[Peace-discuss] Man dead in police chase

[John W.]

At 11:12 AM 11/6/2006, Brian Dolinar wrote:

>An opinion in the News Gazoo:
>This death looks very suspicious.
>Anybody have connections in Georgetown?


Maybe the recent protest at the News Gazoo was noticed after all?

John Wason



>Police shouldn't get special treatment in investigation
>Monday November 6, 2006
>
>Once again, a local police agency isn't being forthright in releasing
>information about an incident in which a man died while being pursued
>by police. This time, it's a case involving a Georgetown police
>officer who reportedly fell upon 47-year-old Curtis Sloan during a
>foot chase last Wednesday night. Mr. Sloan died of blunt force trauma
>to the chest, according to preliminary autopsy reports.
>
>Vermilion County Sheriff Pat Hartshorn, whose department is
>investigating the incident, declined to release the name of the police
>officer who was pursuing Mr. Sloan. On the other hand, Hartshorn was
>eager to report that Mr. Sloan had been arrested 58 times in Vermilion
>County. With that kind of public relations spin being presented this
>early in the police probe, members of the public are left to question
>how legitimate an investigation will be.
>
>There is absolutely no reason why the name of the police officer
>should not be released. If the unnamed police officer had died while
>pursuing someone sought in a home invasion, you can be certain that
>police would have released not only the officer's name but the
>suspect's identity.
>
>This is not the first time this has happened in a local police
>investigation, but it ought to be the last. Most recently, Champaign
>police refused to identify an officer who had shot a man who was
>walking in front of his home, carrying a BB gun.
>
>Secrecy in these cases serves no purpose to anyone. But it does raise
>doubts about how thorough a police investigation of a police-related
>incident will be, and gives fuel to those who believe such
>investigations should be handled by civilian review boards.
>
>--
>Brian Dolinar, Ph.D.
>303 W. Locust St.
>Urbana, IL 61801
>briandolinar at gmail.com