Spokane7
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July 7, 2009 in City
Spokane officer cleared in fatal shooting
Spokane Police Officer Dan Lesser has been cleared in the fatal shooting of car thief suspect Johnnie Longest.
After Longest fired a gun at police officers and bystanders, the officer fired back. The suspect died from a single gun shot wound that entered his back just right of his spine near the middle of the back, officials said.
Deputy Prosecutor Jack Driscoll determined the location of the bullet wound was “consistent with what (a witness) saw - Longest being hit in the back as his arm was extended toward the officers and the dog as he was firing.”
Driscoll said Longest was a threat to police and civilians on the night of March 17, which justified the officer’s decision to shoot.
The incident began when police spotted Longest driving recklessly in a stolen Honda Civic that night.
When an officer tried to stop him, the driver attempted to elude police. After disappearing into an alley, the Honda reappeared and then got high centered on a concrete divider along Division.
Longest fled and was tracked by Var, a police K-9, to an alley at Lacrosse Avenue. The dog went after Longest, and Austin tried to restrain Longest, but Longest pulled a .22-caliber handgun and shot Var twice, police officials said.
WSU police investigate third suspicious fire 
WayFedUp2 on July 07 at 4:26 p.m.
Is anyone surprised? I doubt it. Business as usual. Legalized murder.
davepartovi on July 07 at 5:10 p.m.
Without condoning the personal comment against D Walker, I agree with Lesley. Holding law enforcement to account is important, but so is letting them do their job. If you fire a weapon anywhere near a police officer — especially at their dog which is an officer — you get shot. To hold otherwise is totally unfair to the police. I’ve worked with Ofc. Lesser before and found him to be above board. This seems like the right decision to me.
George_Sands on July 07 at 5:32 p.m.
Mr. Partovi, do you think the officers testified during the investigation were under oath and were subject to a polygraph test?
Being shot is one thing, being shot in the BACK while running away, how many times? is another. Perhaps a bit more target practice for our crossed eyed coppers would instruct them to wound and not murder?
If the SPD were true professionals they should have noticed that sound of a .22 short is much different than any other pistol/round.
So if a Police Dog is an Officer, then why didnt they charge the one that busted out of the training facility with escape, damage to government property, deriliction of duty?
A police dog is a police dog and does NOT have the ability to make judgement over life and death over an alleged car thief. Stealing a car is NOT a life sentence and our Blue Suited Executioners should leave that job up to the Courts. I’m sure that car he stole was worth a life.
Funny how its always shoot first and then justify later? and for how many years did the Bobbies in England did NOT carry firearms. Our “RAMBO” cops need to quit emulating the Terminator and become the Andy of Mayberry.
So if nearly every cop murder is justied, why do we even investigate them any more?
Whippersnapper on July 07 at 6:18 p.m.
From what I’ve read, this was a justified shooting, at least from the standpoint of officer safety. The suspect was struggling with a dog and shot it twice after an extensive chase. After several lawful orders to stop and be arrested, the suspect pulled a gun. By introducing a gun into the scene, he forced the officers to believe that they might be next. I don’t give a meth-head who had just crashed a car trying to escape the benefit of the doubt. Thanks to officer Lesser for doing what he was trained to do and I hope he doesn’t have to deal with critics and the difficult emotions that he must endure in the aftermath.
The Otto Zehm case, however, is another matter.
TALKJOC on July 07 at 6:31 p.m.
I am sooooo glad that I don’t have to rely on D Walker and George Sands for protection. Good grief, charge the dog with escape and damage to public property.
The guy stole a car, shot the police dog and got what was coming.
The officer and the dog did thier job.
BTW, R.I.P. Var.
eagleproducer on July 07 at 7:01 p.m.
lesley: Yeah, lots of bystanders at 4 a.m. in the morning on the side streets of Spokanistan.
I don’t know how shooting someone in the back while they flee amounts to heroism, but somewhere cowardice replaced common sense. Probably the same time when they went with the storm trooper look for their uniforms instead of the old friendly style that said “we are here to protect and serve.”
JFRENCH on July 07 at 7:14 p.m.
Where to start… I’ll choose one. George Sands. For one, where did it say that the suspect was “running away”? He wasn’t running. He was shooting. And it didn’t ever allude to him being shot multiple times. It said once. And where did you get .22 short? It said “.22 caliber”, the most popular of those being .22 long rifle, which is just as loud as most other firearms, not that the officer should have to think about how loud a gun is before he shoots some scumbag junkie that’s shooting at him. And if that same scumbag junkie is shooting at a police dog, he’s capable of shooting at police officers as well. Var saved lives by taking that bullet, and ignorant people like you think that they have all the answers and would react appropriately in every possible scenario. The reality is, you be sh**ing your pants like all the rest of those armchair quarterbacks out there. This junkie got what he deserves.
Ron_the_Cop on July 07 at 7:26 p.m.
I’m with Wippersnapper. And Mr. Sands I’m sorry but you’ve been watching too much TV re shooting to wound. It’s very difficult to hit a moving target let alone pick an area to hit. In our training is was always shoot for center mass e.g, two to the chest one to the head (in case they were wearing armor). In my training the intent was shoot to remove the threat. If you shot your weapon your intent was to kill the suspect. Sorry your way of thinking is what’s wrong with Obama’s view of the Iranian Mullahs:-)
nslopeofw on July 07 at 10:17 p.m.
I don’t buy in to the dog being an officer, therefore it’s OK to shoot anyone who threatens him, but when a person (junkie or not) pulls a gun while “struggling” with a cop, the cop has every right to blast away. Anyone dumb enough to pull a gun out while trying to elude police is taking their life in their own hands. Especially Spokane police.
George_Sands on July 08 at 7:03 a.m.
I bet if a rabid (brain tumor’d) mutt started biting your a$$, you would want him to stop also. Some of you knuckleheads need to read Driscolls FULL report and not the S-R highlights. The report states specifically “running away”. Otherwise how did he get shot in the back? Maybe the bullet made a U-Turn?
Yep a lot of bystanders at 2:00am.
Was an autopsy performed on the body to determine if there were drugs/alcohol in the blood stream?
Is GTA probable cause to kill someone? or is a bottle of pepsi? Where do you draw the line?
So JFRENCH where did you read it was NOT a .22 short? and even if it was a long, the sound is NOTHING like a larger caliber. Again obtain and read the FULL report and not just your ouji board musings.