Denver Post

Officer won't be charged in Childs shooting
By Sean Kelly
Denver Post Staff Writer

Thursday, October 16, 2003 -

The Denver police officer who fatally shot 15-year-old Paul Childs this summer will not be charged with a crime.

District Attorney Bill Ritter announced at an 11 a.m. press conference that Officer James Turney has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing in the July 5 shooting of the mentally disabled boy at his northeast Denver home.

The shooting sparked community outrage and questions about whether officers could have avoided such a confrontation with the developmentally disabled youth.

"Our decision today is that we cannot go forward with the criminal prosecution" of Turney, Ritter said at the news conference. "I have no reasonable belief that a jury of 12 people would convict Officer Turney."

"We're disgusted, but we knew this was coming ahead of time," said Paul Martin, the Childs family's pastor at Macedonia Baptist Church, of the charging decision. "We just have to move forward now. We must make changes."

Martin said attorney Johnnie Cochran will proceed with his planned lawsuit against the city on behalf of the Childs family.

"I know members of the community are very disappointed," said City Councilwoman Elbra Wedgeworth. "We're asking for residents to remain calm. Acting out only intensifies the existence of violence. We are very committed to seeing the community stand together to make sure this never occurs again. We will work with the Department of Justice."

Childs was shot July 5 after his family called police when the mentally disabled youth pulled a 13-inch kitchen knife.

Turney, one of the officers who responded to the call, shot and killed Childs, who was holding a knife and didn't drop it when the officer ordered him to.

Childs was shot three times in the chest and abdomen and once in the back of the shoulder, according to an autopsy report.

In the months after the shooting, several community meetings have been called by the Greater Metro Denver Ministerial Alliance to discuss reforms.

The Childs case is likely to be discussed tonight at a public hearing to evaluate the effectiveness, mission and authority of Denver's Public Safety Review Commission. The hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m. tonight in the City Council chambers.

The hearing is in response to concerns voiced by members of the community about the Childs shooting and about other concerns regarding the use of lethal force by police.

Civil rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, have called for an independent investigation of the case. U.S. Attorney John Suthers has promised to review the district attorney’s findings.