Yesterday a diary, which I will not link to, graced not only the pages of Daily Kos but the Recommended List as well, decrying the shooting death of Jose Guerena at the hands of the Pima County, Arizona, Sheriff's Department SWAT team. The diary was well written, persuassive, and made a formidable case for the young widow and against the SWAT officers.
My only reason for writing about it here is to point out that it was one sided to the point of ridiculousness, whether intended or not a fine bit of publicity supporting the young widow's pending lawsuit.
The story, as related in that diary, contained so many critical omissions that fair minded persons could conclude that a propaganda label is warranted.
The story that was related here is essentially that an otherwise law abiding couple were minding their own business inside their home when a pack of unidentified armed men burst into the home and, while the young wife and mother huddled inside a closet calling 911, inexcusably shot and killed the homeowner, a twenty six year old Marine veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan. All the elements for a powerful story; young man who'd honorably served his country, grieving young widow, police misconduct, two now fatherless children. The kind of story that, after it tears your heart out, sends good Progressives reaching for their pitchforks and torches. If only it were the whole story.
In fairness to yesterday's diarist, some of what will be related here was not available to him (gender neutral screen name, treated as male for convenience here) when he put together his apologia for the Guerena family. He relied almost exclusively on the account of the widow, who not only has emotional skin in the game but a huge pecuniary interest in what story is believed. His familiar use of Vanessa Guerena's first name suggests at least personal acquaintance, and perhaps that swayed his judgement. We could speculate about motives forever, and who knows if we'd ever truly get to the bottom of it.
What Vanessa Guerena may not have known, or at least didn't give any thought to when she first related her story, is that the SWAT team was audio/video recording the entire episode, through a helmet mounted video cam worn by at least one of the SWAT team members. Yesterday, while kossacks were busily recommending the one sided account, essentially from a very interested person, the Pima County Sheriff's Department released a portion of the video.
Ms. Guerena's story, and the pending lawsuit, hinge almost entirely on her assertion that she and her husband heard people outside their home but had no way of knowing it was the police SWAT Team and thought the intruders were home invaders. If we accept that, then the fact that Jose Guerena greeted the "invaders" with an AR-15 in his hands is understandable, even admirable. But the least bit of attention paid to the video, which begins in the vehicle on the way to the home and continues through the approach, entry, and the deadly fusilade delivered by the SWAT team clearly establishes that not only did the SWAT team sound the siren on their police vehicle before even approaching the home, in broad daylight, and as clearly, loudly declared themselves to be police in English and Spanish before knocking down the door. When Mr. Guerena greeted them with an assault weapon in his hands he got exactly what anyone who waves a weapon in the face of the entering policeman needs to expect, shot sixty times by the police.
That last sentence may seem unduly harsh, or overly sympathetic to the police. And perhaps in ivory towers and other unworldly quarters it is so. But in real life, out here in the streets, that's the way it works. Even the display of a firearm to the police, after they have clearly identified themselves as police officers, regularly results in the self and teammate protective reaction of a hail of bullets. When Jose Guerena was in Iraq and Afghanistan I'm confident his reaction would have been identical. As a former Marine who kicked in a few doors in a long ago conflict, I can testify from personal experience that the men doing their lawful business, particularly the lead or "point" man, are on an incredibly thin hair trigger. Once, when kicking a door and leading in I would have killed every Vietnamese in the room had I not heard the guy behind me screaming "It's only a poker game, it's only a poker game." I cannot imagine that Jose Guerena didn't know these things.
Most admittedly the Pima County Sheriff's Department horribly screwed the pooch when their first press statements said that Mr. Guerena had fired first. That is plainly not the case, in fact, his weapon was never taken off safety. I haven't seen anything yet which clearly establishes whether or not it was even loaded, although my Marine training teaches me that Mr. Guerena's training and experience would make it unlikely that he would brandish a firearm in the presence of armed men if that firearm wasn't loaded.
Much was made of the fact that the police refused to allow anyone, even the EMT's, into the home until more than a hour had elapsed. Implicit in that point is the notion that, had the police allowed the EMTs in, perhaps Mr. Guerena's life could have been saved. To which there are two principal responses. First, after being shot sixty times at close range it is most likely that Mr. Guerena was dead before he hit the floor. Even more importantly, the refusal to allow even the EMTs in was not some random act of cruelty as it's often portrayed. Given the nature of the information the police relied on approaching the home, more on which below, that they first had the home checked out by a robot before allowing anyone inside is, at worst, good practice. Mr. Guerena himself probably had a tale or two about booby traps or other explosive devices in his patrols in Iraq and Afghanistan. I doubt he would have counseled any other course of action in the circumstances.
According to the attorney representing tthe SWAT team members. Mike Storie, the purpose of the raid was not to find drugs. Mr. Storie, doing his own jury pool seeding, has made known that the raid was intended to find evidence supporting allegations that Mr. Guerena was involved in a home invasion ring that preyed on drug dealers. That the police now claim to have discovered weapons and body armor in the Guerena home seems to support that allegation. This is a critical point for those who assert that since no drugs were found in the home, Mr. Guerena must have been innocent. Their assertion is a red herring. He was not alleged to have drugs, or even be directly involved in their sale or distribution. The police went to his home seeking evidence that he was a home invader, perhaps in the employ of a drug cartel. That no drugs were found is irrelevant.
Finally, this case is a classic example of everything that's wrong with the intersection of a free press and the criminal justice system. The need to satisy prurient curiosity, right here, right now. There are at least three sides to this story, all interested parties. Mrs. Guerena has an ax to grind, and an important financial stake in what version gets believed. The Pima County Sheriff's Office has an important stake as well. Both Mrs. Guerena and the PCSO have made factually untrue statements in the aftermath of the tragedy. The SWAT team members, in their individual capacities, which they will surely be sued under along with their official capacities, have their own lawyer getting out their version. Simple truth is, at this point it's difficult to determine all the facts. That's why we have trials. I can understand why the interested parties seek to stampede a rush to judgement in their favor. I cannot understand why anyone above the social and intellectual capacity of the National Enquirer buys into any of it prematurely.
That as sophisticated and intelligent a group as Daily Kos took the bait from a, perhaps shill is too strong a word, is, at a minimum, distressing.
Full Disclosure: I've voted for Sheriff Dupnik 5 times and, in the controversial aftermath of the Gabby Giffords shooting, have even gone so far as to stand outside the PCSO office in support of the Sheriff when he was under assault by various hate groups (they had a Gadsden flag). Beyond that I have no connection nor interest in the Sheriff or his Department.
UPDATE: h/t hanswall. The affidavit of the SWAT team supervisor, which lays out several heretofore not publically disclosed aspects of this sad affair can be found here.