Kelly Thomas killing: Officers to
stand trial in death of mentally ill homeless man
“It’s becoming a disturbingly familiar scene in America -
mentally unstable cops”
Prosecutors
vowed to move quickly after an Orange County Superior Court judge on Wednesday
ordered two Fullerton police officers to stand trial in the 2011 death of Kelly
Thomas, a mentally ill homeless man.
Officer Manuel
Ramos, 38, faces charges of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter.
Cpl. Jay Cicinelli, 40, is charged with involuntary manslaughter and using
excessive force. Ramos faces 15 years to life in prison. Cicinelli faces a
four-year sentence.
Although their
defense attorneys suggested emergency medical workers -- not the police
officers -- caused Thomas' death by failing to provide prompt care, Judge
Walter Schwarm determined after a three-day preliminary hearing that there is
enough probable cause for the case to go to trial.
After the
judge's decision, defense attorney John Barnett made the statement on behalf of
Ramos.
Barnett
insisted that despite today's decision, Ramos won't face a murder trial --
though he declined to elaborate.
Orange County
Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas has said he will fight any challenges to have the
case dismissed.
"This case
is going to trial," Rackauckas said.
"This is
another victory for my son," his Kelly's father Ron Thomas said, "but
this is another battle now in this war we have been fighting."
"I won’t
say I am happy," he said outside the courtroom. The war won't be over until
the officers are convicted, he said.
The case has
been particularly emotional for Ron Thomas, who has been forced to watch the video of his son's beating
and listen to the heartbreaking pleas. At one point, Kelly Thomas cries out,
"Dad, they are killing me!"
In an earlier
interview, Ron Thomas said the hardest part of the video and audio "is the
sounds of my son calling out."
Rackauckas
presented the case himself, playing a dramatic, never-before-seen video that
showed a shirtless Thomas being pummeled and held down by Fullerton police
officers.
Rackauckas said
Ramos "turned a routine encounter into a brutal beating death" while
Cicinelli "assisted in the killing of Kelly Thomas" by "smashing
his face" with the butt of a Taser stun gun and applying his own weight on
Thomas' torso.
A coroner's
pathologist said Thomas died of chest compression and blood from his facial
wounds.
"Mr. Ramos
is guilty of murder," Ron Thomas said, adding, "Mr. Rackauckas did an
outstanding job."
Now that and
Orange County judge has ordered to Fullerton police officers to stand trial in
the death of Kelly Thomas, supporters of his family said prosecutors should now
seek charges against a third cop.
"There is
no way I can feel happy about this," said Christina Walker, 41, of
Fullerton, wearing a baby blue shirt that said, “Justice 4 Kelly Thomas.’ “It's
just one teeny tiny slice of victory on the way to justice."
Walker, who sat
with the Thomas family during the three-day preliminary hearing, said she was
an acquaintance of Kelly Thomas’ as a child, but was drawn to the case after
his death because her brother is also a homeless schizophrenic.
After Kelly Thomas’
death, she protested for four weeks alongside the Thomas family in seeking
charges against the officers involved.
Walker said she
believes prosecutors should also charge Officer Joe Wolfe, who is one of six
police officers involved in the altercation and put on leave after the
invident. Wolfe is one of the first officers who made contact with Thomas on
the night of July 5.
"I dont
care if I have to protest for the next year," she said.
Outside the
courtroom, supporters hugged each other.
John Oetken,
50, was among the supporters. The Tustin resident attended the hearing along
with eight other members of Oath Keepers, an organization of active, retired
officers and armed services.
"Justice
should be served," he said.
Had enough? Write to the Speaker of the House, U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC 20515 and demand federal
hearings into the police problem in America.
Demand mandatory body cameras for cops, one strike rule on abuse, and a
permanent DOJ office on Police
Misconduct.