Friday, August 3, 2012

Officer Walks After Shooting To Death Handcuffed Suspect.

SNIP

Still, the three responding officers should have given the agitated Marino more than five minutes to calm down, and should have taken the 5-foot-6, 160-pound man to a safer spot to subdue him, Heckler said. In addition, the senior officer should not have walked away from the scene at such a critical time.

Marino's family, in a statement issued by their lawyer, said it was not its place to second-guess Heckler's decision not to file criminal charges against the officers.

"However, the undisputed fact remains that an unarmed young man, in the throes of mental illness, was shot with his hands cuffed behind his back, with three police officers on the scene," the family said. "We intend to continue pursuit of all remedies the law provides, with the goal of securing justice for the death of our son, and reforming the procedures of the Perkasie police to prevent such senseless tragedies in the future."

Marino was shot once in the chest after kicking two of the officers, incapacitating one and dazing the other, according to a 10-page report of the investigation by county detectives.
Officer Seth Mumbauer, reeling from kicks to his head and groin and fearing Marino would grab his service revolver, shot Marino at close range, according to the report.

Based on Heckler's statement at a news conference in his Doylestown office and on the investigation report, Marino had a history of mental illness. He lived with his sister, Amber Simione, who was away that weekend. She had told a neighbor that "Mike has not been taking his medication" and that the neighbor should call police if he saw "Mike acting strange."..read more

http://articles.philly.com/2012-08-01/news/32962508_1_officers-mental-illness-unarmed-young-man