This jerk has shot two unarmed people (within a two year period) who
dared to run from him after traffic stops. Arbitrator David Gaba stated
that "sacrificing Officer Jimenez on the altar of public opinion" would
not bring the victim
Heaven forbid we should keep this jerk from being in a position to kill
more unarmed people under the color of law.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oakland Must Rehire Cop Who Shot Suspect In Back
By Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer
An Oakland police officer who was fired after fatally shooting an
unarmed drunken-driving suspect in the back has won his job back through
arbitration, his attorney said Friday.
Officer Hector Jimenez was fired two years ago in connection with the
July 25, 2008, shooting death of Mack "Jody" Woodfox III, 27, in the
city's Fruitvale district. Woodfox was shot three times in the back, his
family said.
The department fired Jimenez after concluding that Woodfox had posed no
threat to him.
But arbitrator David Gaba ordered Jimenez reinstated with full back pay
and benefits. He said Jimenez had been justified in opening fire because
the officer said he had seen Woodfox "jam" his hand into his waistband
and run toward another officer, Joel Aylworth.
"For whatever reason, Mr. Woodfox made a decision to run in the general
direction of Officer Aylworth," Gaba wrote. "While this decision is
irrational, the decision could have been the product of the cocktail of
ecstasy, alcohol and cocaine that Mr. Woodfox had imbibed."
Gaba added that "sacrificing Officer Jimenez on the altar of public
opinion" would not bring Woodfox back.
Jimenez's attorney, Justin Buffington said, "Even though it was a long
road, I'm not at all surprised by the decision. Hector was the victim of
political persecution."
John Burris, an Oakland attorney representing Woodfox's relatives and
the family of another unarmed man Jimenez killed in 2007, said Friday
that he was stunned by the arbitrator's ruling.
"Instead of getting his job back, he should be prosecuted," Burris said.
"It was flat-out murder."
Officer Holly Joshi, a department spokeswoman, said she could not
comment because the department had not been formally notified of the ruling.
Police have said Woodfox was shot after jumping from his car and running
from police after a chase that ended at East 17th Street and Fruitvale
Avenue.
His family settled a wrongful-death federal civil rights suit against
the city and Jimenez for $650,000. The complaint cited the previous
fatal shooting involving Jimenez as evidence that the officer had been
poorly trained.
On New Year's Eve 2007, Jimenez and Officer Jessica Borello shot and
killed 20-year-old Andrew Moppin-Buckskin at 47th Avenue and
International Boulevard after he ran from his car after a traffic stop.
Moppin-Buckskin was not armed, but the officers told investigators that
they believed he had been reaching for his waistband. The officers did
not violate any policies, the department said.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fc%2Fa%2F2011%2F03%2F05%2FBAPI1I4FH4.DTL
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Why is it so hard to understand that the reason the first ten
Amendments --- commonly known as the Bill of Rights --- are trampled
underfoot by politicos and bureaucrats is that the Founding Fathers
neglected to provide a suitably harsh penalty for it?" --- L. Neil Smith
Learn How To Protect Your Identity And Prevent Identity Theft
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