KETV is Omaha's leading television new operation for good reason. In the video below, reporter Dave Roberts explains exactly where the robber, police and the COPS cameraman and soundman were during Tuesday's killings of Bryce Dion and Cortez Washington by police during the robbery of a Wendy's at 43rd & Dodge Tuesday night. No other reports AKSARBENT has seen have explained the event with as much clarity and that includes the press conference given by Police Chief Todd Schmaderer.
Cortez Washington's sister-in-law told KETV that the police account of their confusion over Washington's air gun was bogus. She fired a pellet gun and asked "Does that sound like a real gun to you.?"
In his press conference (see excerpts below) Chief Schmaderer insisted that Washington's pellet gun "looked and sounded" (emphasis added) like the real thing. We're not saying that cops should wait until after someone pulls the trigger of a realistic-looking pistol pointed at them to decide if the bad news is fake, but neither do we buy Chief Schmaderer's assertion that pellet guns sound like real ones. Incidentally, some of the rounds penetrated a tanning salon a block east of Wendy's, across the street and a parking lot. Customers and staff were in the tanning business at the time. KETV did a story about that too.
Excerpts from KETV's transcript of Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer's Wednesday press conference. We corrected a couple of obvious typos, like "Wednesday" for "Wendy's"
WHILE DOCUMENTING THE OMAHA POLICE DEPARTMENT
RESPONSE TO THE ROBBERY, 38-YEAR-OLD "COPS" PRODUCTION CREW MEMBER MR.
BRYCE DION WAS KILLED BY GUNFIRE IN THE INCIDENT...
MULTIPLE GUNSHOTS WERE FIRED
INSIDE OF THE WENDY'S RESTAURANT. THREE INDIVIDUALS INSIDE WENDY'S
WITNESSED MR. WASHINGTON HOLDING HANDGUN AND DISCHARGED HAPPENED GUN
DIRECTLY DETECTIVE CUNNINGHAM AND OFFICER RILEY. THE WITNESSES DESCRIBED
HEARING THE SUSPECTS HANDGUN SLIDE RECOIL WITH THE SHOTS. THE FIRST TWO
AUDIBLE SHOTS WERE FROM MR. WASHINGTON'S HANDGUN ACCORDING TO THE
WITNESSES. MR. WASHINGTON WAS INJURED BY TO FLEE OUT EAST DOORS WHERE HE
COLLAPSED IN PARKING LOT. MR. WASHINGTON WAS PLACED IN INTO HANDCUFFS
AT THAT TIME OFFICERS RECOVERED A HANDGUN FROM MR. WASHINGTON. IT HAS
BEEN DETERMINED THAT MR. WASHINGTON'S HANDGUN IS AN AIR SOFT PISTOL THAT
FIRES PLASTIC PELLET BULLETS. AIR SOFT PISTOL LOOKS AND FUNCTIONS LIKE
AN ACTUAL FIREARM. THERE ARE PHOTOS TO MY IMMEDIATE LEFT. MR. DION WAS
ALSO INJURED BY A SINGLE GUNSHOT AND COLLAPSED MR. WASHINGTON AND MR.
DION WERE BOTH TRANSPORTED TO UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA MEDICAL CENTER
WHERE THEY WERE PRONOUNCED DEAD SHORTLY THERE AFTER...
WE
ARE STRIVING FOR UNPRECEDENTED TRANSPARENCY...
...BASED ON OUR VIEWING OF FOOTAGE THE OFFICERS HAD NO CHOICE
OTHER THAN TO RESPOND IN WHICH THE MANNER IN WHICH THEY DID. MR. DION
PAID THE ULTIMATE PRICE FOR HIS SERVICE TO PROVIDE THE FOOTAGE OF THE
REAL LIFE DANGERS THAT LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS FACE ON A DAILY BASIS TO
TELEVISION VIEWERS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD.
CHANNEL 7: WAS IT CROSS FIRE OR SAME DIRECTION?
WHEN THE OFFICERS ENTERED
FROM THE EAST, THE DETECTIVE AND OFFICER BROOKS RILEY THEY ENTERED THE
CAMERA MAN FOLLOWED. THE CAMERA MAN AND AUDIO PERSON, THEY TRAVEL IN
TANDEM. OKAY. THEY TRAVEL IN TANDEM. AS THEY ENTERED, IT BECAME A
CHAOTIC SCENE. CAMERA MAN MADE HIS WAY INTO THE EATING AREA AND WAS ABLE
TO GET DOWN AND HOLD THE CAMERA UP. BRYCE, BRYCE DION, GOT STUCK
ENTERED. WHEN THEY ENCOUNTERED THE SUSPECT AND THE GUNFIRE ENSUED, AND
IT'S A VERY DRAMATIC VIDEO, WHEN GUNFIRE ENSUED AT SOME POINT MR.
WASHINGTON STARTED EXITING HIS WAY OUT AS YOU CAN SEE IN THAT BOTTOM
PICTURE THERE. HE'S ON HIS WAY OUT. THE OFFICERS ARE RETURNING FIRE.
BRYCE IS IN THAT VESTIBULE AND GETS STRUCK BY A ROUND.
MR. BECKER DO
YOU HAVE A QUESTION? YES, SIR WAS THERE EXCESSIVE FORCE THE REPORT WAS
OVER 30 SHOTS HAD BEEN FIRED IS THAT EXCESSIVE FORCE I HAD SOMEONE
COMMENT THEY WERE WONDERING IF THE POLICE WERE ACTUALLY SHOWING OFF FOR
THE CAMERAS.
ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS. THEY WERE NOT SHOWING OFF FOR THE
CAMERAS. LIKE I SAID I PERSONALLY VIEWED VIEWED IT. DOUGLAS COUNTY
ATTORNEY VIEWED THIS. THIS WAS VERY HARROWING SITUATION. IT WAS THREE
OFFICERS INVOLVED. TAKE A LOOK AT THE STILL PHOTOS. I'M GOING TO TELL
YOU THAT FIRST TWO SHOTS THAT YOU, THEY SOUNDED LIKE A GUN. AND IF YOU
CAN TELL ME WHICH ONE REAL FROM THIS GUN I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN. THE
SHOTS WERE FROM AIR SOFT GUN AND SOUNDED REAL? YES THEY DID. VERY MUCH
DID. ANY CRITICISM IS UNMERITED.
...FRANKIE.
THIS WAS A FRIENDLY FIRE SITUATION. IT WAS AN OFFICER'S ROUND THAT
STRUCK MR. DION. OKAY. LIKE I SAID EARLIER, MR. WASHINGTON'S GUN WAS AN
AIR SOFT GUN. WHILE IT LOOKED AND SOUNDED AND IS SLIDE SLID LIKE IT WAS
REAL, IT WAS A PELLET GUN. OKAY.
YOU MENTIONED THE OFFICERS WENT IN BECAUSE THEY FELT THEY
NEEDED TO RESCUE SOMEONE YEAH. IT WAS OUR UNDERSTANDING MAYBE AN
EMPLOYEE HAD A GUN BEING HELD TO HER HEAD AT THAT MOMENT. AND IS THAT
STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE FOR OFFICERS TO ENTER ROBBERY? WE ARE STILL
LOOKING INTO THE INFORMATION THAT AN EMPLOYEE HAD A GUN TO THEIR HEAD.
OKAY. THAT'S GOING, THOSE POINTS WILL REALLY COME OUT WITH DEEPER
INTERVIEWS. OUR PROTOCOL IS PRESERVATION OF LIFE FIRST AND FOREMOST.
THERE ARE TIMES IN WHICH WE CAN WAIT AND THERE ARE TIMES IN WHICH WE
NEED TO TAKE ACTION. WHEN THESE OFFICERSE ARRIVED, AGAIN, THERE WAS
PEOPLE IN THE PARKING LOT THAT CAME THROUGH THE DRIVE-THROUGH. MOTIONING
OFFICERS THAT SOMETHING WAS GOING ON IN THERE. OFFICERS DIDN'T HAVE THE
LUXURY OF DOING ANYTHING OTHER THAN WHAT THEY WERE TRAINED TO DO AND I
WILL SAY COURAGEOUSLY ENTERED WITH THE PREMISE OF SAVING LIVES. THAT WAS
THEIR PREMISE. OKAY. THEY DON'T KNOW IF AN EMPLOYEE OF WENDY'S WAS
GETTING HURT OR PATRON OF WENDY'S WAS GETTING HURT.
HOW
MANY SHOTS WERE FIRED? I'VE HEARD I'VE SEEN REPORTS AS MANY AS 30 SHOTS
WERE FIRED. THERE WERE MULTIPLE SHOTS FIRED. THERE WERE THREE OFFICERS
INVOLVED. OKAY. MULTIPLE SHOTS FIRED. THE EXACT NUMBER I'M NOT GOING TO
GIVE AT THIS POINT IN TIME BECAUSE IT IS SUBJECT TO A GRAND JURY
INVESTIGATION.
...CHIEF,
WERE THE OFFICERS IN THE CHAOTIC SITUATION AT THE WENDY'S AWARE BRYCE WAS
TRAPPED IN VESTIBULE?
I DON'T SEE HOW THEY COULD HAVE BEEN. I DON'T
KNOW. WE'RE GOING TO TALK TO THEM. I DON'T WANT TO SPEAK OUT OF BUT WHEN
MR. WASHINGTON STARTED EXITING POINTING HIS WEAPON AS HIS WAY OUT, IT
FORCED THE OFFICERS TO CONTINUE THEIR GUNFIRE. AND I CAN TELL YOU THAT
NOBODY WANTED BRYCE TO GET HURT. NOBODY WANTED ANYBODY TO GET HURT.
POLICE WORK IS VERY DANGEROUS.
CHIEF, WE KNEW THAT YOUR INTENTIONS WERE WELL WHEN YOU
INVITED THE SHOW TO COME HERE. BUT NOW THIS INCIDENT HAS HIT NATIONAL
NEWS AND IT HAS BEEN TRENDING ALL DAY. HOW DO YOU FEEL OUR CITY IS
PERCEIVED NOW BECAUSE OF THIS? LOOK THE CITY OF OMAHA IS A TREMENDOUS
CITY. THE OMAHA POLICE DEPARTMENT IS LAST YEAR THERE WERE 42 HOMICIDES
IN THIS CITY. THERE'S ONLY 17. OKAY. YOU PUT THAT UP AGAINST A LOT OF
CITIES IT'S A VERY NICE CITY. AND IT'S PROFESSIONAL LAW RELATION AND
PARTNERSHIPS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT GOT US TO THIS POINT, THIS IS AN
UNFORTUNATE INCIDENT. BE ANYTHING VIEWED OTHER THAN THAT. AND AN
UNFORTUNATE INCIDENT THAT OCCURRED DURING POLICE WORK THAT TAKES ON VERY
DANGEROUS ELEMENTS. AND I WILL BE OUT IF NEED BE TO DEFEND HOW GREAT
THIS CITY IS. THANK YOU.
CHIEF TMZ HAS RELEASED AUDIO OF THE POLICE
CALL. UH-HUH. THAT OR WAS THAT LANGLEY PRODUCTIONS YOU KNOW I DON'T KNOW
WHERE THEY GOT IT I BELIEVE IT CAME FROM A WEBSITE. OKAY. WEBSITE
ONLINE I THINK PEOPLE FROM POLICE SCANNERS.
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