Former Louisville officer goes on trial for fatal shooting of black

By DYLAN T. LOVANAssociated Press Writer LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) – Nineteen-year-old Michael Newby was the seventh black man fatally shot by Louisville police in the past five years. The officer who shot him three times in the back is the first in any of those cases to face criminal charges. McKenzie Mattingly, a 31-year-old former Marine and five-year department veteran, goes on trial for murder this week in a case that has sparked dozens of protests in Louisville. Many in the city’s black community say holding a white police officer accountable for the killing of a black man is long overdue. “To them this was just totally out of order, and it’s unacceptable to them,” said the Rev. Louis Coleman, who has led the protests in front of police headquarters. Protests were held almost weekly following the December 2002 shooting of a handcuffed black man who was shot 11 times. Two white officers who said the man lunged at them with a boxcutter knife were cleared of criminal charges, and activists stepped up their protests. But with Newby’s death, more young people have joined, Coleman said. “These young people know that getting shot in the back running away is wrong,” he said. Attention to the case has been so great that Mattingly’s attorneys have asked that the trial be moved to another town and out of the media spotlight. Judge Judith McDonald-Burkman denied that request in May, but left the door open for Mattingly’s attorneys to try again before trial begins. Court records say Newby was carrying a small amount of crack-cocaine, some marijuana, a .45-caliber handgun and a large amount of money the night of the shooting after an altercation during a drug buy. He was posthumously charged with drug trafficking, assault and carrying a concealed deadly weapon, but the charges were dismissed. Mattingly was indicted for murder and wanton endangerment in March and fired a month later. Jury selection in his trial begins Monday. Convincing a jury that a police officer committed intentional murder in an on-duty shooting is a tough sell for prosecutors, one expert said. “It wasn’t a premeditated thing like, ‘I’m going to go out and find someone to kill on duty today,”’ said Tim Apolito, a former Ohio police officer who is now a criminal justice professor at the University of Dayton. Prosecutors and Mattingly’s attorney, Steve Schroering, have declined to comment. The fatal incident began when Mattingly, Newby and two others were attempting a drug buy on Jan. 3 near a liquor store in western Louisville. Mattingly said he was robbed during the buy and told prosecutors that he feared for his life before he fired, according to court records. Mattingly got out of his vehicle to arrest Newby but the two struggled, Mattingly said. The officer’s gun discharged once during the struggle, and Mattingly said he thought he had been shot in the foot. Newby “moved away, he was not trying to flee, he was trying to get a weapon out, and I felt in very real fear … for my life,” Mattingly said during questioning. “I thought, this guy is trying to get a gun out and he’s gonna kill me.” Mattingly fired four shots; three hit Newby in the back. The teen died the next morning at a hospital. One of Mattingly’s close friends, who started a Web site to raise money and support for the former officer, said his friend shouldn’t be facing a murder trial. “There’s so many hypocrisies here, it’s unbelievable,” said Lukas Dwelly. He said his Web site had had 22,000 hits in eight months and raised about $35,000 on Mattingly’s behalf.