Kathryn Johnston, 92
Police obtain a no-knock warrant, then break through the door of a scared old lady who fires shots and is killed by police returning fire.
ABC NEWS Many people on the rundown northwest Atlanta street where Kathryn Johnston lived fortify their windows with metal bars and arm themselves for protection. Johnston, 92, was no exception. She was waiting with her gun on Tuesday night when a group of plainclothes officers with a warrant knocked down her door in a search for drugs, police said. She opened fire, wounding three officers, before being shot to death, police said.
Assistant Police Chief Alan Dreher called the killing “tragic and unfortunate” but said the officers were justified in returning fire.
“You don’t know who’s in the house until you open that door,” Dreher said Wednesday. “And once they forced open the door, they were immediately fired upon.”
The officers had gone to the old woman’s house with a search warrant after buying drugs there from a man known only as Sam, police said. Police issued a “John Doe” warrant on Wednesday for the arrest of Sam, believed to be in his early to mid 30s, who allegedly sold the drugs to the undercover agent. Dreher would not say how the dealer knew Johnston.
Investigators also said they found drugs in the home after Johnston was killed.
But family, friends, and neighbors who knew the woman were in disbelief, because…
The Ledger The killing of Ms. Johnston has outraged her neighbors and family, who said she was home alone at the time of the shooting and kept the “rusty revolver” only for self-defense in a neighborhood where drugs are openly traded and another elderly woman was recently raped.
Ms. Robinson, who said she had lived down the street from Ms. Johnston for 17 years, said she was shaken by the death of her “good friend.”
“This woman didn’t bother anyone,” Ms. Robinson said. “She was scared. She stayed in her house. She wouldn’t even come to the door for me unless I called first.”
Sunday evening, at a news conference, ATL Police Chief Richard Pennington made his first comments on the incident:
11 Alive News “They did find drugs in the house and it was not a large amount. It was marijuana,” said Chief Pennington.
Chief Pennington said the case was built on a drug buy by a confidential informant, who claimed he purchased drugs inside Johnston’s home.
More on this story as it develops.
_____________________________
Update (11/27/06):
The Confidential Informant Says ATL Police Are Lying. He says he has not been to that house, that he was told to lie, says “Sam” does not exist. Watch the video here.
What bothers me about this story is that I’ve read several accounts that describe her as “waiting with her gun”. That certainly sounds like she was expecting the police. And why is it we automatically assume that a 92 year old grandma couldn’t possibly be dealing drugs?
Meanwhile, a dangerous-looking young man bearing cupcakes and tea for the officers was not injured.
You know, I think this is a good example of the secondary consequences of having laws that don’t work well together. If people have the right to use force to defend their lives and their property, then it should be reasonable to assume that breaking down the door of a house unannounced will result in the people inside to rightfully use that force to defend themselves. And of course, the police will return fire when fired upon. Not good.
#1, perhaps she was waiting while they battered the door down?
lakelady, “she was waiting with her gun” was mentioned once.
The reason was: She”kept the “rusty revolver” only for self-defense in a neighborhood where drugs are openly traded and another elderly woman was recently raped.”
The real question is, WHY did all the neighbours know that she carried a gun and was afraid for her life, and the police didn’t? S-T-U-P-I-D-I-T-Y. Carelessness at it’s extreme. Anyone with half a brain and a TV knows you case the joint first so you know what you’re walking into.
This is a mix of bad choices all around…
If you fire on police… or just about anyone, they will fire back if they have guns… This is a very good reason for gun control, if the police were the only ones with guns, no shots would have been fired. But for this to work, the police would need more money to actually keep peace everywhere…but that’s another discussion.
Also, why hadn’t the police checked out the place before? check around the house, check windows, listen for more than one voice… simple detectiv…ing (don’t know the verb) would have found only an old lady in the house. The police could’ve just knocked on the door and the lady wouldn’t have been as scared.
but main reason why this story shouldn’t be as big as it is… If you fire on police (plain clothes or uniformed) they will fire back. Thats it, the end.
If more intelligence had been gathered, not to mention been used in this situation, the old woman would likely not have died. A no-knock warrant isn’t a weekend pass to Dumbassville, discretion is still a responsibility of those doing the search.
From a DOJ site.
“Federal law does not contain a provision for a “no knock” warrant. Although some states still issue “no knock” warrants, DEA Agents need to recognize that such warrants are actually no different than a normal warrant with respect to the duty to knock and announce. The duty to knock and announce before entering a residence is a matter of Federal constitutional law, and the duty can be excused only by showing that exigent circumstances actually existed at the time of the search. DEA Agents must not under any circumstances participate in a search warrant execution that fails to comply with the knock and announce requirement unless they are aware of specific facts that demonstrate that their safety will be compromised or evidence will likely be destroyed if they do not effect an immediate, unannounced entry to the residence.”
Searching homes at least for the rest of this week, is driven by presedence in federal law. Even though this was a local operation, framing the story with a term likely to be confused, like “no-knock”, spins the narrative in the direction of making the old lady look more at fault.
http://www.usdoj.gov/olc/noknock.htm
Yeah, basically the police screwed up lots. It’s understandable they fired back, but the point is that they shouldn’t have been in the house in the first place.
ans 3 and 5 said – stupidity and problems with the fundamental set up of the laws. However the second can be overcome if you don’t have the first…
This is a very good reason for gun control, if the police were the only ones with guns, no shots would have been fired
What’s your plan for getting the guns out of the hands of criminals? Let’s assume for the sake of common sense that passing laws will have no effect whatsoever.
The local media have tried to get a copy of the search warrant to see what statement the police used to justify a “no knock” entry. They have been unable because State Court Administrator Stefani Searcy refuses to release it (even though state law says it is a public record) saying “office policy” is her reason for witholding it. I think this case is going to blow up in the face of the police.
From 11Alive: Chief Pennington said the case was built on a drug buy by a confidential informant, who claimed he purchased drugs inside Johnston’s home.
From The Ledger: “The police have assured me that they had made a drug purchase from this very residence on this day,” said Paul Howard, the Fulton County district attorney.
Mr. Howard said undercover officers bought illegal drugs from a man at the house in the afternoon….
So who bought the original drugs? Undercover officers or a confidential informant (citizen)? And why no mention of the type of drug purchased? Was it marijuana or something else? A lot of questions need to be answered.
Plainclothes? So that means that a bunch of guys with guns broke down her door without warning?
Is it just me or would a raid conducted out of uniform look a lot like a robbery?
A couple of years ago, the police in a nearby town used a similar “no knock” approach when attempting to apprehend a suspect at a motel. The man had a gun by his bed and responded the way anyone would when someone busts through his door in the middle of the night — he reached for the weapon. Result: he and the woman he was sleeping with were killed (murdered).
The police ruled their response was justified.
The sad thing here is even if it wasn’t a no-knock warrant there have been home invasion robbers here in the Atlanta area posing as police.
I am sorry this is very Stalinistic, State Sponsored Murder, intended or not. The State with all it’s incompetent omnipotence has certainly sanctioned and justified this, Stalin would be proud.
Our forefathers would be turning over in their graves. What the hell did they fight for?
The goal justify the means. We need a drug-free society at any costs, isn’t it? Imagine what would have happened if they hadn’t stopped her selling marijuana! Harm & disaster for everyone!
>if the police were the only ones with guns
You would have a police state for sure.
What’s your plan for getting the guns out of the hands of criminals?
Ok, bear with me…if you create a big enough RFID interrogator, one that can detect implanted chips from the street, it will also serve as a really good metal detector. It’ll be 25 feet in diameter and require a couple hundred amps of current and 13 miles of wire, but that’s a minor problem. It’s also going to degauss every TV in the neighborhood, which is a public service. With that the cops can detect a the mass of a handgun just like those jokers sweeping the beaches know a quarter from a bottle cap. A three-fer.
🙂
At 92 she was bound to kick off any day now anyway. I don’t see the problem.
lol!! classic!!
Where are all the insensitive jerks from the Taser thread who should be here proclaiming the lady “had it coming,” “…that’ll teach her to mess with the cops,” or “…saves us the cost of sending her to prison”?
Just another example of how handguns can create as much danger as they protect against. I wonder if anyone has ever tried a study to determine the overall effect of handgun ownership on personal safety. Mind you, in a society where some people think seatbelts are a facist plot, it probably wouldn’t make any difference.
Robert
It is strange when all over the country, officers use no knock warrants every week and take down all the people (younger people) inside homes without incident. She must have been in the back away from the door and had the gun on her person when they entered.
Maybe if just trying to sell alittle marijuana wasnt a crime, then people wouldnt have to arm themselves to wage war on the police to keep their illegal profits, police wouldnt feel so justified busting into peoples homes with guns at the ready for it, and they wouldnt have been shot at.
#17 – You would have a police state for sure.
Poor Europeans… they’re oppressed in their police states…
it is pretty obvious that this is a setup to make stronger gun control laws, when it really should be used to make stronger police control laws.
I want to be a security officer so I can taser students who forget their library card. Since when did law enforcement become the career magnet for idiots and losers? It used to be respectable.
Maybe she had marijuana in her home just as the man in New Orleans, shortly after Katrina, who hadn’t had a drink in over twenty years.was beaten by New Orleans police for being drunk.
When I was a kid, police used ‘ throw down ‘ guns to justify their murders.
Using ‘ throw down ‘ drugs is on the same level.
There are a lot of unanswered questions
concerning this situation that led to the killing of this 92 year old woman.
I wonder if anyone has ever tried a study to determine the overall effect of handgun ownership on personal safety.
You’re a funny guy, Robert. Hehehe.
You had me going for a minute.
#19, gq,
At 92 she was bound to kick off any day now anyway. I don’t see the problem.
Comment by gquaglia — 11/27/2006 @ 2:18 pm
It would take someone like you to think there was something humorous in this. Yup, your buddies bust into a home and blow away a 92 yr old woman and you manage to find something funny about it.
Of course you couldn’t see any problem. All you are capable of seeing are the walls of your colon.