☛ ER http://eurekareporter.com/article/080826-judge-throws-out-douglas-zanotti-case
Feeney said the indictments the grand jury handed down to Douglas and Zanotti in December 2007 weren’t supported by probable cause. Insufficient evidence regarding the former leaders’ alleged failure to oversee other law enforcement was also presented to the grand jury, Feeney said, and instructions given on “exigent circumstances” were inadequate.
The grand jury should have also been instructed on justifiable homicide by law enforcement officials, Feeney said.
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Original post: First Gallegos uses a Fortuna incident as an example, as if to show that EPD could have waited longer before going in, but strangely, in the case he chose, the person also ended up dead - so would waiting make any difference?
Gallegos ...compares the Moore case to a Fortuna standoff that lasted 32 hours, saying Fortuna Police Chief Kris Kitna delayed entry, evacuated the surrounding area and obtained a Ramey warrant before entering the house where a hostage had been held by Michael Allman.
”They use gas. They break windows. They use shields. They use a PA system. I can't recall whether Chief Kitna indicated whether he tried to use the throw phone or not. It was a process that lasted 32 hours,” Gallegos said.
”There is something for us to consider, to look at to see what reasonable people do, what a standard might be. It is a double-edge sword though, because what else do we know? We know that Chief Kitna with the Eureka Police Department and the Sheriff's Department and -- they were there for 32 hours or roughly 32 hours, and what happened? Mr. Allman ended up dead,” he said.
TS Douglas, Zanotti set to be arraigned today in Moore shooting
Then there's this, which seems to show that the spotter who advised that she had put the gun down was telling the truth, which would mean the decision to go in was a good one...
Harpham testified that he moved in and saw Moore in the room with her back to him, and the weapon -- the flare gun -- sitting on a table or shelf. He yelled for her to put her hands up, he said. Moore turned around with a look of shock on her face, he testified.
”She picked up the weapon and she started to bring it up to where she could point it at the direction of myself and the rest of the team and when she started to bring the weapon across towards me that is -- or towards where I was at, that is when I began firing,” Harpham testified.
Harpham said that he believed Moore would shoot him and that he had no other option but to shoot.
And this, which seems to offer an explanation of why they didn't wait...
Eureka Fire Capt. Patrick Joseph Lynch told the grand jury that a fire crew had staged a block and a half away, and had been told there was a possibility that a gas line had been broken in the apartment, which could have had dire consequences if Moore had discharged the flare gun.
TS Cheri Lyn Moore case: What the grand jury heard
With PVG's reference to the incident in Fortuna! He makes it sound as if FPD Kitna did all these things and made all these decisions.
ReplyDeleteThe last decision Chief Kitna made was to ask the EPD for help. Once the EPD SWAT team took over they made the decisions. By calling in the EPD Kitna turned over his control on how things were to be done. Not to say he wasn't allowed input but once the EPD took over Kitna was not in control. He was not the shot caller. And the end was still tragic.
Even with the proper amount of training, planning, nad good intentions some things will just turn out bad.