Old woman gunned down in her home by police officers.

http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2006/11/22/metshoot1122b.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13

By Jeffry Scott, S.A. Reid
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 11/22/06

A 92-year-old woman was killed after she shot three Atlanta narcotics officers Tuesday night when they broke down the front door of her home trying to serve a search warrant, police said.

One officer was hit in the arm, one was struck in the shoulder and one was shot in the thigh. All were rushed to Grady Memorial Hospital, where they were in stable condition late Tuesday night. Police did not release their names.

Atlanta assistant police Chief Alan Dreher, in a news conference outside the hospital emergency room, declined to confirm the identity of the woman, but said the warrant was served at the correct address.

Sarah C. Dozier, also speaking at the hospital, identified the dead woman as her aunt, Kathryn Johnston.

Dozier said her aunt worried about crime in the neighborhood where she had lived for about 17 years, and might have thought the police were intruders.

"Every window in her home and every door on her home has burglar bars," said Dozier. "I talked to her the other day about a 72-year-old who was raped. I know she was just scared."

Dozier said her aunt was healthy and vigorous and lived alone. She said she talked to her aunt every day and was looking forward to her annual Thanksgiving dinner at her aunt's home.

Dreher, the assistant police chief, said that as far as he knew the narcotics officers did "everything by the book. They had a search warrant, they announced themselves and knocked first." He said he did not know what name was on the warrant. The woman was the only person in the home at the time, he said.

Dreher said the incident is still under investigation and "will be for days."

He declined to say how many shots were fired and what kind of gun the woman had. Dozier said her aunt owned a pistol and she had a permit. "I don't know what kind and it was rusty, but apparently it was working well," she said.

A neighbor, Yolanda Jackson, 42, said she was sitting on the front porch of her home on Joseph E. Lowery Boulevard a block away when undercover narcotics officers, who were not in street uniforms, showed up around 7 p.m. to serve the warrant at Johnston's home, at 933 Neal St.

"I heard 'pow, pow, pow, pow,' " said Jackson. "A whole lot of gunfire, really fast." She estimated the number of shots at between 16 and 24. She said within five minutes, "about 20" police cars swarmed into the area.

A few minutes later ambulances showed up and a helicopter was hovering over the neighborhood, which is an intown mix of dilapidated and well-kept homes, houses being refurbished and a few new infill houses.

By 8:15 p.m. police had Neal Street blocked off from the corner of Joseph Lowery as investigators went in and out of the home bringing out bags of evidence, according to neighbors, and TV news crews set up street shots.

The shooting came on the same day that the district attorney in neighboring DeKalb County announced she would ask for a grand jury to review Police Department investigations of 12 deadly police shootings there this year. Some of Johnston's neighbors made the connection.

"The same thing is happening here as is going on in DeKalb County," said neighbor Tony Torrance. "Police are shooting people. They aren't following procedure."

Atlanta police declined to say what they were searching for when they went to Johnston's home. Dozier said she plans to hire a lawyer to find out what really happened.

"As far as I'm concerned, they shot her down like a dog."

ON AJC.COM

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You know, I don't really know what happened here or whether these officers share part of the blame and how much of it they should be assigned, but it IS kind of significant that she started shooting first.

If three men kicked down your door in a crime ridden neighborhood, you would shoot first too. They arrived after dark in plain clothes, knocked, said they were the police, then kicked open the door. Even if they did everything right and she was guilty, clearly the procedure used needs to be addressed.

No. I would ask to see the warrant.

Yes, well she would have had to read it with her face in the carpet and her arms in plastic handcuffs.

Maybe I am wrong, but I am having trouble seeing a 72 year old grandmother as the center of a drug ring. But its been a while since I moved out of the city. I am guessing the had the wrong address. In which case this person would have had no reason to assign any validity at all to the idea that the warrent - or the cops - were for real, especially since they were kicking down the door.

Maybe you have the kind of icy nerves it would take to face down three cops bursting through your door and screaming for you to get on the floor so that you could demand to see their warrent. I think that your assumption that this person would have the presence of mind to do that is unwarrented (if you will pardon the pun)

My feeling: the blame is assigned to the "no knock warrent" rulings that have severely cut down on the time between the knock and the breaking down of the door.

92. Perhaps she couldn't hear the men announce themselves when they knocked and identified themselves as police officers?

The best part of that is the use of loose, instead of lose, on the center square.

"Loose one turn". Yes man, cut loose with that turn!

if that were the case, you'd really have to wonder why she was allowed to keep a handgun around.

I have to agree with you here (and Mr. NickFaust)....None of us are 92, as of yet, and I think I can assume that fairly. Therefore, none of us know exactly how we would have reacted considering the circumstances- ALL of them.

Ah.

Well, it's good to see you make it out to the movies every decade or so.

'Course, having a point might be entertaining too.

Since 9/11 it seems more and more common that the POLICE are not here to Serve&Protect but to harrass and intimidate. 2 officers in Eugene, OR were convicted of rape. 2 officers in Multnomaugh Co., Or were convicted of intimidaton and other charges for forcing women to show their breasts and pucbic areas after falsely claiming they were looking for tattoos. Portland, Oregons Chief of Police was forced to resign because of sexual harrasment and explicit emails sent on PD computers. The Sheriff in Multnomah Co. ,OR was at the center of corruption investigations conducted by his own District Attorney. Police killings of mentally ill citizens in OR have become common place. Police intimidation of bicycle riders in Portland and Eugene, OR are at all time highs. It just goes on and on ,not to mention the rampant Police abuse of the overtime and disability programs throughout Oregon.

If she'd had a semi-automatic shotgun she might be alive today.

When buying your grandmother's Christmas present, keep in mind that fire power counts.

Claymore mine. That discourages all sorts of intruders.

This is a tradgedy for all involved, of course. Perhaps serving warrants in a bad neighborhood at night and in plain clothes is not such a good idea?

Also, is it wrong to be pretty impressed that the 92 year old woman hit all 3 cops?

My point was that you are jumping to conclusions.

Well in the cops defence bad neighborhood generally have look outs and alert people in the area when the police are around.

I'm kind of impressed the recoil didn't knock her over.

For once, Captain Obvious was truly needed.

From the BBC:

Horrible tragedy, but (from what I am reading) the police went there with the information they were given, knocked, announced, broke down the door, were fired upon, and fired back. It does not appear (to me) that the cops that went there went looking to gun down an old lady because it seemed like a fun way to spend their evening. It was a bad, horrible, mistake on both sides.

Police cannot wait 'that long' when serving a warrant. Waiting allows time for the people inside to flush drugs, arm themselves (which a 92 year old woman was able to do) etc. etc.

Is there anything anywhere stating what the warrant was for in the first place?

From what my client officers in Narcotics have told me in the past, they often knock, announce and then bash the door in very quickly, particularly in narcotics cases where they are concerned perps will flush evidence down the toilet to avoid felony distribution/trafficking charges.

They also tend to go in fast to give people less time to get guns ready.

Old folks tend to be slow and hard of hearing, so it's very likely the woman couldn't make it to the door fast enough and may well have not heard the officers I.D. themselves at the door. 92 year olds generally can't see very well either, particularly at night - so she very well might have believed the officers were robbers violently breaking into her house.

Again, the decision to go in at night, in plainclothes, and in this manner was particularly unfortunate.

The AP reports: (bolding mine)

Which is why I asked what the warrant was for in the first place, it could give a better idea as to why the officers acted as they apparently did. I wasn't attempting to make anyone look incompetent.

Happens to the best of us.

does anyone else see a link between this thread and this one started by the same author?