Police memo gives new details, raises fresh questions in Chavis Carter case
theGRIO REPORT - Jonesboro, Arkansas police on Wednesday released two new documents that offer significant new details in the case of Chavis Carter -- the 21-year-old Mississippi man who police say shot himself to death in the back of a patrol car where he had been detained -- in handcuffs -- by officers...
Are police implying that Carter killed himself because he was caught with video of a crime involving minors, along with a stolen gun?
That certainly seems to be the case. The police report goes into detail about what they say was found on Carter’s phone: several text messages, which they say indicate he was in the middle of a drug deal at the time of his detention by police, and that his text messages to a friend indicate that he was also “scared” once caught. The police memo also states that a video found on Carter’s cellphone “shows an African–American male (adult) smoking marijuana with two juveniles (approximately 10 years of age).” Police say they “located one of the juveniles and the adult male. The adult male is Brandon Renald Baker who is incarcerated in the Greene County jail on an aggravated burglary charge.” It continues:
On August 21, 2012 an audio interview was conducted with Baker who advised that he was the male in the video and that Chavis Carter was the person making the video on his (Carter’s) phone. One of the juveniles also identified Carter as the person making the video. Baker also stated that he knew that Carter had a small black .380 handgun consistent with that used in Carter’s death. Baker also stated that Carter had purchased the gun from a woman or individual in Jonesboro who was having domestic issues. Coincidentally, the gun was reported stolen in Jonesboro and the person who reported it stolen stated that he thought it was taken during his wife/girlfriend’s family gathering and this person has pending domestic charges against him. Baker also admitted sending Carter a text message requesting that Carter bring him the/a gun shortly before his encounter with the police.
This (text) occurred at approximately 9:30 pm on the night of Carters death. He was contacted by the police at approximately 10:00pm. Baker also stated that Carter was engaging in a drug deal for 4 ounces of marijuana when he was contacted by police (which is supported by the text messages between Baker and Carter).
What did police tell his girlfriend just before his death, and does it support the notion that he killed himself?
Police say that in an interview with Carter’s girlfriend “as recently as today,” she “relayed to the primary investigator that Carter called her from the rear of the police car and told her that he loved her and that he had a gun on him (in the rear of the police car) and he was scared. This portion of the investigation continues.”
How did Officer Marsh miss a “hidden gun?”
The report states that “there appears to be no doubt that Officer Marsh missed the gun during the initial pat down of Carter,” and it explains the misstep as being the result of the officers not knowing whether they planned to arrest Carter for the “small amount of marijuana discovered on his person as his wanted status and identity had not been determined.” The report states that Marsh was trying to “balance the intrusiveness of the search with the unknown facts and circumstances at the time,” and that they believe Carter hid the gun in the back of the patrol car the first time he was initially patted down and placed in the rear of the vehicle, un-handcuffed, and police tried to determine his identity (he initially gave them a false name, according to the police report.)
The report, which states that it is “merely a brief, preliminary investigative narrative,” concludes that “the evidence and witness statements support that Carter committed suicide given the press contact wound, the blood evidence and the witness statements. Witness statements and text messaging support the fact that he possessed the weapon before and during his encounter with the police and tend to offer some narrative as to what activity he was engaged in at the time of his contact with the police as well as the origin of the weapon.”
Despite the suicide ruling, the case remains under investigation, by Jonesboro police, in coordination with the FBI.
Follow Joy Reid on Twitter at @thereidreport
