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Friday, August 31, 2012

DA John Morganelli Prefers Injured Criminals to Dead Police Officers


Northampton County DA John Morganelli would rather have an injured criminal than a dead police officer. At an August 30 news conference, the prosecutor announced that announced that no charges will be filed against an Easton police officer who recently shot a fleeing criminal suspect.

This shooting, which occurred on August 21, was during an evening in which police received several complaints about shots fired. Officer Eric Campbell, on patrol in Easton's south side, spotted a group of individuals that included the suspected shooter. But when Officer Campbell exited his patrol car, one of them, Nelson Mayers, fled.

While giving chase, Officer Campbell saw Mayers put his hand in the waist area of his pants. Campbell saw a black object in Mayers' hand when he turned to face him. Mayers even extended his arm, which led Campbell to believe it was a handgun.

Campbell fired twice, with one shot hitting Mayers in the leg. Police then discovered that the object Mayers was holding was a black cell phone, not a gun.

At St. Luke's Hospital, medical staff discovered that Mayers had secreted heroin in his buttocks.

Chief Carl Scalzo (left)
Morganelli ruled that the shooting was justified. Officer Campbell was responding to night calls about gunshots being fired and had seen some of the casings. He knew that people in that area were armed. Mayers not only fled from Campbell, but acted in a way that led the Officer to believe a gun was being pointed at him. And Easton has had a recent surge of shootings.

"In today's times, police officers have a right to protect themselves," stated Morganelli. "Just about every day, we read about a police officer who has been gunned down while on the course of duty when someone pulls a gun on them and shoots them without reason or cause."

He noted the Officer was in the unfortunate position of being forced to make a "split second judgment."

Morganelli added that Mayers, who was been charged by summons with possession of heroin, will recover from the gunshot wound to his right shin and has no life threatening injuries.

Police Chief Carl Scalzo, who sat with Morganelli during the news conference, noted that Officer Campbell is on paid administrative leave, and his department is still conducting its own investigation of the incident. He added that, before returning to duty, Campbell will receive a psychological evaluation.

Morganelli Clears Easton Police Officer in Shooting
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7 comments:

  1. AnonymousAugust 31, 2012 at 6:15 AM

    Arrogant little dancing monkey.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Bernie O'HareAugust 31, 2012 at 12:15 PM

    WTF?

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousAugust 31, 2012 at 4:48 PM

    Easton's finest have left guns all over the place (interrogation rooms, unlocked police cruisers, diners, etc.) and killed each other with them. I support cops and the guy may well have earned his shooting. Easton's kops should be viewed with a very healthy skepticism, however. They've earned it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Bernie O'HareAugust 31, 2012 at 7:27 PM

    I have deleted two comments posted by the Fake Rev, Mario Martinez of Forks Tp. He has stated several times on his own blog that he does not read this one, so his comments here necessarily demonstrate that he is a liar. His comments here are unwelcome under any circumstances, even when I am in complete agreement. He is being deleted bc he is a troll who has made far too many personal attacks without signing his name. He has told too many lies, such as his false claim that he voted for Mayor Panto when he does not even live in Easton. He has also embraced and encouraged the rantings of another well-established liar, Tricia Mezzacappa, simply bc she shares his message of hatred. If he were a real cleric, he would be encouraging her to get help. But he's a phony.

    "You shall know them by their deeds."

    He can speak to Jesus or whatever on his own blog. I don't want his garbage here.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Bernie O'HareSeptember 1, 2012 at 12:14 AM

    And for what it's worth, my opinion is that the actions of Officer Campbell were completely justified, and so were the actions of Easton police in charging Tricia Mezzacappa. I simply will not allow the Fake Rev to use this blog for more of his demagoguery.

    ReplyDelete
  6. UnknownSeptember 1, 2012 at 4:45 AM

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I think it's just right to get those criminals injured that getting the lives of the police officers to waste. I know of many cases of Criminal Injury Claim. If somebody out there needs help with it, check on the link.

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousSeptember 1, 2012 at 12:09 PM

    any fairminded person would agree with Morganelli's position and your headline.

    Far better a wounded criminal with heroin stashed up his butt crack than a dead police officer, even despite Easton PD's track record.

    ReplyDelete

You own views are appreciated, especially if they differ from mine. But remember, commenting is a privilege, not a right. I will delete personal attacks or off-topic remarks at my discretion. Comments that play into the tribalism that has consumed this nation will be declined. So will comments alleging voter fraud unless backed up by concrete evidence. If you attack someone personally, I expect you to identify yourself. I will delete criticisms of my comment policy, vulgarities, cut-and-paste jobs from other sources and any suggestion of violence towards anyone. I will also delete sweeping generalizations about mainstream parties or ideologies, i.e. identity politics. My decisions on these matters are made on a case by case basis, and may be affected by my mood that day, my access to the blog at the time the comment was made or other information that isn’t readily apparent.