06-05-2008, 04:34 PM
Took them long enough but was there ever a question? He most certainly gave up his "civil rights" within the first five minutes of his 10-50. Prayers and thoughts still go out to the family and the agency.
Be safe out there!
Killer's Civil Rights Not Violated, Panel Says
By Shoshana Walter
THE LEDGER
Published: Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 6:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 6:29 a.m.
LAKELAND | Angilo Freeland's civil rights weren't violated, the Department of Justice has concluded, 20 months after the fugitive died in a 68-bullet barrage fired by law enforcement officers tracking the man sought in the killing of Polk sheriff's Deputy Matt Williams.
Freeland, 27, was killed Sept. 28, 2006, during the biggest manhunt in Polk County history.
Polk sheriff's officials have said Freeland shot and killed Williams and his police dog, DioGi, after a traffic stop on North Wabash Avenue in Lakeland, then fled into nearby woods.
Nine officers - two Polk deputies, a Lakeland police officer, a Marion County deputy, a Lake County deputy and four Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers - found Freeland early the next morning, burrowed beneath a tree. A sudden movement by Freeland spurred the officers to fire, killing him, law enforcement officials said.
The officers fired 89 shots and Freeland was hit 68 times, the State Attorney's Office said in its review of Freeland's death.
In a letter to Polk Sheriff Grady Judd on Monday the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department said it had ended its investigation of the case.
"After careful consideration, we concluded that the evidence does not establish a prosecutable violation of federal criminal civil rights statutes," Justice Department official Mark J. Kappelhoff wrote. "Accordingly, we have closed our investigation."
Freeland's death was investigated by five different organizations before heading to the Justice Department.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Sheriff's Office, and the Medical Examiner's Office each completed an investigation and submitted their findings to the State Attorney's Office, which ruled the officers' use of force was justified.
The FBI completed a report earlier this year and passed it on to the Justice Department to make the final ruling.
The Florida Civil Rights Association filed a complaint with the department in October 2006.
Judd was not available for comment Wednesday. Sheriff's Chief Gary Hester said the law enforcement officers acted correctly. "We're pleased with the results. The Department of Justice's finding was not surprising," he said. "They (the law enforcement officers) did what they had to do to protect themselves. If there's ever been a case in Polk County when deadly force was necessary, it was certainly this case."
The Freeland family's lawyer, Grady C. Irvin Jr., could not be reached for comment Wednesday evening. J. Willie David III of the Florida Civil Rights Association said in a phone message that he had not yet learned of the Department's ruling.
David and Irvin have questioned whether police acted properly.
In the past, David has said that his organization "obviously doesn't condone" the shooting of the officer and the dog, but said that the officers were excessive in their use of force.
Don Brown, president of the NAACP chapter of Polk County, said he had not received a letter from the department announcing the decision, but echoed his previous sentiments about the case.
"I felt then and I feel now that the amount of shots fired was excessive," he said.
"We have a system of justice in this country. When you kill a person on the spot, where is the justice? Where is the system?"
Freeland was burrowed under a fallen tree when SWAT team members fired 101 shots at him. Sixty-eight of the bullets hit him, according to the Medical Examiner's Office.
Judd has said that SWAT team members saw a gun before shooting Freeland, but Irvin has said Freeland was not holding a gun. The gun was found after Freeland removed a shirt it was under, he said.
"Police officers shooting any person 68 times, irregardless of race, is inexcusable, and a depraved indifference for human life," David stated in a news release.
David called Freeland's death "profoundly disturbing and (it) raises questions that are too important to be dismissed."
[ Shoshana Walter can be reached at 863-802-7590 or shoshana.walter@theledger.com. ]
Be safe out there!
Killer's Civil Rights Not Violated, Panel Says
By Shoshana Walter
THE LEDGER
Published: Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 6:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 6:29 a.m.
LAKELAND | Angilo Freeland's civil rights weren't violated, the Department of Justice has concluded, 20 months after the fugitive died in a 68-bullet barrage fired by law enforcement officers tracking the man sought in the killing of Polk sheriff's Deputy Matt Williams.
Freeland, 27, was killed Sept. 28, 2006, during the biggest manhunt in Polk County history.
Polk sheriff's officials have said Freeland shot and killed Williams and his police dog, DioGi, after a traffic stop on North Wabash Avenue in Lakeland, then fled into nearby woods.
Nine officers - two Polk deputies, a Lakeland police officer, a Marion County deputy, a Lake County deputy and four Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers - found Freeland early the next morning, burrowed beneath a tree. A sudden movement by Freeland spurred the officers to fire, killing him, law enforcement officials said.
The officers fired 89 shots and Freeland was hit 68 times, the State Attorney's Office said in its review of Freeland's death.
In a letter to Polk Sheriff Grady Judd on Monday the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department said it had ended its investigation of the case.
"After careful consideration, we concluded that the evidence does not establish a prosecutable violation of federal criminal civil rights statutes," Justice Department official Mark J. Kappelhoff wrote. "Accordingly, we have closed our investigation."
Freeland's death was investigated by five different organizations before heading to the Justice Department.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Sheriff's Office, and the Medical Examiner's Office each completed an investigation and submitted their findings to the State Attorney's Office, which ruled the officers' use of force was justified.
The FBI completed a report earlier this year and passed it on to the Justice Department to make the final ruling.
The Florida Civil Rights Association filed a complaint with the department in October 2006.
Judd was not available for comment Wednesday. Sheriff's Chief Gary Hester said the law enforcement officers acted correctly. "We're pleased with the results. The Department of Justice's finding was not surprising," he said. "They (the law enforcement officers) did what they had to do to protect themselves. If there's ever been a case in Polk County when deadly force was necessary, it was certainly this case."
The Freeland family's lawyer, Grady C. Irvin Jr., could not be reached for comment Wednesday evening. J. Willie David III of the Florida Civil Rights Association said in a phone message that he had not yet learned of the Department's ruling.
David and Irvin have questioned whether police acted properly.
In the past, David has said that his organization "obviously doesn't condone" the shooting of the officer and the dog, but said that the officers were excessive in their use of force.
Don Brown, president of the NAACP chapter of Polk County, said he had not received a letter from the department announcing the decision, but echoed his previous sentiments about the case.
"I felt then and I feel now that the amount of shots fired was excessive," he said.
"We have a system of justice in this country. When you kill a person on the spot, where is the justice? Where is the system?"
Freeland was burrowed under a fallen tree when SWAT team members fired 101 shots at him. Sixty-eight of the bullets hit him, according to the Medical Examiner's Office.
Judd has said that SWAT team members saw a gun before shooting Freeland, but Irvin has said Freeland was not holding a gun. The gun was found after Freeland removed a shirt it was under, he said.
"Police officers shooting any person 68 times, irregardless of race, is inexcusable, and a depraved indifference for human life," David stated in a news release.
David called Freeland's death "profoundly disturbing and (it) raises questions that are too important to be dismissed."
[ Shoshana Walter can be reached at 863-802-7590 or shoshana.walter@theledger.com. ]