2009 Pittsburgh police shootings
Encyclopedia
The 2009 Pittsburgh police shootings was a shootout
that took place on Saturday, April 4, 2009, at 1016 Fairfield Street in the Stanton Heights
neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, United States, stemming from an argument over a dog urinating in the house between a mother and her 22-year-old son. At approximately 7:11 a.m. EDT
, 22-year-old Richard Poplawski opened fire on two Pittsburgh Police
officers responding to a 911 call from Poplawski's mother, who was attempting to get the police officers to remove her son from the home. Three police officers were ultimately confirmed dead, and another two were seriously injured.
According to Pittsburgh Police Chief
, Nathan Harper
, Poplawski was armed with a semi-automatic
AK-47
-style rifle and two other guns, protected by a bulletproof vest, and had been lying in wait
for the officers. According to police and witnesses, he held police at bay for four hours as the fallen officers were left bleeding nearby, their colleagues unable to reach them. More than 600 rounds were fired by the SWAT
teams and Poplawski.
The victims were the first Pittsburgh city officers killed in the line of duty in 18 years. The incident was the second-deadliest attack on U.S. law enforcement since the September 11 attacks, following a March 2009 shooting in Oakland, California
.
, but he was discharged
from boot camp after throwing a food tray at a drill instructor.
According to friends and former acquaintances, Poplawski first married when he was 17. His first wife was a young woman whom he had encountered whilst detained in a juvenile correctional center. The marriage lasted for almost two years. His divorce troubled him emotionally until he found a new girlfriend. This new relationship was also very unsteady and on September 14, 2005, Poplawski allegedly assaulted his then-girlfriend outside his home. A month later, Poplawski allegedly violated an order of protection by showing up at the woman's place of work. Poplawski had recently lost his job at a glass factory, and was reportedly quite upset over the job loss. Neighbors also reported that Poplawski was involved in several arguments with neighbors, including a couple of fistfights, and one incident in which he insulted a black Stanton Heights resident by shouting a racial slur in his face.
Poplawski moved to Florida in 2006, and rented a room in a woman's house. However, she later evicted him after her German Shepherd disappeared while under Poplawski's care. He later moved in with the woman's neighbor, who said that he spoke lovingly about his grandmother but seemed disappointed in his mother.
After he returned home, he adopted two pit bull
mixes from a local animal shelter
, one of which would later urinate on his mother's carpet, triggering the April 4 shootings.
gun ban that's on the way" and "didn't like our rights being infringed upon". Perkovic also stated that Poplawski "didn't like the Zionists controlling the media and controlling, you know, our freedom of speech" and that "He didn't like the control of the guns that was about to happen. He believed everything our forefathers put before us and thought that it was being distorted." Another longtime friend, Aaron Vire, said that Poplawski feared President Obama was going to take away his rights.
Poplawski posted that he believed that "the federal government, mainstream media, and banking system in these United States are strongly under the influence of -- if not completely controlled by -- Zionist interest. An economic collapse of the financial system is inevitable, bringing with it some degree of civil unrest if not outright balkanization of the continental US, civil/revolutionary/racial war . . . This collapse is likely engineered by the elite Jewish powers that be in order to make for a power and asset grab."
On March 13, 2009, Poplawski wrote on a white supremacist website that "ZOG (Zionist-occupied government
) is... One can read the list of significant persons in government and in major corporations and see who is pulling the strings. One can observe the policies and final products and should walk away with little doubt there is Zionist occupation and -- after some further research & critical thinking -- will discover their insidious intentions."
Mark Potok
, a representative of the Southern Poverty Law Center
(SPLC) which had reviewed Poplawski's internet postings, stated that "he believed the Jews were coming, the Jews controlled society, you know, we're all under the thumb of Zionists and so on." A report by the Anti-Defamation League
(ADL) stated that Poplawski had expressed frustration that "not enough attention was being focused on the evil of Jews."
Poplawski was a member of Stormfront
, a white supremacist website, where he was a frequent visitor and poster. Poplawski had reportedly posted a picture of his tattoo, a "deliberately Americanized version of the iron eagle" to the website, as well as a link to a YouTube
video of Congressman Ron Paul
discussing with Fox News host Glenn Beck
the rumored existence of FEMA
-managed concentration camps. Poplawski last logged into Stormfront at 3:32 a.m. Saturday, only hours before the shootings. Poplawski also frequently visited and occasionally posted on Alex Jones' Infowars website. One of his frustrations with the site, though, was that it supposedly didn't focus enough on the nefarious roles played by Jews in all these conspiracies. "For being such huge players in the endgame," he observed in a March 29, 2009 posting to Infowars, "too many 'infowarriors' are surprisingly unfamiliar with the Zionists." Among Poplawski's "last few links from MySpace" were a Meyer Briggs
personality test
, and a psychotherapy
chart. A friend stated that Poplawski was a follower of the survivalist
movement.
He was also a member of WWW.PAFOA.ORG, a website dedicated to Pennsylvania gun owners, with a membership of over 20,000.
responded to a 911 call from Poplawski's mother over a domestic disturbance. When the officers arrived at the scene, the mother answered the door, explaining that she wanted Poplawski out of the house. As the two officers entered the home, Poplawski was reportedly wearing a bulletproof vest and "lying in wait". Sciullo was immediately shot in the head. Almost immediately thereafter, Officer Mayhle was also shot in the head.
Officer Eric Kelly, on his way home after completing his overnight shift, heard the call for help and arrived at the scene. Poplawski then shot Kelly as he was attempting to aid Sciullo and Mayhle. Officer Timothy McManaway arrived at the scene and was shot in the hand while attempting to pull Kelly to safety, after he saw Kelly wave at him. McManaway sought cover and returned fire. Another officer, Brian Jones, suffered a broken leg when a fence he was climbing collapsed. A short time later, more officers, SWAT team members, and other law enforcement officers arrived and were fired on as well.
A neighbor who witnessed the incident reported "They couldn't get the scene secure enough to get to them. They were just lying there bleeding, by the time they secured the scene enough to get to them, it was way too late."
The standoff with police lasted for approximately four hours. Poplawski's friend Edward Perkovic said he got a call at work from Poplawski during which he said, "Eddie, I am going to die today. ... Tell your family I love them and I love you." Perkovic said "I heard gunshots and he hung up. ... He sounded like he was in pain, like he got shot."
According to the sources, Poplawski was shot in the leg before surrendering to authorities.
Poplawski was transported to UPMC Presbyterian after the shooting where he was treated under custody. On April 5, Poplawski was moved from the hospital to the Allegheny County Jail.
The three deceased officers were:
The two wounded officers were:
A final radio
roll call for the three officers killed was held following the shooting on Saturday night, April 4. On April 6, Governor Ed Rendell
announced that flags at all state buildings would be flown at half-staff until the end of the week.
Afterward, it was revealed that although Poplawski's mother had told the 911 operator that Poplawski owned guns, the operator typed "no weapons" on her computer screen, relaying the information to the police dispatcher. When the operator asked Ms. Poplawski if her son had weapons, she responded yes, and stated that they were all legal. When asked to confirm that she was not being threatened with the guns, Ms. Poplawski did not answer, instead repeating that she wanted her son out of the house. Management in the Allegheny County response center contend that the dispatcher meant to relay that no weapons were involved in the dispute. The county's Chief for Emergency Services stated that the 911 operator had been on the job for less than a year, including training, and was placed on administrative leave and offered counseling.
According to police interviewing Poplawski while imprisoned, he believed Mayhle to be faking his death, and so shot him again. He told police that he planned for police to kill him, but changed his mind and surrendered, hoping he could write a book in prison. Interviewers described Poplawski as unremorseful with a "cold demeanor". In the hours after the standoff ended and during interviews with detectives, Mr. Poplawski bragged about his actions, telling them he thought he might have killed as many as five officers.http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09102/962297-53.stm
at the Pittsburgh City-County Building
from April 8 until 10:00 a.m. April 9. Thousands of citizens and law enforcement officers visited the caskets, including representatives from the DC Metro Police
, Montgomery County, Maryland
, Cobb County, Georgia
police, and 49 Troopers from the New Jersey State Police
. Beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, April 9, the caskets were carried to three hearses, and a procession of an estimated 1,000 police vehicles travelled, along with the Pittsburgh Firefighters
Memorial, Cleveland Police
, and Pittsburgh Police Dept. Pipes and Drums, Pittsburgh Fire Dept. Pipes and Drums, NYPD Emerald Society Pipes and Drums
, Philadelphia Police and Fire Pipes and Drums, Camden County NJ Emerald Society Pipes and Drums, Union County NJ Pipes and Drums, Washington D.C. Regional Pipes and Drums, Cleveland Pipes and Drums, Atlantic County (NJ) Pipes and Drums, and many more pipe band
s, from the City-County Building along the Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway
to the University of Pittsburgh
's Petersen Events Center
. Hundreds of officers had been standing at attention
outside of the center for nearly two hours. Guests at the ceremony included FBI Director Robert Mueller
, Allegheny County District Attorney
Steven Zappala
, county executive
Dan Onorato
, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell
, state Attorney General
Tom Corbett
, and U.S. Senator
Bob Casey
, current Pittsburgh Police Chief
Nathan Harper
and former chief Robert McNeilly
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09099/961697-53.stm
Stephen Zappala announced that he will seek the death penalty for Poplawski, whose formal arraignment
took place on June 1. A county judge ordered police investigators, attorneys, court and jail personnel to not discuss the case with the media.
Although Pennsylvania has the death penalty on the books, and has hundreds of convicted murderers on death row, the last time the state actually executed anyone was in 1999. Since the state reinstated the death penalty in 1978, only three people have been executed, and all three had waived their appeal
rights. Pennsylvania has never executed anyone who has taken full advantage of the appeal process. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
, if Poplawski chooses to take full advantage of the appeal process, then even if he is sentenced to death, "it may not happen".
During the first week of June 2009, the case was officially assigned to Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning. On June 5, Manning ordered the attorneys to immediately exchange discovery materials, and scheduled an August 13 hearing to "address any outstanding discovery issues." Afterward, a date will be set to hear pretrial motions, and then a trial date will be set. Although cases are usually assigned to judges at random, an exception is made for cases that could possibly involve the death penalty. Manning was assigned to this case because during his 20 years as a judge, he has heard nearly two dozen cases where the death penalty was a possibility, including the 2001 trial of Richard S. Baumhammers, who was sentenced to death for murdering five people.
Poplawski's trial was originally scheduled to start on October 12, 2010 but was delayed until April 25, 2011 due to a defense request for additional time to address the death penalty aspect of the case. The trial began on June 20, 2011. On June 28, 2011 Poplawski was sentenced to death after being found guilty by the jury a few days before. The jury delivered a verdict of guilty on three counts of first-degree homicide and all other counts, after deliberating for approximately 4 hours, on Saturday, June 25, 2011.
On June 28, 2011 Poplawski was sentenced to three counts of death by lethal injection.
Shootout
A shootout is a gun battle between armed groups. A shootout often, but not necessarily, pits law enforcement against criminal elements; it could also involve two groups outside of law enforcement, such as rival gangs. A shootout in a military context A shootout is a gun battle between armed groups....
that took place on Saturday, April 4, 2009, at 1016 Fairfield Street in the Stanton Heights
Stanton Heights
Stanton Heights is a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's east city area. It has zip codes of both 15201 and 15206, and has representation on Pittsburgh City Council by the council member for District 7 . Stanton Heights is the home of the Pittsburgh bureau of Fire's 7 engine...
neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, United States, stemming from an argument over a dog urinating in the house between a mother and her 22-year-old son. At approximately 7:11 a.m. EDT
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
, 22-year-old Richard Poplawski opened fire on two Pittsburgh Police
Pittsburgh Police
The Pittsburgh Police, or officially the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, is the largest law enforcement agency in Western Pennsylvania and the third largest in Pennsylvania...
officers responding to a 911 call from Poplawski's mother, who was attempting to get the police officers to remove her son from the home. Three police officers were ultimately confirmed dead, and another two were seriously injured.
According to Pittsburgh Police Chief
Pittsburgh Police Chief
The Pittsburgh Police Chief is the head of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, appointed by the Mayor of Pittsburgh. The Chief is a civilian administrator, and was historically referred to as the Police Superintendent as well as Chief, both titles having the same authority and meaning.-Chiefs:*Nathan...
, Nathan Harper
Nathan Harper
Nathan Earnest Harper I is the Chief of the Pittsburgh Police, a position he has held since October 31, 2006. Prior to this appointment he was the longtime "Assistant Chief in Charge" of the Investigations Branch. In the 1990's Harper spearheaded the formation of the city's Street Response Unit...
, Poplawski was armed with a semi-automatic
Semi-automatic rifle
A semi-automatic rifle is a type of rifle that fires a single bullet each time the trigger is pulled, automatically ejects the spent cartridge, chambers a fresh cartridge from its magazine, and is immediately ready to fire another shot...
AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
-style rifle and two other guns, protected by a bulletproof vest, and had been lying in wait
Ambush
An ambush is a long-established military tactic, in which the aggressors take advantage of concealment and the element of surprise to attack an unsuspecting enemy from concealed positions, such as among dense underbrush or behind hilltops...
for the officers. According to police and witnesses, he held police at bay for four hours as the fallen officers were left bleeding nearby, their colleagues unable to reach them. More than 600 rounds were fired by the SWAT
SWAT
A SWAT team is an elite tactical unit in various national law enforcement departments. They are trained to perform high-risk operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular officers...
teams and Poplawski.
The victims were the first Pittsburgh city officers killed in the line of duty in 18 years. The incident was the second-deadliest attack on U.S. law enforcement since the September 11 attacks, following a March 2009 shooting in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
.
Background
Richard Andrew Poplawski (born September 12, 1986) lived with his mother and grandmother in the Stanton Heights neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Poplawski had previously enlisted in the United States Marine CorpsUnited States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
, but he was discharged
Military discharge
A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve.-United States:Discharge or separation should not be confused with retirement; career U.S...
from boot camp after throwing a food tray at a drill instructor.
According to friends and former acquaintances, Poplawski first married when he was 17. His first wife was a young woman whom he had encountered whilst detained in a juvenile correctional center. The marriage lasted for almost two years. His divorce troubled him emotionally until he found a new girlfriend. This new relationship was also very unsteady and on September 14, 2005, Poplawski allegedly assaulted his then-girlfriend outside his home. A month later, Poplawski allegedly violated an order of protection by showing up at the woman's place of work. Poplawski had recently lost his job at a glass factory, and was reportedly quite upset over the job loss. Neighbors also reported that Poplawski was involved in several arguments with neighbors, including a couple of fistfights, and one incident in which he insulted a black Stanton Heights resident by shouting a racial slur in his face.
Poplawski moved to Florida in 2006, and rented a room in a woman's house. However, she later evicted him after her German Shepherd disappeared while under Poplawski's care. He later moved in with the woman's neighbor, who said that he spoke lovingly about his grandmother but seemed disappointed in his mother.
After he returned home, he adopted two pit bull
Pit bull
A Pit bull is any of several breeds of dog in the molosser breed group.Many jurisdictions that restrict pit bulls, including Ontario, Canada,, Miami, Florida, U.S...
mixes from a local animal shelter
Animal shelter
An animal shelter is a facility that houses homeless, lost, or abandoned animals; primarily a large variety of dogs and cats.Parrots, for example, are the third most common pet owned by people...
, one of which would later urinate on his mother's carpet, triggering the April 4 shootings.
Political views
Edward Perkovic, a friend of Poplawski, said the gunman feared "the ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
gun ban that's on the way" and "didn't like our rights being infringed upon". Perkovic also stated that Poplawski "didn't like the Zionists controlling the media and controlling, you know, our freedom of speech" and that "He didn't like the control of the guns that was about to happen. He believed everything our forefathers put before us and thought that it was being distorted." Another longtime friend, Aaron Vire, said that Poplawski feared President Obama was going to take away his rights.
Poplawski posted that he believed that "the federal government, mainstream media, and banking system in these United States are strongly under the influence of -- if not completely controlled by -- Zionist interest. An economic collapse of the financial system is inevitable, bringing with it some degree of civil unrest if not outright balkanization of the continental US, civil/revolutionary/racial war . . . This collapse is likely engineered by the elite Jewish powers that be in order to make for a power and asset grab."
On March 13, 2009, Poplawski wrote on a white supremacist website that "ZOG (Zionist-occupied government
Zionist Occupation Government
Zionist Occupation Government or Zionist Occupied Government is an antisemitic conspiracy theory which holds that Jews secretly control a given country, while the formal government is a puppet regime....
) is... One can read the list of significant persons in government and in major corporations and see who is pulling the strings. One can observe the policies and final products and should walk away with little doubt there is Zionist occupation and -- after some further research & critical thinking -- will discover their insidious intentions."
Mark Potok
Mark Potok
Mark Potok is a spokesman and director of publications and information for the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama, a nonprofit organization that arose from the anti-segregation movement to counter extremism and hate crimes....
, a representative of the Southern Poverty Law Center
Southern Poverty Law Center
The Southern Poverty Law Center is an American nonprofit civil rights organization noted for its legal victories against white supremacist groups; legal representation for victims of hate groups; monitoring of alleged hate groups, militias and extremist organizations; and educational programs that...
(SPLC) which had reviewed Poplawski's internet postings, stated that "he believed the Jews were coming, the Jews controlled society, you know, we're all under the thumb of Zionists and so on." A report by the Anti-Defamation League
Anti-Defamation League
The Anti-Defamation League is an international non-governmental organization based in the United States. Describing itself as "the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency", the ADL states that it "fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects...
(ADL) stated that Poplawski had expressed frustration that "not enough attention was being focused on the evil of Jews."
Poplawski was a member of Stormfront
Stormfront (website)
Stormfront is a white nationalist and supremacist neo-Nazi Internet forum that has been described as the Internet's first major hate site.Stormfront began as an online bulletin board system in the early 1990s before being established as a website in 1995 by former Ku Klux Klan leader and white...
, a white supremacist website, where he was a frequent visitor and poster. Poplawski had reportedly posted a picture of his tattoo, a "deliberately Americanized version of the iron eagle" to the website, as well as a link to a YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
video of Congressman Ron Paul
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
discussing with Fox News host Glenn Beck
Glenn Beck
Glenn Edward Lee Beck is an American conservative radio host, vlogger, author, entrepreneur, political commentator and former television host. He hosts the Glenn Beck Program, a nationally syndicated talk-radio show that airs throughout the United States on Premiere Radio Networks...
the rumored existence of FEMA
Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security, initially created by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1978 and implemented by two Executive Orders...
-managed concentration camps. Poplawski last logged into Stormfront at 3:32 a.m. Saturday, only hours before the shootings. Poplawski also frequently visited and occasionally posted on Alex Jones' Infowars website. One of his frustrations with the site, though, was that it supposedly didn't focus enough on the nefarious roles played by Jews in all these conspiracies. "For being such huge players in the endgame," he observed in a March 29, 2009 posting to Infowars, "too many 'infowarriors' are surprisingly unfamiliar with the Zionists." Among Poplawski's "last few links from MySpace" were a Meyer Briggs
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator assessment is a psychometric questionnaire designed to measure psychological preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions...
personality test
Personality test
-Overview:There are many different types of personality tests. The most common type, the self-report inventory, involves the administration of many questions, or "items", to test-takers who respond by rating the degree to which each item reflects their behavior...
, and a psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
chart. A friend stated that Poplawski was a follower of the survivalist
Survivalism
Survivalism is a movement of individuals or groups who are actively preparing for future possible disruptions in local, regional, national, or international social or political order...
movement.
He was also a member of WWW.PAFOA.ORG, a website dedicated to Pennsylvania gun owners, with a membership of over 20,000.
Shootings
At 7:03 a.m. EDT, Officers Paul Sciullo and Stephen Mayhle of the Pittsburgh Bureau of PolicePittsburgh Police
The Pittsburgh Police, or officially the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, is the largest law enforcement agency in Western Pennsylvania and the third largest in Pennsylvania...
responded to a 911 call from Poplawski's mother over a domestic disturbance. When the officers arrived at the scene, the mother answered the door, explaining that she wanted Poplawski out of the house. As the two officers entered the home, Poplawski was reportedly wearing a bulletproof vest and "lying in wait". Sciullo was immediately shot in the head. Almost immediately thereafter, Officer Mayhle was also shot in the head.
Officer Eric Kelly, on his way home after completing his overnight shift, heard the call for help and arrived at the scene. Poplawski then shot Kelly as he was attempting to aid Sciullo and Mayhle. Officer Timothy McManaway arrived at the scene and was shot in the hand while attempting to pull Kelly to safety, after he saw Kelly wave at him. McManaway sought cover and returned fire. Another officer, Brian Jones, suffered a broken leg when a fence he was climbing collapsed. A short time later, more officers, SWAT team members, and other law enforcement officers arrived and were fired on as well.
A neighbor who witnessed the incident reported "They couldn't get the scene secure enough to get to them. They were just lying there bleeding, by the time they secured the scene enough to get to them, it was way too late."
The standoff with police lasted for approximately four hours. Poplawski's friend Edward Perkovic said he got a call at work from Poplawski during which he said, "Eddie, I am going to die today. ... Tell your family I love them and I love you." Perkovic said "I heard gunshots and he hung up. ... He sounded like he was in pain, like he got shot."
According to the sources, Poplawski was shot in the leg before surrendering to authorities.
Poplawski was transported to UPMC Presbyterian after the shooting where he was treated under custody. On April 5, Poplawski was moved from the hospital to the Allegheny County Jail.
Victims
- Officer Eric G. Kelly, age 41, a 14-year veteran of the force survived by his wife, three daughters, mother, and sister;
- Officer Stephen J. Mayhle, age 29, a two-year veteran of the force survived by his wife, two daughters, parents, and two brothers; and
- Officer Paul J. Sciullo, II, age 37, a two-year veteran of the force survived by his parents, two sisters, and fiancée.
The two wounded officers were:
- Officer Timothy McManaway, age 46, a 14-year veteran of the force; and
- Officer Brian Jones, age 37, a three-year veteran of the force.
A final radio
Police radio
Police radio is a communications radio system used by law enforcement agencies all over the world.Many such systems are encrypted to prevent eavesdroppers from listening in.-Portable radios:...
roll call for the three officers killed was held following the shooting on Saturday night, April 4. On April 6, Governor Ed Rendell
Ed Rendell
Edward Gene "Ed" Rendell is an American politician who served as the 45th Governor of Pennsylvania. Rendell, a member of the Democratic Party, was elected Governor of Pennsylvania in 2002, and his term of office began January 21, 2003...
announced that flags at all state buildings would be flown at half-staff until the end of the week.
Investigation
According to police interviewing Poplawski while imprisoned, he believed Mayhle to be faking his death, and so shot him again. He told police that he planned for police to kill him, but changed his mind and surrendered, hoping he could write a book in prison. Interviewers described Poplawski as unremorseful with a "cold demeanor". In the hours after the standoff ended and during interviews with detectives, Mr. Poplawski bragged about his actions, telling them he thought he might have killed as many as five officers.http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09102/962297-53.stm
Ceremonies
Officers Kelly, Mayhle, and Sciullo lay in reposeLying in repose
Lying in repose is a term used to describe when a deceased person, often of some stature, is available for public viewing. "Lying in repose" is different from the formal honor of "lying in state", which is generally held at the principal government building of the country and often accompanied by...
at the Pittsburgh City-County Building
Pittsburgh City-County Building
The Pittsburgh City-County Building is the seat of government for the City of Pittsburgh and houses both Pittsburgh and Allegheny County offices. It is located in Downtown Pittsburgh at 414 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.-Design:...
from April 8 until 10:00 a.m. April 9. Thousands of citizens and law enforcement officers visited the caskets, including representatives from the DC Metro Police
Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia
The Metropolitan Police Department, also known as the DC Police, DCPD, MPD, and MPDC is the municipal police force in Washington, D.C...
, Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland, situated just to the north of Washington, D.C., and southwest of the city of Baltimore. It is one of the most affluent counties in the United States, and has the highest percentage of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate...
, Cobb County, Georgia
Cobb County, Georgia
Cobb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Its county seat and largest city is Marietta, which is located in the center of the county. The county was named for Thomas Willis Cobb, who in the early 19th century was a United States representative and senator from Georgia...
police, and 49 Troopers from the New Jersey State Police
New Jersey State Police
The New Jersey State Police is the state police force for the state of New Jersey. It is a general-powers police agency with state wide jurisdiction when requested by the Governor, designated by Troop Sectors.-History:...
. Beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, April 9, the caskets were carried to three hearses, and a procession of an estimated 1,000 police vehicles travelled, along with the Pittsburgh Firefighters
Pittsburgh Fire Bureau
The Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire is the 630-strong fire department of the City of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania. The Bureau dates its history back to September 12, 1793, with the initial purchase of a fire engine and the opening of a fire station at the corner of First Avenue and Market Street in...
Memorial, Cleveland Police
Cleveland Division of Police
The Cleveland Division of Police is the law enforcement agency responsible for the city of Cleveland, Ohio. Since 2005, Michael McGrath has been the chief of police.-Pre-World War II:...
, and Pittsburgh Police Dept. Pipes and Drums, Pittsburgh Fire Dept. Pipes and Drums, NYPD Emerald Society Pipes and Drums
New York City Police Department
The New York City Police Department , established in 1845, is currently the largest municipal police force in the United States, with primary responsibilities in law enforcement and investigation within the five boroughs of New York City...
, Philadelphia Police and Fire Pipes and Drums, Camden County NJ Emerald Society Pipes and Drums, Union County NJ Pipes and Drums, Washington D.C. Regional Pipes and Drums, Cleveland Pipes and Drums, Atlantic County (NJ) Pipes and Drums, and many more pipe band
Pipe band
A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of pipers and drummers. The term used by military pipe bands, pipes and drums, is also common....
s, from the City-County Building along the Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway
Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway
The Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway is a two-lane dedicated bus-only highway serving the city of Pittsburgh and many of its eastern neighborhoods and suburbs. The original segment of the busway opened in February 1983, running between Downtown Pittsburgh and Edgewood, a length of 6.8 miles...
to the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
's Petersen Events Center
Petersen Events Center
Not to be confused with Petersen Sports Complex.The John M. and Gertrude E. Petersen Events Center is a 12,508-seat multi-purpose arena on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It hosts the men's and women's Pitt Panthers basketball teams...
. Hundreds of officers had been standing at attention
At attention
The position of At attention, or Standing at attention is a military posture which involves the following general postures:* Standing upright with an assertive and correct posture: famously "chin up, chest out, shoulders back, stomach in"....
outside of the center for nearly two hours. Guests at the ceremony included FBI Director Robert Mueller
Robert Mueller
Robert Swan Mueller III is the 6th and current Director of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation .-Early life:...
, Allegheny County District Attorney
Allegheny County District Attorney
The Allegheny County District Attorney is the elected district attorney for Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of Pennsylvania commonwealth laws....
Steven Zappala
Steven Zappala
Stephen A. Zappala Jr. is the District Attorney of Allegheny County in Pennsylvania. He has held this position since 1998, taking over for long serving Robert Colville.-Family:...
, county executive
County executive
A county executive is the head of the executive branch of government in a county. This position is common in the United States.The executive may be an elected or an appointed position...
Dan Onorato
Dan Onorato
Daniel "Dan" Onorato is the current Chief Executive of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. On Tuesday, May 18, 2010, Onorato won a crowded four-way primary to become the Democratic nominee for governor...
, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell
Ed Rendell
Edward Gene "Ed" Rendell is an American politician who served as the 45th Governor of Pennsylvania. Rendell, a member of the Democratic Party, was elected Governor of Pennsylvania in 2002, and his term of office began January 21, 2003...
, state Attorney General
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
Tom Corbett
Tom Corbett
Thomas W. Corbett is the 46th and current Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. He is a former Attorney General of Pennsylvania and was elected to that office in 2004 and reelected in 2008...
, and U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Bob Casey
Bob Casey, Jr.
Robert Patrick "Bob" Casey, Jr. is the senior U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania and a member of the Democratic Party. He previously served as Pennsylvania Treasurer, and Pennsylvania Auditor General. He is the son of former Governor Bob Casey, Sr..He is the first Democrat elected to a full term in...
, current Pittsburgh Police Chief
Pittsburgh Police Chief
The Pittsburgh Police Chief is the head of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, appointed by the Mayor of Pittsburgh. The Chief is a civilian administrator, and was historically referred to as the Police Superintendent as well as Chief, both titles having the same authority and meaning.-Chiefs:*Nathan...
Nathan Harper
Nathan Harper
Nathan Earnest Harper I is the Chief of the Pittsburgh Police, a position he has held since October 31, 2006. Prior to this appointment he was the longtime "Assistant Chief in Charge" of the Investigations Branch. In the 1990's Harper spearheaded the formation of the city's Street Response Unit...
and former chief Robert McNeilly
Robert McNeilly
Robert McNeilly was a long-serving Pittsburgh Police leader, who served as Pittsburgh Police Chief from April 2, 1996 to January 2, 2006. He led the department through a U.S. Department of Justice consent decree in the mid 1990s. He was also active as a United States Coast Guard Reserves Chief...
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09099/961697-53.stm
Criminal proceedings
On April 21, 2010, a spokesman for Allegheny County District AttorneyAllegheny County District Attorney
The Allegheny County District Attorney is the elected district attorney for Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of Pennsylvania commonwealth laws....
Stephen Zappala announced that he will seek the death penalty for Poplawski, whose formal arraignment
Arraignment
Arraignment is a formal reading of a criminal complaint in the presence of the defendant to inform the defendant of the charges against him or her. In response to arraignment, the accused is expected to enter a plea...
took place on June 1. A county judge ordered police investigators, attorneys, court and jail personnel to not discuss the case with the media.
Although Pennsylvania has the death penalty on the books, and has hundreds of convicted murderers on death row, the last time the state actually executed anyone was in 1999. Since the state reinstated the death penalty in 1978, only three people have been executed, and all three had waived their appeal
Appeal
An appeal is a petition for review of a case that has been decided by a court of law. The petition is made to a higher court for the purpose of overturning the lower court's decision....
rights. Pennsylvania has never executed anyone who has taken full advantage of the appeal process. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
, if Poplawski chooses to take full advantage of the appeal process, then even if he is sentenced to death, "it may not happen".
During the first week of June 2009, the case was officially assigned to Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning. On June 5, Manning ordered the attorneys to immediately exchange discovery materials, and scheduled an August 13 hearing to "address any outstanding discovery issues." Afterward, a date will be set to hear pretrial motions, and then a trial date will be set. Although cases are usually assigned to judges at random, an exception is made for cases that could possibly involve the death penalty. Manning was assigned to this case because during his 20 years as a judge, he has heard nearly two dozen cases where the death penalty was a possibility, including the 2001 trial of Richard S. Baumhammers, who was sentenced to death for murdering five people.
Poplawski's trial was originally scheduled to start on October 12, 2010 but was delayed until April 25, 2011 due to a defense request for additional time to address the death penalty aspect of the case. The trial began on June 20, 2011. On June 28, 2011 Poplawski was sentenced to death after being found guilty by the jury a few days before. The jury delivered a verdict of guilty on three counts of first-degree homicide and all other counts, after deliberating for approximately 4 hours, on Saturday, June 25, 2011.
On June 28, 2011 Poplawski was sentenced to three counts of death by lethal injection.
See also
- 2006 Manchester, New Hampshire police shooting2006 Manchester, New Hampshire police shootingThe 2006 Manchester, New Hampshire police shooting was an incident that took place on October 16, 2006 in Manchester, New Hampshire, United States. The incident occurred when police officer Michael Briggs was shot while on duty. Briggs was later transported to the hospital before dying of his...
- 2009 shooting of Oakland police officers2009 shooting of Oakland police officersTwo shootings of Oakland, California police officers took place on Saturday, March 21, 2009, when four officers were killed by a convicted felon wanted on a no-bail warrant for a parole violation...
- Murder of Timothy BrentonMurder of Timothy BrentonThe murder of Timothy Brenton occurred on October 31, 2009 in the Central District of Seattle, Washington, United States. Brenton, an officer with the Seattle Police Department, was seated in a parked patrol car with another officer discussing a traffic stop when a gunman stopped his vehicle...
- Lakewood police officer shootingLakewood police officer shootingThe Lakewood police officer shooting took place on Sunday, November 29, 2009, when four Lakewood, Washington police officers were murdered at a coffee shop in the Parkland unincorporated area of Pierce County, Washington...