Tapes from night of foley shooting

[scuba chuck]

Union Tribune article

 

Tapes from night of Foley shooting give differing stories

 

 

Angelica Martinez

UNION-TRIBUNE BREAKING NEWS TEAM

 

5:18 p.m. September 21, 2006

 

SAN DIEGO – Audio tapes of investigators' interviews following Chargers linebacker Steve Foley's shooting reveal his companion and the off-duty Coronado officer who shot the football player gave differing accounts of the events that morning.

In the audio tapes, Lisa Marie Gaut, 25, is heard crying during an interview conducted hours after the Sept. 3 shooting with sheriff's deputies who were investigating the incident.

 

She said Foley got out of his vehicle and yelled several times at the off-duty officer, Aaron Mansker, because he had been following them. She said the pair thought they were being pursued because he was a football player.

 

Gaut told deputies that when they neared Foley's Poway home, Foley got out on Travertine Court, and, she said, Mansker suddenly fired.

 

“And then all of a sudden I see the guy get out of the car and just start shooting at him,” she said. “So I get in the driver seat and I pull into the driveway. ... His car is like a racer car so it's hard to get in gear. So I tried putting it in reverse and I backed up and I was going to go back to pick him up.”

 

Asked twice by the interviewer if the officer identified himself as a police officer, Gaut said “no” each time.

 

Gaut later told the interviewer again that she didn't know Mansker was an officer.

 

“I thought it was just some, just a regular person,” Gaut said.

 

Mansker told a different story to a room full of officers the same morning.

 

He said he identified himself as an officer more than once before firing any shots.

 

“He kept coming towards me. I said 'Police, stop. You need to stop.' He continued. I drew my gun again,” Mansker said.

 

Mansker said Foley was approaching the officer's car when he fired.

 

“He's just at the bumper, he starts reaching into the front of his waistband, lifting up his shirt and that's when I fired the first shot. There were two shots,” Mansker said. Mansker said he feared for his life.

 

“The first thought in my head was it's a gun and I'm not going home tonight, that's all I could think of.”

 

He depicted Foley, who is 6-feet-4 and 265 pounds, as a defiant man who continued to approach him even after being shot in the knee.

 

Foley “went down. He got back up and said 'You just shot me in the knee.' Looked forward again, started walking towards my door, continued to dig in his waistband, turns towards me and I fired a couple more shots and he went down,” Mansker told investigators.

 

After the shooting, Mansker said, Gaut backed up Foley's vehicle, pointed it toward the officer and revved the engine.

 

Foley has since been hospitalized with three gunshot wounds. Sheriff's investigators have recommended misdemeanor drunken-driving charges be filed against him.

 

Gaut, who was riding with Foley, has been charged with drunken driving and assault with a deadly weapon for reportedly driving the car at the officer. She was released from jail Sept. 12 after posting bail.

 

[Vet]

The cop is lying.

[Jumpin Johnies]

The cop is lying.

 

I normally support police officers in hazy situations like this but this cop was out of line from start to finish. He was 30 miles outside of his juresdiction, he was following these folks in an un-marked car and he didn't wait for marked police vehicles to show up. This guy sounds like your stereotypical Barny Fife rookie cop screwed up and now he's trying to back pedal his way out this situation.

[canman1104]

First off none of us were there so we really dont know what went on. It's easy to play arm chair QB months after the fact . So, many people jump at the chance to say the police were wrong and they are lying. I would imagine most of these type of people also support the Clintons as well

[AtomicCEO]

First off none of us were there so we really dont know what went on. It's easy to play arm chair QB months after the fact . So, many people jump at the chance to say the police were wrong and they are lying. I would imagine most of these type of people also support the Clintons as well

 

 

 

Good post.

[wildcat2334]

First off none of us were there so we really dont know what went on. It's easy to play arm chair QB months after the fact . So, many people jump at the chance to say the police were wrong and they are lying. I would imagine most of these type of people also support the Clintons as well

 

 

 

 

Sorry my man- JJ nailed it- I normally side with da Police in these deals. This guy was way outta line, and because of it someone was shot multiple times without cause. DD is a serious matter, but this cop blew it big time, and hopefully will lose his badge and will be working security at Wal-Mart.

[Bronco Billy]

Whoa! Back up the bus, guys.

 

Let's not forget, this whole incident was precipitated by Foley, who was operating his vehicle in a dangerous manner, well over the speed limit and erratically changing lanes with no regard to other vehicles around him. I guess some Monday morning QBs here would expect a cop, whether in or out of his jurisdiction and whether on the clock or off, to just ignore that behavior and the danger that Foley posed to himself and to every other driver in the vicinity of his car. I wonder what the blame-the-cop geniuses would be saying if the cop had done nothing and Foley had killed himself, his passenger, and/or an innocent person in an accident caused by operating his vehicle in a drunken stupor that night or in any night in the future, if the cop had just ignored the whole incident but later it was found out the cop saw the whole thing & did nothing.

 

The cop did exactly what we would expect a cop to do in given those circumstances - uphold the law and put the offender in a position to be prosecuted for his transgressions. Then after Foley stops and he is confronted by a man with a gun - whether the cop identified himself or not (and I know I'll piss off the blame-the-cop crowd, but I give the cop more credibility than Foley's squeeze) - and what does Foley do? Keeps approaching the man with the gun. And we aren't talking about some pimply-faced kid or a grandma here, we're talking about an obviously severely impaired guy with the size & musculature of an NFL LB. By the cops account, he told Foley to stop, yet Foley kept advancing on the cop, so the cop defended himself. Then Foley is actually shot, and then what does he do? Keeps advancing on the cop.

 

Does this sound like the actions of a reasonable, rational, and non-threatening individual? He sees a guy with a gun, starts advancing anyhow, gets shot, and then advances again on the guy with the gun after being shot. Yeah, I'm sure all of our cop-haters can rationalize that series of actions somehow.

 

Foley created the whole incident. The cop did what we pay cops to do. Seriously, it sounds like some of you here want to believe that Foley was doing nothing, minding his own business innocently, and the cop hunted him down & shot him without any warning for kicks.

 

Get a clue & place the blame squarely where it belongs - right on Foley.

[Big Score 1]

Let's not forget, this whole incident was precipitated by Foley, who was operating his vehicle in a dangerous manner, well over the speed limit and erratically changing lanes with no regard to other vehicles around him.

Really?

 

Well over the speed limit huh? So what was the speed limit & how fast was he going?

 

Didn't this happened on an early Monday morning like the 3:00 AM 4:00 AM-ish time frame right? My understanding was that there was basically NO traffic around him and that's what got the cops attention in the first place. Foley was basically the only car on the road and stuck out like a sore thumb in his immaculately restored classic ride.

[AtomicCEO]

The cop did what we pay cops to do.

 

 

I don't pay cops to be a hero after hours, out of jurisdiction, and to shoot unarmed guys in front of their house.

 

Why should we trust your assessment? You can't even tell us who Denver's running back is?

[godtomsatan]

First off none of us were there so we really dont know what went on. It's easy to play arm chair QB months after the fact . So, many people jump at the chance to say the police were wrong and they are lying. I would imagine most of these type of people also support the Clintons as well

 

 

Pot, kettle.

Kettle, pot.

[Bronco Billy]

Really?

 

Well over the speed limit huh? So what was the speed limit & how fast was he going?

 

Didn't this happened on an early Monday morning like the 3:00 AM 4:00 AM-ish time frame right? My understanding was that there was basically NO traffic around him and that's what got the cops attention in the first place. Foley was basically the only car on the road and stuck out like a sore thumb in his immaculately restored classic ride.

 

 

Well, apparently what you saw while you were at the scene of the incident is radically different than what was reported by police sources to the local paper. You'd better call the DA with your side of the story.

 

link

 

About 3:30 a.m., the off-duty officer started following a suspected drunk driver in the area of northbound Highway 163 and Highway 52, Brugos said. The vehicle was described as weaving and its speed ranged from 30 to 90 mph and nearly hit several vehicles, he said.

Edited September 27, 2006 by Bronco Billy

[godtomsatan]

And it's not like Foley doesn't have a checkered history.

 

Not to say that the cop was justified (I don't know how you could make any kind of pronouncement of such based on the information provided in the media), but if you don't drive drunk at 3:30am, you lower your chances of getting shot considerably.

[Azazello1313]

i haven't seen enough evidence in this article, or any other, to get even the SLIGHTEST sense of what went down that night and who bears what degree of blame.

[AtomicCEO]

About 3:30 a.m., the off-duty officer started following a suspected drunk driver in the area of northbound Highway 163 and Highway 52, Brugos said. The vehicle was described as weaving and its speed ranged from 30 to 90 mph and nearly hit several vehicles, he said.

 

 

It seems like faulty logic to justify the cop's decisions by quoting the cop's alleged suspicions.

 

Did anyone besides the guy who shot him think he deserved to be tailed and shot?

[TwinTurbo]

Whoa! Back up the bus, guys.

 

Let's not forget, this whole incident was precipitated by Foley, who was operating his vehicle in a dangerous manner, well over the speed limit and erratically changing lanes with no regard to other vehicles around him. I guess some Monday morning QBs here would expect a cop, whether in or out of his jurisdiction and whether on the clock or off, to just ignore that behavior and the danger that Foley posed to himself and to every other driver in the vicinity of his car. I wonder what the blame-the-cop geniuses would be saying if the cop had done nothing and Foley had killed himself, his passenger, and/or an innocent person in an accident caused by operating his vehicle in a drunken stupor that night or in any night in the future, if the cop had just ignored the whole incident but later it was found out the cop saw the whole thing & did nothing.

 

The cop did exactly what we would expect a cop to do in given those circumstances - uphold the law and put the offender in a position to be prosecuted for his transgressions. Then after Foley stops and he is confronted by a man with a gun - whether the cop identified himself or not (and I know I'll piss off the blame-the-cop crowd, but I give the cop more credibility than Foley's squeeze) - and what does Foley do? Keeps approaching the man with the gun. And we aren't talking about some pimply-faced kid or a grandma here, we're talking about an obviously severely impaired guy with the size & musculature of an NFL LB. By the cops account, he told Foley to stop, yet Foley kept advancing on the cop, so the cop defended himself. Then Foley is actually shot, and then what does he do? Keeps advancing on the cop.

 

Does this sound like the actions of a reasonable, rational, and non-threatening individual? He sees a guy with a gun, starts advancing anyhow, gets shot, and then advances again on the guy with the gun after being shot. Yeah, I'm sure all of our cop-haters can rationalize that series of actions somehow.

 

Foley created the whole incident. The cop did what we pay cops to do. Seriously, it sounds like some of you here want to believe that Foley was doing nothing, minding his own business innocently, and the cop hunted him down & shot him without any warning for kicks.

 

Get a clue & place the blame squarely where it belongs - right on Foley.

 

 

All of the "facts" you referenced above are from the cop's version of the story. This is the guy that shot Foley. And there are no witnesses other than Foley's girlfriend who is also conveniently implicated in the cop's version of the facts.

 

IMO the cop's story is not logical and has too many question marks. Why was there no backup? Why is this cop firing warning shots in a residential neighborhood? How is he able to avoid being hit by a car while simultaneously notice Foley is reaching into his waistband and then shoot him multiple times? It all seems questionable.

 

Foley definitely shares in the blame, but IMO the cop's story appears to be partially manufactured in order to cover up some impropriety on his part. But unless there are other witnesses, we may never know.

[wildcat2334]

Whoa! Back up the bus, guys.

 

Let's not forget, this whole incident was precipitated by Foley, who was operating his vehicle in a dangerous manner, well over the speed limit and erratically changing lanes with no regard to other vehicles around him. I guess some Monday morning QBs here would expect a cop, whether in or out of his jurisdiction and whether on the clock or off, to just ignore that behavior and the danger that Foley posed to himself and to every other driver in the vicinity of his car. I wonder what the blame-the-cop geniuses would be saying if the cop had done nothing and Foley had killed himself, his passenger, and/or an innocent person in an accident caused by operating his vehicle in a drunken stupor that night or in any night in the future, if the cop had just ignored the whole incident but later it was found out the cop saw the whole thing & did nothing.

 

The cop did exactly what we would expect a cop to do in given those circumstances - uphold the law and put the offender in a position to be prosecuted for his transgressions. Then after Foley stops and he is confronted by a man with a gun - whether the cop identified himself or not (and I know I'll piss off the blame-the-cop crowd, but I give the cop more credibility than Foley's squeeze) - and what does Foley do? Keeps approaching the man with the gun. And we aren't talking about some pimply-faced kid or a grandma here, we're talking about an obviously severely impaired guy with the size & musculature of an NFL LB. By the cops account, he told Foley to stop, yet Foley kept advancing on the cop, so the cop defended himself. Then Foley is actually shot, and then what does he do? Keeps advancing on the cop.

 

Does this sound like the actions of a reasonable, rational, and non-threatening individual? He sees a guy with a gun, starts advancing anyhow, gets shot, and then advances again on the guy with the gun after being shot. Yeah, I'm sure all of our cop-haters can rationalize that series of actions somehow.

 

Foley created the whole incident. The cop did what we pay cops to do. Seriously, it sounds like some of you here want to believe that Foley was doing nothing, minding his own business innocently, and the cop hunted him down & shot him without any warning for kicks.

 

Get a clue & place the blame squarely where it belongs - right on Foley.

 

 

jeebus- how does it feel to know EVERYTHING?

 

I normally do not respond in your vicinty because you bore me and I think you are a know-it-all condescending jackazz, but I can't help myself here.

 

I am usually on the side of the police as stated above- but this guy deserves to lose his badge and is not fitting to be a cop.

 

it goes without saying Foley was in the wrong- but has been stated here many times by knowedgeable folks ACTUALLY in the law enforcement field- the cop was wrong, and he did not follow standard procedure-

 

He follows Foley, who arrives home safely, without injuring anyone, which is all tha matters. He then approaches someone at 3 am- identifying himself as a cop? Uh, mistake #1- Foley, or anyone of us would be supsicious of this, I know I would. I believe (as previously mentioned) standard procedure is to wait for marked units to arrive to safely judge the scene and respond appropriately. This guy was a cowboy and used unnecessary force, and incredibly bad judgement and irresponsible police work. Firing 3 warning shots??(Again NOY police procedure in this instance)

 

Entirely reasonable for Foley, a professional athlete being followed by an unmarked car to think he may be in some sort of danger, car- jacking, etc. -

 

Plent of cases where carjackings occur by people claiming to be cops and pulling people over.

 

A bad situation was escalated by the cop, and IMO anyone with some common sense can see so many mistakes in this scenario it is not even funny.

 

HE should be fired, and I am going to go out on a limb that he will be.

[H8tank]

The cop is lying to some extent.

[Azazello1313]

jeebus- how does it feel to know EVERYTHING?

 

I normally do not respond in your vicinty because you bore me and I think you are a know-it-all condescending jackazz, but I can't help myself here.

 

I am usually on the side of the police as stated above- but this guy deserves to lose his badge and is not fitting to be a cop.

 

well to turn your question to BB around, how the f*ck do YOU know this? you don't know the extent of what happened any more than he does. until the evidence in this case comes out (the case is under a gag order and we've only seen sparse leaks) and then we compare the guy's behavior to the standards set forth in the police guidelines, you don't have the foggiest f'n clue whether he deserves to lose his badge or not.

[Bronco Billy]

It seems like faulty logic to justify the cop's decisions by quoting the cop's alleged suspicions.

 

Did anyone besides the guy who shot him think he deserved to be tailed and shot?

 

 

Yeah, I guess I'm kind of odd in that I am willing to give a cop more credibility instead of a guy who allegedly was way too drunk to control his vehicle and then was stupid enough to approach an armed man - whether he believed the guy was a cop or not.

 

So if you don't believe the cop, then you must A) believe that Foley was doing nothing wrong on the road and that the cop randomly selected Foley for harassment, and B ) that the cop used Foley stopping as an opportunity to shoot this random person.

 

That seems more credible to you than the cop's story?

Edited September 27, 2006 by Bronco Billy

[Bronco Billy]

The cop is lying to some extent.

 

 

How do you know this? I'm open minded, convince me that what you are saying here is true.

[Vet]

Yeah, I guess I'm kind of odd in that I am willing to give a cop more credibility instead of a guy who allegedly was way too drunk to control his vehicle and then was stupid enough to approach an armed man - whether he believed the guy was a cop or not.

 

So if you don't believe the cop, then you must A) believe that Foley was doing nothing wrong on the road and that the cop randomly selected Foley for harassment, an that the cop used Foley stopping as an opportunity to shoot this random person.

 

That seems more credible to you than the cop's story?

 

 

 

He sounds like one of those psycho cops that saw too many Dirty Harry movies growing up.

 

I've never seen the guy, but I'm going to bet that he's short and that he got picked on a lot when he was a kid. Probably had an overdemanding father as a kid and never got the boob from mom as an infant.

[Bronco Billy]

jeebus- how does it feel to know EVERYTHING?

 

I normally do not respond in your vicinty because you bore me and I think you are a know-it-all condescending jackazz, but I can't help myself here.

 

 

 

 

 

Mr Pot: "Damn, Mr. Kettle, you are sure one black S.O.B.!"

[Bronco Billy]

He sounds like one of those psycho cops that saw too many Dirty Harry movies growing up.

 

 

 

It sounds like you believe that Dirty Harry cop movies are real, too.

[Azazello1313]

Yeah, I guess I'm kind of odd in that I am willing to give a cop more credibility instead of a guy who allegedly was way too drunk to control his vehicle and then was stupid enough to approach an armed man - whether he believed the guy was a cop or not.

 

So if you don't believe the cop, then you must A) believe that Foley was doing nothing wrong on the road and that the cop randomly selected Foley for harassment, an that the cop used Foley stopping as an opportunity to shoot this random person.

 

That seems more credible to you than the cop's story?

 

 

well, from what i understand, foley was fairly notorious within the san diego police for that previous incident where he was drunk, resisting arrest, etc. etc. where he got the charges dropped. i'd be more inclined to believe, as you do, that the cop probably didnt have much of a motive to improperly go out of his way harrass foley...but it's at least possible that he knew who he was tailing and had less-than-purely-innocent motives for handling things the way he did. again, maybe we'll find out when there's some actual EVIDENCE outside of selectively leaked spin to go on.

[Vet]

It sounds like you believe that Dirty Harry cop movies are real, too.

 

 

Dirty Harry was a fictional character played by Clint Eastwood. Movies featuring this character were popular about 20 or 25 years ago.