What AJ Blake Said at the Press Conference: Hinsonesque

Sometimes we need to refresh our memories; and flesh out what otherwise tends to be only briefly summarized.

Here are AJ Blake's comments from the press conference he held with Jorge Cornell and Rev. Nelson Johnson.  These comments were made after he had been charged with domestic assault-- but before he had been acquitted:

I went to the party of my own free will; I chose to participate in the drinking contest with other police officers; I got in an argument with my fiancée.  All of these things are unbecoming of a police officer...

I believe these false charges are also a form of retaliation against me for views I have expressed against bad law enforcement practices by the Greensboro Police Department’s Gang Unit of which I was a part.   I feel that if I do not speak out about the pattern of anti-Latino prejudice and the resultant harassment and mistreatment of residents of our city by police personnel, their behavior is not likely to change...

In April of 2008 Greensboro Police Officer Christopher Schultheis shot and killed a 22 year old black man, James Paschal, Jr. Officer Schultheis was the only witness to the incident.  He said that James Paschal, Jr. would not follow orders to remove his hand from his pocket and that he kept walking towards him; therefore, he shot him nine times.   It turned out that James Paschal was not armed. There were other tools that Officer Schultheis had available to him to contain Mr. Paschal, including pepper spray.  Officer Schultheis killed an unarmed man who was a distance away from him for advancing on him in an aggressive manner.  He was not charged with a crime...

All of these charges grow from an anti-Latino and anti-people of color prejudice and hostility within certain quarters and among certain officers in the Greensboro Police Department.  I am a Latino from Honduras...

Over the last eighteen months or so the Greensboro Police Department’s Gang Unit has had a stepped up focus on gang activity.   This has been focused mainly on Latino gangs. 

I have a vague recollection of another GPD officer who repeatedly claimed discrimination; and this had the salutary effect of helping keep him out of trouble within the department.  What was his name again?

Comments

[Wendy S. Raines]

As President of the Greensboro Police Officers Association from July 2007-July 2009 I was intimately involved with the seven, on-duty officer involved shootings that the GPD had during that time period. The policy of the GPD is that the SBI will handle all officer involved shootings. The SBI, which has many fine, professional detectives, respond to the shooting, collect evidence, and obtain biographical information of the officers involved. Within a week the officers are interviewed criminally with an attorney present (if they are members of the GPOA they are provided an attorney). The SBI evaluates the officer interview, witness interviews, and forensic determinations to compile a report that is then presented to the district attorney in the county in which the incident occurred. The DA, in Guilford County it is Doug Henderson, then makes a determination if the incident will result in criminal charges.

Sgt. Schultheis' incident followed this procedure. The GPD did not begin the administrative investigation until the criminal portion was completed by the DA. This means that the SBI completed a thorough investigation, wrote a report, and it was reviewed by the DA. After the DA stated the shooting was justified, GPD Internal Affairs investigated if Sgt. Schultheis violated any departmental directives. He did not. Therefore, he was cleared by three entities of which the last was the department.

[Joe Guarino]

In view of that information, Wendy, does it not seem fairly irresponsible to make a public statement suggesting that Schultheis somehow did something wrong? Does that not seem to be out-of-bounds verbal behavior for a Greensboro police officer-- or any police officer, for that matter?

A couple of other questions, Wendy. Was Schultheis one of those present at the party at the Police Club that resulted in the allegations against Blake; and if Schultheis was present, what role, if any, did he have in the aftermath?

[bubba]

All this is simply a deflection, helped by the usual "gang" of agendized enablers, to protect yet another officer who clearly should be dismissed in shame from his position.

[Joe Guarino]

Bubba, precisely my thoughts.

And Wendy, I will answer in part my own question.

Schultheis was one of those that testified against Blake:

http://www.yesweekly.com/article-6896-blake-acquitted-by-jury-of-assault.html

He was a witness to what occurred at the Police Club. Is it possible Blake knew, at the time of his press conference, when he slimed Schultheis, that Schultheis was to be a witness against him at the trial; and did he have any awareness of Schultheis perhaps having spoken against him previously-- in the aftermath of the police club party during any investigations that took place?

I find it fairly interesting that Blake criticized Schultheis for the gunfire incident during the press conference; and that Schultheis was a sworn witness to whatever Blake did at the police party.

[Wendy S. Raines]

Yes, Blake knew that Chris was the main witness. Your assessment of the situation is correct. As Bubba said it is "deflection." Too bad the department could not have released a statement similar to what I said above that described the process of any officer-involved shooting investigation.

[Joe Guarino]

Thanks, Wendy, for confirming my suspicion.

So here you had Blake making a thoroughly detestable statement, taking a shot at a fellow officer within his department-- Schultheis-- who had faced a very difficult policing situation, and who then faced a very difficult process in the aftermath. And it turns out the fellow Blake was taking a cheap shot against also happened to be a key witness against him-- and you say Blake would have known that at the time.

It seems to me that magnifies the seriousness of this situation significantly. It was a "deflection", at best. At worst, it was a contemptible breach for a police officer; and may also have been a public attempt to somehow diminish a witness who would be appearing in a court of law against him.