He Allegedly Killed a Cop During a No-Knock Raid. Will the Jury Agree It Was Self-Defense?

Published

11 months ago

November 9, 2023

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BELTON, TEXASA man in small-town Texas is facing life in prison for allegedly killing a police officer. But the trialwhich commenced Monday after a nearly decade-long waitis a confluence of police use of force, the war on drugs, and the right to self-defense. Its outcome will in part answer the following question: How far does a self-defense claim go when it’s exercised against the state?

At around 5:45 a.m. on May 9, 2014, a SWAT team in Killeen, Texasconsisting of about two dozen officersdescended on Marvin Guy’s modest apartment on Circle M Drive. They were there to execute a no-knock drug raid, a controversial approach that allows law enforcement to forcibly enter a residence, usually with a fabulous display of force, without first announcing themselves. An informant had reportedly told police that Guy was dealing cocaine.

The raid did not go as planned.

Officers smashed Guy’s bedroom window and attempted to breach the door with a battering ram. But something appeared to be lodged behind the door, preventing police from immediately gaining entry and leaving them clogged outside the residence. In the rapidly unfolding mayhem, Guy fired several shots outside of his broken window, allegedly hitting four officers. Police quickly fired over 40 rounds in return. One officer, Detective Charles Dinwiddie, died.

Guy was arrested and ultimately charged with one count of capital murder and three counts of attempted capital murder. But he says he believed the police to be intruders when he was awoken and disoriented early that morning. Witnesses for the prosecution yesterday described the neighborhood as one that was known for its high crime rate. Less than a week before the raid, someone broke into Guy’s neighbor’s residence across the street in similar fashion, forcing entry via a first-floor window and choking a female resident nearly to death.

A series of protracted delaysstemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, Guy’s declining health, disputes over the district attorney’s office releasing all the evidence, and a slew of defense attorneys either quitting or being firedhave lengthened Guy’s stay at the county jail, where he has been held for almost a decade on $4 million bond. For years, the state sought the death penalty, which also slowed trial preparations, as proceedings with the ultimate punishment on the table take more time. Prosecutors withdrew that last year, instead opting to pursue life in prison, to speed the process.

The case is not the first to pit self-defense against no-knock raids. The tactic has come under intense scrutiny in recent years. In 2020, Breonna Taylor was killed by police during a similar raid after her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, grabbed a firearm he legally owned and fired one shot at police, believing them to be intruders. (Police claim they announced themselves before breaking down Walker’s door; Walker says he didn’t hear them.) Charges against him were ultimately dismissed. In 2021, a Florida man went to trial facing three counts of first-degree attempted murder of a law enforcement officer after he shot at deputies during a 2017 drug raid targeting his father. The government also charged the defendant, Andrew Coffee IV, with murdering his girlfriend, Alteria Woods, who was shot and killed by police, as prosecutors posited that Woods died as a result of Coffee’s actions. A jury acquitted him of those charges.

The topic is particularly relevant in Guy’s case, as Texas has the Castle Doctrine, a legal principle grounded in the eponymous idea that someone’s home is their castle. As such, they have no duty to retreat when they believe they’re facing a deadly threat. An exception: It does not apply when the person in question is engaged in illegal activity. The Killeen Police Department (KPD) allegedly found traces of white powder in Guy’s car, on the floor of his apartment, and in the trash, amounting to 1 gram of “suspected cocaine.” He was not charged with a drug crime.

But even if the jury decides Guy is not entitled to protection via the Castle Doctrine, they could still find he acted in self-defense. The state, however, has a radically different theory: At trial yesterday, Bell County Assistant District Attorney Fred Burns laid the groundwork for the notion that the problems cascading from the raid weren’t a result of Guy not having enough information. On the contraryit’s because he knew too much, Burns said.

That theory began to take shape during the testimony of David Daniels, a retired SWAT officer with KPD who was hit by a bullet during the raid. In this telling, Guy had barricaded the door to his apartment not because he was afraid of intruders but because he knew SWAT was coming and plotted to kill the police when they arrived. “We were ambushed,” Daniels said. It was not yet clear how the state would prove Guy’s clairvoyance about the department’s plans.

The subject of no-knock raids has been a fraught one for KPD. The city recently reached a settlement with the family of a man who was killed during a 2019 raid. In 2021, the local council voted to ban the tactic. Unfortunately, that came too late here.

Sports

USC WR Lemon exits vs. Michigan after hard hit

Published

2 hours ago

September 22, 2024

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USC WR Lemon exits vs. Michigan after hard hit

Paolo Uggetti, ESPNSep 21, 2024, 05:50 PM ET

USC wide receiver Makai Lemon exited Saturday’s 27-24 loss to Michigan with an apparent injury after he was hit hard during a punt return in the first half.

Lemon did not return to the game, and according to the CBS broadcast, he was taken away in an ambulance. USC did not provide an official update on Lemon’s status before the end of the game.

The sophomore wideout spent an extended amount of time lying down on the field after the injury while surrounded by several members of USC’s training and coaching staff before walking off under his own power. He entered the injury tent and then was taken into the locker room.

Tight end Lake McRee also exited the game in the second half with an apparent left leg injury. The broadcast showed McRee visibly emotional on the bench before he walked into the tunnel to the locker room.

McRee has been a mainstay of USC’s offense early on, accounting for 137 yards on nine receptions so far this season.

Lemon has caught four passes for 45 yards and a touchdown for USC this season. Last year, Lemon played both wide receiver and cornerback. As a receiver, Lemon had six catches for 88 yards.

UK

Anthony Joshua defeated by Daniel Dubois in IBF world heavyweight title at Wembley Stadium

Published

2 hours ago

September 22, 2024

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Anthony Joshua defeated by Daniel Dubois in IBF world heavyweight title at Wembley Stadium

Anthony Joshua missed out on the chance to become a three-time heavyweight world champion after he was stopped by British rival Daniel Dubois in the fifth round.

Dubois, 27, knocked down Joshua towards the end of the opening round with an overhand right to the 34-year-old’s chin.

The IBF heavyweight champion then dropped Joshua at the end of round three and twice in the fourth.

A right hook ended the fight with a knockout for Dubois’ first defence of the title.

The fighters went toe to toe at London’s Wembley Stadium in front of a record 96,000 fans.

‘We came up short’

Minutes after retaining the IBF championship, Dubois shouted to the crowd “are you not entertained?” before saying: “I’m a gladiator, you know?

“I’m just a warrior to the bitter end. I’m just ready to go. I want to go to the top level of this game and reach my potential. God bless you all.”

Joshua said the loss would not stop him from rebuilding despite admitting “we came up short”.

“You know I’m ready to kick off in the ring, but I’m going to keep my cool, keep very professional, and give respect to my opponent,” he said.

“I’m always saying to myself I’m a fighter for life… We keep rolling the dice. I had a sharp opponent, a fast opponent and a lot of mistakes from my end, but that’s the game.”

Dubois’ victory has sent a message to the whole heavyweight division

Jacquie Beltrao

Sports presenter

Daniel Dubois will feel like he has fulfilled his destiny here at Wembley. His father has trained him to be a champion boxer since he was tiny.

He held the IBF belt, but he has gone in there tonight and defended it in spectacular fashion – he is now in every conversation going forward.

What now for AJ? Can he face rebuilding? And will he even want to?

The Wembley ring walk is notoriously long, and Dubois looked nervous – but so did Joshua, who has done this many times before in front of a full house.

Perhaps he was thinking of what was at stake – the chance to be a three-time heavyweight champion of the world.

But 27-year-old Dubois holds the belt and was keen to prove he was a worthy champion quickly.

Many wondered if Dubois would freeze on the biggest stage: Question asked and answered emphatically.

It was a crushing defeat for Joshua – most were not expecting such a one-sided victory.

Dubois will now most likely take on the winner of Fury v Usyk 2 for all the belts. But the manner of his victory has sent a message to the whole heavyweight division.

Hearn: AJ will want rematch

Promoter Eddie Hearn then said “it was the first round” where Joshua lost, “after that he was fighting on heart and desire”.

Hearn added: “When you are in there with a massive puncher this is what can happen. He never stopped trying to get up, even when he couldn’t get up.

“Daniel deserves credit, he’s a real world champion. Congratulations to him… I’m sure [Joshua will] exercise that rematch clause, it’s a given, it’s a dangerous fight because he’s growing in confidence all the time but he’ll believe he can beat him.”

British champion Dubois, who before tonight had never fought at Wembley, was elevated to the IBF title holder after Oleksandr Usyk relinquished the belt.

Joshua outweighed Dubois by four pounds, despite a career-heaviest weight for his rival, ahead of the fight.

Among those watching was Tyson Fury, the former WBC heavyweight champion, who took a ringside seat.

Liam plays Oasis hits

Fury is set to fight Usyk for the other three titles in a rematch on 21 December.

Ahead of the fight, Liam Gallagher played some of Oasis’ biggest hits to the sold-out crowd.

The 52-year-old frontman walked on to a massive cheer and said “yes Wembley vibes in the air,” before launching into Rock ‘N’ Roll Star, Supersonic and Cigarettes & Alcohol.

He and Noel Gallagher will play Wembley for their first of seven reunion shows at the stadium on 25 July – 307 days away.

Other famous faces ringside were Irish MMA fighter Conor McGregor, former boxer Ricky Hatton, Spice Girl Emma Bunton and Love Island presenter Maya Jama.

US

Second boat boarded by FBI after Baltimore bridge collapse

Published

5 hours ago

September 21, 2024

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Second boat boarded by FBI after Baltimore bridge collapse

FBI agents have boarded a boat managed by the same company whose cargo ship crashed into a Baltimore bridge and caused it to collapse.

The two companies in charge of the ship “recklessly cut corners” and ignored electrical problems on the vessel before the crash in March, alleged the US Justice Department on Wednesday.

Three days later, FBI agents boarded the Maersk Saltoro, a second ship managed by the same company, although authorities did not offer further details on the operation.

Six construction workers were killed when the Dali ship had a power outage and crashed into a support column on the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

The Justice Department alleged that mechanical and electrical systems on the massive ship had been improvised and improperly maintained which led to the power outage.

Authorities are seeking to recover more than $100 million the government spent to clear the underwater debris and reopen the city’s port, which was only fully reopened in June.

It could become the most expensive marine casualty case in history and the two Singapore-based companies, Synergy Marine Group and Grace Ocean, are trying to limit their legal liability.

The Justice Department said it will vigorously contest that limitation, arguing that vessel owners and operators need to be “deterred from engaging in such reckless and exceedingly harmful behaviour”.

Darrell Wilson, a Grace Ocean spokesperson, confirmed that the FBI and Coast Guard boarded the Maersk Saltoro in the Port of Baltimore on Saturday morning.

Mr Wilson has previously said the owner and manager “look forward to our day in court to set the record straight” about the Justice Department’s lawsuit.

The Dali, which was stuck amid the wreckage of the collapse for months before it could be extricated, departed Virginia on Thursday afternoon en route to China on its first international voyage since the March 26 disaster.