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n late December, members of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office and Indian Police Department SWAT team claim in a press release posted on Facebook that an “armed suspect” present the potential for a hostage situation” combined with “unsuccessful attempts to make contact with the alleged shooter” resulted in the “suspected shooter” being shot after he “engaged in a verbal altercation with officers and emerged from a camper trailer and confronted officers.”
“Jason Harley Kloepfer, age 41, of 1790 Upper Bear Paw Road, Murphy, NC has been charged with Communicating Threats and Resist, Obstruct, and Delay,” the release continues. “The matter remains under investigation and more charges may follow.”
“Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office limited who can comment on this post,” a Facebook notice adds.
An unquestioning media dutifully parrots the department’s story.
“SWAT team members shoot man who confronted officers in Murphy, NC, sheriff says. A man from Murphy, North Carolina is now recovering in a Chattanooga hospital after SWAT team members were forced to shoot him after he confronted officers, according to the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office,” ABC 13 News “reported.”
“The sheriff’s office says Kloepfer eventually came outside and confronted officers, forcing them to shoot the suspect,” Local 3 News mirrors.
Watch it for yourself. Do you see attempts to communicate being rebuffed by anyone but the police? Do you see a hostage? Do you see a gun held by anyone but the police? Do you see a confrontation? Do you see Kloepfer “forcing” anyone to shoot him like the “news” is telling people?
Or do you see a firing squad with qualified immunity getting away with what you or I would be charged with attempted murder for? I’ll stipulate that I know nothing about Kloepfer and the charges leading up to the warrant. For all I know, he could be a very bad hombre, a citizen victim, or something in between. That’s not the point.