This is what can happen when mistakes are made and this took place in 2000 just outside Nashville.

A 61-year-old man was shot to death by

police while his wife was handcuffed in another room during a drug

raid on the wrong house.

Police admitted their mistake, saying faulty information from a drug informant contributed to the death of John Adams Wednesday night. They intended to raid the home next door.

The two officers, 25-year-old Kyle Shedran and 24-year-old Greg Day, were placed on administrative leave with pay.

“They need to get rid of those men, boys with toys,” said Adams’ 70-year-old widow, Loraine.

John Adams was watching television when his wife heard pounding on the door. Police claim they identified themselves and wore police jackets. Loraine Adams said she had no indication the men were police.

“I thought it was a home invasion. I said ‘Baby, get your gun!,” she said, sitting amid friends and relatives gathered at her home to cook and prepare for Sunday’s funeral.

Resident Fired First

Police say her husband fired first with a sawed-off shotgun and they responded. He was shot at least three times and died later at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville.

Loraine Adams said she was handcuffed and thrown to her knees in another room when the shooting began.

“I said, ‘Y’all have got the wrong person, you’ve got the wrong place. What are you looking for?“‘

“We did the best surveillance we could do, and a mistake was made,” Lebanon Police Chief Billy Weeks said. “It’s a very severe mistake, a costly mistake. It makes us look at our own policies and procedures to make sure this never occurs again.” He said, however, the two policemen were not at fault.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is investigating. NAACP officials said they are monitoring the case. Adams was black. The two policemen are white.

Family members did not consider race a factor and Weeks agreed, but said the shooting will be “a major setback” for police relations with the black community.

“We know that, we hope to do everything we can to heal it,” Weeks said.

Johnny Crudup, a local NAACP official, said the organization wanted to make sure and would investigate on its own.

Weeks said he has turned the search warrant and all other evidence over to the bureau of investigation and District Attorney General Tommy Thompson. A command officer must now review all search warrants.

Deadly mistake because someone did not do their job. The homeowner was afraid for his own safety and his wife's too.  How are we supposed to defend ourselves from mistakes like this kind without being labeled criminals?

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  • We can all quarterback from out chairs, the truth be as it may. As responsible people we need to start decriminalizing drugs. There are to many deaths and way to many billions of dollars spent and wasted on police, trials, incarceration and probation.  Just the savings from this alone would fund the rehab of people on drugs and maybe even educate the people as to the nature of drugs.  I know there are other countries that have and are doing well with it.

  • It will be interesting to see how this unfolds. Informant information results in the request for a search/arrest warrant. Did detectives follow up to see if the info was valid? Did the Judge of issue use a full measure of diligence to insure the info was accurate? Did the Police go to ful battle gear expecting resistance or go to follow up on a report of illegal activity with a warrant? Sounds to me like too much TV.

  • Those hot assed lil police officers are raring to go out there and shoot anything that moves.A simlar case happened years ago in my area  in the night a man heard a comotion going on in his back yard and got his gun and wentout  to see what was happning.There was a voice which said put down the gun.The man aparently didn't hear the command and it was a police officer and he shot and killed the man in his own backyard.The police had chased the violater into this mans back yard.Just down the same street a few years later police barged into a house with guns drawn and killed the man of the house and battered his wife and put her in cuffs they was on a drug raid and got the wrong house.There is a saying about cops which goes like this"Yesterdays out laws are todays johnny laws"What needed to be done in the above case is that they should have been arrested a put in jail and tried and found guilty of murder.But they wont and there will no dought be more of the same.

  • I agree, you have to have two recorders, one hidden, one not.  copies have to be made before their turned over.  But then you have to worry about being charged with with holding evidence.

    I've often wondered about live feeds to a web site, because as soon as the officers know their being recorded they shut down the cameras and your back to your word against theirs.

  • You can put up surveillance equipment, but, as soon as something happens it becomes evidence that has to be turned over to the police that happen to misplace it.

  • Just had a brainstorm, I'm going to wire up my place with video so, at least there will be a record of happenings here! Technology can be a big boon to help keep control of government!

  • To all of you sleepers out there, beware the knock on YOUR door!

  •      To protect and serve , no way , that was before America was a " police state "  .  A mistake was made that cost a man his life , but because it murder by police no body will pay for it .  By rights , not only the shooters be imprisoned but the people that misidentified the residence should be imprisoned .  Welcome to the fascist state of Obamass land , anytime the countries leadership feel they are above the law , then they all get that attitude .

  • Horrible.

  • One thing you need to keep in mind is the mentality of the SWAT teams, they are made up of ego driven personal looking for more action in their jobs. They are not really police officers but rather military assault teams. The problem is they are dealing with soft targets. Like teen boys playing Call of Duty, they gear up to take the enemy on, kick doors down, bust into homes prepared to shot any one who shows any resistance. This is how they train and this is how they operate. The ones I have been around are what we called,in the Marines "COWBOYS" personal looking for trouble who go out of their way to find it. It's the old proverbial "using a Chainsaw to Cut Butter!"


    The idea of the police storm trooper came out of the Feb. 28, 1997 ,North Hollywood shot out, where police were out gunned by the bank robbers, every since the police have been gearing up for battle, since the battle never comes they are used to serve warrants, bust drug uses and surround hostage satiations as training exercises . I have watched this play out and wondered if i was having an argument with my wife and the neighbors called the police , i look out side and there are 40-50 Armed men, in black uniforms, armored vehicles,with M4s, pointed at me, would i be safer in my home or to walk outside and hope one of these trigger happy cowboys doesn't bust a cap on my ass? I think i'd stay in my house, till the news reports have shown up to record what is going on, then and only then there would be a record of any mistakes that might happen. Even then the truth will be shaped by the police reports and after the Sandy hook shooting, i have little faith in the police reports.

    I'm sure all of us have seen this play out in our own local police forces. does a common citizen stand any chance against these types of invasions? HELL NO!
    It has been 16 years since the North Hollywood shoot out and to date i have never heard of any police SWAT team being involved in any major shoot outs, not one! Contact your local City Board members and request How they can justify supporting the SWAT teams with tax payer dollars.

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