Here is the story:
Quote:
Bad deal
Plea agreement lets officer escape criminal charges
That a law enforcement officer who fired his gun 31 times in a chase that did not necessitate lethal force virtually walks away from the incident, free of criminal charges, is almost inconceivable.
But that is the case for former Kingman police officer James Williams, involved in a high-speed chase in September that spanned two counties. Though initially charged with a single count of criminal discharge of a firearm and two counts of attempted criminal discharge of a firearm, the Kingman County Attorney's Office last week dropped the charges.
Williams' punishment? He agreed to surrender his badge for three years. He can seek a job in law enforcement at the end of that period, and nothing currently prevents him from owning and using firearms.
Unquestionably, the public expects law enforcement to use lethal force when warranted. But the facts in this case show that Williams was more of a public threat than the suspect he sought.
On Sept. 10, Williams tried stopping a vehicle in Kingman driven by Hutchinson resident Clete Wiesz. When the suspect sped off, Williams gave chase.
During the 20-mile pursuit, which ended in Reno County, Williams fired his gun 31 times out of the driver's side window of his police cruiser. That means he twice changed the clip on his gun while driving, at times, 100 mph on a highway.
Williams recklessly and needlessly put himself and the public in danger by continuing the chase instead of relying on other law enforcement methods. He had radioed the vehicle's license plate number to 911 dispatch, and it quickly was determined the vehicle belonged to Wiesz. Williams simply could have allowed Reno County officials to arrest Wiesz later at his Hutchinson residence.
Kingman County's decision to drop criminal charges against Williams signals the public that this particular police officer is above the law. And that worries some area law enforcement officers who last week privately expressed dismay and surprise that Williams won't face criminal charges. Bad apples like him, they said, tarnish the images of officers who wisely and quickly assess a situation and use their best judgment in protecting the public and themselves.
Firing a gun 31 times while speeding down a highway reeks of bad judgment by a police officer.
At the very least, Kingman County prosecutors' plea agreement with Williams should have included a lifetime ban from law enforcement and restricted him from owning and using firearms.
Instead, an officer with bad judgment could be wearing a badge again in three years.
02/12/2007; 02:39:28 AM
|
The Hutchinson News
Not only did he shoot his gun 31 times, he admits his intended consequence was to kill the driver. He admits (in his letter) to believeing this instance constitutes the use of lethal force.
31 bullets in 20 miles...thats more than 1 1/2 bullets per mile. At 100 mph, and the time it takes to reload three times, that would be pretty much a constant barage of firing as fast as you can. Nothing strategeic about that. That is not how police officers are trained to react.
Not to mention he continued his hot headed pursuit and shooting rampage outside his jurisdiction (Kingman) and into Reno county instead of just letting Reno County handle it as required by law.