Officer Down; Charges Filed

[Broke Hoss]

UPDATE: Affidavit released on Midland police officer shooting

Officers respond to a residential alarm; find the front door unsecure; announce their presence; homeowner investigates the alarm/noise/lights & believes he he is confronting a bad guy; homeowner fires at least 1 shot & an officer is hit & dies later.

This is bad all the way around. I was actually shocked when I heard the DA was bringing charges. And don't know that I agree with it, but again I don't know the whole story.

I can say this has always been a fear of mine. On a prowler or alarm call & either confront a resident who is armed. Or the neighbor, who doesn't know cops were called/on scene, sees me "prowling around" when he investigates.

 

[Whitwabit]

wonder if they were wearing camera's and if there was any recorded sound .. either a body cam or police car ..

Not a good situation ..

 

[SPEEDGUNNER]

Castle Doctrine?

Not sure we have the full story.

 

[TX-Dennis]

This is local to me. Very sad. I think the homeowner exercised poor judgement by shooting at a flashlight without first identifying the subject, but many would do the same when confronted by the possibility of home invasion.

Other officers say they announced that police were on site. How loudly? Did the homeowner hear them? Were the units' light bars flashing? That would be hard to miss at 2am. The homeowner may ultimately be cleared, but he will still have to live with the consequences for the rest of his life. That won't be easy mentally (or financially for that matter - lawyers don't come cheaply).

I offer prayers for everyone involved - the officer's family, the rest of the PD, and the homeowner and his family.

 

[Fishinfool]

A terrible situation all the way around. If one lesson stands out here, its the importance of identifying your target, before you pull the trigger....

Larry

 

[mdf9183]

Agreed always know what you are shooting at.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

Probably best to wait until the investigation is completed and more facts are known before jumping to conclusions one way or the other.

A tragedy for all involved.

 

[Watchdog]

Quoting from the linked new story:

"District Attorney Laura Nodolf released the arrest affidavit of probable cause in the shooting death of Midland Police officer Nathan Heidelberg."

Well, if the affidavit has really been released as public knowledge, why don't we see it instead of this obviously edited and paraphrased news "report"?

Because the way it stands now, this news story is so full of ambiguity and unknowns, it's impossible to form any fact-based opinion on the incident. All we're doing here is reading what different people said, with no documentation to back up any of it.

Regarding the homeowner "shooting at the flashlight" thing, there have been home invasions in this area where the criminals have shouted "Police!" or "DEA!" and other law enforcement associated phrases as they smash through a front door...how's a homeowner gonna know what's real and what isn't?

The police found the door "unsecured". Uh-oh. Hope the cops never check my house at night, cause I've been known to fall asleep reading or something with the door unlocked and standing wide open. I'll wake up the next morning and even see the keys hanging in the lock. Whew.

Personally, I don't see the validation to charge the homeowner with anything. Plus, we don't have any statement at all from the homeowner, other than he "admits" shooting.

You have to ask yourself: What would I do in this situation. You maybe have a flashlight shining in your eyes, obscuring the person behind the light. You may be an older person (like a lot of us here) who's somewhat hearing impaired (like me)...you may not have heard any LEO identifiers being shouted. You may be groggy with sleep, the house is dark, you see a shape behind a light and hear people moving through your home.

So really, what would you do? Lay there in your bed or on your sofa, waiting for whatever's gonna happen to happen? Or would you shoot?

 

[Alpo]

I'd shoot.


"IDENTIFY YOUR TARGET!!!"


Lemme see now. I live alone, it's two in the morning, and there's SOMEONE IN MY HOUSE.


Target identified.

 

[Watchdog]

If one lesson stands out here, its the importance of identifying your target, before you pull the trigger....

Larry

Agreed always know what you are shooting at.

That concept is great if you're teaching a gun safety course. It's the right thing to do in normal everyday practice.

We all know what the "but" is in this idea, though, don't we? I'll say it anyway. I'm in my house. Just me and my dogs. Sometimes maybe a girlfriend (if I've been a good boy

). It's dark. The only reason for any uninvited person to be in my house is the wrong reason...they're up to no good. Chances are really really good they'll get shot. That isn't keyboard bravado, and it isn't computer heroism. Facts are I'm just too old to run and too little to fight like I used to. Frankly, the bad person will get shot because I'm scared. I'll deal with any legal and housecleaning consequences after the fact.

 

[500SNW]

Anyone remember Amber Guyger? This is sort of the "flip side" of that case. It will be interesting to see the final result of each court case.

 

[Watchdog]

Anyone remember Amber Guyger? This is sort of the "flip side" of that case. It will be interesting to see the final result of each court case.

I will be astonished if this case goes to trial. Seriously.

 

[500SNW]

I will be astonished if this case goes to trial. Seriously.

Which one?

 

[Nevada Ed]

1. Were the red&blue light flashing.....??
2. Did he yell several times, loudly that the PD was inside the house
3. announced on every room entry...??

4. Where was his partner when this took place?

Way too early and not enough compact data for me to make a statement.
Still a thing the should not have happened, but crappy things do happen
no matter how well you prepare for them.

Very sad.

 

[Watchdog]

Which one?

This case. The one this thread is about.

The homeowner, David Charles Wilson, has now been charged with manslaughter. He was released on bail of $75K.

As reported on CBS7, Wilson's attorney, Brian Carney, issued the following statement on his client's behalf (Bold print is mine):

"We would like to express our deepest sympathies to Officer Heidelberg's family and the Midland Police Department for the events that lead to his death. We are cooperating with investigators to attempt to learn all the material facts as soon as possible. David Wilson believed that his family was experiencing a home invasion and only fired his weapon to protect his family."

My opinion is that the charge is strictly a formality. I don't think it's justified, and I don't believe David Wilson will be found guilty if, in fact, this actually does go to court.

 

[dockmurgw]

I'll deal with any legal and housecleaning consequences after the fact.

I'm not going to question what you think, only state that for me, shooting someone by mistake would be a catastrophic and life altering event...legal and "housekeeping" consequences would be the least of my worries. Unless that officer was dressed in plain clothes and acting in a threatening manner, the homeowner made a monumental mistake. He did not know what he was shooting at. Fear and panic might be a reason, but its definitely not an excuse. NOTHING can justify what this guy did, unless like I mentioned earlier, the officer was in plain clothes AND threatening him. I'll never be convinced that shooting at shadows and unidentified targets is anything less than criminal. God help the kid who enters a house on a dare, or the drunk that opens the wrong door, in a place where events like this could ever be considered justified.

 

[Broke Hoss]

Several have asked about red/blue lights flashing on the cars in the area.

Again, I was NOT there & I DON'T know MPD's policy. But I can answer using my experience, training & knowledge garnered in 35 years with a city of similar demographics & locale.

No, no flashing lights. We respond directly but not running code. We're not going to create a hazard en route to what 9 times out of 10 is a false alarm. And we will park at least 3 houses from the address & walk up on foot; remember we're trying to catch the burglar that is in your house stealing your stuff.

 

[Whitwabit]

How about body camera's ???

 

[sigp220.45]

They were responding to an alarm call at this guy’s house. His door was open. They announced themselves.

Did this guy not know his alarm was going off? Had the alarm company not called?

The cops weren’t just driving by and decided to check on an open random door. This homeowner paid for an alarm that would summon the police, then he shot at the cops when they responded.

Maybe if your home defense plan is to fire at flashlights, don’t pay every month for an alarm system that brings guys with flashlights to your house.

At least one of the reports said the cops were outside the open door shining their flashlights inside when Officer Heidelberg was shot.

Lots of unanswered questions. I’d bet he will be wearing that orange suit again and for a long while.

 

[w1984s]

I pointed my gun at 3 LEOs and lived.

Quoting from the linked new story:

You have to ask yourself: What would I do in this situation. You maybe have a flashlight shining in your eyes, obscuring the person behind the light. You may be an older person (like a lot of us here) who's somewhat hearing impaired (like me)...you may not have heard any LEO identifiers being shouted. You may be groggy with sleep, the house is dark, you see a shape behind a light and hear people moving through your home.

So really, what would you do? Lay there in your bed or on your sofa, waiting for whatever's gonna happen to happen? Or would you shoot?

I did not have time to ask myself anything. I just complied instantly and did not get shot.

It’s a long story but the highlight is this. About 5 years ago I heard a lot of noise in my hallway around 2am; threw open my bedroom door with gun in hand and instantly had 3 flashlights and 3 red lights pointed at me and heard a barrage of commands to drop the gun and get on the floor. Which I did IMMEDIATELY. Thankfully they did not shoot me. I could tell the whole story but it would be a long read.