DA Calls Police Threat Turning Point in Beating
By AMY TAXIN and GREG RISLING, Associated Press
Prosecutors charged one police officer with murder and another with manslaughter Wednesday in the killing of an unarmed, mentally ill homeless man who was pummeled, shocked with a Taser and slammed with the butt of a stun gun in a beating that lasted nearly 10 minutes.
Fullerton Officer Manuel Ramos was charged with one count each of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of 37-year-old Kelly Thomas after a violent confrontation with officers on July 5, Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said at a news conference.
Fullerton police beating of homeless man is under investigation
By Kate Mather and Abby Sewell, Los Angeles Times
Kelly Thomas, 37, a schizophrenic, died five days after a run-in with Fullerton officers. The FBI, district attorney, Police Department and horrified civilian witnesses want answers.
As they boarded an Orange County transit bus the night of July 5, passengers recounted a disturbing story in graphic detail: A homeless man near the bus station was under attack by police officers.
"The cops are kicking this poor guy over there, all these cops," one woman told the bus driver in a conversation captured on a grainy bus surveillance tape.
"He's almost halfway dead," another passenger told the driver. "They killed him."
