Man Becomes Violent: Police Forced to Shoot Him: He is Killed
Summary:
Paragraph three reads: "Police had been looking for Caron after he threatened a pharmacist with a pistol earlier that day when he became angry about his prescription."
Paragraph eight reads: "The fatal confrontation was set into motion when a worker at the CVS Pharmacy at 77 Bovet Road called police at 10:29 a.m. to report that a man, later identified as Caron, was extremely intoxicated and yelling at customers. Wagstaffe said Caron's blood alcohol content was 0.16, or twice the legal limit for driving, and he had the prescription antidepressant Zoloft in his system."
SSRI Stories note: Antidepressants like Zoloft are usually contradicted in schizophrenic patients as the Physicians Desk Reference states that antidepressants can cause psychosis.
SSRI Stories Additional Note: The Physicians Desk Reference states that antidepressants can cause a craving for alcohol and can cause alcohol abuse. Also, the liver cannot metabolize the antidepressant and the alcohol simultaneously, thus leading to higher levels of both alcohol and the antidepressant in the human body.
Posted: 05/12/2011 06:47:55 AM PDT Updated: 05/12/2011 06:47:56 AM PDT
A San Mateo police officer won't face criminal charges for fatally shooting a schizophrenic man during an exchange of gunfire, a prosecutor said.
Officer Adam Smith fired a single shot from his AR-15 rifle into Robert Caron's chest during the confrontation, which unfolded Feb. 28 outside the 35-year-old man's home in the 1500 block of Oak Street in San Mateo.
Police had been looking for Caron after he threatened a pharmacist with a pistol earlier that day when he became angry about his prescription.
District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said in a report that "public safety required Officer Smith to use deadly force to protect himself, other officers, and Mr. Caron's mother."
At the time the fatal shot was fired, Caron's mother, Sandra, was standing in her home's backyard with her son, who had already shot at police three times with a .38-caliber Smith & Wesson revolver, authorities said. Smith didn't know who she was and, fearing Robert Caron might open fire or take her hostage, the officer decided to shoot as the man "quickly approached" her, said Wagstaffe.
Caron's mother later told police her son was schizophrenic. He had a history of forced hospitalizations for mental issues and was arrested for making threats against a San Mateo police officer in February 2001.
In that case, police said, Caron imitated pulling the trigger of a gun and told the officers, "I'll see you later." He had threatened suicide or to hurt officers on at least four other occasions since 1999, police said.
The fatal confrontation was set into motion when a worker at the CVS Pharmacy at 77 Bovet Road called police at 10:29 a.m. to report that a man, later identified as Caron, was extremely intoxicated and yelling at customers. Wagstaffe said Caron's blood alcohol content was 0.16, or twice the legal limit for driving, and he had the prescription antidepressant Zoloft in his system.
A worker called back less than 10 minutes later to say she had just learned that Caron had also threatened a pharmacist with a gun.
Sandra Caron later told police her son was angry that the pharmacy had tried to make him pay for his prescription. She said she tried to calm him down before he pulled the gun on the officers. The gun was old but functional, and it was not clear who owned it, authorities said.
Police got another call, at 10:47 a.m., from a neighbor behind the Caron house who reported that she could hear a man screaming, "The cops are coming." Not long after that, three officers were approaching Caron's house when he appeared with the weapon in his hand. The officers backed off and took cover behind a tree about four houses away.
Officer Genevieve Altwer, who was part of the response, was a trained negotiator. Wagstaffe said she asked Caron to hold his hands up, and he responded by shouting obscenities and raising his middle finger at her. He then fired two shots at the officers and retreated to the backyard.
When Caron came to the front of the house again, Officer Marcelo Altwer, who was about 170 feet away, fired at him but missed. Caron fired his third and final shot at police before running into the backyard again. By this time, Smith was perched on a fence behind the Caron house, preparing to shoot.
Sandra Caron didn't respond Wednesday to a phone message seeking comment on the DA's decision. San Mateo police didn't immediately provide a comment on the matter.