-happy. Even conservative Law & Order people are now calling for more accountability.

GATOR