SUSPECT KILLED BY OFFICERS TESTED POSITIVE FOR DRUGS

Toxicology tests showed amphetamine, methamphetamine, the designer drug
Ecstasy and derivatives of marijuana and cocaine in the blood of a drug
suspect shot to death by Metro police Feb. 14.

A police shooting review board concluded June 11 that the shooting of Joey
Kessinger was done in self-defense and justified, and Metro's top
prosecutor says he sees "no legal basis" for bringing criminal charges
against any of the three officers involved. Police Chief Emmett Turner now
must decided whether to accept the panel's recommendation, made available
this week.

Kessinger was the sixth person shot and killed by Metro officers this year
and last. Four of the six shootings have been ruled justified by shooting
review boards, and preliminary police reports on the other two indicated
they also were justified.

Metro's investigative file on the incident, in addition to detailing the
drugs in Kessinger's system, reveals several factors that played into the
officers' actions that day.

Undercover officers had bought drugs from Kessinger, whom they'd known only
as "Sweet Dave," three times in January, police said. But they'd fallen out
of touch for about two weeks, and officers didn't resume contact until Feb.
12, two days before the shooting, to try to set up another buy.

The 5:30 p.m. appointment on Feb. 14 wasn't made until about one hour
earlier, the file shows. Police decided the arrest would be that night
because Kessinger said he'd be leaving town for a few weeks. According to
the file, Kessinger picked the time of the buy and the location - the
parking lot of the Rio Bravo restaurant at 3015 West End Ave.

The plan was to box Kessinger's car in and arrest him just before money was
about to change hands.

Kessinger pulled his car into the parking lot, and Sgt. Randy Brock pulled
his vehicle behind it, Brock told investigators.

As Kessinger talked to an undercover officer whose car was backed in next
to him, Brock walked up between the two cars, saying, "Police."

The undercover officer also identified himself.

"At that point he (Kessinger) shook his head . and began to roll his window
up. I said, 'Police, don't resist.' . He shook his head affirmatively like
he . wasn't surprised that we were the police."

Brock broke Kessinger's window with his gun, reached inside for the keys,
and Kessinger backed up, throwing Brock forward. Kessinger punched at
Brock's hands to get them off the car keys, Brock said.

"He hit my truck. I said, 'You're going to kill me dragging me.' He put it
in drive, he looked at me and just smiled and floor-boarded the car," Brock
said.

He said he was sure he'd be seriously hurt, if not killed, as they moved
forward.

"Stop the car or I'll shoot," Brock said he told Kessinger. "He did not
stop the car."

Kessinger's car jumped a concrete parking stop, and Brock fired once.
Kessinger swerved right, and Brock fell from the car.

Two other vice detectives, Michael Donaldson and Lewis Lawrence, fired at
the car, fearing for their own safety or that of a fellow officer.

In the restaurant parking lot, a man and woman two rows away heard voices,
then louder voices. Then they saw a man break a car window with a gun, saw
the car back up, heard gunfire and saw men shooting at the car. The couple
ducked, and then saw the car, now crashed, resting against a tree across
the street.

At 5:40 p.m., Brock was on his police radio asking for an ambulance and
telling emergency communications workers what happened. Seconds later,
communications workers received other 911 calls.

Twenty shots were fired, one by Brock, five by Donaldson and 14 by
Lawrence. Six rounds hit Kessinger.

According to the medical examiner's report, Kessinger had two gunshot
wounds to the left wrist and four gunshot wounds on the back of his body.

Three of those four wounds could have been fatal, the report said.