Frederick jury gets look at lots of equipment, little marijuana

My last line was cut off..I wouldn't shoot someone standing on my front lawn. That's not self defense.

First, you both need to get the facts straight. Ok, bobdoobie I have fired guns in "real Life", you need to understand a small caliber firearm like a 380 used by RF to murder shivers doesn't make a lot of noise. Fired in a house, the sound is absorbed by the walls, furniture, carpeting, curtains etc. A 380 fired in a house would not be as loud as a cork popping on a champagne bottle. So, although you could hear it outside it would make a distinctive popping sound. Every officer testified to hearing the gun shot and recognizing it as a gun shot. Wright broke into RF's house on his own, unkown to the police. I'm not surprised you have friends with grow ops, that makes perfect sense.

Ok, Ptown 8:30 is not the middle of the night can we at least get that straight. If someone came to my door and knocked and yelled police, and I looked out 2 windows seeing the police I'd open the door. I don't have friends with grow ops and I don't use drugs, so the police are welcome at my house. If I thought it wasn't the police I'd call the police and at least get them started to my house. If someone came IN my house, I'd give them warnings then defend myself. You can bet I wouldn't shoo

I can appreciate your contempt for drug dealers. I cannot, however, agree with your "what we know" portion of your argument. You failed to mention that his door was partially broken in the middle of the night by an unknown entity. Let's assume that someone were breaking down your door in the middle of the night, is that not enough of a reason to be fearful of your life? He was just robbed a few weeks earlier as well. As for the drug dealer part, had the CPD just waited until this kid went to work this whole thing would have been avoided. I honestly can't think of a worse time to carry out a search warrant than the time they chose. Just remember, those ol' hillbillies during prohibition that everyone credits with the start of NASCAR are no different than RF. The only difference is that one product was made legal because prohibition was a joke. The amount of pot he was growing is a joke, and the war on drugs is a joke. I am sorry for the loss of our officers, but breaking down doors at four in the morning is bad policy, simple as that. If this were an old lady who shot the cop we would look at this differently. That actually happened in Georgia not too long ago.

He may have killed a cop but in the various articles released by Pilot Online.. they quote a cop saying they banged on the door, yelled CPD... then vaguely heard a gun shot. Have you ever shot a gun in real life? If you can barely hear it, there is no way in hell that he was able to hear Chesapeake Police Department.

They had the informant BROKE INTO HIS HOUSE! For all RF knows is they are trying to get the rest and his money. With the lack of evidence they have, he will only be able to be charged with manslaughter.

I had a friend growing hydroponics, they busted him at work and kicked his doors in at his house at the same time. That was the Virginia Beach Police out in Pungo. Even the country folk know how to properly do things, they found him by Infrared camera on a helicopter.

Legally drug dealer or not he had every right to shoot first. If someone is trying to invade your house trying to kick your door down what's your first reaction? Calling the cops would do nothing but get you shot. It takes 10-15 minutes on average for a cop to arrive. Takes 5 minutes for someone to rob you and kill you then say no witness no problems.

over what an apparently unreliable source claims were twenty or thirty 18 inch pot plants.

The question that needs to be considered is: "What would the founding fathers say about this case (and the insane drug laws)?"
Most of us know the obvious answer... they would clearly side with Ryan. They understand all too well the dangers of a police force that could invade your home on a moment's notice. Also, many of them used drugs that are now illegal... such as Opium!

markg69046: Thank you! I agree 100 percent with your comments.

Peace

Regardless of whether or not you think RF is innocent or guilty or whether or not you condone pot smoking, the real question is why was such an elaborate sting operation necessary for this particular case. It's been widely documented that RF was a skinny frail young man who was timely to and from his job. I'm sure some average detective work would have figured out his regular schedule of coming home from work and it would have been easy to confront him peacefully in the daylight hours. It seems that the CPD & especially the SWAT team commandos were bored and needed a dramatic operation to use their fancy battering ram and night vision and turned a routine midsdemeanor pot bust into a tragic situation where one family lost a husband and father and another has now lost a son and brother.

FR Has not changed his story? Are you kiddding me? They aren't quite denying the marijuana plants like he was when he was sobbing on TV. It's quite entertaining to me how people fell all over him a year ago like a precious,innocent of all things darling. The poor kid was growing Japanes Maples and smokes pot occasionally........ Yeah it's pretty obvious what was really going on and your sweet little angel isn't so sweet. Nobody has that sort of equipment to grow marijuana for personal use. Those lamps and generators cost a ton of money and your not going to buy all that unless your making your money back. It doesn't take an informant to figure out he was selling his tail off.

Libbysays, your comment was right on. Way to go.

Guess what I did go to college in the early 80's in liberal NY. I have no contempt for people who smoke pot in their house and don't bother any one. I do however have contempt for dope dealers like RF and the ones that killed Det. Phillips. I know plenty of people who smoked pot and used coke in college. I know plenty of people who still smoke pot. I don't use drugs. I have a lot of contempt for the morons that post on these blogs with out getting the information that is written directly above the blog. The pilot obviously favors RF, but still we have learned: RF is a dope dealer, RF was awake and was seen by 2 different officers looking out his windows while the knocking was going on. The CPD gave extra announcements so RF would know it was the police and not a burglar, A marked police car was in front of his house. A valid search warrant was attempted to be served on a dope dealer with a gun. RF is a homicidal dope dealer, these are the things we know. Just read the pilot, they even reported this. Oh yea I have alot contempt for dope dealers who haved killed 2 cops in the last year in this area alone.

I didn't mention the presence of pot in my house because there is none. Never used the stuff or any other illegal substance, even though I was in college during the sixties. Almost everyone I know in my age bracket has "experimented" in thier past, but never has illicit smoke passed my lips!

LEOs need to be careful, and those who planned the raid appear to have goofed big time.

Slightly off topic: Marijuana should be legalized, like alcohol. If a person is under the influence while driving, they should be charged with DUI. If a person shows up for work under the influence of drugs, they should be fired, like with alcohol. Anything anyone does under the influence of any substance, drugs (prescribed or not) or alcohol should pay the penalty for that, but not for mere use in a home setting.

I agree, and that's what I have been saying all along....let it had been the shoe on the other foot, and it was an officer of the law who had shot first, IN SELF DEFENSE, because he saw RF coming around the corner with a gun, and yes, yes, yes....the officer would have been cleared VERY SOON, and would anyone have consoled the remaining family members of RF, if he had died, instead of the officer?

You are so uneducated in reality. You know nothing of which you speak. You blindly parrot trumped up statistics and faulty studies. Let me tell you one thing that is for absolutely sure. Once you lie to a kid you will NEVER have their attention again. When you tell them that weed leads to harder drugs, will kill them, when you feed to them all the hype fed to you by the anti-drug czars then you lose those kids forever! I tell them the truth that it is a waste of precious time. People aren't dropping dead from smoking a joint. Growing equipment is not illegal. Books are not illegal. Where are the drug buys? Where are the plants? There was not one bit of evidence except for the equivalent of two or three joints. The CPD made a fatal mistake using their Gestapo tactics. As for the snitch, he's in the CPD's pocket. Either he backs them or pays dearly. There is no credibility in the prosecutor's case. I can't wait for the impending lawsuit against Chesapeake that will surely follow this travesty!

All black & white huh? No shades of gray? If that were true then RF would be dead. He would have been pumped full of holes after he shot and killed Det. Shivers. But he isn't is he. Those officers who only see in black & white with no shades of gray held their fire, reacted according to their training and experience, held to their professionalism, policies & procedures, ethics & integrity, while they talked RF out and delivered him to the jail without a scratch on him...oh yeah, and they did it all covered in their own brother's blood. Could you have done that?

I think Donvabeach made an awesome point! You said what I was trying to say a lot better!

The studies you have read? Yeah, right.
Scientific studies debunked the gateway myth years ago. No correlation based on empirical evidence, pal!

I have been reading the comments on this case and cannot believe some of the things I have read. People being rude and desrespectful of others opinions and name calling. I don't know if RF had a grow operation and was selling it or not. BUT, this is not Capital Murder, it is at most a Involuntary Manslaughter nothing more. The mis-stating of facts, like one commentor stating that RF got out of bed, grabbed his gun, looked out the window and then shot. When the CPD present at the raid indicated that it was a Dog who looked out the window. Please people, let the facts be presented before stating facts that have not been presented. I have a lot of respect for the LEO's that are out there doing their best to keep us safe. This operation was not handled correctly given the circumstances. The people that make the policies need to change them to account for this. No matter what happens in this case, there will be more like it if changes are not made. Innocent people and Polices officers should not have their lives ruined over bad policy.

I am not sure if you are an educated person, but I would assume that you did not go to college. I can assume that because of the contempt you have for those who have taken drugs. I attended a very good liberal arts school whose average student scored in the 1350 range on the SAT and was a model high school student. I knew all of the pot smokers on my hall, and they were all better students than I was (I was a dumb jock). They were not bad kids, and they did not end up being drags on society and the economy. There is NOTHING dangerous about folks who smoke marijuana, any more than there is anything dangerous about folks who like vodka and tonics. The only difference is that one can get hammered legally, and the pot smoker is an evil person tearing up the moral fabric of our society! Oh, and white college students are MORE likely to use marijuana and about a third of all college students have used marijuana in the past year! Are college kids THAT dangerous? Aren't we past the "Reefer Madness" mentality yet?

If you arrest him at work, then you are upsetting him...doing it at work in front of his co-workers and all. In ALL studies that I have seen, marjuania is just the beginning to harsher drugs...If you can't see he got rid of what was not stolen, then you yourself are just as crazy as he is. Here is what we know for a FACT. He shot and killed a man....what else you want to know...thats all that needs to be said. When you start letting the little guys go, thats when you get in trouble. But remember, he wasn't a little guy, he was growing pot in his garage...to maybe sell to my two kids or anyone else's kid. I wish the pilot would stop flagging my comments because by the time it is approved, I get pushed way down to the bottom that people have thought that they have already read!!!!!!!!!!!!!