[kellyhound]

Friday, July 4, 2008 - Dramatic video footage from police cruiser dashboards played in a hearing Thursday show three West Memphis officers firing volleys of shots into a suspect's car, which drives off but then hits a short brick wall, goes airborne and lands on the front porch of a nearby house.

The shootings occurred July 18, 2004, at Jackson and Danny Thomas in Memphis following a high-speed chase that began with a traffic stop in West Memphis and ended 11 minutes later with the deaths of the driver and his female passenger.

Donald Rickard, 44, was shot at least 17 times, while passenger Kelly Anne Allen, also 44, was hit in the head by one bullet that passed through a headrest.

Two West Memphis officers charged with reckless homicide in the passenger's death now contend that state prosecutors have abused their discretion in denying their request for diversion, a procedure in which charges can be dismissed following a period of good behavior.

Criminal Court Judge John Fowlkes said he will rule Sept. 26 on whether the two officers -- Tony Galtelli and John Gardner -- should be placed on diversion.

A third officer charged -- Sgt. Vance Plumhoff -- was granted diversion in May because prosecutors said he attempted to call off the chase, a claim attorneys for the other officers say is not borne out by the tapes.

The defense attorneys, though, argued that all of the officers acted appropriately and did nothing wrong.

"They tried to protect themselves and tried to protect the public," said Galtelli's attorney, Steve Farese. "There were no high fives out there (afterward). This was a serious situation and they had to end it. These men's duty was to protect and serve, and they did their duty."

Gardner's attorney, Robert Brannon, called the officers actions that night "exemplary" and "by the book."


State prosecutor Thomas Henderson said the officers had stopped Rickard's vehicle and were in no immediate danger when they "recklessly filled this car with lead."

He said passenger Allen was an innocent third party, while the defense argued that she was a co-conspirator who likely would have faced criminal charges had she lived.

On the three dashboard tapes, Rickard's 1992 white Honda Accord leads at least four squad cars on a high-speed, weaving chase on Interstate 40 across the Hernando DeSoto Bridge, exits at Danny Thomas and is momentarily stopped next to a business at 653 Danny Thomas at Jackson.

With the vehicle pinned in by squad cars, nearly a half dozen officers quickly approach the vehicle as one officer apparently tries to break out the passenger side window with the butt of his pistol and tries to open the door.

As Rickard maneuvers his vehicle in an effort to escape, the three West Memphis officers open fire from a few feet away, Although wounded, he manages to drive off, but the vehicle weaves on Jackson and crashes into a small brick wall at Manassas, launching the Honda onto a home's front porch.

Prosecutors initially denied diversion for all three men, but in 2006 were ordered by a now-retired judge to place them on diversion.

Earlier this year, however, an appeals court reversed the judge and said he should have ordered prosecutors to review their decision to deny diversion and to consider additional legal factors.

Defense attorneys say the officers are being punished for the same offense, which is unconstitutional, because they already have completed a two-year diversion, paid court costs, attended anger management and have returned to duty.