Troy Meade shot a drunk man seven times in the back. But was it murder?Troy Meade is the first Snohomish County police officer ever to be charged for a shooting in the line of duty. And it’s likely his freedom will be determined by how much a jury believes his version of events over those of another cop.Last June, Meade was called to the Chuckwagon Inn to stop a drunk man from driving home. 51-year-old Niles Meservey was already in his white Corvette when Meade arrived, and refused to get out.Parked between two other vehicles and facing a fence, Meade boxed in Meservey’s car by pulling up behind him. Meade then shot Meservey twice with Tasers. But the drunk man managed to start his car, lurching forward and getting stuck between the parking curb and the fence, witnesses say.What jurors believe happened next will likely determine Meade’s fate.Meservey had a BAC of .26, three times the legal limit. Witnesses say he was reciting the Lord’s Prayer right before he died.Meade says that he feared for his life. In opening statements, The Seattle Times
reports that Meade’s lawyer said his client had witnessed another cop get run down and feared the same fate. He also said that Meade saw Meservey’s backup lights go on before shooting. Thus, when he fired eight rounds, seven of which hit Meservey in the back, he was doing so out of a legitimate fear for his own life.The other officer on the scene, however, paints a different picture.Steven Klocker says that he and Meade still had many other, nonlethal alternatives when his fellow responding officer opened fire. Investigators also determined that Meade was standing behind and to the left of Meservey’s Corvette when he began shooting. In other words, he wasn’t quite at the risk of getting run over that he claimed.Then there’s this: Klocker says he heard Meade say something to the effect of “Time to end this; enough is enough” before he started shooting.Meade is a 12-year veteran of the Everett police force. He’s currently charged with second-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter, and is still on paid administrative leave.
