Apr 3, 2008 7:14 pm US/Eastern
Witness: Det. Isnora ID'd Himself To Bell, Friend
Officer Michael Carey Takes Stand As Defense Begins Case
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
Was there a warning before the gunfire?
A police witness testified Thursday that a detective charged in the Sean Bell "50 Shots" case did identify himself before firing his weapon.
Michael Carey, 27, has been an NYPD officer for more than five years. He was in the unmarked van Det. Michael Oliver was driving the night Bell was killed. Officer Carey was called to the witness stand Thursday by the lawyers for Detectives Oliver, Jesse Isnora and Marc Cooper.
Carey said under oath Isnora identified himself as a police officer.
Carey said it was Isnora who first yelled, "He's got a gun! He's got a gun!" And then demonstrated how Isnora advanced on Bell's car, firing as he went. Carey said he then fired three shots at the passenger side, at Joseph Guzman.
Carey said he raced around the van to get a better shot, but: "By the time I got back, the gunfire had all stopped. I opened the passenger-side door. I saw the passenger slumped over the driver. At that point I believed both men were deceased."
Patrolmen's Benevolent Association president Patrick Lynch stood by Officer Carey.
"Anytime there's a death it's a tragedy," Lynch said. "No police officer goes out, but that's what makes the role of a New York City police officer. There is never, ever a script. Nothing ever goes as planned."
There is an undercurrent of dissatisfaction, however, among Bell's supporters, who feel the Queen district attorney has been too soft. A Bell family lawyer tried to diplomatically address that frustration on Thursday.
"I'm not standing here trying to denigrate the prosecution, but Sean's memory deserves that," Neville Mitchell said.
They won't say it publicly, but the defense lawyers apparently will not call their clients -- the detectives -- to the witness stand because they believe the D.A. has not made a strong case against the officers, exactly the same point the Bell family supporters are also making.
Legal observers say the Queens District Attorney's Office is in a delicate position. If it goes after the cops too delicately it might alienate the NYPD, which of course, it will need to make cases in the future.
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