"Doesn't Add Up" - Attorney on Teen with Wii Remote, Killed by Cop

Amanda Warren
Activist Post

A viewing takes place today for Christopher Roupe, a teen who was shot in the chest by a female police officer immediately upon opening the door. The aspiring Marine and ROTC student would have turned 18 on Sunday.

The officer claimed he had a gun; and the Euharlee, GA police department appears to stand by that claim. What he was holding was in fact, a white Wii gaming controller; an ubiquitous object shaped like a remote control.

Two Euharlee officers showed up at Christopher’s home in the Eagle View Mobile Home Park to serve a probation violation warrant for his father. After the shooting, the officer told GBI investigators that Christopher pointed a gun at her when he opened the door. The family is filing suit against the police department. Their attorney, Cole Law, said the story of Roupe’s pointing a gun at the officer “doesn’t add up.” Law said:

We don’t know where that statement came from. The eyewitnesses on the scene clearly state that he had a Wii controller in his hand. He heard a knock at the door. He asked who it was, there was no response so he opened the door and upon opening the door he was immediately shot in the chest.

“When we got up there, they said there was a Wii remote in his hand and she shot him,” said neighbor Tia Howard.  Roupe survived the initial shot but suffered major blood loss before medics could arrive, and died at the hospital. One witness reports seeing ”an ungodly amount of blood on a Wii controller and the gaming system laying nearby.”

One source says that the father, who was home, was arrested at the time of the incident (for the warrant) and that the two siblings at the home were released to a neighbor until their mother could pick them up.

One report claims that the officer involved is Beth Daniel-Gatny, aka Nancy B Daniel-Gatny, as this woman’s photo was removed from Euharlee department’s page and her Facebook account is deactivated. The report claims that when Christopher’s 13-year-old sister came to console her crying, wounded brother, the officer pointed the gun at her and told her to “shut-up,” but there are no supporting sources for that quote.

Neither the police department nor Georgia Bureau of Investigation is willing to comment on the incident. Evidence has been turned over to the District Attorney’s office. The officer has been placed on paid administrative leave.

Christopher Roupe’s family and friends called him Bubba and set up a memorial page for him. He and his older sister had hoped he would soon meet his baby niece. The family posted a contact to fund his funeral costs in the comments.

Front page message from Chief of Police Terry J. Harget:

The Euharlee Police Department is a police organization with a modern, well educated, highly competent staff. We value high integrity, the Community Policing philosophy and we continually strive for excellence in all that we do. In this regard, our primary focus is on protecting and serving our citizens with the highest possible levels of devotion to duty by all members of the Euharlee Police Department. 

In accordance with our Community Policing philosophy, we use strategic planning methods to move the department toward becoming less, incident-driven and more proactive in addressing the root causes of crime and disorder in our community. Our strategies include analytic problem-solving techniques; teamwork with all stakeholders of neighborhood problems coupled with collaboration of the full resources of local government; and candid open communications dialogue with the Euharlee community. 

[...] 

Most importantly, the foundation of the Euharlee Police Department is the set of Core Values with which we approach everything we do: P-O-L-I-C-E Professionalism, Obligation, Leadership, Integrity, Courage, and Excellence.

Euharlee Police Dept. Contact:
Monday Through Thursday 9:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. Phone: 770-386-7339 Fax: 770-386-7340 Police Chief Terry J. Harget: [email protected]

Image of Christopher Roupe: Facebook  

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