No Indictment in 'Friendly-Fire' Case.

Remember that weird, problematic case in which the off-duty officer, in plainclothes, pulled out his gun and chased a guy who may have broken into his car, and then other cops came and shot that off-duty cop? News from the New York Times:

A grand jury in Manhattan has voted not to indict a New York City police officer who fatally shot another officer, who was armed and off duty at the time, on an East Harlem street in May, according to Robert M. Morgenthau, the Manhattan district attorney.

The officer, Andrew P. Dunton, who has been on administrative duty since the May 28 shooting, killed Officer Omar J. Edwards, firing six shots on a rainy night. Neither officer was in uniform; Officer Dunton was working a plainclothes assignment, and Officer Edwards had just finished a shift.

Officer Dunton testified before the secret panel last week, and the grand jurors have since delivered a “no true bill,” meaning Officer Dunton, 30, will not face criminal charges for the shooting, Mr. Morgenthau said in a statement. The officer may still face an internal Police Department review that could lead to disciplinary measures.

The shooting of Officer Edwards, who was black, by Officer Dunton, who is white, prompted concern by some public officials and community activists over race relations and stereotypes within the police force. Several elected officials called upon the Police Department to explore procedures that could help prevent so-called friendly fire and to examine the impact race has on officers’ decision-making.

  • Surprise, surprise.

  • *sigh*

  • I dunno if I would indict the guy though. This is one of those ‘guilty enough with the knowledge of what he did’. I would have preferred he do something like promise to do desk duty for the rest of his career, or become part of a race review task force, or whatever. But whatev.

  • blackink12

    Jeebus. At this point, it will actually be news when an officer actually faces indictment for this sort of thing.

  • ladyfresh

    agreed

  • cicely

    gross. and, uh, i don’t know that i would want ol’ boy on a race review task force. what would he add to it?

  • Dee Dee B

    a disgrace.. nobody has an issue with the badged klan shooting a Black man in the back but since the Black man is a cop.. all this feigned concern.. white cops are a clear and present danger to black americans in or out of uniform