Las Vegas Hero Shoots Man Three Times Over Unpaid HOV Ticket

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  • Dispute over parking fine turns into a near-death experience for motorist.

    (Image courtesy of Jim Duensing / FaceBook)

    LAS VEGAS, NV — An attorney who survived being shot in the back by police now faces up to 12 years in prison after a drawn out trial.

    The incident occurred when Raymond James “Jim” Duensing was pulled over by a motorcycle cop in a routine traffic stop near Cheyenne Avenue and Jones Boulevard.  Allegedly Mr. Duensing had crossed an intersection using a lane designated for right-turns only at approximately 2:30 p.m. on October 29, 2009.

    After running the driver’s license, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Officer David Gilbert determined that there was an existing misdemeanor arrest warrant for Mr. Duensing because of outstanding traffic ticket(s).

    Duensing, 33 years old at the time and practicing law in Pahrump, was asked to exit his vehicle and then told he was under arrest.  The attorney requested to know why he was being arrested.  With his hands above his head, Mr. Duensing tried to use reason with the officer.

    “I was calmly speaking to the cop, attempting to talk my way out of being taken to jail over an unpaid High-Occupancy Vehicle ticket.”

    “I was calmly speaking to the cop, attempting to talk my way out of being taken to jail over an unpaid High-Occupancy Vehicle ticket,” Duensing later explained.

    What happened next remains in dispute.  At some point, communication broke down and Officer Gilbert began tasing Mr. Duensing.

    Officer Gilbert testified that Duensing did not turn around on command and that he “took a fighting stance.”  The officer claimed that he needed to shock Mr. Duensing to gain his compliance.

    Duensing says that the shock came unexpectedly, and when he felt the electricity run through him, he feared for his life because he has a heart condition.

    “As I have had heart problems since my premature birth, I believe a Taser to be a lethal weapon.  Several people without heart conditions have been killed by this weapon,” he wrote.  Duensing said that his instincts took over and he removed the Taser’s prongs from his chest, and began running.  He wrote from his hospital bed, “I firmly believe this instinct saved my life.”

    Duensing later testified that running away “wasn’t really a conscious decision.”  He added: “I was trying to process what was going on. I thought he had the wrong person.”

    As Duensing ran from the electric assault, he heard the Taser fire again, but didn’t feel another shock.  Instead, he heard three gunshots and noticed that his left arm was dangling.  He had been shot from behind with a .45 handgun.

    (Image courtesy of Jim Duensing / FaceBook)

    (Image courtesy of Jim Duensing / FaceBook)

    (Image courtesy of Jim Duensing / FaceBook)

    Mr. Duensing worked not only in practicing law but also as at a firearms instructor at a gun range.  He was carrying a pistol and a pocketknife at the time he was shot.  There is major disagreement between the parties about when the officer knew there was a gun in Duensing’s pocket.

    After being shot, Duensing wrote, “it was at this point that he found my licensed and registered pistol in my right cargo pants pocket and my Emerson folding knife in my right front pocket.” He added: “I NEVER pulled either of these items out of my pockets.” He insisted that his hands were empty as he ran, and afemale witness asserted the same thing.

    But Officer Gilbert claimed that Duensing tried to draw his gun while running, and shot Duensing in order to save lives.  The Las Vegas Review Journal elaborated on the discrepancy of facts:

    Defense lawyer Tom Pitaro tried to show that Gilbert could not have seen Duensing’s gun because it was tucked in the buttoned-up cargo pocket. A knife in his right hip pocket was not found by police until after he was shot.

    Gilbert said he thought Duensing’s gun flew from his hands and into the air after he was shot.

    Officers at the scene later found the gun in the cargo pocket.

    “You’re relieved they found a gun after you shot someone,” Pitaro said.

    Gilbert responded: “I’m relieved that it was found so it wasn’t there for a little kid to pick it up.”

    Duensing suffered gunshot wounds to his chest, abdomen, and left arm.  He survived the attack, but required multiple surgeries and never fully rehabilitated.

    CHARGES

    Having fallen victim to alleged police brutality, Jim Duensing wanted justice for what was done to him.  However, Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson made sure that didn’t happen. Duensing was charged with 3 felonies: resisting a police officer, carrying a concealed weapon, and unlawful possession of a firearm.

    The bases for the charges were tenuous at best. Duensing possessed a valid Nevada Carrying Concealed Weapons (CCW) Permit, but the prosecution argued that his permit was invalidated because of the outstanding traffic warrant. Additionally, they claimed his pocketknife was to be considered a “dangerous or deadly weapon” under NRS 202.350.1.d.3, and therefore illegal to carry concealed. Ironically, openly carrying a firearm or a knife is legal in Nevada, meaning the arbitrary placement of one’s property literally differentiates a law-abiding citizen from a felon-to-be.

    The case against Duensing dragged on for over five years, and was characterized by a lack of transparency.  As he explained in a statement in 2010:

    To protect “their” officers against the civil charges stemming from officer David M. Gilbert’s abuse of power and attempted homicide of Jim Duensing, the prosecutor denied Jim a public pre-trial hearing and instead has charged Jim with felony resisting arrest through a secret Grand Jury hearing he wasn’t even able to attend or learn the specific time of until it was completed.

    The Las Vegas “Use of Force Board” — comprised of 4 civilians and 3 LVMPD members — made aunanimous decision that Officer Gilbert was justified in shooting Duensing.  The process was kept completely secretive and anonymous.  The defense was not allowed to know what evidence was presented or how the conclusion was reached.  Duensing and his attorney fought unsuccessfully to obtain potential video evidence from the taser as well as a police helicopter that was on the scene moments after the shooting. There were no cameras on the police motorcycle.

    In 2014, still awaiting trial, Duensing decided to run for the office of district attorney — against the incumbent who was seeking to imprison him.

    “There’s a lot of dissatisfaction with the way the office is being run,” specifically the handling of officer-involved shootings, Duensing told the Las Vegas Review Journal.  “No matter what they (police) do on duty, they will be backed up by their department and the DA and that means there will be zero accountability.”

    FOLLOW-UP:

    Duensing’s D.A. race turned out to be unsuccessful, and on November 10th, 2014, he was convicted on all three felony counts.  He now awaits sentencing in January 2015, which will consist of 1-12 years in prison.  He may also lose his law license, and as a convicted felon will never be able to legally own a gun again.

    There will be a chance for an appeal, but that will require help from readers. Please find the information below for how to send Jim Duensing letters or financial help.

    * * * * *

    Recall that this whole ordeal arose over a so-called “High-Occupancy Vehicle” (HOV) ticket.  A HOV ticket is issued, in certain states, when a car enters in a designated “carpool lane” while carrying too few passengers.  It is truly among the most mundane of offenses, yet it led to a warrant and the confrontation that would change Jim Duensing’s life forever.

    Duensing’s situation exemplifies how every law has the potential to kill and destroy lives and families.  Every offense, no matter how trivial, is ultimately backed by armed men who are willing to use violence.  And when the number of offenses becomes innumerable, the police state can crush anyone, even a professional driving home from work on a Thursday afternoon.

19 COMMENTS

  1. As Tor alerted me to, this story about the killer cop Timothy Loehmann is just coming out today on Fox 8 TV & the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper website.
    This guy was considered to be “unfit for duty” by a suburb of Cleveland, Independence. Nice town name huh ???

    This guy sounds full-blown nuts, certifiable …

    Cleveland officer who shot Tamir Rice had ‘dismal’ handgun performance for Independence police
    http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/12/cleveland_police_officer_who_s.html

  2. As Jason notes, the State reserves the right to kill us.
    Why wait?
    If some MFer tries to kill you for no reason, GIVE THE MF’er A REASON.
    Preferably two, both headshots. Make sure it’s a closed-casket affair.

    Next step: Pre-Emptive self-defense…

  3. On any negative story, the MSM oligarchy tries to keep things as localized as possible. 20 miles away likely meant far enough away they could get away with ignoring the story.

    “Officer Timothy Loehmann, who killed Tamir Rice on 22 November, was specifically faulted for breaking down emotionally while handling a live gun. During a training episode at a firing range, Loehmann was reported to be “distracted and weepy” and incommunicative. “His handgun performance was dismal,” deputy chief Jim Polak of the Independence, Ohio, police department wrote in an internal memo.

    The memo concludes with a recommendation that Loehmann be “released from the employment of the City of Independence”. Less than a week later, on 3 December 2012, Loehmann resigned.”

    Article on Loehmann in The Guardian
    http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/dec/03/officer-who-fatally-shot-tamir-rice-had-been-judged-unfit

  4. Denver hero slams 7 months pregnant woman to the ground on her stomach, and violently punches man repeatedly in the face
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GncaM_lt3-E

    “I used to cage fight, I’ve never heard punches louder than those.”

    Man who FILMED Eric Garner’s murder IS INDICTED by the grand jury. No heroes are.
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/03/ramsey-orta-indictment-eric-garner_n_6264746.html

    Unseen video of Eric Garner’s death
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT66U_Ftdng

    Hero-killer of Tamir Rice found unfit for duty in 2012
    http://gawker.com/the-cop-who-killed-tamir-rice-was-found-unfit-for-polic-1666341124

    Inmates tasered by heroes for fun in Louisiana
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5x-FQsSpc0

    • “Hero-killer of Tamir Rice found unfit for duty in 2012”

      Holy Crap – We live about 20m east of Cleveland, so this has been on the local news a lot, and I didn’t know this stuff !?!?!

  5. So, what you guys are saying is, Americans [for the most part] are the property of their overlords?

    Americans: North, South, and in-between, are just livestock.

    You ask if the Clovers of the world are aghast at this?

    Hell no, They love it!

    The Clovers have no problem with this.

    Neither do the clueless uber-american’t’s shouting “Rah! Rah! Rah! Uber Allies, USA! USA! USA!”…. “Burn, MF, Burn.”

    And, “Let the poison that lurks in the mud, rise up.”

    • helot, you notice the clovers will NEVER comment on this. Nobody, not even clover is so stupid to not see the truth of what really happened. I’ve had this sort of just-us. It’s not easy to take. It’s very difficult to put behind you.

      • Oh, I dunno, Eight!

        Clover will blame the victim. He will say, “he should not have resisted the nice policeman who was just doing his job.”

        You know the drill.

        • The resident troll Clover will likely do that, however statists in general are inconsistent. They will voice moral outrage one moment then back the state’s power that led to the moral outrage the next. It’s because they cannot conceptualize. They are always in the moment.

          For instance, statists expressing moral outrage at arresting people for feeding the homeless. The next moment they’ll be promoting the welfare state and the food safety regulation with absolutely no clue how it’s all connected.

  6. So tell me, Clover. How did this guy violating an HOV statute endanger anyone to the point of being tasered and then shot?

    • As has been observed by others, the State reserves the right to kill you (or maim you, or cripple you for life) for any reason, even over an overdue library book. The Clovers have no problem with this.

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