October 24, 2007
Road Rage Cop Released, Victim's Family Rages
Police officer Sean Sawyer was released and not charged after confessing to shooting an unarmed man in Harlem during a road argument early Sunday morning. The Manhattan DA's office claimed that Sawyer could have been acting in self-defense, because the other driver, Jayson Tirado, suggested he had a gun when he gestured and yelled at Sawyer. DA Robert Morgenthau said the "case is under investigation and is going to go to a grand jury. When there's a claim of self-defense, there is no immediate arrest."
It turns out that Sawyer did not leave his car and that he was not given a Breathalyzer, since he turned himself in 19 hours after the shooting took place, and some reports say he may have been drinking before the incident. Here's the series of events that led to the shooting, from Newsday:
Sawyer and Tirado got into an argument as each was trying to squeeze off the congested East 116th Street exit of the Harlem River Drive, where police were investigating a fatal motorcycle accident.It was also reported that Sawyer said, "Don't you know how to drive?...I’m going to have to cap one of you," to Tirado's car, first initiating the confrontation. Sawyer, who has been suspended without pay, was tailed by the media when he left his home on West 102nd Street. He said, "This guy is a human being, of course you're going to feel bad...I just wish it would have been different." Sawyer's brother Chris said, "We'd like to apologize deeply for what happened. We wish [Tirado's] family the best and we are praying for them."Both drivers headed up First Avenue, and when Tirado cut Sawyer off at East 117th Street, the tensions escalated, police said.
According to Jason Batista, 21, one of two passengers with the victim, Tirado pretended he was reaching for a gun, pointed at Sawyer and said, "You want to see Mr. Ruger?" a reference to the make of gun, sources said.
It wasn't clear whether Sawyer heard what was said, but Batista told police it appears Sawyer opened fire from his car when he saw the "gun" being pointed at him, sources said.
However, Tirado's mother Irene was angry "My son was a good kid. I want [Sawyer] fired. I won't rest. They [the police?] have not called me, they have not come to my house, they have not told me when my son died, what time." She also referred to Sawyer as acting like a "reckless teenager" and said, "Why couldn’t he say, ‘Stop,’ and pull to the side like a normal policeman?...I don’t want to know him; I don’t want to forgive him. don’t want him to be a policeman ever again.”
The Reverend Al Sharpton will speak at a press conference at First Avenue and 120th Street, where Tirado stopped his car (three blocks from where he was shot) at noon, with Tirado's family present. And Tirado's friends and neighbors spoke to the NY Times: "I lost one of my friends that I grew up with and I loved him dearly.”
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Even if the shooting were 100% justified, Sawyer is probably going to be in deep doo-doo because he didn't immediately report the incident.
he reached and pointed... i believe that's grounds for self defense.
this is outrageous. i'm going to become a cop so i can do whatever i want too.
Remember kids, if anyone points their finger at you blow them away with your Glock as that's called self-defense.
Sorry edEx, it's not. It still amazes me how trigger happy some NYC cops can be. I've seen video of a police confrontation in another state down south where the woman actually pointed a black cell phone at police as if it was a gun, and the cops showed restraint and said "Is that a gun? Drop it now!" If that happened in NY, it would be another Diallo.
sawyer wasn't at least charged with leaving the scene, which he apparently freely confessed to??!
edEx - why did this cop run away for 19 hours? If he was justified in "self defense", he would have stayed at the scene of the murder.
The most disturbing aspect of this entire matter is that the officer left the scene rather than staying and calling for backup. Perhaps he was intoxicated and wanted to avoid the now mandatory post-shooting breathalyzer test. For that, he should have been charged with leaving the scene even if he is claiming self-defense.
Why do things get so out of hand? The whole tenssions scalated is what will keep this shit happening! dumb idiots with guns.
I find it hard to believe Sawyer's brother, who says that he is praying for the Tirado family. Just yesterday he said that his brother was doing what the city hired him to do by taking out Tirado.
The interesting thing with the media coverage is that WNBC did not release the officer's name, due to his undercover status, while other news organizations did.
Eh, don't worry, a grand jury will indict.
There's a thin line between cop and criminal and this guy crossed it when he ran away from a shooting for 19 hours (!).
Just like a typical cop to get into a road rage incident in the first place. Somebody doesn't want to let you merge? SO WHAT!?!?!? Move on, forget about it.
If they said they were "praying for" the family that makes it OK. I'm sure that'll bring the dead man back to life.
NYC-area drivers need to calm the f*ck down. Getting there alive is so much more fun than getting there 30 seconds earlier.