- A
Pittsburgh policeman, who stopped a high-speed chase when he shot at
a vehicle as it sped toward the place where he was standing, has been
charged with aggravated assault and criminal homicide. Officer Jeffrey
Cooperstein, 44, a six-year veteran of the Pittsburgh Police Department,
responded to the call by officers who were in fierce pursuit of a car
occupied by Deron and Curtis Grimmit. The brothers, both felons with
long police records, had refused to stop when two other squad cars attempted
to pull their vehicle to the side of the road.
- The
incident began at 3:30 A.M. on December 21, 1998, when Sergeant Andrew
Lisecki observed a Chrysler New Yorker that fit the description of a
vehicle that had been involved in a drive-by shooting the day before.
As soon as the occupants of the car noticed the police cruiser, they
immediately took off at a high speed. Officer Lisecki activated his
overhead lights and turned on his siren. They stopped their car, and,
as the officer approached, he saw Deron Grimmit reach for what appeared
to be a weapon. The officer drew his weapon, and then the Grimmit brothers
sped off again on Second Avenue outbound from Pittsburgh, this time
at speeds of 50-70 miles per hour.
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- Lisecki
followed, radioing his position with the warning that the driver might
be armed. He also verified that the license plates were invalid. The
Chrysler made a U-turn and proceeded at 70 miles per hour inbound on
Second Avenue, weaving in and out of traffic. Another police cruiser,
driven by Officer Richard Diamond, took up the pursuit, pulling behind
the Chrysler and activating the squad's emergency lights.
Officer
Jeffrey Cooperstein, who heard of the high-speed pursuit on his police
radio, positioned his cruiser in the left outbound lane facing incoming
traffic. He got out of the police car, leaving the driver's side door
open, and stood behind the door with his service weapon drawn. The car
came speeding down the street with two police cars in pursuit with their
sirens and lights activated.
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As the Chrysler approached and did not slow down, Officer Cooperstein,
thinking that he was about to be run over, fired four rounds at the car.
One of the rounds grazed Deron Grimmit in the left shoulder, struck him
above the left ear and entered his skull. His car crashed into a wall
just beyond the police cruiser. He was taken to a hospital where he was
pronounced dead. Mr. Grimmit was on probation at the time of the shooting.
The
President of the local Federation of Police defended the officer and said
he was justified in using his service weapon as he thought his life was
in danger.
However, the case has drawn prominent black leaders who claim that the
death of Grimmit was racially motivated. The Rev. Jesse Jackson held a
press conference in Washington, D.C., with Deron Grimmit's mother, and
stated that this case was an example of police abuse of minorities and
"terrorism of the highest order." Congressman John Conyers (D-Mich.) called
for Congressional hearings on the issue with the full support of Ira Glasser
of the ACLU.
Officer Cooperstein's trial in the Criminal Division of the Court of Common
Pleas of Allegheny County is scheduled to be held by the end of the year.
We will provide an update in the next newsletter.
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