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Associated Press
Dramatic dash-cam video showing a police officer using his cruiser to ram into a rifle-toting robbery suspect who had been walking down a street was getting attention across the U.S. on Wednesday.
Adding to a growing stream of images that is raising hard questions about police use of force, the video released Tuesday shows the suspect being hit from behind and cart-wheeling through the air as the cruiser slams into a wall.
The intentional, high-speed crash clearly shocked a fellow officer, who had just warned other police to stay back because the rifle was "definitely loaded."
Prosecutors cleared Officer Michael Rapiejko of any wrongdoing in the ramming of the suspect, who survived the Feb. 19 crash. Mario Valencia, 36, apparently escaped major injuries and now faces several felony charges, including assault on an officer.
His attorney, Michelle Cohen-Metzger, has not responded to a request for comment from The Associated Press.
Marana police Sgt. Chris Warren said Valencia robbed a convenience store in Tucson, broke into a church, invaded a home, stole a car and then drove to the northern suburb of Marana, where he stole a rifle from a Wal-Mart.
Video from two police cruisers shows Valencia walking with a rifle down a busy business corridor. At one point, Valencia points the rifle at himself and threatens to kill himself. At another, Valencia shoots the rifle into the air.
One of the dash cam videos was from a cruiser driving slowly behind Valencia from about a half-block away. That officer can be heard telling others to "stand off" because the suspect is armed.
Moments later, another patrol car suddenly comes into view, driving at high speed into Valencia, sending him flying before smashing into a retaining wall.
The camera in Rapiejko's cruiser provides a more first-person view, which ends with a shattered windshield.
"Oh, Jesus Christ, man down!" the first officer shouts as police swarm the scene, guns drawn.
Warren said Rapiejko was put on a standard administrative leave, but is back on regular duty after the Pima County Attorney's Office cleared him of any wrongdoing.
AP
Former New England Patriots star Aaron Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison Wednesday in a deadly late-night shooting, sealing the downfall of an athlete who once had a $40 million contract and a standout career ahead of him.
Hernandez, 25, looked to his right, pursed his lips and sat down after the jury forewoman pronounced him guilty in the slaying of Odin Lloyd, a 27-year-old landscaper and amateur weekend football player who was dating the sister of Hernandez's fiancee. The conviction carried a mandatory sentence of life without parole and automatically triggers an appeal to Massachusetts' highest court.
Hernandez's mother, Terri, and his fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins, cried and gasped when they heard the verdict, and Lloyd's mother also cried. Jenkins wept loudly on his mother's shoulder. Hernandez, his eyes red, mouthed to them: "Be strong. Be strong."
The former football pro was also found guilty on weapons charges. The jury deliberated for 36 hours over seven days before rendering its verdict.
For reasons that were never made clear to the jury, Lloyd was shot six times in the middle of the night on June 17, 2013, in a deserted industrial park near Hernandez's home in North Attleborough.
Police almost immediately zeroed in on Hernandez because they found in Lloyd's pocket the key to a car the NFL player had rented. Within hours of Hernandez's arrest, the Patriots cut the former Pro Bowl athlete, who was considered one of the top tight ends in the game.
Prosecutors presented a wealth of evidence that Hernandez was with Lloyd at the time he was killed, including home security video from Hernandez's mansion, witness testimony and cellphone records that tracked Lloyd's movements.
EMERY P. DALESIO, Associated Press
GOLDSBORO, N.C. (AP) —
A gunman with a rifle entered a community college campus building Monday morning and killed a print shop operator who had just arrived at work, school officials and authorities said.