Immunity Revoked For Cop-On-Cop Negligent Homicide
BY Herschel Smith
7 years ago
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has ruled that a former Pennsylvania State Police firearms instructor who allegedly disregarded multiple safety measures and ultimately shot and killed a fellow trooper during training is not immune from a lawsuit brought by the deceased trooper’s mother.
A three-judge panel consisting of Third Circuit Judges Cheryl Ann Krause and D. Michael Fisher, along with visiting Eighth Circuit Judge Michael J. Melloy, overturned an Eastern District of Pennsylvania judge’s ruling that former Cpl. Richard Schroeter was entitled to qualified immunity as a state employee.
Joan Kedra, mother of Trooper David Kedra, sued Schroeter for civil rights violations under the state-created danger theory. According to Krause’s opinion, Schroeter skipped over several safety checks, included checking to see if the gun was loaded, aiming at a person instead of at a target, and then pulling the trigger.
Eastern District Judge Eduardo Robreno dismissed the case and granted immunity to Schroeter on the basis that Kedra’s complaint pleaded only an “objective theory of deliberate indifference” or what a “reasonable official should have known because the risk was so obvious, which was not then-clearly established, and was insufficient to plead the clearly established subjective theory of deliberate indifference, i.e., that Schroeter was actually aware that his conduct carried a substantial risk of serious harm.”
Okay. Very well. But I feel certain that this wasn’t … ahem … due to the fact that a cop died rather than a regular person like me. Right?
So let’s see this same standard applied to every SWAT raid where a baby gets blown to bits from a flash-bang, for every wrong-home SWAT raid, for every trigger happy goober cop who pulls a gun on a motorist, and so on the list goes. You know, for those cases where someone other than a cop gets shot or dies.
Let me know when that happens.
On December 1, 2017 at 4:50 pm, Donk said:
Wait what? “…that Schroeter was actually aware that his conduct carried a substantial risk of serious harm.” Anyone, costumed badged statist thug or 2nd grade educated bubba, who points a firearm at anyone or anything they don’t intend to destroy should at least never be allowed to posses another firearm or my preference, get their irresponsible ass thoroughly and completely kicked. I knew that by the time I was old enough to know what a gun was. I shouldn’t be this flabbergasted but the entire 2nd half of 4th paragraph has to be one of the most intellectually asinine and stupid statements I have ever heard.
On December 3, 2017 at 1:58 pm, Dirk Williams said:
Immune, pure horseshit. In fact the standard needs to be higher, for police, then others. When your job is enforcing rules,,your actions are, or should not be immune, regarding accountability.
The days of ” I was in fear for my life,” have played out. Let’s let the facts of each action and a jury of citizens make those choices.
We had another shooting here, an young lady police officer and her crew were looking for a fella who had just broken into an apartment, took a shot at another guy, butt stroked a lady inside the apartment with his sawed off, then leave.
She rolled up on a guy acting hinky wearing a hoodie, and Ill stop their.
Their are some issues, with this shoot, bottom line one down, sawoff Shotty laying next to the fella.
The cop, the players are all local. I’ve known them all since they were children. The guy killed got out of the pen six months ago, after slashing the throat of another, who did not die. Two weeks ago he ambushed an officer exiting a store.
The young ladies a combat vet, twotours,, couple of minor children with no dad in the picture. Comes from a wonderful family.
None of this matters, let the facts of the shooting speak for themselves.
Here in Oregon we use a grand jury system. Basically a tool for the DA, to ramrod shot thru, without objection, or questioning of the facts.
Shitty deal for the community.
let’s have a big ol,dog pile, before anybody here’s the rest of the story.
Merry Christmas to all of you.
Dirk