US Cop get no Charges for Murdering 13 year old.

Last October, protests erupted over the fatal, racially charged police shooting of 13-year-old Andy Lopez in Santa Rosa, California, after his BB gun was mistaken for a real AK47. But the officer, Deputy Erick Gelhaus won’t face any criminal charges, the Sonoma County District Attorney announced late Tuesday. In fact, the sheriff’s office’s investigation concluded that Gelhaus did not even violate any internal policies and procedures and will not face discipline, other than the suspension he already faced while the investigation was pending, a spokesperson told ThinkProgress.

In many ways, this outcome is little surprise. Limited available data suggests officers are rarely held accountable for their use of force, least of all with criminal charges. But a 52-page legal memo released by District Attorney Jill Ravitch in announcing her decision — “the first time a report as detailed as this has been made public in Sonoma County,” — sheds light on how a 13-year-old walking along the road with a BB gun came to die at the hands of a longtime police officer, and how the laws and policies operate to protect that officer:

Deputy Erick Gelhaus was riding as a passenger with Deputy Michael Schemmel doing what the DA report described as some “proactive police work” on the day of October 22. They first saw Andy about 25 yards ahead of them on Moorland Avenue. Gelhaus, a firearms instructor and Iraq war veteran, believed the object Lopez was carrying to be an AK47 and radioed in his observation.

Although Gelhaus had radioed for assistance, the two deputies on the scene acted quickly in the moments that followed. Schemmel parked his vehicle about 20 yards from Lopez, at which point they yelled to Lopez to put down his gun, with Lopez’s back still to the officers. This was the closest they got to Lopez, and seemingly never got close enough to see that Lopez was a child, or that he was carrying something that looked slightly different from an AK47 in key respects. It was from that vantage point — the equivalent of 60 feet — that Gelhaus fired an estimated 8 shots after Lopez began to turn toward the officers and the barrel of the gun “which had been pointed down, began to ascend.” Several witnesses who drove past Andy reported that they believed Lopez to be as young as 11 and though the gun was likely a toy. But the District Attorney’s summary concluded, “Although some [other witnesses] who saw that Andy was a teenaged boy assumed that the weapon was fake, it appears from the evidence that Deputy Gelhaus did not get a good enough view of Andy to determine he was a teenager.”

Some witnesses also reported that they didn’t hear or misheard what the officers said when they asked Lopez to put the gun down, contributing to the possibility, particularly given that distance, that Lopez did not hear their specific command either or comprehend what he was being told.

Raggamuffin wrote:The kid was carrying what looked like a real gun though, so what were they supposed to think?

Raggamuffin wrote:The kid was carrying what looked like a real gun though, so what were they supposed to think?

Cass wrote:

Raggamuffin wrote:The kid was carrying what looked like a real gun though, so what were they supposed to think?

sadly true but they could have taken him down without killing him.

Original Quill wrote:This time I kinda agree with lil andy. But more of a reason for gun control laws, including toys, eh?

Cass wrote:

Original Quill wrote:This time I kinda agree with lil andy.  But more of a reason for gun control laws, including toys, eh?

I agree too to a certain point but by reading the article I just think there are a few unanswered question about the police actions

I don't like the feeling of shoot first ask questions later.....all police are trained in firearms and could have taken the boy down without killing him. BUT I wasn't there so was there a true need about justifiable force?

BigAndy9 wrote:I love silencing sh1t threads with a few little facts.
  

Original Quill wrote:

BigAndy9 wrote:I love silencing sh1t threads with a few little facts.
  

You know andy, we're not really here to service your feelings of inadequacy. If your mother left you with low self-esteem, there are psychiatrists for that