The Pittsburgh police Officer Michael H. Rosfeld who shot and killed 17-year-old Antwon Rose is finally on trial. A key witness spoke out yesterday, which reportedly shocked the courtroom.
John Leach, a neighbor who lives near the scene of the June 19 shooting, said “he was on the front porch when Rosfeld fired three bullets into 17-year-old Anton Rose II,”according to NBC News.
He claimed he saw the Rosfield witness “standing on the sidewalk, panicking.” He claims the officer said, “I don’t know why I shot him. I don’t know why I fired.” He also claimed two other officers were consoling Rosfield after the shooting. NBC News also reports, “he saw Rosfeld pointing a gun at Rose while at least one of Rose’s hands was in the air. Then Rose turned and ran.”
The trial is expected to take a week or more and the juror has three African-Americans.
In case you missed it, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported Rosfeld was employed by the University of Pittsburgh in 2012 and “suspended in December 2017, two days after he arrested three men at the Garage Door Saloon on Atwood Street in Oakland. There was a scuffle at the bar the night of Dec. 9, and Officer Rosfeld arrived and charged Jacob Schilling, Timothy Riley and Daniel Humphrey with simple assault, defiant trespass, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness.”
All of the charges were dropped. District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. claimed the charges were withdrawn because the video evidence wasn’t sufficient. However, “the owner of the Garage Door Bar alleged that the charges were withdrawn at the behest of Mr. Humphrey’s mother, Kathy Humphrey, the university’s senior vice chancellor for engagement and secretary of the board of trustees.”
If Rosfeld had been properly punished, he arguably would not have became a police officer for the city of Pittsburgh.
On June 19, just hours after he was sworn in as an officer, Rosfeld fatally shot Rose. During a traffic stop, officers, including Rosfeld, claimed they were investigating a nearby shooting. The driver, Rose and one other person were in the car. The driver was arrested. The other passenger escaped, but was arrested on June 26. Rose allegedly ran and was shot in the back three times. As for the nearby shooting to which officers were responding, investigators confirmed Rose was not involved in the incident.
We hope the family of Antwon Rose gets justice.
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