Tampa police officer shot on Nebraska Avenue dies

His name was not available at press time, but police said he was a veteran officer.

http://www.odmp.org/

http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/crime/tampa-officer-is-killed-in-shooting/1029217

“Tampa officer is killed in shooting”
By Robbyn Mitchell and Jamal Thalji, Times staff writers
In Print: Thursday, August 20, 2009

TAMPA —

SNIPPET: “Assistant Chief Jane Castor said the veteran of two decades and the man with the cart quickly got into a violent confrontation. The officer chased the man across the street, but the man broke free and ran back to his cart.

There, the man pulled a gun out of his backpack, and hit the officer in the head with it several times, then drew back and pulled the trigger.

The officer had on a bullet-proof vest, but the slug caught him in the arm, Castor said. It slipped through his arm and lodged in his chest.”

The suspect, Humberto Delgado, 34, of 324 Country Club Drive in Oldsmar, was arrested and charged shortly before 5 a.m. with first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer, aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer and carrying a concealed firearm

Humberto Delgado

Fry him.

This case is quizzical. Here’s a 34 year old man wandering the very mean streets of Tampa at night with a shopping cart containing 3 handguns and a rifle, but this 34 year old man has a residence in the relatively upscale, middle class Oldsmar area. Why was he in Tampa with 4 firearms looking like a bum?

Local reports also state that he had a receipt for the firearms from a gun shop near Fort Bragg.

I think more will come out about this case, but the loss of a good cop is very sad.

I had not heard any of the details that are coming out now. My last info was early this AM when not as much was know about him.

I would be surprised if he actually lives at that address. Lots of homeless people have an address, but haven't been there for a long time, or are only there from time to time.

This is going to be an interesting case, but I fear very depressing. Our streets are chock full of people who simply wander about with no place to stay, but who are quite harmless. Then you have the one like this who is canon loose on deck. Get ready for the ol’ “It's Reagan's fault, he closed the mental institutions and cut funding for the mentally ill kicked them out onto the street to find for themselves!” You can be sure it's coming. They forget, conveniently fail to report, it was the liberals who took it to court and forced their release.

This is going to turn out to be one of the truly depressing stories of the year in Tampa, the loss of a veteran, highly praised officer who was also a family man to someone who had no business on the street at all.

I am personally aware of at least two other street people who roam the areas of South Tampa and who are canons loose on deck. One of them is a guy named Joseph. He is a thorn in the flesh of our church, constantly breaking in and doing mischief, or worse, and threatening people who are at the church. He rides a bike and you can see him all over a 5 mile wide area. He looks remarkably like the guy that shot the officer last night. Same bearded, vacant eyes and totally disheveled appearance. He's a bomb waiting to explode.

re: Police said a fight ensued after Roberts confronted the man and tried to use his Taser

This little tidbit from a later report tells me the officer died because he chose, is forced by public opinion, to use less than maximum force to subdue a person who is resisting arrest with violence and obviously intent on doing him harm.

I have never been a fan of the Taser. Too much of a liberal's device for me. If you attack a police officer with violence, especially after running and having to be tackled, you should be shot, not shocked. I expect I am in the minority here, and expect to take some flaming or worse, but I am simply not convinced the life of officer Roberts should have been endangered by having to try half-assed measures to handle this guy. If he had time to attempt to taser him he had time to shoot to kill.

Early reports say this guy aimed an assault weapon (?) at an officer arriving to back up Officer Roberts. He should have been shot at that point for sure.

Of course I know nothing of the situation as it was unfolding in the seconds or minute before Office Roberts was killed, so I am not speaking from a position of knowledge, mostly emotion.

I just can't imagine what this officer's family is going through today, and it's just the beginning of the rest of their lives without a father, husband, friend, etc. What a debt of gratitude we owe to the men and women of law enforcement who know how well they never know when they leave for work that they will be coming home.

Here's a picture of Officer Roberts at his recent promotion ceremony. On the left is the Tampa Mayor, on the other side the Tampa Police Chief:

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