Denver Post

This officer failed pledge to protect
By Cindy Rodriguez
Denver Post Columnist

Friday, July 11, 2003 - James Turney is a bad boy with a badge, a 29-year-old bulldog of a man who is not worthy of wearing a Denver police uniform.

And yet he still holds onto that badge - and his pay - nearly a week after he shot another teenager to death, the second time in his five-year career.

Denver Police Chief Gerry Whitman needs to do the right thing: Recommend Turney be fired.

Following the shooting Saturday afternoon, there were many unanswered questions.

Why did Ashley Childs call police, saying her brother Paul was threatening their mom with a knife, if she didn't think he intended harm?

Did 15-year-old Paul lunge at officer Turney with the knife?

Why didn't Paul put down the knife when Turney commanded him to? Was he confused because of his disability?

Why didn't Turney retreat and let the officer near him immobilize Paul with his Taser?

The case seemed so bizarre. You had a mother swearing that her son wouldn't hurt a fly. But in the 911 dispatch call transcript, his sister, Ashley, is recorded as saying: "My brother has a knife, and he's trying to stab my mother with it."

Some people had a knee-jerk reaction, blaming Turney off the bat. They called him a rogue cop. Some suggested he was racist.

Most of us waited for answers. Rushing to judgment makes no sense, especially with all the conflicting accounts about what happened at the small brick home on East Thrill Place in northeast Denver.

But as the days rolled on, we learned enough about Turney to know that he should not be carrying a gun. Or a badge. It would be crazy for the Denver Police Department to reinstate him.

He has killed two teenagers in the span of two years. And he was suspended, with pay, on Tuesday for what the Police Department is calling an "unrelated incident." A source close to the police internal affairs investigation told The Post that the "incident" in question is this: A former family member called police last Friday to complain that Turney allegedly threatened her.

That's enough for me.

Here's a man who shot to death, along with his colleague, Sgt. Robert Silvas, an 18-year-old man back in January 2002. In that case, Gregory Smith allegedly pulled a 3-inch knife on the officers. The officers shot him because they're taught to use lethal force with knife-wielding suspects.

The shootings of Smith and Paul Childs are eerily similar. Both were teenagers. Both were wielding knives. Neither seemed to comprehend repeated commands to drop their knives. Smith was hearing impaired; Paul suffers from mental disabilities. Both, coincidentally, were black.

Was Turney a racist out to kill black teenagers who have disabilities? That's not what's at issue here. What's at stake is the police pledge to protect people's lives.

When Turney was sworn in five years ago, he promised to protect the lives of innocent people. His badge gave him the right to be on East Thrill Place on Saturday afternoon. But proper training should have prevented the death of Paul Childs.

Turney is a man who shot a kid when no one was in immediate danger. Everyone other than Paul Childs was out of the house. As Turney approached the door of the house, Paul appeared holding a knife upright.

By the family's accounts, the teen was simply standing there. Yes, he was holding a knife. He was obviously a child with problems. But did the skinny, 5-foot-8-inch boy pose immediate danger? No. Turney put himself in danger. He's the one who stepped within the Denver Police Department's 21-foot danger zone - the distance within which officers are taught that a knife-wielding suspect is dangerous.

The union will fight for him, as it always does. Sgt. Mike Mosco, president of the Denver Police Protective Association, says it's unfair to judge Turney. Mosco spoke to me Thursday about constitutional rights and due process.

But we're not talking about charging the man with a crime. It's up to the district attorney to decide, based on the facts that will be revealed following an investigation.

What we're talking about here is not taking a chance that Turney will kill another person.

Fellow officers want to protect Turney because he's part of "the brotherhood." Cops will defend other cops - no matter what. They also feel they have to defend him to protect their image. But in doing so, they're only tarnishing it further.

The Rev. Reginald C. Holmes, president of the Greater Metro Denver Ministerial Alliance, put it best when we spoke Thursday: "We don't need cops who have a wild, wild West mentality."

Denver doesn't need that.

Turney has got to go.

Cindy Rodrguez's column appears Monday and Friday. Phone: 303-820-1211.