Murder or Self Defense, You Decide
On July 15th 2010 Cortez Waller fatally shot Christopher Childress outside the Conway Police Department in Conway, Arkansas. Waller and Childress’ fiancee, DeRanda Carter, recently had a relationship that ended some time prior to the shooting. Carter testified that the couple was trying to get past the affair but other testimony showed that Childress threatened and harassed Waller for several days. This concerned Waller enough for him to purchase a firearm to defend himself should Childress look to follow through with the threats.Waller testified that on the day of the shooting he was just coming back into town after looking for a new place to live when he was spotted by Childress, Carter, and their 3 children in their SUV. Childress proceeded to chase Waller to the police station where the fatal altercation shown in this video took place. Waller shot and killed Childress during the altercation in the police station’s Front Street parking lot. Waller testified that he thought Childress was about to make good on the threats that were made and he feared he would be killed if he didn’t stop the attack. Immediately after the shooting Waller ran into the station and turned himself into police. Childress was transported to Conway Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead with multiple gunshot wounds to the torso.
Initially Waller was charged with first degree murder and aggravated assault following this shooting, the charges was later reduced to second degree murder and aggravated assault right before the trial began. The newly elected prosecutor, Cody Hiland, didn’t believe the evidence supported the first degree charge.
After hearing all the testimony and deliberating for 9 hours the jury came back with the verdict of Not Guilty on all charges. For more information visit http://tinyurl.com/d76qu2s
Arkansas' self defense law is based on the person's reasonable belief that they or a third party are about to become a victim of the unlawful use of force committed by another. If they believe they or the third party is about to be seriously injured or killed then deadly force can be used in their defense. The law is based on force, not weapon usage, and the person can use greater force if they reasonably believe it is necessary to prevent the pending harm.
This shooting was justified under this Arkansas Law:
5-2-606. Use of physical force in defense of a person.
(a) (1) A person is justified in using physical force upon another person to defend himself or herself or a third person from what the person reasonably believes to be the use or imminent use of unlawful physical force by that other person, and the person may use a degree of force that he or she reasonably believes to be necessary.
(2) However, the person may not use deadly physical force except as provided in § 5-2-607.
(b) A person is not justified in using physical force upon another person if:
(1) With purpose to cause physical injury or death to the other person, the person provokes the use of unlawful physical force by the other person;
(2) (A) The person is the initial aggressor.
(B) However, the initial aggressor's use of physical force upon another person is justifiable if:
(i) The initial aggressor in good faith withdraws from the encounter and effectively communicates to the other person his or her purpose to withdraw from the encounter; and
(ii) The other person continues or threatens to continue the use of unlawful physical force; or
The attack , this particular attack was not deadly. Actuaally i can see and as trird party i see it was NOT DEADLY ATTACK!!! Yes it is possible unarmed attack to be deadly also but in this certenstances it was not such deadly attack. Actually I did not see attack. I saw a man jumping out his vehicle, runing to this man. Was he armed. May be he wanted some explonation about something. On top you see the targets coolly.
ReplyDeleteNo panic defense. No fear or embarrassment. Coolly shot him after he took aim. He was ready with the gun in his hands even before any attack.We stopped the car with the intention to shot him dead , that is why he went out with the gun and with no hesitation he shot him. He shoot just once and he is dead he sis not do it accidentally , but with right intention to stop , wait and shoot dead. This is the same truth. It was in the mind of this murderer. I have enough practice with such men and i can tell you this is very smart man. He stopped ready to kill, waited to be attacked and sot dead with one shot. After that he become very desturbed and scared but this is a circus. He planned everything while he was tegged by the jeep. His actions are telling us that. He went out with ready loaded with a bullet in a gun barrel and aim and murdered with one precision shot . This is the same truth.
This man did not do anything to rescue the life of the victim, he was thinking of his future and prefered to go to the hotel recption to be very desturbed watching the cameras. Also when he shot he was not in panic like a man that killed in self defence , lightly raced to the hotel like nothing ius wrong. His behaviour changes when he stepped into the hotel and started watching where the cameras are. This man is very smart. I hope you are not such fools to believ on that.
People sometimes agrue, sometimes fight, BUT DO NOT KILL EACH OTHER. Even Jesus hit the accuser in the Bible. So even Christian moral allows sometimes people to fight for the right , but it does not mean that is allowed to kill.
If two people fight each other and one of them take a knife. Which one is right. Which one is criminal. Both are hooligans as they fight but the man with the knife is the criminal.
Defense must comply with the attack.
Defense should never exceed the limits of self defense.
Here there is no commensurate to the danger of attack and the intensity of the defense. To repel this attack was not necessary to use a firearm, much less murder.
In this certanstances it is a murder.Daylight shooting of a man.
I am telling as an old jourist.
Best Regards.
I won't say that the shooting by that guy was justified. But I will tell you a couple things that are wrong with what you said.
DeleteI do not need to be in a panic or rattled to defend myself. If I am going to defend myself, then I need to remain calm and composed to be effective, especially if I am trying to aim a gun. Self defense is NOT about being in a panic, it's about being justified. The person attacking me does not need to have a weapon on them to justify a deadly use of force, they need to be a great threat to my well-being, that of someone else in my immediate vicinity, or a threat to my life. but they DO NOT NEED TO HAVE A GUN OR WEAPON. Saying that the person who takes out the knife in a fight is the criminal is BULLSHIT. You defend yourself in response to the threat to your wellbeing, and if it's my life, I will defend myself with the best means I have available to me; that includes a knife if I need to use one. If my attacker doesn't want to get stabbed, then he shouldn't attack me to begin with.
Furthermore, do you really think I'm going to try to rescue the life of someone who just attacked me?? Fuck that! Let him bleed! My safety comes first, and I, as the victim of an attack, have no duty to help a person who means me harm --- you must be a retard to think that anyone would help their attacker.
That sounds stupid as hell he wasn't attacked. U can see the man drive up recklessly upon the guy almost hitting the car in front of the police department. That right there shows something is off . then after numerous previous, threats jumps out and runs upon the man and can clearly see the altercation(the attack). Then guy runs in for help and you can see he is stressed he clearly didn't want to shoot him. It's sad but the way he was acting just what I saw from video he got what he asked for nobody drives up on somebody almost hits them and runs up on them to discuss what happened. That just sounds extremely stupid especially when you see video come on now have some sense
ReplyDelete