State police say Purcellville officer shot knife-wielding teen
http://www.insidenova.com/news/loudoun/updated-state-police-say-purcellville-officer-shot-knife-wielding-teen/article_92f71fa1-2427-526b-a323-41eca1d10112.html

A Purcellville police officer shot a 17-year-old boy who lunged at him with a knife Saturday afternoon, state police said.

Town police received a 911 call at 2:12 p.m. reporting a teen threatening suicide at a home in the 100 block of Frazer Drive. When an officer arrived, the teenager lunged at him with the knife and was shot. The teen was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The Purcellville officer was not injured.

Police have not yet released the teenager’s name.

The state police “police-shooting investigative team” is conducting an investigation. Once that probe is complete, the case will be turned over to the Loudoun County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office for review.

Purcellville police Chief Darryl Smith released a statement about the incident late Saturday.

“To ensure our citizens a thorough and independent review of this incident, I have asked the Virginia State Police to conduct the investigation,” the statement said.

The officer involved in the shooting had been placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the investigation.

If you attempt to attack a police officer, you're gonna have a bad time.

The liberal, legal know-it-alls on here will accuse the cop of shooting the kid because he wanted to film an arrest.

i bet cree deeds wished this would have happened to his son. then instead of blaming the failed mental health system, he could sue the police dept for killing his son.

You shouldn't bring a knife to a gun fight.

when is fairfax county clean up the poop their putting in county policy and the poops their making in the finance and loan day books ?

and why is it of no concern to them ?

oh this isnt' the dog poop complaint thread. my bad.

That's the wrong place to put out a knife...Or a pizza cutter. LOL

Does insurance cover this?

Woopsie....my bad.

Not making any accusations but why do they not release the officer's name? if this were the other way around with a civilian shooting a cop you can bet their name and picture would be in the news.

Can't judge the cop's actions without having all the facts but Is there no such thing as using a taser or a shot to the leg first before shooting to kill?

Pretty sure you are trained to shoot to kill. Not trained to 'shoot in the leg' Much unlike the TV or movies where you would see this. Tazers are usually ineffective but I agree shooting a dude with a knife is just bad mojo. This happened this same year in Sterling Costco some server woman with a cheese knife lost her cool and they shot her dead on the spot.

I'm always thankful when cops take out the trash for us.

Community mourns suicidal teen shot by police officer
http://www.insidenova.com/news/loudoun/community-mourns-suicidal-teen-shot-by-police-officer/article_1ace9fd3-395e-50fe-90a8-c0cafde160b2.html


He loved music and art. Hacky sack was his “thing.” He was fun loving—a “goofball.” He loved skateboarding. He was a high school wrestler, who wanted to learn about the world. He was kind.

This week, those who knew Christian Sierra best are remembering the important things about the 17-year-old who was shot and killed by a Purcellville police officer Saturday—Loudoun’s second officer-involved fatal shooting in just under a year.

“Christian was not someone who would want people talking about how he died or what happened,” Blake Larson, Sierra’s best friend of six years, said Tuesday. “He would want his legacy to be how he lived and what he believed.”

While the search for answers to myriad questions spurred by the case continues, Larson set up a Facebook page—www.facebook.com/watislyfeeven—to give Sierra’s friends and family an opportunity to do just that. Another Facebook page, www.facebook.com/lovechristiansierra, also has been set up to let people share memories and mourn the loss of the Loudoun Valley High School junior.

“You were so loved by my family and our community. Rest easy,” one commenter wrote.

Another acknowledged the two had lost touch in recent years, but remembered that Sierra was the only person to befriend him in the first grade. “You were a good guy, guilty of no true crime other than humanity. I know you will find peace and that we will all see you again,” he wrote.

That situation is a familiar one for Larson, who met Sierra after she moved to Loudoun in the sixth grade. “He was the only kid who talked to me in home room,” she said. Since then the two were always together, Larson said, always supporting each other, standing up for each other and taking care of each other. “It was me and him against the world.”

Larson described her friend as a “a bit of a hippie,” someone who “didn’t have a hateful bone in his body…He wasn’t into anything judgmental; he was just into being.”

That approach also drew him to books, and learning as much about life’s different perspectives as he could. “He was all about expanding his mind,” Larson said. “He was into seeing every aspect of the world.”

There are still many questions—and rumors—about what exactly happened Saturday afternoon when Purcellville police responded to a 911 call from a home in the 100 block of Frazer Drive, where Sierra was at a friend’s home. The caller reported that Sierra was threatening to kill himself.

With the investigation ongoing, authorities have confirmed little about what occurred from the time police responded at 2:12 p.m. to when Sierra was shot a few minutes later. By 2:24 p.m. Purcellville Police Chief Darryl C. Smith had contacted the Virginia State Police to review the case. The Virginia State Police’s statement said only that the teen “armed with a knife, lunged at the officer” and “was subsequently shot.”

Rescue personnel were called to the scene, and Sierra was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The officer, who has not been named, has been placed on administrative leave with pay.

Neighbors reported they heard four shots.

No other details of the case have been released and town leaders have declined to confirm even the most basic facts.

Late Saturday, Smith released a statement about the incident: “To ensure our citizens a thorough and independent review of this incident, I have asked the Virginia State Police to conduct the investigation.”

The Police-Shooting Investigative Team from the state police’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation has taken over the case. Once the probe is complete, the findings will be turned over to the Loudoun County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office for review. It is not yet clear how long that investigation might take.

In the meantime, the community focus has been on Sierra. Tuesday, his Loudoun Valley High School classmates wore tie-dye shirts—a staple of Sierra’s wardrobe—to honor their classmate. Photos on Facebook showed students signing his classroom desks as well.

Reports and some online postings indicated the teenager had been going through a difficult period recently, but his online presence depicts a pensive soul. One of his more recent posts on his Instagram page was, “How people treat other people is a direct reflection of how they feel about themselves.”

The community also is coming together to help the Sierra family. A GoFundMe.com page has been set up for people to donate money “for an attorney and funeral expenses.”

By 7 p.m. Tuesday, the fund had already surpassed $12,435. To donate, go to www.gofundme.com/lovechristiansierra.

Larson also is planning to sell personalized hacky sacks to raise money for the Sierra family. They will read “Goonies Never Say Die,” a phrase from “The Goonies” movie that spoke to Larson and Sierra. Once they are ready, she wants to invite people to submit orders to her at Market Street Coffee in Purcellville, a favorite spot for the friends.

As for the outpouring of love that has come since his death, Larson said it makes sense. “Everybody who met him, loved him,” she said.

Tuesday morning, Purcellville leaders issued brief statements, but on legal advice would not answer questions. For example, they would not answer whether the officer was equipped with a Taser. The Purcellville Police Department does have Tasers, but not enough to outfit every one of its 15 sworn police officers.

“Whenever there is a loss of life, it’s a tragedy,” Mayor Bob Lazaro said—foremost for the family, but also for the community and the men and women of the police department. “But I will not have any public comment until the results of the state police’s investigation are released.”

Smith, who has headed the town’s police department for the past eight years, said, “It is a very sad situation, and difficult for members of my department. We just hope we have support from the community. We come to work every day to try to ‘protect and serve.’ Our hearts go out to the family.”

The Purcellville Police Department is part of The Loudoun Crisis Intervention Team, a collaborative program between law enforcement and mental health organizations started by Loudoun Sheriff Mike Chapman in 2012. The CIT provides training and education for law enforcement to help them de-escalate crisis situations to which they respond.

The fatality is the first Purcellville Police-involved shooting in memory. And it happened almost exactly a year after fatal the officer-involved shooting at the Sterling Costco. In that case, a Loudoun deputy shot a woman who was charging at officers with scissors. Deputies first attempted to stop the woman with a Taser, but the device malfunctioned. A sheriff’s office investigation led Commonwealth’s Attorney James Plowman to conclude the shooting officer acted properly and closed the case as a justifiable homicide.

While the tragedy has many analyzing the split-second decision by the Purcellville police officer, some are focusing on prevention.

Jill Turgeon, the Loudoun County School Board member who represents the Blue Ridge District, said she’s recognized for some time a need for a mentorship program for teens, and Sierra’s death only reinforced what she called “a missing link.”

“So often we look at these big brother, big sister programs as for inner city schools. I think, unfortunately, because of the area we live in we assume kids have all the support they need.”

She envisions a program that connects teens with young adults, possibly recent college graduates, who have ties to the area. It would not be designed for just suicide prevention, but an outlet for everything young people face. Turgeon plans to bring the initiative to the School Board’s Health, Safety, Wellness and Transportation Committee this summer.

“Most kids this age are not going to talk to their parents all the time about what they’re going through, but to have someone a few years older than them who they can talk to, even about just general high school issues, is needed,” she said.
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If it was 5 shots, that sounds a little overboard, but he did charge the cops with a blade.

No ones glad he died I'm sure.

Investigate it.

idontlikebeingrightaboutshitlikethisbutiam



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So by all accounts a nice kid, who just suddenly decides to kill himself one day and lunges at police? Something doesn't add up here. Drugs?

Killing a suicidal kid who is "wielding" a knife strikes me as more than ludicrous. Yes, I will prejudge here because police must be held to a higher standard because they are paid to take risks, exercise and not exercise deadly force, and to protect the public. If the cop here really, truly believed that his life was threatened by a suicidal middle class teenager at somebody's home, he should have retreated and called for help.

I remember Fairfax County rallying to the side of that SWAT team cop who "accidently" shot the optometrist in Fair Oaks a few years ago. As a guy who grew up with guns, the cop's story was impossible to believe -- his finger "accidently" went inside the trigger guard and pulled the trigger. Sure. The county stood behind the story for years until a trial was set. Then, the county quickly settled for $2 million.

I will bet Loudon will stand behind the cop here come hell or high water.

The lesson to the public: never call the cops if you have a kid having trouble of any kind unless you fear for your life.77

Teen shot by Purcellville officer was depressed; friend had called for help
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/teen-shot-by-purcellville-officer-was-depressed-friend-had-called-for-help/2014/05/27/c5d350bc-e5e3-11e3-8f90-73e071f3d637_story.html

The Purcellville teen was in the throes of depression Saturday afternoon when he began cutting himself at a friend’s house, his mother said.

The friend called 911 seeking help. But in the chaotic minutes that followed, 17-year-old Christian Alberto Sierra would die at the hands of a Purcellville officer summoned to save him.

Virginia State Police, who are investigating the case, said that Sierra, armed with a knife, lunged at an officer, who then shot him.

Sandra Sierra, Christian’s mother, wondered why police used such force on a teen they knew was in emotional distress, not committing a crime.

“Why would you shoot a child that is suicidal?” she asked. “You are there to save him, not finish him off.”


Christian Sierra’s mother and witnesses to the shooting said the final moments of the Loudoun Valley High School junior were a jumble of action as friends and strangers desperately tried to help the teen, who was acting erratically.

Sandra Sierra said she has been told by eyewitnesses that her son was watching movies with friends when he became depressed. She said she was unsure what triggered the episode.

Christian began cutting himself with a knife, his mother said, and a friend called 911 shortly after 2 p.m.

Sandra Sierra said the call worried her son, who fled the home in the 100 block of Frazer Drive by jumping off a balcony. A friend gave chase.

Kelly Sobel, a neighbor several doors down, was getting out of the shower when she heard her neighbor scream: “Stop! Stop!”

Sobel glanced out the window and saw the neighbor running down her front steps with a dish towel. Sandra Sierra said her son was bloody at that point.

Sobel said that a second later, she heard Christian Sierra and the friend chasing him barrel into her garage door with a loud boom.


The friend and her neighbor tried to calm Sierra, but he took off again, Sobel said. The friend and neighbor followed, she said. “They were flying down the street,” Sobel said.

Christian Sierra rounded a corner. Several witnesses said they heard a police officer yell “Freeze!” or “Stop!” and then heard shots. Sobel said she heard three or four pops.

State police said Christian Sierra was immediately treated and transported to a hospital, where he died. The officer was not injured.

State and Purcellville police declined to provide additional details or name the officer involved but said the officer had been placed on administrative leave pending the completion of the investigation.

“This has been a very tragic situation for the community, the family and our officers,” said Purcellville Police Chief Darryl Smith. “We come to work to do the job of protecting and serving.”

Smith said it was the first fatal shooting by an officer in the line of duty in the history of the department, which has 15 officers.

Paige Holdeman, 16, a friend of Sierra’s, said the hallways at Loudoun Valley were quiet Tuesday. “Some people were trying to keep it to themselves, and other people were bawling their eyes out,” she said.

The sophomore said she met Sierra in a math class the year before and they became friends quickly.

“When you were around him, he put off really good vibes, nothing negative,” she said.

“He always came off as just a really happy fun guy,” she said. “You would never picture this out of Christian.”

Sandra Sierra said her son suffered from depression but was not violent. He had been on the wrestling team before this year.

A vigil was held for Christian Sierra on Sunday night. At the scene of the shooting Tuesday, candles and a teddy bear were saturated by a heavy downpour.
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Fucking waaaaaaaaa

Its no surprise fucktards blame the cop for killing the kid. While it sucks the kid died, he made the decision to come at the cop with a knife. Thinking the cop should have shot him the leg, arm, knife out of his hand, ect is stupid, but expected out of people who think they know the job and watch too much TV.

When I was in the service, we were taught the "21 foot rule" and I'm guessing the cops are taught the same. Anyone within 21 feet of you with a knife is considered a threat and should be neutralized. No fucking shooting at the legs, arms, hands, big toe.....center mass and maybe even a double-tap

Tell you what, you libtards try it for yourself. You and your boyfriend stand 21 feet from each other. Let him run at you with his dildo in hand and see how you react, other than turning around and bending over. See how you can stop him.

I feel sorry for cops today....especially in this area. I know there are some fucktard cops, but even the good ones can't win. Especially when they have idiots judging them who think they their job more than they do.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/20/2014 10:05AM by Highlander.

Highlander Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> When I was in the service, we were taught the "21
> foot rule" and I'm guessing the cops are taught
> the same. Anyone within 21 feet of you with a
> knife is considered a threat and should be
> neutralized. No fucking shooting at the legs,
> arms, hands, big toe.....center mass and maybe
> even a double-tap

That's the difference, in the military your trained to neutralize an opponent. In this case of the police, their mission is quite a bit different. If they had more time they might have been able to taze this kid, but given the scenario, sounds like he surprised and rushed them. Like you said, when a kid rushes at a cop with a knife drawn no one should be surprised that they get shot and killed.

Suicide by Cop. Case closed. Family should be billed for the service and for the trauma suffered by the cop.

Internal Affairs Wrote:
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> Suicide by Cop. Case closed. Family should be
> billed for the service and for the trauma suffered
> by the cop.

Trauma, really? Now he can hang out with that Costco murderer cop.