Published: March 13, 2008 10:05 am      

SWAT shooting sparks lawsuit

Mother, sister of man killed in hail of bullets seek damages

San Marcos — Alleging police were overreacting to a report of an armed man when the city/county SWAT team shot an Austin resident to death in 2006, the mother and sister of the man killed have filed suit.

Leslie Eugene Whited Jr., died from four gunshot wounds to the back, his autopsy says. Whited died in a stolen pickup truck the SWAT team had surrounded in a San Marcos neighborhood Feb. 4, 2008.

Four members of the team, who reportedly fired a total of 16 rounds, are individually named in the suit filed in U.S. District Court in Austin on Feb. 4 of this year.

Plaintiffs Melissa Krueger, Whited’s sister, and his mother Helen Harding filed the case “individually and on behalf of the estate of Leslie Eugene Whited,” court documents say.

Named in it are San Marcos police officers Terry Nichols and John Curnutt and Hays sheriff’s deputies David Burns, Mark Cumberland and Mike Davenport.

Whited came to police attention when a woman whose vehicle he hit called 911. The SWAT team was summoned because Whited was believed to have been armed, though no weapon was found in the truck.

His autopsy also revealed he had methamphetamine in his system at the time he died.

Reports indicate police tried to negotiate with Whited for two hours, and were about to use tear gas to flush him from the truck, which was blocked in by law enforcement vehicles, when Whited started the truck’s engine and put it in reverse. That’s when shots were fired by police.

The suit calls the actions of the officers that day “senseless, reckless and malicious,” and in violation of Whited’s rights “including provisions prohibiting unreasonable seizures and the deprivation of life and liberty without due process.”

The action seeks compensatory as well as punitive damages.

In a response filed with the court, both Hays County and San Marcos deny the officers acted improperly and said that they enjoy “qualified immunity” from such lawsuits.

Texas Ranger Tommy Ratliff investigated the case and all four officers were subsequently cleared by a Hays County Grand Jury.

Melissa Krueger did not return a phone call on Wednesday seeking comment.