He also said a witness reported he saw the teen walking with the gun moments before the shooting and could tell from his stature and the way he was carrying the gun that Andy was a child carrying a toy.
He said he plans to depose Gelhaus and ask him, "What the hell were you thinking? He is 5-foot-4, 140 pounds."....
Some days you should never leave the Krispy Kreme.
For this guy, every day is that day.
I didn’t see this question asked or answered...did the gun have the orange “this is a toy” tip?
Law enforcement should be required to comply with the same Rules of Engagement that are imposed on our Military.
You cannot fire unless you are fired upon.
One of my problems is with the 7 shots fired at the kid.
The cop must be some trigger happy gung-ho extremist war veteran looking for a crime... eff him
This article confirms what we’ve known all along — this deputy and his claims and the claims of his defenders are pure BS.
Gelhaus should be in jail.
Tough profession. One mistake can wipeout your entire career.
Just sent this to the atty:
Hello,
Re: Andy Lopez Cruz, was Deputy Erick Gelhaus desensitized and trained using the NO MORE HESITATION targets provided by Law Enforcement Targets Inc.?
See this one: http://leaksource.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/no-more-hesitation-7.jpg as an exemplar.
Did training with these targets contribute to young Mr. Lopez’ murder under the color of authority? If so, shouldn’t LET be sued out of business?
Have at ‘em.
10 seconds between radio calls. First call was they spotted the kid, second was they had shot the kid.
They had decided to shoot before stopping.
I don’t know all the facts but this looks bad for the cop. What I do know is if a civilian shot a kid who turned out to only have a bb gun he would be sitting in jail or out on a massive bond (10% of which he would never get back) while the DA goes over the case. A cop on the other hand gets paid administrative leave.
He said he plans to depose Gelhaus and ask him, “What the hell were you thinking? He is 5-foot-4, 140 pounds.”...
so...midgets are incapable of killing people?
Maybe there’s more to this Nwws Spawned emotional story to get everyone in a tissy!?!?!
Before condemning the cop, I would like to see an untouched photo of the Air-soft gun to see if the orange tip was painted black. IF so, I defy anyone to determine the difference between the air-soft and the real thing from 20 feet, especially in a rough neighborhood. In other words, this sounds to me like a good shoot. Tragic yes, but no wrong doing by the cop.
Was this another recycled military member who was spoiling for a little action in a sleepy town? No ex-military should be eligible for police duty until ten years after their discharge. This is not Iraq or Afghanistan, and we don’t need Rambo to kill our dogs, children and the elderly.
“He is 5-foot-4, 140 pounds.”....
From what I’ve read the killing was an outrage, but the size of the person is irrelevant. Guns are equalizers. Plenty of soldiers were killed by 5 foot tall 100# vietmanese with a rifle.
Cops these days are VERY high strung regarding personal safety. I suspect it is because of their training that emphasizes how much risk they face. They are told restaint kills so they shoot first and worry about it later. I bet the cops defense will state that he acted within policy. A suspect started to point a gun in his direction and he shot, just like they taught him.
:: The boy’s parents, Sujay Cruz and Rodrigo Lopez ::
[sigh]
The hell with suing the city and having taxpayers pay for this murder.
These murders will stop once the union gets hit in the pocketbook. The uLEO's will then police their own.
