| Author | Message | ||
     Gonen60 |
Man Fleeing Police Kills 3 on Motorcycles By MARGERY BECK OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - A suspected child molester who fled police in a stolen sport utility vehicle barreled through a stop sign Saturday and slammed into motorcyclists, killing three people. Steven Halbert, 19, stole the SUV after police cruisers pulled up to his house in Carter Lake, Iowa, to question him about accusations he sexually abused a child. Police pursued Halbert at high speeds for about five miles into Omaha, where Halbert collided with two motorcycles, said Omaha Police spokeswoman Cathy Martinec. Michael Rock, 50, of Omaha; Terry Partain, 51, of Omaha and Yvonne Campbell, 41, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, were killed instantly, said Martinec. Campbell was a passenger on Partain's motorcycle. Halbert was thrown from the vehicle, which went airborne and slammed into a parked semitrailer. He was taken to a hospital in critical condition with brain and other internal injuries. ``Body parts were everywhere,'' Martinec said. ``In order to do that kind of trauma, he was going awfully fast.'' Halbert was also wanted on a felony warrant in Nebraska for failing to show up for his sentencing last month on a drug conviction, she said. The Douglas County Attorney will determine what charges Halbert will face from the fatal crash if he survives, Martinec said. | ||
| Coolice |
This is really sad. Let's see how our justice system treats this guy. Prayers to the riders families. | ||
| Darthane |
I'd say I hope he's paralyzed for the rest of his life, but then he'd be just another waste of taxpayer money. So I'll amend my statement, be extremely callous, and just say I hope he dies and goes to his eternal 'reward'. | ||
| Dyna |
Heres another way to look at it. It takes 2 vehicles to create a chase, could this guy have simply stopped? Sure, but a lot of time they dont. You read all the time how innocent people are killed or hurt during high speed pursuits. Many depts are now altering their chase procedures & if it is too dangerous & the suspect is in danger of hurting innocents, the police are to back off. They knew who this guy was & where he lived. Why not simply back off & then tail him from a distance or pick him up later? Now im not saying its the cops fault here, but its known these types of instances do happen & maybe that dept should think about updating their chase procedures? Was arresting this guy worth 3 peoples lives? | ||
| Davefl |
Wow, I find myself in agreement with Dyna! The Police share the blame for this one. I don't know how many times I have read about the cops chasing a stolen car only for the chase to end with the car being crashed. Good thing they found that stolen car, I sure the owners were glad it was wrapped around that tree. | ||
| Gonen60 |
sure, let the criminal know, all he has to do is speed away, and the cops will not chase him !!! that is bullshit...not only was this ass in a stolen car, he is a suspected child molester. who knows where he would have gone, and what he would have done. | ||
| Dyna |
he is a suspected child molester Suspected is the correct word. accusations he sexually abused a child. Only to question him & that was worth 3 lives????? They know who he is, where he lives, etc. The guy has to go home eventually. Setup a stake out & nail him then. Back off on the chase & allow him to get further ahead. Once he see's the cops arent chasing him, he will slow down & start driving normally. If the cops have been thru the proper training they will know or should have known to radio ahead & have other units block off intersections ahead of this guy & box him in. Sounds to me like the police screwed up. | ||
| Cerbero |
unfortunately, this is a no-win situation: chase and risk an accident... don't chase and risk the bad guy getting away. i'm not overly fond of the police (especially if they're dogging me because i ride a loud sportbike) but we all have to admit that they have a tough job... and this one falls into the category "damned if you do, damned if you don't ." just my $0.02 ...c | ||
| Cerbero |
and no... this was not worth three lives! | ||
| Doughnut |
And if the guy molested another kid or was involved in some sort of drug violence because the police backed off and let him get away? Then its their fault because they didn't bring him in sooner. The guy was19, probably did not have much driving experice. I do not know enough about this specific incident to know if the police were justifed or not. I am also not familiar with Omaha, Neb. pursuit policies. I am simply amazed at how everyone is so quick to blame the police. Cerbero got it on the head' "damned if you do, damned if you don't ." I am sure the officers wish that they had backed off. Any innocent injured because some dumb-as can't follow the law is terrible. My thoughts are with the families of the three victims.}}}} | ||
| Johncr250 |
Are you f@#%ing kidding me. You think by the police stopping the pursuit that this a@@hole is just going to suddenly slow down and obey the speed limit? In your dreams maybe, not in real life!!! I`ve been on several pursuits that were terminated, only to have the driver still crash and kill innocent people an hour later. Or escape and shoot two people when they get wherever the hell they were going. And then i was blamed for not stopping him. Pursuits area a No-win situation and people don`t like going to jail. Imagine if every criminal knew he could get away just by driving fast? Bottom line: This guy was on drugs and out of control. Its a tragity what happend, it could have been anyone from this webpage too. But put the blame on the right person.}} | ||
| Smitty |
Blame the court system that had him out on parole in the first place.Also the screwy judge. | ||
| Imonabuss |
Amen, Smitty! | ||
| Johncr250 |
Thats a good place to start Smitty! | ||
| Dyna |
Bottom line: This guy was on drugs and out of control Nowhere does it state he was on drugs. A prior issue with drugs yes. I`ve been on several pursuits that were terminated, only to have the driver still crash and kill innocent people an hour later That arguement doesnt really wash because I am sure there have also been cases where the police have backed off, the driver has slowed down & was subsequently caught later on. In my town we had 2 people killed when a driver was being chased by the police & the drivers car rammed into the rear of a car that was waiting for a redlight. The dead people were an off duty cop & his wife who worked with the dept in some capacity. The cops themselves are questioning the need for a high speed pursuit in this case. They knew who the driver of the vehicle was & could have picked him up an hr or 2 later. And if the guy molested another kid or was involved in some sort of drug violence because the police backed off and let him get away? Theres part of the problem, you guys have already convicted this guy of molesting a child when all he was being was questioned due to accusations. And where do you see drug violence????? The guy might have been a small time pot dealer. I mean he failed to show up for sentencing, that in itself says that the case against him wasnt very severe because he was not kept locked up. yes cops do have a tough job to do, but way too many times they act...and no not all of them do this...like John Wayne & want to act like supercop. 23 yrs old & they get a gun & a car & all of a sudden think they are the best drivers in the world. Go thru a training course or 2 does not mean they can outdrive a person with 20-30 years of real world experience. Heres a clue phone call for any cops, all the maneuvers they teach you are shown on scariest police chases, available on the web, & have been practiced by every 16yr old with his dads chevy. | ||
| Blublak |
First off.. Yes, it's a tragedy that people were killed.. even worse it was due to this .. Cage runner plowing into them. Unfortunately, Both points of view are viable here. If you back off, there are times when the suspect will back off as well.. of course, there was an incident in a parking lot where the suspect slowed down, pulled in and was looking around trying to figure out where the pursuit was when he ran down a 12 year old on a skateboard. Now, who was at fault.. The police for starting to chase a suspected felon. The same police for backing off, and giving him the chance to pull into a parking lot? The felon for not knowing to just give up and pull over? The kid on the skateboard, since there were signs prohibiting such activity? It's all a no win situation. Any pursuit, even on foot, is dangerous to anyone and everyone. You just can't win, no matter what. So, how do you determine what is correct? Hindsight is 20/20 but, when you are in the middle of it you can only go with a choice you made in a matter of seconds and you have to live with that choice the rest of your life. The debate will go on and on.. back and forth.. with no real answer that covers all contingencies.. For this particular case.. Our only hope is that justice will be done, one way or the other.. Later. | ||
| Xb9er |
I agree with Dyna 100%(assuming the story quoted is accurate). You can't forget the "Protect" part of "Protect and Serve." I don't think this guy was an imminent threat to public safety until the police began pursuit. Really, we can only speculate on what could have happened. However, I do support the growing trend of law enforcement calling off high speed pursuits sooner than later because it's in the best interest of protecting the public. This guy couldn't have been a complete moron since he had the brains to figure out the cops coming to his door were on to him. If the pursuit was called off early or was never started and he didn't see the police in his rear view mirror, don't you think the first thing he would have done was ditch the SUV? This guy is an animal, plain and simple. A predator will break off pursuit if it can't capture prey in the initial stages of its attack. The energy needed for a long pursuit is best spent trying to pick up a new scent and then preparing another attack. At the same time, the prey animal, sensing a threat has gone away, will not continue to flee at maximum speed, but will instead seek cover to conserve that energy. Mike. edited by xb9er on March 21, 2004 | ||
| Captainkirk |
So what was this guy gonna do if NOT chased-a drive-by molesting? Back off and pick him up later, I say. I read nothing here to indicate "Armed and dangerous". Unfortunately, law enforcement officers are human, too. They get swept up in the moment as would you or I. It's gotta be a hell of a load to live with, don't ya think? | ||
| Seanp |
All I have to add is that yes, police officers have made mistakes before, and yes, their mistakes can cause people to be killed, one way or another, sometimes no matter what choice they make. However, how many of you have been in a situation like this? These guys go to arrest someone on a felony warrant and to question him about child molestation charges, and they were obviously taking him seriously in the first place, since it was "police cruisers" (plural) that were going to pinch him. So here these guys are, trying to arrest someone, they've got the adrenaline flowing, and all of a sudden he runs. Steals an SUV and speeds off. Now what do they do? Well, they're already pumped up for a good arrest, so they do what they're trained to do, and they pursue. Five miles. They could have covered five miles in as little as three minutes, depending on the speed they were going. Over the course of three minutes, they've gotten even more pumped up on adrenaline. Now they're really cranked up, and they're taking this as a personal affront. "Hey, this bastard had the balls to run away from us, the police." So they're pissed, pumped up on adrenaline, and doing exactly as they've been taught. Now, how many of you, put in a similar situation, could call over the radio, "Ok guys, let this one go, we'll grab him later." I am human, and I know I for sure couldn't do it. Once you've got your mind set on something, and you're fully prepared physically and mentally to accomplish that task, it's difficult to let it go. Police deal with some of the most difficult situations in the world. They've got to deal with the world's worst types of people all the time. Many of these people would like nothing better than to kill those police officers. I bet there's not too many of you out there who are in constant danger due to your chosen profession. And I bet there are even fewer that have no control over that constant danger other than constant vigilance. And I bet there are only a handful out there where that constant danger to your life is another human who wants to kill you outright. I understand that if the cops had broken off the chase earlier, the motorcyclists may have lived. Or maybe not. Hey, maybe if the cops had fallen back and let him go, he would have hauled ass away, (only five miles, mind you) and still nailed those motorcyclists. Maybe he would have pulled into a preschool and taken someone's daughter hostage. Maybe he would have realized the error of his ways and turned himself into the closest police station. Yeah, ok, there are all sorts of what ifs. The bottom line is that things like this will happen. The only way to prevent it is to maximize the punishment for avoiding arrest. Make it really hurt for someone that avoids arrest. Throw them in jail for an extra twenty years. But then what happens to that husband who is bringing his expectant wife to the hospital to deliver, and doesn't pull over for the cop because he blew the stop sign, and his wife has passed out and stopped breathing, and oh God, he doesn't know what's wrong and it's only another five blocks to the hospital and if he can just make it to the emergency room she and the baby might be alright and he's sure the cop and the judge will understand... What if. | ||
| Pilk |
in the wife prego senario, i dont know a cop in the world that would not forego the whole deal after ariving at the hospital and seeing the deal..... and then doing his utmost to help the momma and baby all he could. What if's are a bugger.... pilk | ||
| Court |
Actually, New York City has quite the opposite problem. We are lucky enough to have the poorest road conditions in America as a result of a poor public works program and the simple logistics of "when do you fix it?" problem. My commute, each day, take me on the Staten Island Expressway, Verazzano-Narrows Bridge, Gowanus, Battery Park Tunnel, FDR, Major Deegan and the likes. My average speed is less than 15 MPH. What happens here is that there is a general disregard for emergency vehicles. It's impossible for them to move through traffic and when they DO, the game becomes a rat race to fall in behind them resulting in a serpantine looking line-up of beat up Toyota's with bumpers hanging off weaving through traffic at break neck speed. The disregard for law enforcement vehicles gets better. Everywhere I have lived, it was prettty much standard practice to pull to the side whenever a vehicle approached with lights and siren from the rear. Here, they frankly could give a flying rats ass. This creates some interesting situations. Recently I was past by a couple of the Crown Vics are about Atlantic Avenue and in the next 8 miles, with me doing nothing but muddling along in the right lane, they were still within 50 yards of me and I'd been in front of them 3 times. Law enforcement, locally, does little to elevate it's respect among locals by making a mockery of the traffic laws themselves by blowing through red lights (without need) and doing some Joey Chitwood style driving for shits and grins. Being an NYPD office is a thankless job and I am thankful for those who do it. I've a number of friends, from a prior life, in law enforecement and I know what they face. It pales in comparison to New York where the work is overwhelming and the pay is about 1/7 of what our construction workers are making. Police chases are, and for good reason, getting a close look by many venues, particulalry on the West Coast where some chases can reach awesome speeds and durations. The one in Omaha, based on having almost no facts, appears that it could have been aborted and the end result (putting the guy in custody) acheived. That should be the test. Court By the way, from my dash mounted "crash cam" I keep a collection of "stupid NYC driving tricks" and last week, I am pleased to say, yielded a windfall of goodies. Few places, perhaps Houston when if snows, have the combination of ditzy NJ housewifes, driving SUV's they can't afford, doing make up, talking on a cell phone, masturbating (aahhhhh, yes, the camera sees all) and trying to back hand kids two rows back, while keeping one eye on the dash mounted DVD AND driving in heavy traffic on poor roads. Here the circus doesn't COME to town, it IS the town. | ||
| Dyna |
A little more info on this case. It appears the man involved in the accident wasnt even the one with the child molestation accusations, it was a case of mistaken identity. Also the cops started shooting at him, at least 2 shots were fired. Hmm cops shooting at an unarmed man who was wrongly accused. Here's the story so far. High-speed police chase leaves 3 people dead BY CHRIS OLSON AND KEVIN COLE WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS A case of mistaken identity may have triggered the high-speed police chase early Saturday from Carter Lake into Omaha that ended in a crash that left three motorcyclists dead and a fourth person in critical condition. The S-10 Blazer in Saturday morning's fatal crash. The vehicle, driven by Steven Halbert, came to rest after hitting the trailer. The crash followed a chase of about four miles - nearly all of it within Omaha's city limits - soon after 1 a.m. Carter Lake police were in pursuit of a man in a SUV. The vehicle collided with two motorcycles at 16th and Fort Streets. The three people aboard the motorcycles all were killed: Michael Rock, 50, and Terry Partain, 51, both of Omaha, and Yvonne E. Campbell, 42, of Council Bluffs. The SUV's driver, Steven Halbert, 18, of Carter Lake, was thrown from the vehicle and critically injured. Carter Lake police refused to comment Saturday on what prompted the chase. Omaha police, who picked up the investigation after the accident, said Carter Lake authorities would not discuss the incident until Monday, after Pottawattamie County Attorney Matt Wilber returns from out of town. According to Omaha police, Carter Lake officers had staked out a red brick house at 1215 E. Locust St., where Steven Halbert lives with his parents, Steven and Linda Halbert. Omaha police said Carter Lake police were there to arrest the younger Halbert on child molestation allegations. Linda Halbert, however, said it was another family member who had been accused of molestation. Steven Halbert She said a woman who had lived with the family while growing up and now has five children has been making the accusations. "She called the cops from here last night, then went down the street and flagged down a cop and said there was a sex offender in here," Linda Halbert said. The woman could not be reached for comment. Linda Halbert said she was asleep when police began surrounding her home. "I heard a crash and got up," she said. "My husband said that our son had jumped the fence and taken off in that truck." The relative who allegedly is the subject of the accusations left out the back door, she said. He did not return a phone call. Halbert said her husband told her that he heard at least two gunshots as their son drove off. She said her son knew he was wanted in Nebraska for failing to show up for his sentencing last month on a drug conviction and in Carter Lake for trespassing. "He ran, and he shouldn't have, but he was being shot at," she said. "What are you going to do?" Officers pursued Halbert when he left the house and drove off in a white 1990 Chevrolet Blazer shortly after 1 a.m., heading west on Locust for a short distance. The SUV then turned around and headed back east on Locust for about four blocks. At that point, it came to Abbott Drive - and the Omaha city limits. The vehicle turned north onto Abbott, and the chase continued north, skirting Eppley Airfield. At Fort Street, the Blazer turned west. Meanwhile, Rock had left the Waggin' Tongue Bar, which he owned, near 16th Street and John J. Pershing Drive. Rock was driving south on a Harley-Davidson that bar patrons said he was going to buy from Partain. Campbell was on another Harley with Partain. About 1:10 a.m., the Blazer sped through a stop sign at the intersection of 16th and Fort Streets at speeds estimated in excess of 80 mph, with Carter Lake police in pursuit. The Blazer hit the motorcycles in the intersection. It then hit the curb on the southwest corner of 16th and Fort, severing a stop sign and flipping before becoming airborne and crashing into the side of a semitrailer parked at a dock 40 feet away. Halbert was thrown from the vehicle. Those at the crash site later Saturday said the motorcyclists probably had no idea what hit them. Neighbors reported a gruesome scene. "I heard the crash," said Gary Fowler, who lives near 14th and Jaynes Streets. "Body parts were still lying around when I arrived." Halbert was taken to Nebraska Medical Center. He remained in critical condition late Saturday. His mother said he had no broken bones or internal injuries but has fluid on the brain that may have to be drained. The three motorcyclists were reported dead at the scene. "These high-speed chases have to end," said Joe Tholen, a retired Omaha firefighter who surveyed the scene later Saturday. "They become legal murder." The Blazer that Halbert was driving had been reported stolen Friday morning near 16th and Cass Streets by Wilford Dennis of Omaha. "If my son stole that car, he was in the wrong," Linda Halbert said. "What I don't understand is why the Carter Lake Police Department went on a wild chase into Omaha for something like that. Now my son is going to be charged with three counts of motor vehicle homicide, and this all could've been avoided." The Douglas County Attorney's Office will determine what charges Halbert will face in the fatal crash if he survives, said Officer Cathy Martinec, an Omaha police spokeswoman. Linda Halbert, who said Rock had gone to school with her husband, said she wanted the families of the accident victims to know how sorry she and her husband were. "I want them to know that if there's anything we can do for them, we will," she said. Contact the Omaha World-Herald newsroom | ||
| Black9 |
"Nice family"..I live in Omaha, I think the parents should be charged for not turning their loser son in..he already didn't show up for court, then comes home in a stolen truck... but did mommy ask where loser got the truck? No The only bad part was, the police didn't hit him when they shot at him as he was trying to FLEE! Bikes or not, the guy probably would've killed someone in a car also..RUNNING A RED LIGHT! Hope the Punk makes it and spends the rest of his miserable life as someones girlfriend in jail! | ||
| Gonen60 |
guy driving stolen suv guy running from police guy wanted on an arrest warrant (drug conviction) guy wanted on possible sex offense charges innocent people dont steal, do drugs, avoid warrants, RUN FROM THE POLICE !!! yea let him go on his merry way !!!...are some of you guys for real ??? | ||
| Dyna |
The only bad part was, the police didn't hit him when they shot at him as he was trying to FLEE! Running from the cops is not an excuse to shoot at someone. The cops lives obviously werent in danger, this kid had no weapon. Sounds like some over zealous law enforcement tactics to me. Lets change the scenario a bit & see if its still ok in some peoples minds to shoot at unarmed citizens. 2 guys are in a vehicle when 1 of them has a heart attack. The driver is not far from a local hospital so takes off like a bat out of hell for it. A cop see's the speeding vehicle & attempts to pull him over but the guy isnt about to stop. The cop starts shooting at the vehicle & hits the driver. Is it justified? Years back we had a couple instances similar to that where people were pulled over for speeding or the cops were attempting to pull them over & for whatever reason they refused. In at least 3 cases the cops shot at a car heading away from them & in each instance the driver was killed. Killed for speeding???????????????? Big reforms took place & some heads rolled. Hasnt happened since. | ||
| Dyna |
guy wanted on possible sex offense charges Correction...it was the wrong guy. innocent people dont steal, do drugs, avoid warrants, RUN FROM THE POLICE !!! Lots of people steal..they just dont get caught. Just about everyone has stolen something at some point in their life. And do you know what type of drugs? Having been convicted of a minor drug charge is no excuse for the cops to shoot at you. And run from the police? Sounds like these cops are Dirty Harry, who knows maybe they showed up with weapons drawn & the minute this kid saw them he was frightened..wouldnt any of us be? He took off & they started shooting at him. Well hell if someone starts shooting at me I am sure as hell going to either shoot back or run away as fast as I can. This kid is 19 & who here hasnt done some stupid shit when we were that age? This could have been done much cleaner than it was. Im not saying this kid is innocent, its obvious he has some problems to work out. But the cops sure didnt help the situation at all. | ||
| Seanp |
The cops lives obviously weren't in danger, Dyna? How do you know that he wasn't driving straight at them? Maybe attempting to run one of them over with his stolen SUV, thinking that was the only way to get them to stop chasing them. Just as cops sometimes make bad decisions due to adrenaline, so do bad guys. It's just that the bad guys aren't trained as well as the cops to keep their bad decisions to a minimum. All the cops I know, (and I know quite a few of them, growing up with three of them in my family) are trained to not shoot at a car unless they're in physical danger. They don't shoot to disable a car, they don't shoot to warn a car. They shoot when the car is heading straight for them or another person. And when they shoot, they shoot to kill the driver - not the tires, not the engine, and not the gas tank... So in the heart attack scenario, I honestly can't see a cop shooting at a car to disable it. It's not the movies. They have spike strips and all sorts of other stuff that they're equipped with to stop cars. Guns are to stop people, not cars. And it was a felony warrant for a drug charge. I don't know a whole lot about the law, but I think a felony warrant out for your arrest is pretty serious. I have done some crazy things, yes. But I have never, ever done anything so crazy that the cops would chase after me. And when the cops do come after me, I stop for them. The only cop that ever chased after me for anything other than speeding was my father, and I damn sure stopped for him. And I never threw a water balloon at the road again...  | ||
| Gonen60 |
your making excuses for a piece of shit. Not all people are good, and from what it sounds like, this kid was in bad shape, from his parents on down. when you are wanted on a felony arrest warrant, your driving a stolen vehicle, your running from the cops, your doing drugs, something has to break, and I say thank good for the police, or at least most of them. It's funny, only the Bust that go bad get printed, not the 1000s of great stops, arrest and convictions. | ||
| Dyna |
And it was a felony warrant for a drug charge. The warrant was not for the drug charge, it was for failing to show up for sentencing. It may very well have been a minor drug charge. And nowhere does it state he tried to run the cops down. Somehow I think if he had tried that it would have made the article. It's just that the bad guys aren't trained as well as the cops to keep their bad decisions to a minimum. Cops are not robots, they have emotions just like everyone else. You can train them all you want, but when the shit hits the fan they have the same exact feelings & emotions we do. Do the cops overall do a good job? Of course they do. But there are also hundreds of times where they screw up & do something stupid. Are we supposed to not report those cases? Are you claiming that it never happens? | ||
| Black9 |
So it was someone else in his "family " that was suspected of the assault? fine,NICE FAMILY" glad to see such fine values of right and wrong are being passed on. Thing is too many people today slide by on "It's not my fault" cause of this or that....blah blah blah..people are responsible for their OWN actions,liberal views be damned! As a foot note, we as riders ALWAYS should be vigilent, never in a hurry, and pass up opportunities to be better riders,( ie. track time,riders courses.. |
