Probation officer gives office BJ to boot-camp teen
Sympathy for the Police in the Rev. Jonathan Ayers Shooting
Tuesday, September 8, 2009 at 10:05 am
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| Friends describe Ayers as a true follower of Jesus |
When Rev. Jonathan Ayers was gunned down by police in a Toccoa, Georgia drug sting gone very bad, True Crime readers were outraged (see comments here and here). "It is obvious that this was a botched operation, performed by undertrained, trigger-happy cops," wrote reader Edwin. "It is also obvious that the cover-up has already begun."
By all accounts Ayers, a pastor at tiny Shoal Creek Baptist Church, was a Christian in every sense of the word. He was a devoted husband with a baby due this winter. Friends and parishioners say he was a giving and gracious, the kind of man who would reach out to anyone. And since police haven't offered any evidence to the contrary, we have no reason to believe Ayers wasn't the person people claim him to be.
So it remains a mystery what he was doing that day in Toccoa. Police say he'd given a ride to a woman suspected of being a coke dealer. After he dropped her off, Ayers went to a convenience store to use the ATM. Relatives say he was getting money for new tires on his wife's car. What happened next became the touchstone for the anger. Either Ayers tried to run the undercover cops over, or blundering police killed an innocent pastor.
When Ayers emerged from the store and got in his car, undercover police pulled up in an Escalade, pulled their guns, and ordered him to stop. The cops say Ayers backed into one officer, then aimed his car at another. That's when they opened fire.
The pastor's supporters say he likely didn't hear the officers and thought he was being robbed. Ayers drove from the scene before crashing. His reported last words: Who shot me?
From the evidence so far, this seems to be the most plausible theory. Ayers wasn't a target in the sting, and police haven't linked him to drugs in any way. But before we hang the cops, it's wise to walk a moment in their shoes.
They were following a suspected drug dealer. Since she was in Ayers' car, they naturally assumed he might also be involved. And when he tried to flee, they believed their lives were endangered. So they opened fire.
It's easy to rip the cops in retrospect. In the Bible Belt, there is perhaps no greater sin than shooting an unarmed pastor -- especially one with Ayers' reputation. But the incident took place in a matter of seconds. And though the cops aren't talking, it's almost certain they had no idea who the preacher was.
Georgia police are investigating the shooting. New evidence may tell an entirely different story. But from the details we have now, this appears to be simply a very tragic accident. The kind of mistake Rev. Ayers would seem likely to forgive.
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