HUTCHINSON, Kan.- A former Kingman police officer who allegedly fired his police weapon 31 times while chasing unarmed suspects has been charged with three crimes. James Williams, 33, was charged Tuesday with one count of criminal discharge of a firearm and two counts of attempted criminal discharge of a firearm. Kingman County Attorney Bradford Williams said the officer "maliciously and without authority" fired his Glock 9-mm handgun at an occupied vehicle while chasing it in two counties Sept. 10. "It's not an easy thing to do," Bradford Williams said of charging the officer. "But there's a time for them to use their weapon, and this wasn't the time." The chase began when James Williams tried to stop Clete Weisz, 28, after receiving a report that Weisz was driving erratically in the Kingman city park. Police said the chase reached speeds of up to 100 mph and went from Kingman to just south of Arlington in Reno County. Weisz eventually stopped his car several miles north of Kingman and Williams got out of his patrol car. Weisz then got back into his vehicle and drove off, the county attorney said. Williams at first chased Weisz on foot and fired the first shot through the driver's-side window, hitting Weisz in the knee, the county attorney said. During the chase, Williams shot his weapon 30 more times, hitting Weisz's vehicle three times, prosecutors said. On the emergency dispatch recording, obtained by The Hutchinson News on Tuesday, Kingman County dispatchers report to Reno County 911 officials that a pursuit was headed toward Arlington and that shots have been fired. Later, a passenger in Weisz's car, Darrin Moran, called Reno County 911 and asked for help. "Who's shooting?" the dispatcher asked. "Nobody but the police officer," Moran answered. "I can't get him (Weisz) to stop, I tried. ... I just want to get home." Moran told dispatchers several times that no one in the vehicle had a gun and no one had shot at the officer. Weisz was later charged with drunken driving and fleeing to elude an officer. Moran wasn't charged. Bradford Williams said the Kansas Bureau of Investigation indicated that James Williams didn't have a legitimate reason to fire his weapon. "In this case, he fired at an occupied vehicle," the county attorney said. "He didn't have any reason to shoot just because they didn't pull over for a traffic stop." Kingman Police Chief John Braden placed James Williams on paid administrative leave after the shooting. Braden said Williams had already planned to leave the department to work for the Pratt Police Department. Pratt Police Chief Steve Holmes said his department had made a conditional offer to Williams but that offer was withdrawn after the chase. Williams is scheduled to be in court on Nov. 2.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
ma police, boston ma police, massachusetts police, massachusetts police, mass state police, mass police, ma, mass, massachusetts, massachusetts, massachutes, massachusetts law, massachusetts polece, police, officer, police officer, cops, police gear, law enforcement, police duty gear, state police, sheriff, law, police supply, police agency directory, police agency, police department, traffic officer, police dept, state trooper, dispatcher, massachusetts county sheriff, massachusetts sheriff, massachusetts department of corrections, ma doc, doc, dept of corrections, police information, civil service, ma civil service, massachusetts crime, police training, police academy, ma police academy, massachusetts officers, masscop, masscops, mpa, bpa, ibpoa, police association, massachusetts police news, massachusetts crime news, mass most wanted, police career information, police patrol, police administration, police books, crime scene training, police discussion, crime discussions, cops
About MassCops, the home for Massachusetts law enforcement.
The Massachusetts Law Enforcement Network opened in 1998 and is now a part of the New England Police Network The site is a pro-police discussion forum intended for sworn police officers and civilian law enforcement officials as well as those interested in pursuing a career in law enforcement here in Massachusetts.
The goal of The Massachusetts Law Enforcement Network is to provide an informal network of law enforcement officials here in Massachusetts for educational and informational purposes.
The forum covers many topics such as Police Related News Articles, Agency & Profession Discussions, Police Training as well as Law Enforcement Career Information.
The Massachusetts Law Enforcement Network and The New England Police Network (NEPN) and it's network sites are privately owned websites/domains and are not affiliated with or endorsed by any government association or agency.
MassCops (masscops.com) and (masscop.com) are privately owned are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Massachusetts Coalition of Police (masscop.org)
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. 
ma police, boston ma police, massachusetts police, massachusetts police, mass state police, mass police, ma, mass, massachusetts, massachusetts, massachutes, massachusetts law, massachusetts polece, police, officer, police officer, cops, police gear, law enforcement, police duty gear, state police, sheriff, law, police supply, police agency directory, police agency, police department, traffic officer, police dept, state trooper, dispatcher, massachusetts county sheriff, massachusetts sheriff, massachusetts department of corrections, ma doc, doc, dept of corrections, police information, civil service, ma civil service, massachusetts crime, police training, police academy, ma police academy, massachusetts officers, masscop, masscops, mpa, bpa, ibpoa, police association, massachusetts police news, massachusetts crime news, mass most wanted, police career information, police patrol, police administration, police books, crime scene training, police discussion, crime discussions, cops