Dead man's mother gets standing ovation after tearful account

By Hector Gutierrez, Rocky Mountain News
August 20, 2003

The mother of a disabled teenager shot and killed by police tearfully embraced the mother of Paul Childs, another disabled teen fatally wounded by the same officer.

Looking on were Denver and Aurora law enforcement officials and religious leaders, who were also present at Tuesday's community forum.

Attendees gave Regina Keith a standing ovation after she delivered an emotionally charged account of what happened to her 18-year-old son, who was shot and killed in January 2002.

"It takes me time to come out. I'm still grieving," Keith tearfully told an audience of about 150 people, including representatives of the Greater Metro Denver Ministerial Alliance, who organized the forum.

Keith recalled how officers James Turney and Robert Silvas opened fire on her deaf son, Gregory L. Smith Jr., who was armed with a knife.

"What James Turney and Bob Silvas did was empty their guns in front of me with my child," she said before hugging Helen Childs. "My son was deaf. The officers didn't say a word. The first thing they did was put their hand on their guns. . . .

"Paul was 15. My son was 18. They still are our babies."

District Attorney Bill Ritter ruled the Smith shooting justified.

The forum was one of several called in response to two recent deaths: the July 5 shooting of Childs, who also was armed with a knife, by officer Turney; and the Aug. 5 shooting of Denise Washington, 30, by Aurora officer John J. Austin. Washington, who hit the officer with a candlestick, was mentally ill.

Washington's father, Russell Washington, also attended the forum.

"Let's hope through this meeting a collective solution can be found so that this doesn't happen again," he said.

Members of minority communities and supporters of developmentally disabled people strongly condemned the two shootings, saying officers should have sought to use nonlethal force to subdue Childs and Washington.

Denver police Chief Gerry Whitman and Aurora police Chief Ricky Bennett, Denver Manager of Safety Alvin LaCabe, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper and Ritter attended Tuesday's forum.

Bennett said his office turned over the Washington case to the Arapahoe County district attorney. Whitman said detectives may turn over the Childs case to the district attorney today.

Several speakers at the forum strongly condemned some conduct by law enforcement officers.

They claimed officers rarely are punished for misconduct and demanded accountability.

Others reiterated that they had lost confidence in how law enforcement agencies investigate themselves.

Activist LeRoy Lemos defended many of the officers in the Denver Police Department for doing a "tremendous job" protecting the city.

But, he added, "there's a rogue element that resides within the Denver Police Department. It's a cancer."

Activist Alvertis Simmons unleashed a scathing tirade against the organizers of the forum, saying they were just paying lip service.

"Some of you ain't going to do anything," Simmons shouted. "What happened to 15-year-old Paul Childs should never happen again. We can't be doing a dog-and-pony show."

After the forum Whitman promised to address some of the issues.

"They raised legitimate concerns, and that's why I got into the business . . . to address those concerns," Whitman said. "We can't stop just at community meetings."

Adrienne Benavidez, an organizer of the forum, said the Ministerial Alliance was forming four working groups.

The first will make recommendations to strengthen Denver's public safety review commission.

The second group will look at police policies concerning how officers respond to a call of someone armed with a knife.

The third group will deal with mental health issues and programs in different communities.

The fourth group will come up with a community response and garner input.

"I want you to understand that we are listening," LaCabe told the group at the end of the meeting.

Copyright 2003, Rocky Mountain News. All Rights Reserved.