UPDATED/Oklahoma City pharmacist / first degree murder / VID

[dihappy]

Wow!
After only watching the video i would have to deliberate against him if i were on the jury.

I am willing to bet that the jury will NOT see the kid as a threat since the owner walked past him twice, then strolled over to finish him while standing right over him.

If this guy in fact had it in his head to "finish him" knowing he wasnt a threat anymore, i hope he burns!

[TexasComputerDude]

Jerome Ersland was back at work Thursday filling prescriptions and hoping that by taking the life of a 16-year-old boy two days earlier, he had saved others.
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Rubbing an oversized bandage on his left forearm, where he said he was grazed by a robber’s bullet, Ersland related details of what he said was a highly organized hit on the Reliable Discount Pharmacy.

"I just regret anybody would get killed,” Ersland said. "But if I wouldn’t have been here, there would have been three people killed — the other pharmacist and the two techs.”

He also recalls the angry voices of people who gathered outside the pharmacy Tuesday night, shouting that he was a racist who unnecessarily took a life of the Seeworth Academy charter school student, Antwun Parker.

"There were a lot of black people gathered out there yelling and everything at my boss,” Ersland said.

An organized hit
After the pharmacy near SW 59 and Pennsylvania was robbed two years ago, the owner installed new security measures to try to make sure his employees would never again be forced to a back room and pistol-whipped.

"We have a very good security system,” Ersland said, motioning to the magnetic door locks that won’t let anyone in or out of the store without permission. "The door locks, and they (robbers) knew that. They had cased it because they knew exactly what time to hit us when we’d have all of our narcotics out and our money out.”

About 10 minutes before 6 p.m., Ersland said, two robbers wearing ski masks waited for someone to leave the pharmacy and then grabbed the open door and threw down a board to stop the door from closing.

The robbers went in cursing and yelling, ordering employees to give them money and drugs, Ersland said.

Two women who were working behind the counter ran for a back room where they would be safe, but Ersland said he couldn’t run. Ersland said he’s a veteran with disabilities from wounds he received in Operation Desert Storm, wears a cumbersome back brace and just had his latest back surgery six weeks ago.

"All of a sudden, they started shooting,” he said. "They were attempting to kill me, but they didn’t know I had a gun. They said, ‘You’re gonna die.’ That’s when one of them shot at me, and that’s when he got my hand.”

Ersland said he was thrown against a wall, but managed to go for the semiautomatic in his pocket.

"And that’s when I started defending myself,” he said. "The first shot got him in the head, and that slowed him down so I could get my other gun.”

But as one robber hit the floor, Ersland said, a bullet from the other robber whizzed past his ear.

The pharmacist said he then got his second gun from a nearby drawer, a Taurus "Judge.”

After he had the big gun, Ersland said, the second robber ran.

But as he started to chase after the second robber, Ersland said, he looked back to see the 16-year-old he had shot in the head getting up again. Ersland said he then emptied the Kel-Tec .380 into the boy’s chest as he kept going after the second robber.

"I went after the other guy, but he was real fast and I’m crippled,” Ersland said.

Outside the pharmacy, he said he saw what he thought was a third black male in a car with the engine running and reaching for what appeared to be a shotgun.

"I pulled out my ‘Judge’ and pointed it right between his eyes and he floored it,” Ersland said.

The investigation
Because of the sensitive nature of the investigation, police said they could not confirm any of Ersland’s story, including whether Ersland was shot, whether the robbers ever fired on him or even if Parker was armed.

On Thursday, police were still looking for the second robber, described as a black man in his 20s, about 5 feet, 7 inches tall, and weighing about 175 pounds. The man was last seen wearing a red shirt and dark pants.

A man was arrested about a block away after crashing a stolen car that fit the description Ersland gave, but police said the man has not been linked to the robbery.

After the gunfire
When he went back in the pharmacy, Ersland said, he called police.

"I asked if the girls were all right, and they were in the back crying,” he said. "I was glad to know they were alive. We were lucky and I’m glad I defended us, because I feel that a person has a right to defend themselves at their home or at their work. People deserve to be safe and not be afraid of people that want to take money when they don’t work for it.”

That’s what the Second Amendment and the state’s "concealed carry” license are for, he said.

"Fortunately, God made them miss me, except for this minor scratch,” Ersland said.

"I was able to return fire and protect the girls’ lives. God was helping me.”

[TexasComputerDude]

I wish we had an unedited version of the video to watch.

[KD5NRH]

I wish we had an unedited version of the video to watch.

+1, and I would be surprised if there's not at least one, possibly two more cameras that we're not seeing anything from. (I can't imagine spending the money for a DVR and cameras, and being satisfied with just that lousy angle for an interior view. A camera behind the counter would show what happened a lot better, but might be seen as "too graphic"for the TV audience - and too revealing if it happened to show the BG getting up.) Two camera setups aren't particularly cost effective when four camera setups are not much more expensive, and allow for dramatically bettter coverage.

Also, just before he fires the second set of shots, it looks like, as he comes around the counter, he slows, possibly says something, (maybe "stay down?") then takes the next couple of steps toward the BG more quickly than he was walking from the back of the store, as if he's seen something unexpected and quickened his pace to deal with it. That's exactly the reaction one would expect if a threat popped up again.

[A-R]

It is a shame that a 16 year old is dead... however he put himself in that situation and deserved what he got. Too bad the other guy got away, he is also responsible for this death as well. I also get the impression that the guy that got away had some experience at this, it didn't look like it was his first time.

Good points. No matter the outcome, the "other" bad guy is JUST AS GUILTY for the 16-year-old's death as anyone else in that store. If they don't go in there to commit armed robbery (and perhaps worse?), none of this would have happened.

[TexasComputerDude]

still, the what the pharmacist said in the news interview and whats on tape don't match up very well at all.


another reason to SHUT UP! AND CALL A LAWYER

[ClarkLZeuss]

what does he get out of the counter, just before he goes back and finishes the guy off??

[Liberty]

Something has been bothering me about this incident since the first news report I read here a day or two ago. The pharmacist claims he could not "retreat" like the ladies did because of his back condition. But he "pursued" the second attacker out of the store. And the video shows him doing this and he seems plenty ambulatory to me in the video. If he could go after the attacker who fled, why could he not retreat to the back room like his co-workers, especially AFTER he shoots the first attacker and the second attacker flees. That's the time to go back to the store room, call 911, and wait patiently with your gun aimed at the door.

I greatly appreciate the alternative theories expressed here about why he shot the first attacker the second time. I hope each of you are on the jury if I'm ever charged in a gun incident. And I do sincerely believe any of these alternate theories is possible.

But the lack of retreat, when he clearly was ambulatory enough to do so AFTER firing the first shots, could well hang this guy.

Oklahoma has the Castle doctrine just as Texas does, only there they call it the "Make my day" law. I like the way the Okies named it better. Shootings like this and proper naming of the laws give a clear statement to the bad guys.

Yeah, I know the it was the Brady's that named it that. If monkeys given enough time at a key board will type an intelligible thought so can't a Brady.

[bdickens]

What we see sure doesn't look good, that's for sure.

[jlangton]

If he could go after the attacker who fled, why could he not retreat to the back room like his co-workers, especially AFTER he shoots the first attacker and the second attacker flees. That's the time to go back to the store room, call 911, and wait patiently with your gun aimed at the door.

He shouldn't have to,nor should he be required to do so.
JL

[jlangton]

+1, and I would be surprised if there's not at least one, possibly two more cameras that we're not seeing anything from. (I can't imagine spending the money for a DVR and cameras, and being satisfied with just that lousy angle for an interior view. A camera behind the counter would show what happened a lot better, but might be seen as "too graphic"for the TV audience - and too revealing if it happened to show the BG getting up.) Two camera setups aren't particularly cost effective when four camera setups are not much more expensive, and allow for dramatically bettter coverage.

I do CCTV systems and security every day for a living,and you can't convince some people that it's "not that much more" to add better camera coverage-they just see a dollar figure and balk at the idea of more money.
JL

[jlangton]

But what bothers me is the way in which he delivers the second round of shots -- from a kneeling position, right next to the guy.

Watch that video again,maybe a few times. He's not kneeling-he's standing upright. I'm still not 100% sure on my opinion of this situation-I don't see enough in the video footage to determine what happened after he reentered the store. I cannot see the assumed armed robber,nor can I see what he's doing when he was shot for the second time. I do know he was a participant in an attempted armed robbery.
JL

[texas yankee]

Even though there's at least one video, there's still a lot that's not evident - NOT seeing the guy on the floor is a problem - NOT seeing the video at actual speed distorts the actions (and possibly the sense of urgency) of the pharmacist - we don't have a clear understanding of the pharmacist's mental state just before the shooting - nor immediately after the shooting - and the difference between his initial account as reported in the paper and the sequence in the video is understandable.

What this is going to come down to - IMHO - is the Jury that's selected and the skill of the defense attorney. I can easily see a case being made for the guy's mental state, fear for his life, etc. . . .

I wonder what type of rounds he was using for the head shot?

[USA1]

It is a shame that a 16 year old is dead... however he put himself in that situation and deserved what he got. Too bad the other guy got away, he is also responsible for this death as well. I also get the impression that the guy that got away had some experience at this, it didn't look like it was his first time.

Good points. No matter the outcome, the "other" bad guy is JUST AS GUILTY for the 16-year-old's death as anyone else in that store. If they don't go in there to commit armed robbery (and perhaps worse?), none of this would have happened.

when you commit an act like that, you give up your right to live. why punish the shooter. they forced him to take action.
we need to send a clear message to criminals !

[Excaliber]

The video doesn't show the actions of the wounded bandit, which would make much clearer whether or not the pharmacist's actions were justified.

In my view, his demeanor when making his final approach and firing again at the individual on the floor is atypical for someone dealing with what one believes is an immediate deadly threat. However, his history as a military veteran who has learned to manage his emotions during life threatening situations and pain from his recent back surgery may explain some or all of that.

From the video and statements we have available at this point, I would find it very difficult to criticize the decision to arrest the pharmacist because from the information we have, one could reasonably conclude that only the first shot was justified. I would also not rule out the possibility that the man acted reasonably and lawfully on the basis of investigative information that is not shown on the video or included in the news reports.

From a law enforcement perspective, the best course in a situation like this is to make the charge and let the grand jury and quite possibly a trial jury sort through the full set of forensic evidence and witness statements to determine what really happened, and ultimately decide whether or not the defender's actions were justified.