Friday a jury convicted Christopher Ward of Second degree murder, but many could argue why? The charges - the case is just bizarre.
In October 2003 Ward led Fort Myers officers around town in a low speed chase. Responding rookie Daniel Starks blew through a stop sign, only to be hit by a fellow officer. Starks died. And while Starks and Ward never met each other during the entire episode, Ward was brought up on murder charges.
The concept (or law) works like this: Ward committed a felony that set in motion a series of events that led to Starks death.
We did several stories about what happened including an investigation that revealed Starks was negligent. He ran the stop sign, a direct violation of pursuit policy. The Fort Myers Police Department would never point the finger and say that though. Why would they? This is an officer that was beloved by everyone. Starks was a guy who couldn't wait to be a cop, loved being in uniform, and was engaged to the love of his life. Who would say "he messed up"? People were devastated back then... And today. It was a sudden and tragic end for a man who had great potential.
All that aside, I find it odd how an officer could be so negligent and someone else takes the blame. Starks is gone because he ran the stop sign. Ward will spend the rest of his life in prison because he made some stupid decisions to lead officers around town.
I am not vouching that Ward is or could become a model citizen. I'm not saying he deserves to be on the street... But he sets a precedent. To better understand here is an example:
Let's take the big bad drug dealer out of the defendants chair... And put you in drivers seat. You make a stupid decision one night and drive home drunk. An officer attempts to pull you over, you get scared and don't stop. A cop a mile away, trying to respond to help pull you over, runs a traffic light and crashes. Whether he lives or dies... Your responsible.
I though police work was inherently dangerous? I thought they go through extensive training to handle any situation? They fire their gun and kill someone, they're responsible. They run a traffic signal... They're not?
The law is a funny thing... Unless your Christopher Ward.
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3 comments:
there are 2 signs of negligence.
1) the fact that Starks ran a stop sign.
2) Ward fled from officers.
How do you determine which is more negligent?
Also, a chase is called off if it is too dangerous. Obviously Starks' death shows all chases are dangerous. So now where is the boundary for a "dangerous chase"?
This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Ward was not responsible in any way for Stark's death. I was flabbergasted when I found out that a jury had actually found the man guilty.
How confusing... what if an innocent driver, during this chase, played an indirect catalyst in causing a fatal accident, via losing control of the car and accidentally running over a pedestrian while getting out of harms way. Would the innocent driver or the eluder, or both, get charged with some sort of negligent manslaughter? It doesn't seem fair.
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