Shot in the Head Through His Hand: Philly Cop Convicted of Manslaughter for Murdering Dennis Plowden. Jury Rejected Liar Cop’s Claim that Unarmed Black Man Posed a Threat After Unlawful Traffic Stop

From [HERE] and [HERE] white Philadelphia police officer was convicted Wednesday of voluntary manslaughter and a weapons charge in the fatal shooting of an unarmed Black motorist shot six seconds after the officer arrived on the scene.

Officer Eric Ruch Jr. told jurors he feared for his life when he fired at Dennis Plowden Jr. as the 25-year-old sat on a sidewalk after crashing a car during a high-speed chase. Apparently, the jurors found him to be not credible or a liar.

The jury rejected a more serious third-degree murder charge, but also convicted Ruch of possessing an instrument of crime. The felony manslaughter charge carries a term of up to 20 years in prison. Sentencing is set for Nov. 17. A first-degree murder charge filed against him was dropped before trial.

District Attorney Larry Krasner had little comment after the verdict, thanking jurors for what he called their “noble and demanding” public service, but said he expected to say more at Ruch’s sentencing.

Officer Eric Ruch Jr. shot and killed Dennis Plowden Jr., 25, only seconds after Plowden crashed his car at 77 mph (125 kph), stumbled out of it and fell to the ground, authorities said.

Plowden, dazed and unarmed, was holding his empty left hand in front of his face when Ruch fired the fatal shot, prosecutors said. Four other officers who were on the scene and had taken cover did not fire their weapons, according to a grand jury presentment.

Ruch shot Plowden in the head without justification as Plowden looked “dazed and lost on the sidewalk.”

“Ruch intentionally fired on Dennis Plowden less than 20 seconds after the Hyundai he had been driving crashed at nearly 80 miles an hour, Mr. Plowden had fallen to the ground, and yet was still attempting to obey commands,” the grand jury wrote.

It remained unclear why police sought to stop Plowden’s car in the first place. According to the grand jury, Ruch and his partner began following Plowden and asked police dispatch to check the registration of his car. 

Ruch’s partner told investigators after the shooting that they had stopped Plowden’s Hyundai because of a patrol alert that connected it to a homicide, according to the grand jury. 

But other officers said they were unaware of the patrol alert — which had not been broadcast over police radio — and all the information sought by Ruch from police dispatch was already contained in the alert, the grand jury said.

“There’s no information on the police radio before the incident that indicates that anyone knew for sure that this vehicle may have been involved in a homicide,” Assistant District Attorney Vincent Corrigan said at a news conference Friday. That homicide investigation remains open, he said, but the Hyundai is no longer an “avenue of inquiry.”

The grand jury said three of the four officers present for the shooting testified they did not see Plowden raise his left hand, while the fourth said he didn’t recall what Plowden was doing with it.

Other eyewitnesses said Plowden was on his back and struggling to sit up when he was shot, with one saying Plowden was gesturing with his left hand in front of his face. 

The lawsuit filed by Plowden’s wife said he was propping himself up with his right arm while holding out his left hand in a vain attempt to prevent Ruch from shooting him. A medical examiner said the bullet tore through the fingers of Plowden’s left hand before hitting him in the head, indicating the hand was raised, according to the grand jury.

Ruch fired the fatal shot just 6 to 8 seconds after getting to the crash scene, the grand jury said.

Hetznecker, the lawyer for Plowden’s wife, said that police had no probable cause to stop the car, and that officers’ statements were an attempt to justify the fatal shooting.

Plowden was taking classes to get his high school diploma and was learning the construction trade at the time of his killing. He left behind two children and three stepchildren, including an infant son who is now 3.

In a key pretrial ruling, Philadelphia Common Pleas Judge Barbara McDermott barred prosecutors from telling jurors about a series of complaints filed against Ruch during his 10-year police career because he was mostly cleared of wrongdoing by internal affairs, who clear almost all complaints against police. [MORE]