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Police Kill Armed Man Near US Capitol

By BEN EVANS
,
AP
posted: 114 DAYS 15 HOURS AGO
comments: 188
Text SizeAAA
WASHINGTON (July 15) – A man police fatally shot in a chaotic scene near the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday fired at them and did not obey commands to put down his weapon, authorities said.
U.S. Capitol Police spokeswoman Sgt. Kim Schneider said the unidentified 35-year-old man sped away in a white car after a routine traffic stop a few blocks from the Capitol. The man drove the wrong way down a street and ultimately crashed into a police cruiser in a heavily guarded area about a block north of the Capitol grounds, striking two officers with his car along the way, she said.
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U.S. Capitol
Charles Dharapak, AP

Police briefly sealed off part of the Capitol as a precaution during the melee Wednesday.

The suspect began shooting at several Capitol Police officers and police returned fire, Schneider said in e-mailed news release. She described the melee as "very fast moving, very fluid."
"The officers felt they were being threatened — they were in fear for their lives," Schneider said.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The officers who were hit — one of whom was on a motorcycle — had minor injuries, Schneider said.
The late afternoon scare occurred as lawmakers were wrapping up a third day of hearings for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. Police briefly sealed off part of the Capitol as a precaution, but the buildings were reopened about a half-hour later. Authorities said the shooting was not related to the Capitol complex.
"We hear pop, pop, pop, like a gun," said Carol Lanigan, of Toledo, Ohio, describing how she saw a white car come flying down the street with two police cars chasing it.
She said she heard about four or five shots.
"There were so many gunshots being fired, my family got down," said Robert Drumm of Oklahoma, who was touring the nation's capital with his family.
Numerous emergency vehicles converged quickly on the area.
Lanigan's husband, Dale Lanigan, described a similar scene, saying that as the car sped past him "the driver had one hand on the wheel and it looked like he was reaching for something."
Lanigan said he then heard shots and police ordered him to get away.
Associated Press writers Gillian Gaynair and Lara Jakes contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
2009-07-15 18:32:29

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DWoks3

05:20 PMAug 12 2009

For all of you racist people wanting to know what color he is,it's not hard to figure,if it was anyone but a black man,they would have said so.The news only leaves that point out when the person is black.I would be shocked if he was anything other than black

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DWoks3

05:15 PMAug 12 2009

DluuvtyIf this person was white he deserved every bit of it, one less stinky lunatic cracker on the streets. If he was black RIP bro....Wow you are just unbelievable.Since you and the others hate us so much,why not go somewhere else,like Africa.Oh I know why,your on welfare and cant afford it,so how do you like it.We can talk just as racist as you,but then I don't actually believe you are all idiots and crackheads.But people like you show your stupidity on a daily basis

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DWoks3

05:08 PMAug 12 2009

BILLCAC99most important question is---- was the person white...if so then the shooting was extremely justified....but----if the person was black i want to know why didnt the officers use more care and try and stop him without violence.... if the person was black i want the fbi to investigate the police to see if there is a pattern of them killing blacks who are trying to shoot them or run them down...if the person was black im ready for sharpton and jackson to show up demand an appology!!!....Wow ,how racist is that? And you people call white people racist.Really people, its time to grow up

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DWoks3

05:06 PMAug 12 2009

LdyQtee6Those that choose to be police officers accept that their lives are on the line daily so that BS about "they feared for their lives" needs to stop. No doubt white (or wanna be white) police officers stopped a person of color OR perhaps in the warped post-9/11 society we live in (thanks to Bush and Co.) the man looked Middle Eastern and so they thought they had a "live one" for Homeland Security to claim another "victory". How many times have police officers killed innocent people and been rewarded? They didn't need to kill him but disable his vehicle so he had to get out and then subdue him. Friggin' trigger happy idiots. I HATE the police - period!!! And yes I had a relative on the force...wow! what a bunch of racist crap.Why should we keep people like that alive? OH I know,so we can for them to be in jail the rest of their lives.You poor people of color,exactly what color is that? Gee I'll bet your talking about all of the poor black people that commit violent crimes.

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LdyQtee6

05:58 PMJul 16 2009

Those that choose to be police officers accept that their lives are on the line daily so that BS about "they feared for their lives" needs to stop. No doubt white (or wanna be white) police officers stopped a person of color OR perhaps in the warped post-9/11 society we live in (thanks to Bush and Co.) the man looked Middle Eastern and so they thought they had a "live one" for Homeland Security to claim another "victory". How many times have police officers killed innocent people and been rewarded? They didn't need to kill him but disable his vehicle so he had to get out and then subdue him. Friggin' trigger happy idiots. I HATE the police - period!!! And yes I had a relative on the force.

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(1)

AmTracMarine

04:56 PMJul 16 2009

BForr....."just one of many attempts to come until we succeed,,,,, sending the government a message." The only thing your dumb as* will succeed at is getting shot just like your late hero.

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(1)

BIBGEB

03:21 PMJul 16 2009

SO HOW MANY D.C. POLICE GOT PUT ON PAID LEAVE FOR THIS SHOOTING? 12 MEMBERS OF THE LMPD DEATH SQUAD HERE IS LOUISVILLE GOT PUT ON PAID LEAVE FOR SHOOTING A DE- ARRANGED MAN WITH A UNLOADED HAND GUN. HOW MANY SHOTS THEY FIRED IS UNKNOWN AND TH POLICE DEPT IS GIIVING OUT NO INFORMATION. BUT THERE WERE 19 HOLES IN THE SIDE OF A PARKED VEHICLE.L THIS SHIT GOES EVERY DASY HERE IN LOUISVILLE, KY. HALF OF THE FORCE IS ON PAID LEAVE AND THEY CAN'T FIGURE OUT WHY THE BUDGET IS IN THE RED.

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(4)

DaBreveMan

03:00 PMJul 16 2009

BILLCAC99 said:"most important question is---- was the person white...if so then the shooting was extremely justified....but----if the person was black i want to know why didnt the officers use more care and try and stop him without violence.... if the person was black i want the fbi to investigate the police to see if there is a pattern of them killing blacks who are trying to shoot them or run them down...if the person was black im ready for sharpton and jackson to show up demand an appology!!!"------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------------Regardless of the persons color, if a police officer has a firearm pointed at him he has only one chance to make the right decision.

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Randy1240

02:47 PMJul 16 2009

Bobbymusial is right! The term redneck was used in The West Virginia Coal Miners March (1921) or the Battle of Blair Mountain when coal miners wore red bandannas around their necks to identify themselves as seeking the opportunity to unionize. Therefore, most Rednecks are Radical Liberal Democrats!

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Dluuvly

02:35 PMJul 16 2009

If this person was white he deserved every bit of it, one less stinky lunatic cracker on the streets. If he was black RIP bro.

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(5)

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A routine traffic stop near the U.S. Capitol turns deadly after a man brandishing a gun refuses to stop and is shot by police, authorities say. The unidentified 35-year-old man drives the wrong way down a street and strikes two officers with his car before cops open fire and kill him.