Four police officers killed in Wash. state
- Thread starter MobMuzic707
- Start date
Yea, with a fraction of the population...mostly small villages/tribes in undeveloped places don't have police forces. And guess what...those small places don't have the same shit we have, which means they don't really have the same desires or levels of greed. We're talking about people that grow and kill their own food, build their own homes..where paper money usually means jack shit.
Now compare that to places with MILLIONS of people...where STATUS is a major concern among the majority. Where money means wealth, wealth means power, and all of that means a "better life". We have things to compare shit to. We have hoods with people that barely get by, and mansions on the hills overlooking those areas. The poor folks see that shit, and they want to get it...many by ANY MEANS! People in the United States and other major countries live to make money...smaller places with folks like the ones I mentioned above value life...and not so much the dollar. Our goals are fucked up...we want the newest shit, the best shit...those folks just want to live and enjoy it.
My money says those people aren't robbing each other for iPods and car stereos...they actually live in communities and help each other.
And remember, our species...before law, and police, was fuckin' brutal. They fought, they killed, they were territorial. We are only animals by nature...but we have the ability to know right from wrong. But as more opportunity presents itself, more greed comes...more animosity towards those that have things comes...
Now compare that to places with MILLIONS of people...where STATUS is a major concern among the majority. Where money means wealth, wealth means power, and all of that means a "better life". We have things to compare shit to. We have hoods with people that barely get by, and mansions on the hills overlooking those areas. The poor folks see that shit, and they want to get it...many by ANY MEANS! People in the United States and other major countries live to make money...smaller places with folks like the ones I mentioned above value life...and not so much the dollar. Our goals are fucked up...we want the newest shit, the best shit...those folks just want to live and enjoy it.
My money says those people aren't robbing each other for iPods and car stereos...they actually live in communities and help each other.
And remember, our species...before law, and police, was fuckin' brutal. They fought, they killed, they were territorial. We are only animals by nature...but we have the ability to know right from wrong. But as more opportunity presents itself, more greed comes...more animosity towards those that have things comes...
am·bush
NOUN:
The act of lying in wait to attack by surprise.
A sudden attack made from a concealed position.
Those hiding in order to attack by surprise.
The hiding place used for this.
A hidden peril or trap.
Another example of the Media trying to sway public opinion. Those officers were sittin in the coffee shop enjoying some Lattes, and kickin it. Someone walked in and killed them. Was that an "Ambush" as defined by the Dictionary? So I guess everyone that has ever lost thier lives as innocent bystanders in a Liquor Store robberies was AMBUSHED. There is a BIG difference between ambush, and INTENT. They, or he went in with the INTENTION of killing those 4 officers.
NOUN:
The act of lying in wait to attack by surprise.
A sudden attack made from a concealed position.
Those hiding in order to attack by surprise.
The hiding place used for this.
A hidden peril or trap.
Another example of the Media trying to sway public opinion. Those officers were sittin in the coffee shop enjoying some Lattes, and kickin it. Someone walked in and killed them. Was that an "Ambush" as defined by the Dictionary? So I guess everyone that has ever lost thier lives as innocent bystanders in a Liquor Store robberies was AMBUSHED. There is a BIG difference between ambush, and INTENT. They, or he went in with the INTENTION of killing those 4 officers.
Police: Clemmons getting help from family
By Seattle Times staff
Maurice Clemmons has been getting help and shelter from friends and relatives since shortly after the Sunday morning shooting deaths of four Lakewood police officers, authorities have concluded.
"Basically, there's no way that he could be doing this by himself; he was shot in the abdomen," said Sheri Badger, Pierce County spokeswoman at the incident command center.
Also frustrating to law-enforcement officers is that Clemmons reportedly told acquaintances the night before the attack to "watch the news" because he was going to "kill cops.""
No one reported his comments to police until after the attack, Badger said.
The hunt for Clemmons has stretched deep into its second day, frustrating police as they chase lead after lead across two counties.
A murder warrant has been issued for Clemmons, and officers thought they had him Clemmons surrounded in a Leschi home late Sunday. But when a SWAT team finally went in at 7 a.m. today, the house was empty.
Since then, officers have crisscrossed Seattle, chasing down alleged sightings and blood trails. Clemmons was shot and perhaps seriously wounded by one of the slain officers Sunday morning, Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said.
Shortly after noon today, notice went out for officers to be on the lookout for a green 1997 Mazda Millenia that had been registered to Clemmons' wife, Nicole Cheryleen Smith. They said the car might be headed toward Arkansas, where Maurice Clemmons once lived.
Washington State Patrol trooper Cliff Pratt said every trooper patrolling the state's highways had been alerted to look for the car, and that troopers are watching all major exits from the state.
He said they're also watching train and bus stations, and other transportation hubs.
But by 3 p.m., troopers had been told they could stop looking for the car. It had been found, and was sold two months ago.
About 1 p.m., six officers in SWAT gear pulled up to Smith's Tacoma home and four went inside, escorted by a young man who pulled up in a silver Honda.
In Seattle, police have followed clues that led them to the University of Washington, Beacon Hill, Ravenna, the International District and Leschi. So far, none have panned out.
"We're responding to citizen calls," Seattle police Sgt. Don Smith said.
At 2 p.m., officers were just leaving Cowen Park in Ravenna, where a trail of fresh blood had been reported about noon.
Not long before, officers had closed off a street and at least one building near Maynard Avenue South and South Dearborn Street, after bloody gauze was found in the street.
Before that, officers had raced to Jose Rizal Park in Beacon Hill after someone reported seeing Clemmons there. By 10:30, officers had walked the park with police dogs and were confident Clemmons wasn't there.
And earlier in the morning, police swarmed to the University of Washington after someone reported seeing Clemmons getting off a Metro bus at the campus. That search led officers to near the UW Medical Center and apparently into a classroom, but Clemmons wasn't there.
There is a $125,000 reward for information leading to Clemmons' capture.
Police know that Clemmons was wounded because they have detained other people — Troyer wouldn't say how many — who helped Clemmons after the shootings.
Badger said every hospital in King, Pierce, Thurston and Snohomish counties has been told to contact police if a patient shows up for treatment of a gunshot wound.
Lt. Dave McDonald of the Puyallup Police Department said today detectives believe Clemmons was armed with more than one handgun during Sunday morning's attack. One handgun used in the shootings was recovered at the coffee shop where the four Lakewood officers were slain. Police think he dropped it during a fight with one of the officers. He was able to kill that officer, likely with a second handgun
Police found blood in his white Chevrolet pickup, which was found Sunday in a supermarket parking lot in Parkland. They also have eyewitness statements placing Clemmons in Leschi Sunday night.
Investigators have no indication that Clemmons had a motive aimed specifically at any of the particular officers who were gunned down, Troyer said.
"He was upset about being incarcerated," Troyer said. "He was just targeting cops."
SWAT teams and police negotiators had surrounded the house at East Yesler Way and 32nd Avenue South earlier on Sunday based on tips given to police.
Police responded to the home around 8:44 p.m. Sunday. A woman who was leaving the home was stopped by officers and told them Clemmons was on the property and bleeding.
The woman told police that someone had dropped Clemmons off at his aunt's home, on East Superior Street.
The series of events leading up to the standoff at house in Leschi began more than 16 hours earlier at an upscale coffee shop in Parkland, Pierce County, a hangout for officers that became the scene of the deadliest attack on law enforcement in state history.
Four officers were shot and killed at 8:15 a.m. as they worked on their laptops at Forza Coffee Company in Parkland. The first two officers were "flat-out executed," while the third tried to stop the gunman and the fourth fired at him, Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said.
Those killed were identified as Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39, and officers Ronald Owens, 37, Tina Griswold, 40, and Gregory Richards, 42.
Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar held a news conference this morning.
"We're a young department. They were good people and we'll miss them very much," he said. "We will get through this but it is a very, very tough time for us and the families of our fallen officers. I met with the families yesterday; it was the hardest thing I've ever done."
Farrar said he has "no doubt this person will be brought to justice."
A community prayer service is planned for 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Lakewood YMCA.
Clemmons has a long criminal record in Arkansas and Washington. He was released from custody in Pierce County just a week ago, and was facing a charge of raping a child. Family members described him as being in a state of mental deterioration. Last spring, he was also accused of punching a sheriff's deputy in the face.
Sunday's shootings came as officers from across the state were still coming to terms with last month's ambush-slaying of Seattle police Officer Timothy Brenton. The two incidents do not appear related, police said.
The coffee shop, in a strip mall across the street from McChord Air Force Base, is favored by officers from several nearby jurisdictions.
Troyer said the scruffy-looking gunman entered the shop, walked past the officers and three or four other customers, and approached the counter.
A young barista asked the man if she could help him, according to Humberto Navarrete, 51, who lives nearby and later spoke to the barista. The man stared at the barista without saying a word and then opened his coat, revealing a handgun, Navarrete said.
The barista and another female barista on duty ran out the back, according to Navarrete. The gunman turned and started shooting at the officers, he said, quoting the women.
"This was a targeted, selective ambush," Troyer said.
The officers, who made up one patrol unit, were regulars at the coffee shop. They were wearing bulletproof vests and were preparing to start their day shift, Troyer said.
The first two officers apparently had no time to react. The third officer stood up and tried to go for the gunman before being shot, Troyer said. The fourth officer struggled with the gunman, wrestled him out the door and managed to fire off some shots before he, too, was killed, Troyer said.
It's not clear if the gunman was injured by gunshots.
"It's carnage out front everywhere," Troyer said, describing the front of the coffee shop. "It's like a bad horror movie, it's horrible."
Navarrete, a financial manager who lives a block from the coffee shop, said he was in a nearby AM-PM minimart Sunday morning when the two baristas from the coffee shop ran into the store crying and upset.
Brad Carpenter, CEO of Forza Coffee, met with the two young baristas after they were interviewed by police and said they were shaken up.
The slain officers were "well-known to our staff," said Carpenter, a retired police officer from Oakland, Calif., and Gig Harbor.
"It's supposed to be a safe haven for everybody," he said of the coffee shop.
The shootings rank as the worst attack on law enforcement in state history. Three Seattle police were shot and killed by a gunman in January 1921.
Carpenter, the Forza CEO, said donation boxes to help the families of the slain officers will be in place today at all 22 Forza stores in Washington and Colorado, and that information would be placed on the company Web site about making contributions.
Several hundred mourners gathered at Champions Centre, a church in Tacoma, for a memorial service for the officers Sunday night. And a procession of vehicles accompanied two vehicles that transported the bodies from Parkland to the Pierce County Medical Examiner's Office in Tacoma.
Seattle Times staff reporters Sara Jean Green, Mike Carter, Steve Miletich, Jonathan Martin, Nick Perry, Bob Young, Jennifer Sullivan and Christine Clarridge and news researchers Miyoko Wolf and Gene Balk contributed to this report.
Nick Perry: 206-515-5639 or [email protected]
Copyright © The Seattle Times Company
By Seattle Times staff
Maurice Clemmons has been getting help and shelter from friends and relatives since shortly after the Sunday morning shooting deaths of four Lakewood police officers, authorities have concluded.
"Basically, there's no way that he could be doing this by himself; he was shot in the abdomen," said Sheri Badger, Pierce County spokeswoman at the incident command center.
Also frustrating to law-enforcement officers is that Clemmons reportedly told acquaintances the night before the attack to "watch the news" because he was going to "kill cops.""
No one reported his comments to police until after the attack, Badger said.
The hunt for Clemmons has stretched deep into its second day, frustrating police as they chase lead after lead across two counties.
A murder warrant has been issued for Clemmons, and officers thought they had him Clemmons surrounded in a Leschi home late Sunday. But when a SWAT team finally went in at 7 a.m. today, the house was empty.
Since then, officers have crisscrossed Seattle, chasing down alleged sightings and blood trails. Clemmons was shot and perhaps seriously wounded by one of the slain officers Sunday morning, Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said.
Shortly after noon today, notice went out for officers to be on the lookout for a green 1997 Mazda Millenia that had been registered to Clemmons' wife, Nicole Cheryleen Smith. They said the car might be headed toward Arkansas, where Maurice Clemmons once lived.
Washington State Patrol trooper Cliff Pratt said every trooper patrolling the state's highways had been alerted to look for the car, and that troopers are watching all major exits from the state.
He said they're also watching train and bus stations, and other transportation hubs.
But by 3 p.m., troopers had been told they could stop looking for the car. It had been found, and was sold two months ago.
About 1 p.m., six officers in SWAT gear pulled up to Smith's Tacoma home and four went inside, escorted by a young man who pulled up in a silver Honda.
In Seattle, police have followed clues that led them to the University of Washington, Beacon Hill, Ravenna, the International District and Leschi. So far, none have panned out.
"We're responding to citizen calls," Seattle police Sgt. Don Smith said.
At 2 p.m., officers were just leaving Cowen Park in Ravenna, where a trail of fresh blood had been reported about noon.
Not long before, officers had closed off a street and at least one building near Maynard Avenue South and South Dearborn Street, after bloody gauze was found in the street.
Before that, officers had raced to Jose Rizal Park in Beacon Hill after someone reported seeing Clemmons there. By 10:30, officers had walked the park with police dogs and were confident Clemmons wasn't there.
And earlier in the morning, police swarmed to the University of Washington after someone reported seeing Clemmons getting off a Metro bus at the campus. That search led officers to near the UW Medical Center and apparently into a classroom, but Clemmons wasn't there.
There is a $125,000 reward for information leading to Clemmons' capture.
Police know that Clemmons was wounded because they have detained other people — Troyer wouldn't say how many — who helped Clemmons after the shootings.
Badger said every hospital in King, Pierce, Thurston and Snohomish counties has been told to contact police if a patient shows up for treatment of a gunshot wound.
Lt. Dave McDonald of the Puyallup Police Department said today detectives believe Clemmons was armed with more than one handgun during Sunday morning's attack. One handgun used in the shootings was recovered at the coffee shop where the four Lakewood officers were slain. Police think he dropped it during a fight with one of the officers. He was able to kill that officer, likely with a second handgun
Police found blood in his white Chevrolet pickup, which was found Sunday in a supermarket parking lot in Parkland. They also have eyewitness statements placing Clemmons in Leschi Sunday night.
Investigators have no indication that Clemmons had a motive aimed specifically at any of the particular officers who were gunned down, Troyer said.
"He was upset about being incarcerated," Troyer said. "He was just targeting cops."
SWAT teams and police negotiators had surrounded the house at East Yesler Way and 32nd Avenue South earlier on Sunday based on tips given to police.
Police responded to the home around 8:44 p.m. Sunday. A woman who was leaving the home was stopped by officers and told them Clemmons was on the property and bleeding.
The woman told police that someone had dropped Clemmons off at his aunt's home, on East Superior Street.
The series of events leading up to the standoff at house in Leschi began more than 16 hours earlier at an upscale coffee shop in Parkland, Pierce County, a hangout for officers that became the scene of the deadliest attack on law enforcement in state history.
Four officers were shot and killed at 8:15 a.m. as they worked on their laptops at Forza Coffee Company in Parkland. The first two officers were "flat-out executed," while the third tried to stop the gunman and the fourth fired at him, Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said.
Those killed were identified as Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39, and officers Ronald Owens, 37, Tina Griswold, 40, and Gregory Richards, 42.
Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar held a news conference this morning.
"We're a young department. They were good people and we'll miss them very much," he said. "We will get through this but it is a very, very tough time for us and the families of our fallen officers. I met with the families yesterday; it was the hardest thing I've ever done."
Farrar said he has "no doubt this person will be brought to justice."
A community prayer service is planned for 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Lakewood YMCA.
Clemmons has a long criminal record in Arkansas and Washington. He was released from custody in Pierce County just a week ago, and was facing a charge of raping a child. Family members described him as being in a state of mental deterioration. Last spring, he was also accused of punching a sheriff's deputy in the face.
Sunday's shootings came as officers from across the state were still coming to terms with last month's ambush-slaying of Seattle police Officer Timothy Brenton. The two incidents do not appear related, police said.
The coffee shop, in a strip mall across the street from McChord Air Force Base, is favored by officers from several nearby jurisdictions.
Troyer said the scruffy-looking gunman entered the shop, walked past the officers and three or four other customers, and approached the counter.
A young barista asked the man if she could help him, according to Humberto Navarrete, 51, who lives nearby and later spoke to the barista. The man stared at the barista without saying a word and then opened his coat, revealing a handgun, Navarrete said.
The barista and another female barista on duty ran out the back, according to Navarrete. The gunman turned and started shooting at the officers, he said, quoting the women.
"This was a targeted, selective ambush," Troyer said.
The officers, who made up one patrol unit, were regulars at the coffee shop. They were wearing bulletproof vests and were preparing to start their day shift, Troyer said.
The first two officers apparently had no time to react. The third officer stood up and tried to go for the gunman before being shot, Troyer said. The fourth officer struggled with the gunman, wrestled him out the door and managed to fire off some shots before he, too, was killed, Troyer said.
It's not clear if the gunman was injured by gunshots.
"It's carnage out front everywhere," Troyer said, describing the front of the coffee shop. "It's like a bad horror movie, it's horrible."
Navarrete, a financial manager who lives a block from the coffee shop, said he was in a nearby AM-PM minimart Sunday morning when the two baristas from the coffee shop ran into the store crying and upset.
Brad Carpenter, CEO of Forza Coffee, met with the two young baristas after they were interviewed by police and said they were shaken up.
The slain officers were "well-known to our staff," said Carpenter, a retired police officer from Oakland, Calif., and Gig Harbor.
"It's supposed to be a safe haven for everybody," he said of the coffee shop.
The shootings rank as the worst attack on law enforcement in state history. Three Seattle police were shot and killed by a gunman in January 1921.
Carpenter, the Forza CEO, said donation boxes to help the families of the slain officers will be in place today at all 22 Forza stores in Washington and Colorado, and that information would be placed on the company Web site about making contributions.
Several hundred mourners gathered at Champions Centre, a church in Tacoma, for a memorial service for the officers Sunday night. And a procession of vehicles accompanied two vehicles that transported the bodies from Parkland to the Pierce County Medical Examiner's Office in Tacoma.
Seattle Times staff reporters Sara Jean Green, Mike Carter, Steve Miletich, Jonathan Martin, Nick Perry, Bob Young, Jennifer Sullivan and Christine Clarridge and news researchers Miyoko Wolf and Gene Balk contributed to this report.
Nick Perry: 206-515-5639 or [email protected]
Copyright © The Seattle Times Company
HERO
Im here in Renton supposidly they have him surrounded??? I see choppers ???
People say this shit EVERYDAY, LOL, so EVERYTIME somone says Fuck The Police, I hate police, or Death to the Pigs, that should be reported? Wow.
I question the validity of his so-called "molestation charges" that he was accused of. This is another thing the media does, when they really want you, they will destroy your character by saying some very wicked things about you. Now the person who may have thought of you as a "hero" for killin the police, or may have even "understood" why the police were killed in his or her own way, this person would be more apt to turn you in since you are a Child Molester, and you rape babies. I dont know about out there in Washington, but here in Cali, you get accused of that last week, you wouldnt be out of jail the next week.
In no way do I support or condone molestation, I'm just taking a logical look at it.
I question the validity of his so-called "molestation charges" that he was accused of. This is another thing the media does, when they really want you, they will destroy your character by saying some very wicked things about you. Now the person who may have thought of you as a "hero" for killin the police, or may have even "understood" why the police were killed in his or her own way, this person would be more apt to turn you in since you are a Child Molester, and you rape babies. I dont know about out there in Washington, but here in Cali, you get accused of that last week, you wouldnt be out of jail the next week.
In no way do I support or condone molestation, I'm just taking a logical look at it.
Great thread SHEA! Props
Latest on Lakewood shooting
8:32 p.m.
Police conducting "tactical operations" at four sites, including Renton house. Officers have search warrants for all.
8:13 p.m.
Police say Clemmon's friends and family members lied to mislead officers. "If they are going to impede our investigation then they become a part of the investigation," said Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer.
7:50 p.m.
Detectives have detained some of Clemmons' friends and family members. Cops say they could be charged with helping him hide.
7:35 p.m.
A source says Clemmons was not in the Renton area house surrounded by police.
6:26 p.m.
SWAT team has arrested a relative of Clemmons who is believed to be helping him. Police are at a location near Renton but have asked media not to disclose the address.
Latest on Lakewood shooting
8:32 p.m.
Police conducting "tactical operations" at four sites, including Renton house. Officers have search warrants for all.
8:13 p.m.
Police say Clemmon's friends and family members lied to mislead officers. "If they are going to impede our investigation then they become a part of the investigation," said Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer.
7:50 p.m.
Detectives have detained some of Clemmons' friends and family members. Cops say they could be charged with helping him hide.
7:35 p.m.
A source says Clemmons was not in the Renton area house surrounded by police.
6:26 p.m.
SWAT team has arrested a relative of Clemmons who is believed to be helping him. Police are at a location near Renton but have asked media not to disclose the address.
Maurice Clemmons, man wanted for questioning, has troubling criminal history
The man sought for questioning in the execution of four Lakewood police officers was granted clemency in 2000 by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and released on bail just six days ago on a child rape charge in Washington state.
Maurice Clemmons, the 37-year-old Tacoma man being sought for questioning in the killing this morning of four Lakewood police officers, has a long criminal record punctuated by violence, erratic behavior and concerns about his mental health.
Nine years ago, then-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee granted clemency to Clemmons, commuting his lengthy prison sentence over the protests of prosecutors.
"This is the day I've been dreading for a long time," Larry Jegley, prosecuting attorney for Arkansas' Pulaski County said tonight when informed that Clemmons was being sought for questioning in connection with the killings.
Clemmons' criminal history includes at least five felony convictions in Arkansas and at least eight felony charges in Washington. The record also stands out for the number of times he has been released from custody despite questions about the danger he posed.
Huckabee, who ran for the Republican presidential nomination last year, issued a statement tonight calling the slaying of the police officers "a horrible and tragic event."
If Clemmons is found responsible, "it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington State," Huckabee said.
He added that Clemmons' release from prison had been reviewed and approved by the Arkansas parole board.
Clemmons had been in jail in Pierce County for the past several months on a pending charge of second-degree rape of a child. He was released from custody just six days ago, even though was staring at seven additional felony charges in Washington state.
Clemmons posted $15,000 with a Chehalis company called Jail Sucks Bail Bonds. The bondsman, in turn, put up $150,000, securing Clemmons' release on the pending child-rape charge.
Clemmons lives in Tacoma, where he has run a landscaping and power-washing business out of his house, according to a police interview with his wife earlier this year.
He was married, but the relationship was tumultuous, with accounts of his unpredictable behavior leading to at least two confrontations with police earlier this year.
During the confrontation in May, Clemmons punched a sheriff's deputy in the face, according to court records. As part of that incident, he was charged with seven counts of assault and malicious mischief.
In another instance, Clemmons was accused of gathering his wife and young relatives around at 3 or 4 in the morning and having them all undress. He told them that families need to "be naked for at least 5 minutes on Sunday," a Pierce County sheriff's report says.
"The whole time Clemmons kept saying things like trust him, the world is going to end soon, and that he was Jesus," the report says.
As part of the child-rape investigation, the sheriff's office interviewed Clemmons' sister in May. She told them that "Maurice is not in his right mind and did not know how he could react when contacted by Law Enforcement," a sheriff's report says.
"She stated that he was saying that the secret service was coming to get him because he had written a letter to the President. She stated his behavior has become unpredictable and erratic. She suspects he is having a mental breakdown," the report says.
Deputies also interviewed other family members. They reported that Clemmons had been saying he could fly and that he expected President Obama to visit to "confirm that he is Messiah in the flesh."
Prosecutors in Pierce County were sufficiently concerned about Clemmons' mental health that they asked to have him evaluated at Western State Hospital. Earlier this month, on Nov. 6, a psychologist concluded that Clemmons was competent to stand trial on the child-rape and other felony charges, according to court records.
Clemmons moved Washington in 2004, after being released from prison in Arkansas, state Department of Corrections records indicate. That would mean he had gone five years or so before landing in serious trouble with authorities here, according to a review of his criminal record.
Clemmons started Sea-Wash Pressure Washing Landscaping with his wife, Nicole Smith, in October 2005. The license for the business expired last month.
Long history of trouble in Arkansas
News accounts out of Arkansas offer a confusing — and, at times, conflicting — description of Clemmons' criminal history and prison time.
In 1990, Clemmons, then 18, was sentenced in Arkansas to 60 years in prison for burglary and theft of property, according to a news account in Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Newspaper stories describe a series of disturbing incidents involving Clemmons while he was being tried in Arkansas on various charges.
During one trial, Clemmons was shackled in leg irons and seated next to a uniformed officer. The presiding judge ordered the extra security because he felt Clemmons had threatened him, court records show.
Another time, Clemmons hid a hinge in his sock, and was accused of intending to use it as a weapon. Yet another time, Clemmons took a lock from a holding cell, and threw it toward the bailiff. He missed and instead hit Clemmons' mother, who had come to bring him street clothes, according to records and published reports.
On another occasion, Clemmons had reached for a guard's pistol during transport to the courtroom.
When Clemmons received the 60-year sentence, he was already serving 48 years on five felony convictions and facing up to 95 more years on charges of robbery, theft of property and possessing a handgun on school property. Records from Clemmons' sentencing described him as 5-foot-7 and 108 pounds. The crimes were committed when he was 17.
Clemmons served 11 years before being released.
News accounts say Huckabee commuted Clemmons' sentence, citing Clemmons' young age at the time the crimes were committed.
But Clemmons remained on parole — and soon after landed in trouble again. In March 2001, he was accused of violating his parole by committing aggravated robbery and theft, according to a story in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
He was returned to prison on a parole violation. But in what appears to have been a mistake, Clemmons was not actually served with the arrest warrants until leaving prison three years later. As a result, Clemmons' attorney argued that the charges should be dismissed because too much time had passed. Prosecutors dropped the charges.
WTF
The man sought for questioning in the execution of four Lakewood police officers was granted clemency in 2000 by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and released on bail just six days ago on a child rape charge in Washington state.
Maurice Clemmons, the 37-year-old Tacoma man being sought for questioning in the killing this morning of four Lakewood police officers, has a long criminal record punctuated by violence, erratic behavior and concerns about his mental health.
Nine years ago, then-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee granted clemency to Clemmons, commuting his lengthy prison sentence over the protests of prosecutors.
"This is the day I've been dreading for a long time," Larry Jegley, prosecuting attorney for Arkansas' Pulaski County said tonight when informed that Clemmons was being sought for questioning in connection with the killings.
Clemmons' criminal history includes at least five felony convictions in Arkansas and at least eight felony charges in Washington. The record also stands out for the number of times he has been released from custody despite questions about the danger he posed.
Huckabee, who ran for the Republican presidential nomination last year, issued a statement tonight calling the slaying of the police officers "a horrible and tragic event."
If Clemmons is found responsible, "it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington State," Huckabee said.
He added that Clemmons' release from prison had been reviewed and approved by the Arkansas parole board.
Clemmons had been in jail in Pierce County for the past several months on a pending charge of second-degree rape of a child. He was released from custody just six days ago, even though was staring at seven additional felony charges in Washington state.
Clemmons posted $15,000 with a Chehalis company called Jail Sucks Bail Bonds. The bondsman, in turn, put up $150,000, securing Clemmons' release on the pending child-rape charge.
Clemmons lives in Tacoma, where he has run a landscaping and power-washing business out of his house, according to a police interview with his wife earlier this year.
He was married, but the relationship was tumultuous, with accounts of his unpredictable behavior leading to at least two confrontations with police earlier this year.
During the confrontation in May, Clemmons punched a sheriff's deputy in the face, according to court records. As part of that incident, he was charged with seven counts of assault and malicious mischief.
In another instance, Clemmons was accused of gathering his wife and young relatives around at 3 or 4 in the morning and having them all undress. He told them that families need to "be naked for at least 5 minutes on Sunday," a Pierce County sheriff's report says.
"The whole time Clemmons kept saying things like trust him, the world is going to end soon, and that he was Jesus," the report says.
As part of the child-rape investigation, the sheriff's office interviewed Clemmons' sister in May. She told them that "Maurice is not in his right mind and did not know how he could react when contacted by Law Enforcement," a sheriff's report says.
"She stated that he was saying that the secret service was coming to get him because he had written a letter to the President. She stated his behavior has become unpredictable and erratic. She suspects he is having a mental breakdown," the report says.
Deputies also interviewed other family members. They reported that Clemmons had been saying he could fly and that he expected President Obama to visit to "confirm that he is Messiah in the flesh."
Prosecutors in Pierce County were sufficiently concerned about Clemmons' mental health that they asked to have him evaluated at Western State Hospital. Earlier this month, on Nov. 6, a psychologist concluded that Clemmons was competent to stand trial on the child-rape and other felony charges, according to court records.
Clemmons moved Washington in 2004, after being released from prison in Arkansas, state Department of Corrections records indicate. That would mean he had gone five years or so before landing in serious trouble with authorities here, according to a review of his criminal record.
Clemmons started Sea-Wash Pressure Washing Landscaping with his wife, Nicole Smith, in October 2005. The license for the business expired last month.
Long history of trouble in Arkansas
News accounts out of Arkansas offer a confusing — and, at times, conflicting — description of Clemmons' criminal history and prison time.
In 1990, Clemmons, then 18, was sentenced in Arkansas to 60 years in prison for burglary and theft of property, according to a news account in Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Newspaper stories describe a series of disturbing incidents involving Clemmons while he was being tried in Arkansas on various charges.
During one trial, Clemmons was shackled in leg irons and seated next to a uniformed officer. The presiding judge ordered the extra security because he felt Clemmons had threatened him, court records show.
Another time, Clemmons hid a hinge in his sock, and was accused of intending to use it as a weapon. Yet another time, Clemmons took a lock from a holding cell, and threw it toward the bailiff. He missed and instead hit Clemmons' mother, who had come to bring him street clothes, according to records and published reports.
On another occasion, Clemmons had reached for a guard's pistol during transport to the courtroom.
When Clemmons received the 60-year sentence, he was already serving 48 years on five felony convictions and facing up to 95 more years on charges of robbery, theft of property and possessing a handgun on school property. Records from Clemmons' sentencing described him as 5-foot-7 and 108 pounds. The crimes were committed when he was 17.
Clemmons served 11 years before being released.
News accounts say Huckabee commuted Clemmons' sentence, citing Clemmons' young age at the time the crimes were committed.
But Clemmons remained on parole — and soon after landed in trouble again. In March 2001, he was accused of violating his parole by committing aggravated robbery and theft, according to a story in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
He was returned to prison on a parole violation. But in what appears to have been a mistake, Clemmons was not actually served with the arrest warrants until leaving prison three years later. As a result, Clemmons' attorney argued that the charges should be dismissed because too much time had passed. Prosecutors dropped the charges.
WTF
Saying fuck the police and telling people to watch the news because you're going to kill the police is completely different. And it's not like they came out and said that dude raped kids just so somebody would turn him in...they DID mention OTHER THINGS!
They did mention that he's mentally unstable, which could actually HELP his case.
Yes, the media can hype shit up. BUT, if dude was in jail for raping a child, he was in jail for raping a child. There's no way to blow that up or discount it if it's true. If it's FALSE, the reporter and/or station/paper can be sued...so I seriously doubt it's a false statement. They never said he was guilty, they said he was in jail for it and was out on bond.
They did mention that he's mentally unstable, which could actually HELP his case.
Yes, the media can hype shit up. BUT, if dude was in jail for raping a child, he was in jail for raping a child. There's no way to blow that up or discount it if it's true. If it's FALSE, the reporter and/or station/paper can be sued...so I seriously doubt it's a false statement. They never said he was guilty, they said he was in jail for it and was out on bond.