A grand jury in Tarrant County, Texas has decided not to indict the rookie police officer who shot dead a homeowner while investigating a burglary at the wrong address.
Last May, R.A. 'Alex' Hoeppner and his partner Benjamin Hanlon accidentally started searching 72-year-old Jerry Waller's property, confusing it in the dark for a house across the street.
Waller was in bed with his wife Kathy at the time, and was stirred by the police officer's flashlights. Fearing a prowler was outside, he grabbed his .35-caliber-pistol and went to investigate.
According to a search warrant affidavit released by the Star-Telegram in July, the two officers encountered an armed Waller near the corner of his home, told them they were police and to drop his gun.
Waller didn't drop his gun and instead raised it at Hoeppner who proceeded to fatally shoot the senior citizen seven times.
More @ Daily Mail
Will anyone take this cop out? Maybe the Chief or the DA? This is not good. The cop should have been prosecuted, after he was fired. Did either happen? Justice might yet be served. I suppose we shall see.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't hold my breath, sad to say.
Delete.35 caliber, huh?
ReplyDeleteI caught that also and found it in a rifle......?
DeleteI'll guess ignorance on the journalist's part and conclude that it was .357. Old Colt Navy revolvers were chambered in .36, as you well know, but it's unlikely that the old fellow was carrying a cap-and-ball.
DeleteThanks
DeleteSee, that's why you aim for the flashlight and fire before they can, criminal's come in all forms, and if you've done nothing, you have nothing to fear. These cops shot an innocent man dead in his own house, I would have been explaining the to dead ppl in my living room.........
ReplyDeleteThese no-knock raids are BS. Just surround the place and wait the culprit out and if it turns out it's not the culprit you thought, you wouldn't kill an innocent person. Plus, we never know if someone breaks in the house yelling cops is really a cop or not.
ReplyDeleteThis whole "told them they were police" business is a problem, as well. If somebody breaks into my house in the middle of the night, and I surprise them and they yell "Police!," I'm supposed to just believe them?
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. If there were no more no-knock raids, we wouldn't have that problem.
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