drunk officer kills motorcyclist

[Benny]

Keep in mind that Indiana has thousands of police officers that went to work today that were not intoxicated. Unfortunately...that's not the ones you'll read about in the newspapers.

To the thousands that did not...hats off to you for the jobs you do. May God bless you and keep you safe.

To the families involved in this tragedy...may God ease your pain. Your lives will never be the same.

This is a very sad day.

Do yourself a favor and quit wasting your fingers trying to convince the idiots that all cops aren't bad.

Any rational person knows there are bad seeds in all walks of life; haters are going to hate, but all of us with half a brain know that the majority of LEOs are good people, trying to make an honest living, while to keep the peace the best way they can.

You'll never convince anyone that doesn't want to be convinced...Facts will NEVER get in the way of their argument.

 

[1032JBT]

shouldn't he be held to a higher standard? As an enforcer of the law , he also jeperdized the life of a fellow officer , his dog .

He is held to a higher standard.....just not criminally. In a criminal sense he will or at least should be charged just as anyone else would be. He will most likely, if he hasn't already been, be internally charged with Conduct Unbecoming which in a serious case like this will most likelt result in his certification being revoked for good meaning no matter what happens he will no longer be a cop........anywhere.


As far as the dog...........sadly in Indiana the dog is not a Police Officer but a tool of the job so while he might have endangered other officers in other way, his dog wasn't one of them. As a former K9 handler, I don't agree with this.......but it's the way it is.

 

[Benny]

shouldn't he be held to a higher standard? As an enforcer of the law , he also jeopardized the life of a fellow officer , his dog .

Quoted for truth.

 

[ihateiraq]

It does make it tempting, doesn't it? 'Course, I would only be trading one type of insufferable BS for another. I'm trying to avoid the grass-is-greener trap but it does make me think...

i work for the department of corrections. that being said, id apply in a heartbeat if you didnt have to move to marion county until after the academy.

 

[ihateiraq]

As far as the dog...........sadly in Indiana the dog is not a Police Officer but a tool of the job so while he might have endangered other officers in other way, his dog wasn't one of them. As a former K9 handler, I don't agree with this.......but it's the way it is.

i never knew that. in the army, most k-9s outrank their handlers.

 

[Naptown]

He was drunk?!? On duty? That is ridiculous. Unacceptable, I'm sorry.

 

[long coat]

Did he get drunk at work or did he goto work drunk?

To all the good LEOs, thanks.

 

[1032JBT]

He was drunk?!? On duty? That is ridiculous. Unacceptable, I'm sorry.

I hate to speak for everyone, but I would hazard a guess that 99.999999% of Officers and those that live in the communities they work in would agree with you

 

[Benny]

I hate to speak for everyone, but I would hazard a guess that 99.999999% of Officers and those that live in the communities they work in would agree with you

That's just CRAZY talk.

 

[Jay]

changed my mind... wouldn't have accomplished anything

 

[public servant]

changed my mind... wouldn't have accomplished anything

Change it back Jay. Your input is always appreciated.

 

[EvilleDoug]

Doesn't matter what his childhood was like, who he was abused by, or what was going on with his dog. He is a disgrace to my profession and I hope he gets what he deserves.







Negative.........I hope he gets the same as anyone else would, nothing more nothing less.

Great post fpd...If I had any reps I would hit ya

 

[MrsGungho]

Great post fpd...If I had any reps I would hit ya

got him in this thread already

 

[451_Detonics]

If I killed someone while driving drunk it would be manslaughter at the very least with a chunk of jail time. An LEO should be held to a higher standard and should be punishedwith at least the same penalty I would receive if not an even stiffer sentence. If he skates on this with a slap on the wrist it will just create further disdain for Law Enforcement. I know the Department can't and won't do a breathalizer test at roll call...don't expect them to but if he was drunk at roll call then someone should have said something. Of course the thin blue line is a tough one to cross and seldom will an LEO turn in a brother officer but a life would have been saved here. If he got drunk after his shift started I hope the family sues his ass off. In any case the person should never be allowed in a position of authority again.

 

[downzero]

IC: 9-30-5-5b1.......class B Felony. Nothing more nothing less as that would be what I would charge anyone else with under the same situation.

Here's the statute you claim he violated:

if the person operated the motor vehicle when the person knew that the person's driver's license, driving privilege, or permit is suspended or revoked for a previous conviction for operating a vehicle while intoxicated.
(b) A person at least twenty-one (21) years of age who causes the death of another person when operating a motor vehicle:
(1) with an alcohol concentration equivalent to at least fifteen-hundredths (0.15) gram of alcohol per:
(A) one hundred (100) milliliters of the person's blood; or
(B) two hundred ten (210) liters of the person's breath; or
(2) with a controlled substance listed in schedule I or II of IC 35-48-2 or its metabolite in the person's blood;
commits a Class B felony.

Might want to read the bold text more carefully, there.

I'd start with this:

IC 9-30-5-5
Classification of offense; death; death of law enforcement animal
Sec. 5. (a) A person who causes the death of another person when operating a motor vehicle:
(1) with an alcohol concentration equivalent to at least eight-hundredths (0.08) gram of alcohol per:
(A) one hundred (100) milliliters of the person's blood; or
(B) two hundred ten (210) liters of the person's breath;
(2) with a controlled substance listed in schedule I or II of IC 35-48-2 or its metabolite in the person's blood; or
(3) while intoxicated;
commits a Class C felony. However, the offense is a Class B felony if the person has a previous conviction of operating while intoxicated within the five (5) years preceding the commission of the offense, or if the person operated the motor vehicle when the person knew that the person's driver's license, driving privilege, or permit is suspended or revoked for a previous conviction for operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

It appears to me that you would charge him with the wrong statute, and that if the facts are as stated in the report, he's guilty of a class C felony unless he satisfies the latter part of the statute.

I also think you're wrong about not charging him with more. Being drunk while on duty as a police officer AND causing death by driving under the influence should be separate crimes.

It also seems that he satisfies the involuntary manslaughter statute, which makes him guilty of another felony:

IC 35-42-1-4
Involuntary manslaughter
Sec. 4. (a) As used in this section, "child care provider" means a person who provides child care in or on behalf of:
(1) a child care center (as defined in IC 12-7-2-28.4); or
(2) a child care home (as defined in IC 12-7-2-28.6);
regardless of whether the child care center or child care home is licensed.
(b) As used in this section, "fetus" means a fetus that has attained viability (as defined in IC 16-18-2-365).
(c) A person who kills another human being while committing or attempting to commit: (1) a Class C or Class D felony that inherently poses a risk of serious bodily injury;
(2) a Class A misdemeanor that inherently poses a risk of serious bodily injury; or
(3) battery;
commits involuntary manslaughter, a Class C felony. However, if the killing results from the operation of a vehicle, the offense is a Class D felony.
(d) A person who kills a fetus while committing or attempting to commit:
(1) a Class C or Class D felony that inherently poses a risk of serious bodily injury;
(2) a Class A misdemeanor that inherently poses a risk of serious bodily injury;
(3) battery; or
(4) a violation of IC 9-30-5-1 through IC 9-30-5-5 (operating a vehicle while intoxicated);
commits involuntary manslaughter, a Class C felony. However, if the killing results from the operation of a vehicle, the offense is a Class D felony.
(e) If:
(1) a child care provider recklessly supervises a child; and
(2) the child dies as a result of the child care provider's reckless supervision;
the child care provider commits involuntary manslaughter, a Class D felony

.

There are probably a number of other charges that should result from this as well.

I hope to God that nobody here tries to defend this conduct, either. This is beyond atrocious.

 

[JetGirl]

Guess this was one of the Un-funny drunk stories...
2¢

 

[Benny]

Great post fpd...If I had any reps I would hit ya

I'll get him as soon as I recharge, which should be any minute now.

Guess this was one of the Un-funny drunk stories...
2¢

I'm confused...Was there an "un-funny drunk stories" thread that I missed?

 

[IndyMonkey]

Guess this was one of the Un-funny drunk stories...
2¢

You didnt see where the loud pipes didnt save lives?

 

[Prometheus]

As far as the dog...........sadly in Indiana the dog is not a Police Officer but a tool of the job so while he might have endangered other officers in other way, his dog wasn't one of them. As a former K9 handler, I don't agree with this.......but it's the way it is.

A working dog is a tool. I love dogs. I'm a dog person but a working dog is a tool or by law, an animal that works for it's living, I forget the exact vernacular that is used.

Until they breed dogs that can take an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution, they should never be treated like a LEO. Anything else is just blue colored PETA nonsense.

At to the original topic... Wow... just wow.

Broad day light, drunk off his rocker... that guy has a serious problem.

Yes I know/knew a lot of LEO's with some serious alcohol issues, but even the guys/gals who rotated shifts would never have been that out of control.

I'm with some of the others who suggested this isn't his first time being at work drunk. I also want to know how many officers he came in contact with prior to that accident and have them all investigated.

No way he worked more than one or two incidents that day without fellow officers smelling that level of inebriation. If the guy was a true boozer, he may have been able to function w/o slurring his words.

I've seen guys as high as .5 still ambulatory (albeit not very) and one .7 and still conscious. .19 may seem "insanely high" to some people, but many are still nearly 100% functional... because they live that way.

 

[Benny]

I've seen guys as high as .5 still ambulatory (albeit not very) and one .7 and still conscious. .19 may seem "insanely high" to some people, but many are still nearly 100% functional... because they live that way.

That's possible?