Retired SWAT officer acquitted in movie theater shooting

[left-of-center2012]

Source: The Herald

A jury in Florida has acquitted a retired police SWAT commander of murder and assault charges for fatally shooting a fellow moviegoer during an argument over cellphone use, news outlets report. Deliberations in the trial began Friday and the jury returned its verdict late that night.

Defense attorneys contended that retired Tampa police Capt. Curtis Reeves feared for his life when he pulled his gun and shot Chad Oulson in the 2014 movie theater altercation.

A Florida prosecutor told jurors Friday that a retired police SWAT commander fatally shot a fellow moviegoer because he threw popcorn in his face during an argument over cellphone use, angering him because it violated his self-image as an “alpha male.”

Read more: https://www.heraldonline.com/news/nation-world/national/article258780708.html

---

https://www.courttv.com/news/retired-swat-officer-acquitted-in-movie-theater-shooting/

[Jim__]

1. That sucks!

[PatSeg]

2. What?!?!?

I know it is Florida, but REALLY?

[mitch96]

3. Another good guy with a gun....

[gohuskies]

4. The state of Florida and a significant part of their population are deranged

When a LEO and a SWAT commander feels so threatened by popcorn tossed at him to justify a stand your ground homicide that society is beyond all redemption. This is pure and simply a travesty of justice.

[SouthernDem4ever]

9. +1

Thanks Floriduh.

[MLAA]

5. Disgusting

[lapfog_1]

6. you get the salt in your eyes

it can really sting! And then there is the butter in your hair

OF COURSE he felt the need to draw his gun and kill the perp.

What kind of world do we live in when we don't execute people for throwing popcorn in a movie theater!!!

[left-of-center2012]

7. I watched the trial on Court-TV

The cop was the instigator, and shot the guy dead for flicking popcorn on him.

Should have been an easy guilty verdict.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

17. Did they bring up his wife's statement after the shooting "you didn't need to do that"

And then he told her to shut up. Probably a wife beater too.

[left-of-center2012]

18. No

And the TV commentators, comprised of judges, defense attorneys, and prosecutors past and current pointed out a lot of faults in the prosecutor's case.

Things they should have brought up but failed to do so.

As for the defense's side,
It went on and on and on and bored everybody to tears.

But the bottom line was you do not shoot someone because they flipped popcorn on you.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

24. No charges for also shooting the victim's wife in the hand? I guess collateral damage is ok...

… when standing your ground against popcorn.

[left-of-center2012]

26. True

Even though he got off for the murder he should have been nailed for shooting the wife in the hand

[dchill]

8. So it's all good.

Seriously, there's got to be a way to stop states from passing legalized murder laws.

[TheRealNorth]

10. Pretty soon

being a Democrat will be excuse enough to be murdered in FL.

[dchill]

12. *Sigh* I know it.

[MyOwnPeace]

19. FINE!!! There you go.......

giving DeSantis ANOTHER idea............ and you KNOW FloriDUH would LOVE it!!!

[sinkingfeeling]

11. Florida does seem to like letting killers go free. See Casey Anthony.

[Prof. Toru Tanaka]

31. And George Zimmerman.

They had an article on this case about a week or so ago. They showed Reeves sitting in the defendant's chair with a smirk on his face. He knew he was going to beat the charges.

[Owl]

13. Absolutely disgusting!

[SledDriver]

14. Sigh...

[SouthernDem4ever]

15. It's too bad

movie theaters are off my list completely. As is any Floriduh attraction, theme park, beach, etc.

[Prof. Toru Tanaka]

32. These days, it is easy to watch a movie at home.

The last theater movie I went to see was "42".

While the murder victim certainly did not deserve to be shot at, it would have been considerate of them to not have their phone out and on while the movie was going. If they need to use their phone for any reason, they should have gone out to the lobby and used it there. At least that is what I would have done.

As for Reeves, how in the hell does a person justify using deadly force over having popcorn flicked at them? Fuck this old bastard and I hope he ends up on the wrong end of a gun confrontation one day. Live by the gun, die by the gun. Ditto for George Zimmerman.

And BTW, it is absolutely unbelievable Reeves was not convicted for shooting and almost severing Nicole Oulson's finger when she attempted to pull her husband back toward his seat.

As for the state of Florida, I am hundreds of miles away from it and I intend to keep it that way.

[SouthernDem4ever]

34. I'm with you all the way!

[Katinfl]

36. The victim was texting the babysitter during the previews.

The shooter claimed the light from the cell phone was disturbing him. After words were exchanged, he leaves the theater and presumably comes back with a gun and fires at the victim. BTW, this was in the afternoon and the theater was half empty. Plus, whoever heard of a trial 8 years after the incident? I have not followed this story in a long time because frankly we forgot about it. I live in FL a short distance away from where it happened. I don't blame you for not wanting to come to FL. We just live with the fact that most everyone is armed and not afraid to use their "stand your ground" laws to literally get away with murder. That's a fact.

[Prof. Toru Tanaka]

43. The sad thing is, there are lots of great things to do and

wonderful places to visit in FLA. Like Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center (my personal favorite),

I read in a related story that the victim was texting the day care center about their child. That is fine but it is unfortunate he did not go out to lobby to do so (there was a statement on the movie screen to turn off social media devices).



That being said, Chad Oulson absolutely did not deserve what happened to him. And I did not know that Curtis Reeves actually went out to his vehicle to retrieve the weapon; I was under the impression he had it on him when he first entered the theater. This action made the shooting seem premeditated to me. Reeves got off because of white priviledge and because he was a former police chief. Total bullshit!

[SouthernDem4ever]

47. There used to be great things in Fla, until they found it a good idea to put whacked out idiots

in charge of their govt. Maybe if the place ever appears normal i might consider going to see family there again, but it doesn't seem likely.

[Ace Rothstein]

39. There just aren't many movies worth watching these days.

Most of the good content now are TV shows on streaming services.

[Baitball Blogger]

16. Self-image as an alpha male.

I told you. They are codifying their white privilege.

[Roy Rolling]

20. Not Murder!

It isn’t murder if killing an unarmed person is legal. Florida lawmakers each share the blame for putting a murderer back on the streets where he may kill again.

Or worse yet, inspire someone else to do the same legal thing.

[Joinfortmill]

21. Guy is guilty as sin.

[Demovictory9]

22. Wow..i hope he is dead broke from the defense..killer

[3Hotdogs]

25. Maybe followed by a civil suit.

[left-of-center2012]

27. I hope so. n/t

[Prof. Toru Tanaka]

44. I agree with you!

[madville]

23. You have to assume everyone here in Florida is armed

Just read the article to refresh my memory about the incident (it took 8 years to go to trial, that’s crazy by its self). Sounds like a classic example of two assholes colliding.

[Katinfl]

37. Just wrote on another thread that yes, we in FL have to assume everyone is armed.

[ZonkerHarris]

28. Florida.

[LuckyLib]

29. I heard an interview with this guy. A consummate bullshitter

A former cop, he embroidered his story big time.

[onetexan]

30. White privilege

[twodogsbarking]

33. If you are angry then you can legally shoot someone. I get it.

[Wuddles440]

35. Damn!

Who knew! All this time the key to avoiding any legal consequences for criminal acts is simply arguing that it "violates your image as an alpha male." For all we know, maybe this is the argument being made by the January 6th insurrectionist and explains their pleaing only to minor misdemeanors. Of course, the "alpha male" defense only works for conservative, white males - everyone else is fucked.

[Talitha]

38. "in the 2014 movie theater altercation."

2014???

Why did it take this long?

[C Moon]

40. WTF?!

[C Moon]

41. It was 10 years to the day that Zimmerman murdered Trayvon.

“Martin was visiting his father in a gated community in Sanford, Florida, a suburb of Orlando, on Feb. 26, 2012. On the way back from the store, he was eyed by George Zimmerman, then 28, a member of the community’s neighborhood watch.”

Strange coincidence.

[Polybius]

42. From the article:

No one disputes most of the basic facts. Reeves and Oulson did not know each other. They had gone with their wives to see a matinee showing of the Afghan War movie “Lone Survivor,” the Reeveses taking seats in the back row, the Oulsons one row in front of them, slightly to the right.

As the previews began and despite an announcement to turn off cellphones, Oulson continued texting his 22-month-old daughter's day care. Reeves leaned over and told him to stop — Reeves says politely, Oulson's widow and others say it sounded like an order. After Oulson bluntly refused, perhaps with profanity, Reeves went to complain to the manager. When Reeves returned, seeing that Oulson had put his phone away, he told Oulson that if he wouldn't have told the manager if he known he would comply.

What happened over the next few seconds is where the stories diverge until Oulson grabs Reeves' popcorn and flicks it back into Reeves' face. Reeves pulls his .380 handgun, lunges forward and fires one shot, killing Oulson and nearly severing the finger of Oulson's wife, Nicole, who had reached out to pull her husband back to his seat.

Escobar said the evidence proves their contention that during the disputed seconds that Oulson, before being shot, threw his cellphone at Reeves, striking him in the face, and then appeared ready to climb over the seats and attack, reaching toward him.

Why did Reeves (politely or not) even tell Oulson to stop texting? I mean, does it matter that much? He wasn't talking on his phone, and it was only the previews.

Did Oulson over-react by grabbing Reeves' popcorn and throwing it in his face? Oh Hell yeah he was wrong to do that, but was it enough to warrant shooting him?

[tonekat]

45. Here's hoping Karma catches up

with Reeves and renders a very harsh judgement, the sooner the better.

And screw Florida.

[mcar]

46. Justice delayed, justice denied

8 years - that's how long his attorneys were able to hold this trial up. And now this.