Colorado State trooper investigated after witness claims unarmed man shot to death

[MrScorpio]

Witness: Cop shot unarmed man

State Patrol mum, is investigating fatal encounter

By Paul Shockley
Thursday, July 22, 2010

Jason Kemp was unarmed when a Colorado State Patrol trooper fatally shot him in the doorway of a Redlands home Tuesday night, according to a man who claims he was inside the home.

Kemp was among a group of river-lovers who’d just returned to the home of Kemp’s common-law wife after a trip in which they’d been drinking alcohol, said 30-year-old Ian Olson of Grand Junction.

“This was completely unjustifiable,” said Olson, who described himself as a longtime friend of Kemp. “He (Kemp) was holding the door shut, and just asked them for a warrant.”

Olson said he was detained and questioned by investigators in the immediate aftermath of the incident. He said he and Kemp were alone inside 103 Glade Park Road, unit B, shortly after an alcohol-fueled traffic accident in which Kemp crashed his Ford pickup in the yard at nearby 2501 South Broadway.

Olson said he was upstairs at the three-level duplex when he heard a pounding or kicking on the door.

“They said they were police officers, open the door, with a few expletives in there,” Olson said.

Kemp went to the doorway, engaged the officers in a verbal back-and-forth, yelling out, “Get a search warrant,” among other demands, Olson said.

Olson described Kemp as engaged in something of a “tug of war” with a trooper or troopers, with the door cracking open slightly before shutting again. Olson said he ran down the stairs, grabbed his friend and said, “You’re just making it worse,” and urged him to let the officers in.

Olson said Kemp responded, “No, they don’t have a warrant.”

A liquid, suspected to be pepper spray, was shot through the slightly opened doorway, hitting Kemp in the face and partially spraying Olson, according to Olson’s account.

“It (the struggle at doorway) just kind of stopped for about 20 seconds after that,” Olson said.

Olson claimed he used the opportunity to run downstairs, where he aimed to exit the back door, when he heard a single gunshot. Turning to look, Olson claims he watched his friend collapse onto a chair and then the floor.

“He was blinded (by pepper spray) by the time he was shot,” he said. “I guarantee it.”

http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/articles/witness_cop_shot_unarmed_man/

[DavidDvorkin]

1. An official investigation will determine that the officers acted correctly.

[Greyhound]

2. Bet on it. n/t

:kick: & R

[TheCowsCameHome]

5. The investigation will last about ten minutes.

Then they'll break for happy hour and declare the shooting justified.

[TexasObserver]

3. Killer thugs with badges kill another citizen.

[Matariki]

4. I always find it interesting how reporters use unneccesary words to create a character picture

for instance: "Kemp was among a group of river-lovers who’d just returned to the home of Kemp’s common-law wife after a trip in which they’d been drinking alcohol, said 30-year-old Ian Olson of Grand Junction."


Why was it necessary to use "common-law wife"? What does that accomplish? Does it possibly make the guy seem a little bit outside 'nice' society, (where people have proper wives?) and therefore making him a bit more deserving of whatever the police did to him?

Or am I just being nit-picky?

[Froward69]

6. Hummm of the many police departments

in this state I trust is the troopers and DPD. all the rest are amateurs. granted the State Troopers tend to place the trigger happy officers out in the countryside where they are less likely to do any harm. Grand Junction is not really the countryside. I wonder if the officer had his weapon out with his finger on the trigger. (not supposed to be there unless going to fire) and twitched.