News (Media Awareness Project) - US TX: Grand Jury Looking at Oregon-Navarro Case |
| Title: | US TX: Grand Jury Looking at Oregon-Navarro Case |
| Published On: | 1998-08-25 |
| Source: | Houston Chronicle (TX) |
| Fetched On: | 2008-09-07 02:39:26 |
GRAND JURY LOOKING AT OREGON-NAVARRO CASE
`A lot of work' ahead in fatal police shooting
Grand jurors on Monday began investigating the shooting of Pedro
Oregon-Navarro, the 22-year-old man killed by Houston police officers when
they burst into his home without a warrant.
No testimony was taken, but prosecutors gave the jury packets of
information on the July 12 shooting, said Harris County Assistant District
Attorney Ed Porter.
Porter declined to say what was in the packets or how detailed they were.
He also declined to say how many witnesses will testify, other than "quite
a few."
But he did estimate it could take more than two weeks to present the case
because the panel only meets two days a week. Testimony starts Wednesday
and it was not clear how long grand jurors would work each day.
"We do have a lot of work to do," Porter said.
Meanwhile, some sign-carrying protesters stood outside the Harris County
Criminal Courts Building to demand justice, the latest in a series of
similar demonstrations.
Six officers, following a tip from a drug informant, fired more than 30
shots after entering Oregon's southwest Houston apartment about 1:30 a.m.
A shot fired by one of the lawmen hit a fellow officer in his
bullet-resistant vest and knocked him to the floor, police have said. The
officers, now on paid suspensions, apparently thought Oregon fired the shot
and returned fire.
An autopsy showed that all 12 bullets that struck Oregon were fired from
behind. Nine struck him in the back, one in the back of the head, one in
back of the shoulder and one in the back of the hand.
A handgun was found in the apartment, but Oregon had not fired it. No drugs
were found in the residence and tests found no traces of narcotics or
alcohol in Oregon's system.
Harris County District Attorney John B. Holmes Jr. said last week the case
would be treated fairly and that grand jurors would hear from every witness
the state could find, plus those produced by attorneys for Oregon's family.
Holmes has also said the officers might have been within their rights to
shoot Oregon if they felt their lives were in danger, even if they had no
right to be in his home.
Copyright 1998 Houston Chronicle
Checked-by: Joel W. Johnson
`A lot of work' ahead in fatal police shooting
Grand jurors on Monday began investigating the shooting of Pedro
Oregon-Navarro, the 22-year-old man killed by Houston police officers when
they burst into his home without a warrant.
No testimony was taken, but prosecutors gave the jury packets of
information on the July 12 shooting, said Harris County Assistant District
Attorney Ed Porter.
Porter declined to say what was in the packets or how detailed they were.
He also declined to say how many witnesses will testify, other than "quite
a few."
But he did estimate it could take more than two weeks to present the case
because the panel only meets two days a week. Testimony starts Wednesday
and it was not clear how long grand jurors would work each day.
"We do have a lot of work to do," Porter said.
Meanwhile, some sign-carrying protesters stood outside the Harris County
Criminal Courts Building to demand justice, the latest in a series of
similar demonstrations.
Six officers, following a tip from a drug informant, fired more than 30
shots after entering Oregon's southwest Houston apartment about 1:30 a.m.
A shot fired by one of the lawmen hit a fellow officer in his
bullet-resistant vest and knocked him to the floor, police have said. The
officers, now on paid suspensions, apparently thought Oregon fired the shot
and returned fire.
An autopsy showed that all 12 bullets that struck Oregon were fired from
behind. Nine struck him in the back, one in the back of the head, one in
back of the shoulder and one in the back of the hand.
A handgun was found in the apartment, but Oregon had not fired it. No drugs
were found in the residence and tests found no traces of narcotics or
alcohol in Oregon's system.
Harris County District Attorney John B. Holmes Jr. said last week the case
would be treated fairly and that grand jurors would hear from every witness
the state could find, plus those produced by attorneys for Oregon's family.
Holmes has also said the officers might have been within their rights to
shoot Oregon if they felt their lives were in danger, even if they had no
right to be in his home.
Copyright 1998 Houston Chronicle
Checked-by: Joel W. Johnson
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