08-13-2015, 12:45 PM
Feds Probe Police Shooting/Homicide of Unarmed Teen in South Carolina
![[Image: hammond13n-2-web.jpg]](http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.2323849.1439426744!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_635/hammond13n-2-web.jpg)
^ 19-year-old Zachary Hammond was shot dead in the parking lot of a Hardee's fast food restaurant in Seneca, South Carolina on July 26th. He was reportedly on a first date with Tori Morton, 23, and undercover cops were looking to bust them for selling drugs.
The officer claims he shot Hammond dead through the driver's side window because Hammond was driving towards him and feared for his life.
Seneca Police department have refused to name the officer involved in the shooting. Police say the officer was a victim of “attempted murder” by Hammond, who was driving the vehicle. According to Seneca Police Chief John Covington, Hammond was driving the car “toward the officer” who was trying to make the stop.
Officers found just 10 grams of marijuana on Morton and arrested her. The police report failed to mention the two gunshots that killed Hammond. Covington said the officer approached the car with his gun out, as is protocol with drug arrests.
Paul Hammond, Zachary's father, told reporters that, 'Zachary was a real person. He's my son. Somebody has to answer.' 'What caused the officer to decide what he needed to do was take my 19-year-old son's life. It's a struggle right now, every day, just not knowing.'
The family's attorney Eric Bland told The Washington Post: 'The shots were so close in proximity to each other that it would be physically impossible unless the car was stopped and the officer came up very close to an open window.' The family and their attorney feel that their would be more outrage if their son had been black.
The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, U.S. attorney's office and the FBI have opened a case into Hammond's death. The announcement comes a day after lawyers for Hammond's family requested an inquiry due to what they called 'the substantial violations of (the late teenager's) civil rights' and the need for a 'transparent and independent investigation of the Seneca Police Department.'
'This investigation will run parallel to the state's investigation,' the Department of Justice said in a statement.'Because this is an ongoing matter, we are not able to comment further at this time.'
Yesterday, Hammond’s family released the results of a private autopsy, which concluded that both bullets entered Hammond’s body from the back. According to the autopsy, the second bullet proved to be fatal, entering from the back of Hammond’s left side and passing through his chest, piercing his lungs and heart. The coroner did not conclude how Hammond's body was positioned when he was shot.
The county's official coroner's report did not indicate from which direction Hammond was hit.
Refs:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morni...e-outrage/
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...riend.html
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If Hammond wasn't trying to run over the cop and got shot over a marijuana sell, this is truly an outrage. If Hammond was, in fact, trying to run over the cop, then he was essentially "armed" and whether or not the shooting was justified depends on other factors, primarily related to whether the officer was reasonably in fear of great bodily harm or death.
I hope the truth comes out. I'd like to hear what his older date, Ms. Morton, has to say.
^ 19-year-old Zachary Hammond was shot dead in the parking lot of a Hardee's fast food restaurant in Seneca, South Carolina on July 26th. He was reportedly on a first date with Tori Morton, 23, and undercover cops were looking to bust them for selling drugs.
The officer claims he shot Hammond dead through the driver's side window because Hammond was driving towards him and feared for his life.
Seneca Police department have refused to name the officer involved in the shooting. Police say the officer was a victim of “attempted murder” by Hammond, who was driving the vehicle. According to Seneca Police Chief John Covington, Hammond was driving the car “toward the officer” who was trying to make the stop.
Officers found just 10 grams of marijuana on Morton and arrested her. The police report failed to mention the two gunshots that killed Hammond. Covington said the officer approached the car with his gun out, as is protocol with drug arrests.
Paul Hammond, Zachary's father, told reporters that, 'Zachary was a real person. He's my son. Somebody has to answer.' 'What caused the officer to decide what he needed to do was take my 19-year-old son's life. It's a struggle right now, every day, just not knowing.'
The family's attorney Eric Bland told The Washington Post: 'The shots were so close in proximity to each other that it would be physically impossible unless the car was stopped and the officer came up very close to an open window.' The family and their attorney feel that their would be more outrage if their son had been black.
The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, U.S. attorney's office and the FBI have opened a case into Hammond's death. The announcement comes a day after lawyers for Hammond's family requested an inquiry due to what they called 'the substantial violations of (the late teenager's) civil rights' and the need for a 'transparent and independent investigation of the Seneca Police Department.'
'This investigation will run parallel to the state's investigation,' the Department of Justice said in a statement.'Because this is an ongoing matter, we are not able to comment further at this time.'
Yesterday, Hammond’s family released the results of a private autopsy, which concluded that both bullets entered Hammond’s body from the back. According to the autopsy, the second bullet proved to be fatal, entering from the back of Hammond’s left side and passing through his chest, piercing his lungs and heart. The coroner did not conclude how Hammond's body was positioned when he was shot.
The county's official coroner's report did not indicate from which direction Hammond was hit.
Refs:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morni...e-outrage/
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...riend.html
-------------------------------------------------------------
If Hammond wasn't trying to run over the cop and got shot over a marijuana sell, this is truly an outrage. If Hammond was, in fact, trying to run over the cop, then he was essentially "armed" and whether or not the shooting was justified depends on other factors, primarily related to whether the officer was reasonably in fear of great bodily harm or death.
I hope the truth comes out. I'd like to hear what his older date, Ms. Morton, has to say.