*GREG GUNN – Shot and killed on February 25, 2016 at approximately 3 AM by Montgomery, Alabama Police officer Aaron Cody Smith following an altercation that took place in an area writhe with burglaries. Gunn, 58, refused a lawful order by Smith and their physical altercation took place over an area as long as a city block. Gunn – who was much larger than Smith – continued to assault the officer even after he attempted to use non-lethal devices to restrain him.
Gunn was tased three times and hit with a police baton but still would not stand down. Smith later testified that Gunn then wielded what was described as a “six-foot painter’s pole,” thus resulting in him shooting Gunn five times. The pole was recovered from the ground near Gunn pursuant to the shooting.
The local authorities handed the case over the Alabama State Bureau of Investigation and Smith was arrested and charged with murder and is awaiting trial, which is expected to start this month. He has been on administrative leave since March 2016.
POLICE POINT OF VIEW
Smith was doing his job by stopping and questioning Gunn and patted him down for his own safety. The burglaries occurred in the area between 1 and 5 AM and Gunn met the description – as vague as it was – of previous perpetrators, who were male blacks. Gunn initially had complied with Smith’s lawful orders before fleeing. The reason why he did so will never be known, but it is a fact that he did have outstanding warrants and toxicology reports showed that he had used cocaine recently. Smith made numerous attempts to subdue Gunn prior to the shooting and once he ran away from Smith, he was thereby breaking the law and the pursuit was necessary. If Gunn had complied with Smith, the shooting would have never occurred.
The trial will decide if the shooting was justified or not.
Gunn – black, Smith – white
@jemelehill I would love the opportunity to discuss the #NFLProtest issue with you, more specifically a case-by-case basis between the police & public: https://t.co/6SrWzUZ6yS
— Joe Pietaro (@MuscleSportMag) August 13, 2018
