Unarmed Insurance Salesman, Black Man, face down, complying with police orders shot in the head. Officer not punished.
Kenneth Walker was shot and killed by
former Deputy David Glisson in December of 2003. A grand jury cleared
him of criminal charges 11 months later. Civil rights leaders then
filed a petition saying Glisson wasn't sworn in during that hearing,
and they wanted a new one. In a hearing Wednesday, Judge Jordan ruled
to dismiss the petition, meaning no other grand jury will hear the
case. The ruling ended the suit for a writ of mandamus filed Nov. 30,
2004, by Edward DuBose, former president of the Columbus chapter of the
NAACP. The complaint sought an order compelling Dougherty County
District Attorney Kenneth Hodges to correct an error that allowed
former Muscogee Deputy Sheriff David Glisson to make an unsworn
statement to the grand jury on Nov. 22, 2004. The next day, the grand
jury returned a no bill, refusing to indict Glisson in the Dec. 10,
2003, shooting death of Walker during a traffic stop. Jordan's ruling granted
the motion to dismiss argued by Assistant Attorney General Kay Baker,
who said a writ of mandamus was the wrong mechanism for a remedy.The
judge noted that the prosecutor still has the discretion to present the
case to a second grand jury. "Broad discretion remains with the
district attorney, who may exercise his discretion to present to a
subsequent grand jury... or, in his discretion, to choose not to
present to a subsequent grand jury," Jordan said. [more] and [more]
VIDEO: View the Kenneth Walker tape (Blurry, no audio) [more] and [more]
Pictured above: The 39-year-old black insurance manager from Columbus was either
exiting an SUV that had been pulled over on I-185 or was getting set to
lie on the ground. A bullet, one of two shots fired from an MP5 9 mm
submachine gun, ripped into Walker's brain. Six hours later, the
husband and father of a 3-year-old girl was dead.
The Wrong Car.
On Wednesday, Dec. 16, four professional African
American men were
supposedly identified by a police informant as drug suppliers from
Miami who were heavily armed. Who really was inside the vehicle were
four friends en route to a local restaurant to continue their weekly
ritual of male/friendship bonding. All of that changed when the gray
Yukon was pulled over. Eyewitnesses
recounted the incident as the men were being physically snatched from
the car, guns pointed directly in their faces and to the head area and
being thrown to the ground. It was during this time that 39-year-old
Kenneth Walker was shot.
According to the sheriff, he was shot after failing to show both of his
hands. "Mr. Walker refused to follow a direct command from the
deputy." When the dust settled, a terrible mistake had been made.
Walker and his
companions were not drug dealers and they were not armed. The car was
searched and no drugs were found. [more]
