https://mail.yahoo.com/b/folders/1/messages/ALXzOpgtR3kAYhqaVg7oaLc0gpo?.src=ym&amp%3Breason=unsupported_browser&amp%3BfolderType=INBOX&amp%3BaccountIds=1&folderType=INBOX&showImages=true&offset=0&unblockNow=false

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A Florida jury acquitted a retired SWAT commander who fatally shot a man in a theater in 2014 after a dispute over cellphone use.

A jury in Florida on Friday acquitted a retired SWAT commander who shot and killed a man more than eight years ago inside a movie theater after a dispute over cellphone use.

A jury of four men and two women found Curtis J. Reeves Jr. not guilty of second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Chad W. Oulson on Jan. 13, 2014, at a matinee showing of “Lone Survivor” in a movie theater near Tampa.

A defense lawyer for Mr. Reeves argued that his client had acted in self-defense when he fired on Mr. Oulson, who had tossed a bag of popcorn at Mr. Reeves, a retired Tampa Police Department SWAT commander.

The verdict ended a case that ignited debates about legal firearms in public spaces and lingered in court because of multiple appeals and pandemic-related delays.

The case had garnered even more attention because of its ties to Florida’s Stand Your Ground law, which allows a person to use deadly force without first trying to retreat from a dangerous situation if the person “reasonably believes” that his or her life is being imminently threatened.

In 2017, Florida state lawmakers strengthened the law and shifted the burden of proof to prosecutors. A judge ultimately denied Mr. Reeves a self-defense claim under the law but he was still able to claim self-defense at the trial.

His lawyer, Richard Escobar, said in his closing argument that Mr. Reeves, who was 71 at the time, was an older man fearful of being attacked by the stronger Mr. Oulson, who was 43, and 6 feet 4 inches tall. Mr. Escobar said that when Mr. Reeves fired his handgun, it was purely in self-defense.

“I’ve never been encountered by somebody exhibiting that uncontrolled anger or rage and all of the perceptors that you could imagine, whether it’s verbal, physical, expression,” Mr. Reeves testified at his trial.

He added, “I came to the theater with my family to enjoy a movie, not to be attacked by some guy that’s out of control.”

Witnesses and prosecutors described a different scene.

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Mr. Oulson, a Navy veteran and finance manager at a local motorcycle dealership, was on a date with his wife. Their 22-month-old daughter, Alexis, who was with a babysitter at home, was not feeling well.

Prosecutors said the worry about his daughter prompted Mr. Oulson to defy moviegoing etiquette and text the babysitter to see how his daughter was doing. The movie had not started yet while Mr. Oulson texted, they said.

Charles Cummings, who was 68 at the time and had served in the Marines, was in the row ahead of Mr. Reeves during the shooting. He told The New York Times in 2014 that Mr. Reeves was “aggressive” and had been kicking the seat in front of him because “he was agitated” that Mr. Oulson was using his phone in the semidark theater.

Mr. Reeves got up and told Mr. Oulson to quit texting. Mr. Oulson ignored him and continued. Mr. Reeves then left to get a manager, but returned alone.

Mr. Oulson complained about being tattled on, and the two men exchanged more words. Then Mr. Oulson threw a bag of popcorn at Mr. Reeves, who then shot Mr. Oulson in the chest, according to a criminal complaint.

Hmm. Pick a fight with a guy knowing you have a gun…wait for reaction..shoot him. Sounds simple.

Quote from: aitm on February 27, 2022, 11:53:34 AM
Hmm. Pick a fight with a guy knowing you have a gun…wait for reaction..shoot him. Sounds simple.

He could have at least warned the guy that he was a retired cop and hadn't shot anybody for awhile.

He must have shot the popcorn pelter because he was a cop?

Quote from: Gawdzilla Sama on February 27, 2022, 02:47:58 PM
He must have shot the popcorn pelter because he was a cop?

What I meant was that the shooter hadn't shot anyone for awhile.  You know how it is.  After a period of abstinence, you get that craving, and it won't go away until it's satisfied.  But I don't want to sound like I'm taking the side of the popcorn assailant.  After all he was texting in the theater... and it was Florida, where it's OK to shoot people for pissing you off.

I find stories like this disheartening on so many levels.

Quote from: SGOS on February 27, 2022, 03:11:38 PM
What I meant was that the shooter hadn't shot anyone for awhile.  You know how it is.  After a period of abstinence, you get that craving, and it won't go away until it's satisfied.  But I don't want to sound like I'm taking the side of the popcorn assailant.  After all he was texting in the theater... and it was Florida, where it's OK to shoot people for pissing you off.

When I was getting $8.27/day to kill people it didn't become a habit.

Quote from: GSOgymrat on February 27, 2022, 04:21:47 PM
I find stories like this disheartening on so many levels.

It starts out icky and gets worse for the next 8 years, with each turn of the story being more bizarre than the last. 

Sorry for the gallows humour.  The world is so out of whack that I don't know how else to process so much of this crap.