they tried to rob the wrong place

[Richard]

I'd say that's just the victim "erroring on the side of caution" in the middle of a life or death situation, it most certainly is not murder IMHO.

 

[Fletch]

While I can not agree with the stomach kill shots being fired, the Pharmacist is a combat veteran and may have suffered a "flash-back".

This is the topic of conversation here in Oklahoma. There are several points which are constantly being made in conversation and in the media which make him a much more sympathetic a defendant:

1) Combat vet/possible PTSD. He may have been confusing these events with other events when describing them to the police/media. Apparently he's never heard the "clam up" advice.
2) Disabled, just had back surgery (you can see his brace in the video). This enhances the "disparity of force" equation in his favor. Someone suggested he should step on the kid's arm or something, but if the kid was at all able to fight, this would have been a serious tactical mistake.
3) The kid was only grazed in the head -- enough to knock him out or stun him momentarily, but not kill him.
4) You can't see the kid at the point of the last shots. It is impossible to determine whether he was starting to get up or do anything that might make him a threat again. Indeed, from one of the articles:

Ersland says he took a pistol from his pocket and shot Parker in the head -- then shot him five more times as the teenager tried to get up.

Yes, he's made it extremely hard on any defense attorney. But if he's tried in Oklahoma, it will be next to impossible to find a more sympathetic jury pool. People around here tend to look at kids like this with a "well, they deserved it" kind of attitude. That's not to say he's going to get off, but the odds are more in his favor that one might think.

 

[Chefcook]

He is prolly screwed....

 

[MACHINEGUN]

 

[finity]

He had every right to shoot...initially.

He "may" have had every right to shoot later.

My problem with it is he looked too calm as he walked back towards the injured BG & just started shooting him.

If you are truly in fear for your life you would be ducking & weaving like he & the BG's were doing in the beginning, not just non-chalantly walking up & shooting him at basically point-blank range.

I don't want GG's to go to jail. I don't want BG's to walk away. But you can't just execute someone because your pissed & think they "deserved it". It's a fine line separating the GG from the BG & unfortunately I think he crossed that line.

I have other thoughts on the PTSD excuse but I'll just leave it out for now.

 

[INMIline]

He can't keep a straight story. He's screwed. Being a vet I'm suprised he didn't keep his mouth shut until talking with an attorney. If he gives a taped story to the media and a tricky detective gets him crossed up in cross examination how will he look to a jury? The race card may come up in court and it looks like he exacuted a black child. No win situation for him reguardless of outcome of trial.
I don't know that I feel for him. He went outside came back in stood over the kid and shot him. But like others said we didn't see what the kid was doing. But he took a bullet in the head it shouldn't have been much. I don't know the facts so I'm in the wrong to judge him. But I think he screwed up in talking to the media. I can't say what i would have done in his situation. But if they fired first meaning they had the attention of harm then was he in the wrong to eliminate the threat? You can't tell a masked guys age. But I think he screwed himself. I'd like to see the outcome of the trial.

 

[jsgolfman]

Anyone know why the clock stopped at 15:40:55 then picks up again at 15:41:11?

 

[Richard]

But he took a bullet in the head it shouldn't have been much.

According to the autopsy the victim/pharmacist's initial bullet glanced off the side of the robbers skull, so it is quite possible that the robber was only initially "stunned" and began to stir when the pharmacist went back over to him.

 

[2ADMNLOVER]

I'd say that's just the victim "erroring on the side of caution" in the middle of a life or death situation, it most certainly is not murder IMHO.

The DA said the boy was "unconscious , unarmed and laying on the ground " . The pharmacist calmly walked over and put 5 more bullets in him , killing the boy .

In your opinion would you call a dog a dog ?

"Common sense dictates" that shooting 5 bullets into an unconscious and unarmed person laying on the ground is murder .


Yea , you remember it don't ya , or am I just being "WAY OVER THE LINE" again ?

 

[2ADMNLOVER]

According to the autopsy the victim/pharmacist's initial bullet glanced off the side of the robbers skull, so it is quite possible that the robber was only initially "stunned" and began to stir when the pharmacist went back over to him.

Yea , cause unconscious trauma victims never twitch or move huh ?

 

[Fletch]

The DA said the boy was "unconscious , unarmed and laying on the ground " . The pharmacist calmly walked over and put 5 more bullets in him , killing the boy .

This is the DA's interpretation of the facts at his disposal. He admitted that he has no proof the kid wasn't moving, but at this point he's willing to prosecute on that assumption.

 

[2ADMNLOVER]

This is the DA's interpretation of the facts at his disposal. He admitted that he has no proof the kid wasn't moving, but at this point he's willing to prosecute on that assumption.

Ok , so the boy may or may not have been unconscious , ya got me there .

He was unarmed and from the firing position of the pharmacist I'll bet the boy was still on the ground .

 

[Hiram Abiff]

I liked the proscuter's comment "a 16 year old child",,,, he left out the part where he was waving a gun and was holding up the place!!

 

[Fletch]

Ok , so the boy may or may not have been unconscious , ya got me there .

He was unarmed and from the firing position of the pharmacist I'll bet the boy was still on the ground .

If the boy was in fact conscious, he could have potentially posed a serious threat to the shooter. He's young and healthy, the shooter is middle-aged and has a bad back. The shooter also did not know whether the kid had a gun, and last time I checked, guns work pretty much the same whether the operator is flat on his back or standing up.

It will take a sharp defense attorney to make that narrative stick in court, and I don't even know if it's the correct narrative (nobody but the shooter does, in all honesty). All I'm saying is that this narrative is not outside of the realm of possibilities, not by a long shot. It's perfectly reasonable, fits the facts, and would exonerate the shooter.

 

[Richard]

I guess it all boils down to whether or not you give the benifit of the doubt to the armed robber or if you give it to the victim of the armed robbery.

Personally I give the benifit of doubt to the victim, considering he did not initiate the deadly confrontation & was only reacting to the life or death situation which the armed robbers put him in.

 

[2ADMNLOVER]

The shooter also did not know whether the kid had a gun, and last time I checked, guns work pretty much the same whether the operator is flat on his back or standing up.

.

The pharmacist didn't go through the boy's pockets , but he didn't see a weapon in the boy's hands either .

 

[2ADMNLOVER]

I guess it all boils down to whether or not you give the benifit of the doubt to the armed robber or if you give it to the victim of the armed robbery.

Personally I give the benifit of doubt to the victim, considering he did not initiate the deadly confrontation & was only reacting to the life or death situation which the armed robbers put him in.

Again , the wounded boy on the ground was unarmed .

 

[millsusaf]

Again , the wounded boy on the ground was unarmed .

Hopefully the defense attorney will argue that the pharmacist couldn't have known that.....and actually he couldn't have.

 

[kingnereli]

I hope he walks. An unarmed teenager with bad intentions is a serious threat to a man in a back brace. It might have been him dead on the floor if he had acted differently.

 

[Chefcook]

I am sympathetic to the shooter. But after watching the video several times and based on what other limited information I have... It looks like an execution to me. I think the shooter is fugged...