TRIGGER-HAPPY COP KILLS KID

Breaking a door down over a minor theft inquiry??

On Friday, a sheriff's deputy in New Hanover County, North Carolina (that's the deep southeastern corner of the state) shot and killed Peyton Strickland, an 18-year-old University of North Carolina Wilmington student who was suspected of armed robbery of two PS3s. To be fair, we don't have all the facts in, so it's not clear exactly why gunshots were even necessary. Here's what we do know, thanks to a report from the local newspaper, the Wilmington Star-News:

On that fateful night, Strickland was to be served a search warrant; he and his roommate, Mike Rhoton were "playing a PlayStation video game" (we're guessing that means a PS3, given that the article later mentions "Tiger Woods PGA Tour" specifically), when there was a knock at the door.

Strickland went to answer it, but before he could, officers banged the door down, pinned Rhoton to the floor, fired "four or five shots," and Strickland was dead.

Adding to the confusion and tragedy of this whole situation, Rhoton later added that Strickland "may have been holding a PlayStation controller in his hand" when he went to answer the door, and that his roommate apparently had three unloaded guns in his bedroom at the time, which may have led to the officers' aggressive tactics. The officers and deputies are currently under investigation by the county District Attorney and the State Bureau of Investigation.

Report here

Update:

Former sheriff's Cpl. Christopher M. Long has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the Dec. 1 shooting death of Peyton Strickland, District Attorney Ben David said today. Strickland, 18, was shot in the head and right shoulder area and fatally wounded Dec. 1 in the house he lived in at 533 Long Leaf Acres Drive. Strickland’s death is attributed to a gunshot wound to the head, officials said.

His shooting came as members of the sheriff’s heavily armed and armored Emergency Response Team and UNCW police officers sought to arrest Strickland at his home at 533 Long Leaf Acres Drive. Strickland had been charged in connection with the Nov. 17 robbery of two PlayStation 3 game stations from a UNCW student.

The State Bureau of Investigation is looking into the shooting. On Friday, Sheriff Sid Causey announced that Long had been fired. Long was one of three deputies placed on administrative leave after the shooting. The other two are Sgt. Greg Johnson, Detective Larry Robinson and Long. David said today that Johnson and Robinson had been cleared in the investigation. Bond for Long was set at $50,000.

Long, 34, was hired on July 31, 1996, as a New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office deputy. Long was serving as a corporal, making an annual salary of $43,323. Long was involved in a shooting incident on Feb. 8, 2001, involving two teenagers in the 1600 block of Queen Street. Long had made a traffic stop and approached the car to ask the occupants about the license plates, which did not match the car. Long said the driver, 17-year-old Gregory Donell Miller, attempted to run him over before pulling away. Long fired at Miller and 18-year-old Terry Lamar Green, wounding both. Then-District Attorney John Carriker decided in April 2001 that no charges would be filed against Long.

Report here



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