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Shots That Killed Bell and Hit Others From One Cop
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 26, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 26, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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The NY Post reveals what many people were wondering in the Sean Bell shooting: Who fired the shots that actually killed Bell and hit his friends Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield. It turns out Detective Michael Oliver fired the shots. Oliver fired the most shots, 31, of the detectives and was charged with first-degree and second-degree manslaughter last week.
The other detective charged with manslaughter, Gescard Isnora, fired 11 times, but didn't hit anything. However, the Post reports, "Queens DA Richard Brown's prosecutors argued that Isnora was culpable because he was the undercover who approached Bell's car and - mistakenly believing Guzman was reaching for a gun - opened fire. That set off the dangerous chain of events that led the other cops to also fire." It will be interesting to see how Isnora's lawyer uses this information in the defense.
One other detective was charged with two counts of reckless endangerment (one of his bullets hit an Air Train station) while two others were not charged. The Post also has a graphic explaining who shot how many times and how many times the victims were hit.
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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