The shooting death of an unarmed man during a traffic stop at the hands of a Montana police officer was found justified by a jury at a coroner’s inquest Wednesday.
The officer, Grant Morrison, told the jury he had no choice but to kill 38-year-old Richard Ramirez last April because he feared for his life. Morrison fired three shots at Ramirez as he sat in a vehicle. Morrison, who killed another man in 2013 and was cleared of any wrongdoing, said he believed Ramirez had a gun.
Police video showed Morrison repeatedly ordered Ramirez and other occupants of the vehicle to raise their hands. Ramirez’s actions were largely obscured in the video. But Morrison said Ramirez dropped his left hand to his side — out of the officer’s view — and “started to jiggle it up and down” just before he was shot.
“I knew in that moment, which later was determined to be untrue, but I knew in that moment that he was reaching for a gun,” Morrison said. “I couldn’t take that risk. … I wanted to see my son grow up.”
The jury, comprised of seven people, deliberated for an hour before delivering its decision. Family members of the victim said they were “disappointed” by the findings, adding that they intend to file a lawsuit against Morrison for using excessive force.
Ramirez’s family wanted criminal charges against the officer and said Ramirez was a victim of racial profiling.
Another sister, Renee Ramirez, criticized the inquest as one-sided. She said testimony that her brother was a drug user was irrelevant.
All but three of the 15 people called to testify during the two-day inquest were from law enforcement. Several police officers spoke at length about their prior dealings with Ramirez and others in his family.
“I don’t care what things my brother did in the past,” Renee Ramirez said. “What does that have to do with shooting my brother?”
While police acknowledge that Ramirez was unarmed, Billings Police Detective Brad Tucker said he may have been trying to stash something when he moved his hand to his side. A toxicology report found that the victim was high on methamphetamine at the time of his death.
Morrison, who was placed on paid administrative leave after the shooting, has returned to work. He has been assigned to a task force investigating prescription drugs.
You can watch the disturbing and upsetting video of the shooting above.
SOURCE: AP/Yahoo | VIDEO SOURCE: YouTube
