Ex-Philadelphia officer sentenced and immediately paroled after conviction in traffic stop shooting
Judge Glenn Bronson sentenced Mark Dial to 9 1/2 months in jail, and immediately granted Dial parole because he had already been jailed for 10 months following his arrest in 2023.
A jury in May acquitted Dial, 29, of murder charges, and instead convicted him of voluntary manslaughter, reckless endangerment and possessing an instrument of crime in the fatal shooting of 27-year-old Eddie Irizarry.
Brian McMonagle, Dial's lawyer, said the judge did the right thing for a 'dedicated public servant' who 'risked his life every day for perfect strangers.'
District Attorney Larry Krasner said the judge went 'way below' sentencing guidelines in handing down a sentence that set Dial free. The low end of the standard range of sentencing guidelines for the conviction was 4 1/2 to nine years in prison, he said.
Krasner declined to criticize the judge but said he was 'deeply disappointed with a verdict that I think makes people lose faith in the criminal justice system.'
Zoraida Garcia, an aunt of Irizarry's, told reporters after the sentencing that if she had committed the crime, 'I would have been doing life in prison. But he's a cop, so he gets the OK.' Another aunt, Ana Cintron, said, 'my nephew's life doesn't matter at all.'
In court, Bronson said the shooting was not 'a classic voluntary manslaughter case,' that Dial's conduct was 'demonstrably out of character' and that Dial was not a threat to the public, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
He also said that Dial, after shooting Irizarry six times, rushed Irizarry to the hospital.
'I've never seen that happen in a voluntary manslaughter case,' he said.
Dial's lawyers have insisted that the 2023 shooting was justified.
They say Dial thought Irizarry had a gun when he approached Irizarry's car after officers spotted the car being driven erratically and followed it for several blocks before it turned the wrong way down a one-way street and stopped.
Police body camera video of the shooting shows Dial getting out of a police SUV, striding over to Irizarry's car and firing his weapon six times at close range through the rolled-up driver's side window.
The video shows Irizarry holding a seven-inch knife before he was shot.
Another officer yelled 'knife' as they had approached the vehicle, according to the video, but Dial's attorneys disputed those assertions, saying the other officer yelled 'Gun!,' that the knife resembled a gun and that Dial had acted lawfully and in self-defense.
Dial was released from custody in 2024 after prosecutors withdrew a first-degree murder charge.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Officer convicted in Breonna Taylor raid gets 33-month sentence
A former Kentucky police officer has been sentenced to 33 months in prison after being convicted in connection with a raid that resulted in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor, a black woman, in her home. A federal jury last year found Brett Hankison guilty of violating Taylor's civil rights by using excessive force. The maximum sentence for the charge was life in prison. The sentencing comes days after the Trump administration asked the judge to give Hankison a one-day sentence - a position that starkly contrasts with the approach to the case under President Joe Biden. Hankison is the only officer who has been charged and convicted directly in connection with the botched raid. Another former officer, Kelly Goodlett, who pleaded guilty to conspiring with a colleague to falsify the affidavit used to obtain search warrant for Taylor's home and to cover up their actions after her death, will be sentenced next year. After his sentence, Hankison will face three years of supervised release. Tamika Palmer, Taylor's mother, and lawyers for the family spoke after the sentencing on Monday. "I think the judge did the best she could with what she had to work with," Ms Palmer said, but she was critical of federal prosecutors who had argued for a lesser sentence. Taylor's boyfriend Kenneth Walker, who was in the apartment with her the night of the raid, said he was "grateful for the small piece of justice that we got". Taylor became a face of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020 following her death and the police killing of George Floyd, who was murdered during a police arrest that same year. She was killed after officers in plain clothes executed a "no-knock" search warrant at her home. They burst into her apartment in the early morning hours while she and Walker, were asleep. Authorities believed Taylor's former boyfriend was using her home to hide narcotics. Mr Walker fired a single shot when the police knocked the door down, hitting one officer, Sgt John Mattingly, in the leg. Mr Walker said the officers did not announce themselves as police, and he thought they were intruders. The three officers returned fire, shooting 32 bullets into the flat. Hankinson fired 10 times into her apartment, in order, he said during the trial, to protect fellow officers. None of Hankison's bullets hit anyone, but they did enter a neighbouring property, where a pregnant woman, a five-year-old and a man had been sleeping. Prosecutors said Hankison acted recklessly and "violated one of the most fundamental rules of deadly force: If they cannot see the person they're shooting at, they cannot pull the trigger." Outside the courthouse, protestors waiting for the verdict blocked the streets chanting Taylor's name. Several people, including Taylor's aunt, Bianca Austin, were detained by police. How was the justice department involved in this case? In early November 2024, Hankison was convicted on one count of civil rights abuse. "His use of deadly force was unlawful and put Ms Taylor in harm's way," then Attorney General Merrick Garland, a Biden-appointee, said in a statement. "This verdict is an important step toward accountability for the violation of Breonna Taylor's civil rights, but justice for the loss of Ms Taylor is a task that exceeds human capacity." Days after Hankinson's conviction, Donald Trump won re-election - a political shift that meant the sentencing recommendation would come not from the Biden administration, which brought the charges, but from the Trump-led justice department. Last week, that recommendation - a request for Hankison to serve one day in prison - stunned some, including Breonna Taylor's family. "Every American who believes in equal justice under the law should be outraged," attorneys for the family said. "Recommending just one day in prison sends the unmistakable message that white officers can violate the civil rights of Black Americans with near-total impunity." In its sentencing request, the justice department argued that although Hankison was involved in "executing the warrant" during the deadly raid, he did not shoot Taylor "and is not otherwise responsible for her death". The justice department also said that additional prison time "would simply be unjust under these circumstances". Ordinarily, sentencing recommendations are signed by lawyers involved in the case or career justice department employees who deal with sentencing requests. In this case, Trump's appointee to run the Civil Rights Department, Harmeet Dhillon, signed the recommendation. What changes has Trump's justice department made? Since returning to the White House, Trump has made rolling back Biden-era policies a priority, particularly at the justice department. In May, the justice department began the process of dismissing lawsuits brought against the Louisville and Minneapolis following controversy over high-profile police killings and brutality, including that of Taylor. Investigations into police constitutional violations in other cities such as Memphis and Phoenix were also ended. The justice department criticised the Biden administration for enacting "sweeping" oversight agreements "that would have imposed years of micromanagement" of local police by federal courts. During Biden's tenure, the justice department opened civil investigations into 12 state and local law enforcement agencies. In four of those - in Louisville, Minneapolis, Phoenix and Lexington, Mississippi - the department issued reports of systemic police misconduct. While accountability agreements were made with some of the police departments, they were not formally enacted. These changes have also come amid a mass exodus from the justice department. In the Civil Rights Division alone, the division of the department that made the Hankison sentencing recommendation, about 70% of attorneys have left since Trump was inaugurated, reports say. US seeks one-day prison for officer convicted in Breonna Taylor shooting Trump administration to scrap police reform measures in some US cities
Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Mountain lion attacks child on popular trail in Olympic National Park
A 4-year-old child was attacked and injured over the weekend by a mountain lion while walking with family on a popular trail in Olympic National Park, park officials said Monday. Park rangers were notified of the attack at around 3:15 p.m. Sunday, with initial reports saying that a collared mountain lion bit the child near the park's Victoria Overlook area on Hurricane Ridge, according to a park news release. Clallam County Fire District 2 paramedics and park staff responded, and the victim was flown to a trauma center, the news release said. The child was undergoing treatment as of Monday. The park, which said it was withholding identifying information to protect the child's privacy, did not provide details of the child's condition. With assistance from a canine team, park rangers located the mountain lion shortly after 5 p.m. Sunday and 'dispatched the animal' — a term commonly used to describe killing — on Monday morning, the news release said. Park officials said there were no current threats to the public and that the incident remained under investigation. Anyone who witnessed the attack is encouraged to call 888-653-0009 or email nps_isb@
Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Big Ten suggests to NCAA that Michigan has been punished enough for sign-stealing, AP source says
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti sent a letter to the NCAA Committee on Infractions suggesting that Michigan's football program should not face more sanctions stemming from a sign-stealing scheme, according to a person familiar with the situation. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Monday because no one is authorized to comment on an ongoing NCAA investigation. Petitti's letter was shared during last month's hearing because he was unable to attend while recovering from hip surgery, Big Ten Deputy Commissioner Diane Dietz said. ESPN was first to report some details of Petitti's letter. The NCAA alleged last year in a notice relating to its sign-stealing investigation that current coach Sherrone Moore violated rules as an assistant under former coach Jim Harbaugh, who served a three-game suspension in exchange for the conference dropping its own investigation into the allegations after the two ended up in court. After winning the 2023 national championship, Harbaugh left to lead the Los Angeles Chargers. Moore also was accused of deleting text messages with sign-stealer Connor Stalions before they were recovered and provided to the NCAA. Moore has said he has and will continue to cooperate with the NCAA's investigation. The NCAA investigation surfaced early in the 2023 season amid allegations that Michigan used a robust in-person scouting and sign-stealing operation conducted by Stalions, a former a low-level staffer. He was suspended by the school and later resigned. Stalions, who did not participate in the NCAA investigation, recently said he knew almost every signal opponents used in seven games over two seasons. Michigan is prepared to suspend Moore for two games during the coming season. The NCAA will decide if that self-imposed sanction is enough to address allegations that Moore failed to cooperate in an investigation. The governing body takes three months on average for contested cases to make a final decision. The Wolverines open the season on Aug. 30 at home against New Mexico State and at Oklahoma, where Moore was an offensive lineman, on Sept. 6. Harbaugh was suspended by the Big Ten, three weeks after an investigation by the NCAA into the allegations began. Hours later, Michigan asked a court for an injunction and temporary restraining order and the two sides narrowly avoided a court hearing. Harbaugh has repeatedly denied any involvement with Stalions' apparent scheme. The NCAA does not have rules against stealing signs, but does prohibit schools from sending scouts to the games of future opponents and using electronic equipment to record another team's signals. Multiple Big Ten schools had records showing ticket purchases under Stalions' name and video surveillance footage of people in those seats with cell phones pointed toward the field. Big Ten coaches and athletic directors previously pushed Petitti to punish Harbaugh before the NCAA concluded its investigation. When the Big Ten did suspend Harbaugh, Michigan claimed the commissioner overstepped his authority and acted outside the conference's bylaws. Athletic director Warde Manuel released a scathing statement just before Michigan kicked off at Penn State and won 24-15 without Harbaugh on the sideline. 'Not liking someone or another university or believing without any evidence that they knew or saying someone should have known without an investigation is not grounds to remove someone from their position before the NCAA process has reached a conclusion through a full NCAA investigative process,' Manuel said then. The NCAA previously put Michigan on three years of probation, fined the school and implemented recruiting limits after reaching a negotiated resolution in a recruiting case and banned Harbaugh from coaching college football for four years. ___ AP college football: and
