A former Fulton County sheriff's major accidentally shot and killed his wife Friday while unloading his gun, according to Griffin police.But you wouldn't necessarily know that unless you'd done an investigation, would you...?
...Clanton said no criminal investigation will be done since the shooting was accidental.
Look, I'm not trying to snipe at the guy in his time of agony here. Lord knows he deserves a presumption of innocence and is probably so overwhelmed with guilt and grief right now he's teetering on the edge of endurance.
But you tell me, were one of us to do the same thing to our spouse, that we wouldn't be treated like suspects, that our bank accounts, investments, financial records and insurance policies wouldn't be scrutinized, that family and neighbors wouldn't be interviewed to see if there was a history of arguments or trouble in the marriage (and by age 54, how many couples haven't had a few of those) or recent changes in behavior...
Like I said, the last thing I want to do is kick this man when he's down. My comments are directed at the "Only Ones" attitude exhibited by the Griffin Police, at least in terms of their recorded statement to the press. Let's hope there's a lot more to this story than we've been told.
[Via Professor X]
UPDATE: Spiffmo wonders if the same resolution would automatically be afforded to "auto mechanic Joe Jones from Macon."
That depends. Does he fix transmissions?
8 comments:
I am not assuming guilt either, but I must ask the following:
How does a person experienced with firearms explain why the muzzle was pointed in the direction of another person, while any kind of manipulation was being performed?
Why would the muzzle of your gun ever be pointed at someone you love?
And I do agree with you, an investigation usually follows any kind of firearm discharge...or it should.
Have to go along with anonymous on this one.
I was thinking the same thing. If nothing else, this is a perfect example of how being a current, or retired, police officer doesn't make you an expert in handling firearms.
I've never had a problem keeping my firearm pointed in a safe direction any time I've cleared a round. It's also not that hard to keep your finger off the trigger when you're doing it either.
Y'all are more charitable than I. A trained expert doesn't have accidents. He may be negligent or he may be guilty of murder, but he wasn't accidental. And I'm not the one calling them experts, they are.
The department's statement that there would be no investigation because (he didn't mean it) it was an accident supposes there are no penalties for negligence, which of course, we all know isn't true. Any of us who had done the same, even if "accidentally" (negligently) would already have a file opened and an ADA on standby to place charges.
Just received a vitriol laden comment on my take on the matter, from a niece of the man who did the shooting. Blaming the tool and insisting it was an accident.
Some people are simply un-teachable.
After reading the comments on Fits' site, I posted the following:
You grieving family members are missing the point.
The point is that if I shot and killed my beloved wife, it wouldn't matter to Deputy Sheriff Riley Taylor that I was a wonderful husband, father, and pillar of the community. Deputy Riley Taylor wouldn't take into consideration that it was a dreadful mistake, that I loved her, or that all of my family were in shock with grief and remorse. Deputy Riley Taylor wouldn't care how many innocent men have been sent to prison.
Deputy Sheriff Riley Taylor would slam me to the floor, cuff me, search my home, strip it of all my guns and confiscate them, and throw me in jail.
But the other cops didn't do that to HIM. And THAT is the point of this blog entry.
They didn't do it to him, but both he and they would do it to me.
I'm sorry for your family.
I'm just as sorry for the rest of us benighted American citizens who can't seem to get equal treatment under the law from cops. After all, when have you ever seen firefighters give special treatment to another firefighter?
You're so right to be skeptical. There really are different standards for different folks.
I appreciate what you wrote about the presumption of innocence for this guy. Have you ever wondered why can't it say "innocent unless proved guilty" instead of "innocent until proven guilty?" There is a difference.
I can't help but wonder about this accident. Guess I've watched too many Forensics Files shows.
Why the hell isn't everyone DEMANDING an investigation? Make it a federal case if the local cops are refusing to investigate a damn murder.
They DUG UP a body to look into it in ILLinois. We just had a cop convicted of murder in Ohio for elbowing his girlfriend/babymoma and yet this guy gets off with NOTHING, not even an investigation.
everyone print out this article and use this in court should you ever have any "accidents" of your own. Failing to investigate is criminal negligence, conspiracy at the least and God knows what else.
There is no part of any social contract "we the people" ever took part in left. Not one damn shred.
War may be hell, but given the madness that rules this country now, the institutionalized bias and corruption, the inequality that is on display for everyone to see in this case...let the fighting begin. It'll be a welcome change from this madness.
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