Jose had NO criminal record. He had no reason to think that police would come to his home, certainly not a SWAT Team.
The word 'assault weapon' is used to stir negative emotions. In fact, Jose's weapon had a sight that is almost entirely used for hunting and target shooting. "Drug enforcers" don't use this weapon because it is WAY to difficult to conceal.
The body vest most likely returned from Iraq with Jose. They don't re-cycle the vests in the Marine Corps. A fact that can easily be checked.
Law Officers are certainly never expected to take a bullet before they respond to what they see as danger to themselves. They are, however, expected to follow professional guidelines. SWAT officers are expected to be more highly trained than regular officers. All officers are allowed to use lethal force when they decide they have no other option to protect themselves or others. This decision, understandably, is often made in a split second. That said, officers are only allowed to use enough force to stop whatever danger they are confronting. If they are firing their weapon, officers are supposed to have control and fire 3 rounds, use another split second to observe the results and cease firing if the danger has been stopped or fire 3 more rounds if they are still in danger. (The number 3 is generally used, but could go to 5 and still be within 'self-control' limits.) Had this been done, Jose would probably be alive today. One only has to observe the video of the officers shooting to see that they were all out of control and firing in panic. 71 rounds fired simply cannot be justified.
Denying medical assistance to an injured person for over an hour cannot be justified. All the excuses are wasted rhetoric. Civilized societies do not accept such cruel behavior.
Mike McDaniel, who is quoted in this article, probably makes the best analysis of the death of Jose Guerena. I quote him,
"One would hope that they (officers) realize that the only tactically capable person - as demonstrated by his actions rather than rhetoric - present at the Guerena residence that day was Jose Guerena. They are alive because he was not the vicious criminal they claim him to be. If he were, their bodies would have been stacked like cordwood.
If they're smart, they'll give thanks that Jose Guerena was a Marine, a far more capable and experienced man than they. And if they're really smart, they'll ask for forgiveness from a far higher power than Clarence Dupnik."
Thank you, thank you for this excellent article on the Guerena case. You have covered this story well by using objective people like Mike McDaniel. You have truly done an amazing job! One item that I would like to add. According to the Affidavit, surveillance was done on the subjects between Sept. 9, 2009 and Feb. 23, 2010. Again, according to the Affidavit, no surveillance was done for 13 1/2 months....Feb. 24, 2010 through Apr. 14, 2011. On Apr. 15, 2011 detectives attempted to do a surveillance of the house on Redwater Dr. (not Jose's home). That attempt failed and no other surveillance of any of the subjects is noted in the Affidavit. Clearly this was not an 'active' case as the detectives had no idea what any of the subjects had been doing for over a year! Certainly, had the detectives had current information regarding any of the subjects it would have been noted in the Affidavit to inform the judge. Unbelievable that any judge would have signed a warrant that had such a dated and poorly supported affidavit. The Warrant, the Affidavit and the Return were all sealed exactly one hour after the Sheriff's Department walked back their statement that Jose had fired on deputies. Guess what judge sealed the information!
Recent Comments
The word 'assault weapon' is used to stir negative emotions. In fact, Jose's weapon had a sight that is almost entirely used for hunting and target shooting. "Drug enforcers" don't use this weapon because it is WAY to difficult to conceal.
The body vest most likely returned from Iraq with Jose. They don't re-cycle the vests in the Marine Corps. A fact that can easily be checked.
Law Officers are certainly never expected to take a bullet before they respond to what they see as danger to themselves. They are, however, expected to follow professional guidelines. SWAT officers are expected to be more highly trained than regular officers. All officers are allowed to use lethal force when they decide they have no other option to protect themselves or others. This decision, understandably, is often made in a split second. That said, officers are only allowed to use enough force to stop whatever danger they are confronting. If they are firing their weapon, officers are supposed to have control and fire 3 rounds, use another split second to observe the results and cease firing if the danger has been stopped or fire 3 more rounds if they are still in danger. (The number 3 is generally used, but could go to 5 and still be within 'self-control' limits.) Had this been done, Jose would probably be alive today. One only has to observe the video of the officers shooting to see that they were all out of control and firing in panic. 71 rounds fired simply cannot be justified.
Denying medical assistance to an injured person for over an hour cannot be justified. All the excuses are wasted rhetoric. Civilized societies do not accept such cruel behavior.
Mike McDaniel, who is quoted in this article, probably makes the best analysis of the death of Jose Guerena. I quote him,
"One would hope that they (officers) realize that the only tactically capable person - as demonstrated by his actions rather than rhetoric - present at the Guerena residence that day was Jose Guerena. They are alive because he was not the vicious criminal they claim him to be. If he were, their bodies would have been stacked like cordwood.
If they're smart, they'll give thanks that Jose Guerena was a Marine, a far more capable and experienced man than they. And if they're really smart, they'll ask for forgiveness from a far higher power than Clarence Dupnik."