Another preventable tragedy and questions about it's consequences

[one45auto]

Last weekend a woman went out drinking and dancing with her husband whom she loved and adored. Later that evening - in a moment of drama, the wife snatched up one of her husband's pistols, dropped the magazine, and attempted to feign shooting herself in the side of the temple. However the chamber was loaded and so the consequences were understandably tragic. No need to discuss the event itself, as we all know the mistakes made and the valid points which can be raised regarding them.

No, what I'd like to discuss is the aftermath of this horrible event. Despite the absence of GSR on his hands - and its presence on hers, detectives assigned to the case have apparently badgered the husband mercilessly to confess, playing the infamous good cop/bad cop routine feigning sympathy one moment whilst acting angrily accusatory the next. They even did their best to make him fail a voluntary polygraph by screaming at him and showing coroner photos of his deceased wife's body. In thier desperation to close the case (and under pressure from the wife's family, no doubt) they've even gone so far as to propose the utterly ridiculous theory since there is no GSR he must have "tossed" or "dropped" the gun near her and it discharged - nevermind that the angle of the entrance wound renders that impossible. (Who's their chief of police, Arlen Specter?!?) Last I heard they were trying to claim he'd washed his hands before they got there, nevermind that he had been cradling his wife's head and had blood all over them.

Just what the heck happened to the presumption of innocence, to say nothing of deductive reasoning ~ allowing the theory to fit the facts instead of the other way around? If this is how police normally conduct an investigation then no one is safe, however innocent they may be. Apparently closing the books is all that matters, and they'll go to any lengths to get a sacrifical scapegoat they can slaughter on the altar of justice.

Is it any wonder then why a great majority of the public (myself included) distrusts the police?

 

[Offwhite]

The police always have to look at every possible angle, just to be sure, but from what you have discussed it sounds pretty open & shut..she killed herself. Wiether she actually was planning to kill herself or not she did...thats why you dont put a gun to your head unless you are absolutely sure you want to die.

 

[aryfrosty]

Bang, oops?

I agree that it is a sorry state of affairs when an innocent person gets hounded to distraction. And if the evidence points toward the husband's statement being correct the cops involved need their careers terminated.
However, Your feelings about Police Officers are only symptomatic of the reasons Cops eat their young and go full ahead when another officer is accused of a crime. For decades the mindset of the general public is that cops go unpunished when they're wrong...and in those cases it's the guy on the street who ignores evidence and twists the stories. I have known and otherwise admired many Officers who made a career out of actively searching for other Officers to arrest or investigate because they were beaten half to death by the citizens if any Cop did something bad. And the average Joe may only have an opinion and no facts. No matter...all Police Officers don't go overborad. Their ranks are filled with a broad spectrum of humanity, just like the guy on the street is different from anybody else standing next to him.
You are entitled to your feelings. I do encourage you, however, to refrain from hating all Police Officers because you know of some who are bad,

 

[Preacherman]

In the absence of any link to a verifiable news source to confirm this incident, I'm closing this thread so as to prevent it deteriorating into just another excuse for cop-bashing.