MS - LE at wrong address shoot, kill unarmed man inside home

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Police at wrong address shoot, kill unarmed man inside home, lawyer says

Southaven officers arrived at Lopez's house, apparently in error. Differing accounts have emerged of the moments after their arrival. Desoto County District Attorney John Champion told media outlets Monday that officers may very well have been at the wrong house when the shooting happened. Champion said that a pit bull burst out of the house and ran towards the two officers, reports the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, prompting one of the officers to shoot at it.

Champion reportedly said a man pointed a gun at officers through the open door, and the officers repeatedly warned him to put the gun down before one of them opened fire.

Lopez's wife was handcuffed, taken to a squad car, held for an hour and then taken to a police station before she was informed "in a not-too-gentle way that her husband was gone," Wells said.


Mississippi police who fatally shot man had wrong house, DA says


Police officers say when Lopez opened the door, his pit bull charged at them, and they shot and wounded the dog. And when they looked up, Lopez was pointing a gun at them, Champion said. The officers commanded him to lower the weapon, and fatally shot him when he did not comply, Champion said.

The Lopez family attorney provided a competing narrative. He said Lopez heard the knock, and went to answer the door with his dog, when "chaos breaks out."

Wells said police shot through the door of the home, killing Ismael Lopez, who was unarmed. Wells said bullet holes can be seen through the front door.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is handling the police shooting investigation.
 
What utter carelessness. "Woops, wrong house! Sorry to kill your husband! (and your dog?)" I believe Mr. Lopez was not holding a gun and that the cops came up with that story.

And people - yes they will shoot your dog even if the dog comes bouncing toward them wanting pats on the head and ear scratches.
 
What utter carelessness. "Woops, wrong house! Sorry to kill your husband! (and your dog?)" I believe Mr. Lopez was not holding a gun and that the cops came up with that story.

And people - yes they will shoot your dog even if the dog comes bouncing toward them wanting pats on the head and ear scratches.

It should be easy enough to prove whether or not he was holding a gun. Looking at the images of the door though, to me it looks like it was probably closed or mostly closed when they shot him.

And then they put his wife in cuffs?!
 
Holy moley! Why would they shoot through the door? It doesn't matter if he was wanted for a crime or not, his whole life now will be open to scrutiny.
 
I'm just trying to imagine - the cops show up and shoot my dog, then they shoot my husband, then they handcuff me, hold me for an hour, take me downtown and then tell me "Oh yeah, we killed your husband. You're free to get your own ride home."
 
Sounds like an awful lot happened at the same time. I didn't catch it in the article - they must have been there to serve a warrant maybe? Or the guy had a warrant and was going to be picked up, they go to the wrong house, bang on the door and yell (manners are out the window for such things), Lopez opened the door enough for the dog to get out and get shot. They start shooting through the door and shot him to death. That's my guess, whether he had a gun in his hand or not.
 
Holy moley! Why would they shoot through the door? It doesn't matter if he was wanted for a crime or not, his whole life now will be open to scrutiny.

When they shot they must have believed they were at the right house and thought they were shooting at a violent offender:

A police report also obtained by WREG says the Tate County Sheriff's Department received a complaint that Pearman tried to choke his girlfriend at an Independence gas station, and deputies gave Pearman's address to Southaven police in order to take him into custody.
 
When they shot they must have believed they were at the right house and thought they were shooting at a violent offender:

Before killing someone, it's always best to double check the address. The guy they were looking for lived across the street.
 
Sounds like an awful lot happened at the same time. I didn't catch it in the article - they must have been there to serve a warrant maybe? Or the guy had a warrant and was going to be picked up, they go to the wrong house, bang on the door and yell (manners are out the window for such things), Lopez opened the door enough for the dog to get out and get shot. They start shooting through the door and shot him to death. That's my guess, whether he had a gun in his hand or not.

They were after Samuel Pearman who lives across the street.

That appears to be the case. Southaven Police were sent to pick up a domestic violence suspect at a duplex at 5878 Surrey Lane.

Lopez lived across the street at 5881 Surrey Lane.
...
Pearman is accused of choking a woman at a Citgo gas station parking lot in Independence around 8:30 p.m.

According to the article he's still at large and they would appreciate it if he'd turn himself in.

http://wreg.com/2017/07/25/warrant-shows-police-at-wrong-address-in-deadly-southaven-shooting/
 
Sounds like an awful lot happened at the same time. I didn't catch it in the article - they must have been there to serve a warrant maybe? Or the guy had a warrant and was going to be picked up, they go to the wrong house, bang on the door and yell (manners are out the window for such things), Lopez opened the door enough for the dog to get out and get shot. They start shooting through the door and shot him to death. That's my guess, whether he had a gun in his hand or not.

I can quite imagine that happening. My dog used to squeeze out of the slightest gap in the door and I would try to close it but she was out while I was still trying to close it.
 
This is almost unbelievable, not not totally unbelievable. Why would they handcuff his wife, whose whole world they have just destroyed. They thought that they were on a DV call, and they cuff the wife and take her into custody?
 
This is almost unbelievable, not not totally unbelievable. Why would they handcuff his wife, whose whole world they have just destroyed. They thought that they were on a DV call, and they cuff the wife and take her into custody?

They did the same **** to Philando Castile's girlfriend (no handcuffs but put her in a squad car and then investigated her whole life).

There is a cancer spreading in precincts that has GOT to be treated before it becomes the absolute norm that an officer can randomly open fire on anyone. The ONLY way to treat it is to hold these officers accountable, investigation by outside agencies, and actual real convictions. Ugh.

What if there had been children on the other side of that door at Lopez's home!? Jesus on a pogo stick what the hell!?
 
This has to stop!!! It's just sickening and heart breaking. I hope his family sues the police department for everything they're worth.


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This has to stop!!! It's just sickening and heart breaking. I hope his family sues the police department for everything they're worth.


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That's fine to say and should be said. But it's the taxpayers that foot that bill. No personal accountability for an officer - and that needs to change imo or nothing will ever improve. Jmo.
 
Attorney: Mississippi man shot in back of head by police who were at the wrong house

“It is so troubling to learn that not only this man died but that this man died running away from people who were trespassing on his premises after he was in bed lawfully,” Murray Wells, an attorney representing the family of Ismael Lopez, told reporters.

“Our conclusion is not a conclusion of the coroner’s office but it is very simple to understand what happened when you look at the physical evidence,” he said. “It couldn’t be any clearer.”

A coroner’s report has not been released.
 
This has to stop!!! It's just sickening and heart breaking. I hope his family sues the police department for everything they're worth.


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I sometimes accidentally post on the wrong threads. But I don't come in shooting. Lol

But seriously. The domestic incident happened earlier in the day between another guy and his wife. So they had plenty of time to make sure to read the house number before approaching this wrong house.
 

So many questions. None of this is making sense.

The victim opened the door and had a gun. Why were there shots through the door?

The victim was shot in the back of the head. How do you have such good aim when you're shooting through a closed door?

Did the victim really have a weapon in his hand?

Were the officers wearing bodycams? If not, they should have.

Any dashcam video?

What are innocent people supposed to do to protect themselves from LE in these situations? If LE comes to your door in the middle of the night, check the windows first, don't open the door and call 911? Maybe call another law enforcement agency? Call the FBI? Call your lawyer? Call Homeland Security?

After these stories, I don't think I would go anywhere near the door if LE came knocking in the middle of the night. What if they break down the door anyway (as it looks like they did in this case)? It's terrifying. Innocent citizens have no protection in these situations. If police make a mistake and crash into your house, some innocent person will end up dead.

SMH.
 

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