As if the tragic death of Sean Bell in 2006 on his wedding day wasn't enough, now one of the NYPD officers involved in the shooting is suing due to an "injury" as a result of that night. According to NYPost:
A cop involved in the fatal shooting of Sean Bell on his wedding day is now suing the dead man's estate -- claiming Bell drunkenly assaulted and badly injured him with a car right before the hail of police gunfire that brought the unarmed man down.
Police Officer Michael Carey's lawsuit says Bell was boozed-up when he got behind the wheel of the car after his bachelor party on Nov. 25, 2006, and also claims the doomed groom failed to wear glasses or contact lenses despite having poor eyesight.
Carey's allegations are contained in a Brooklyn federal counter-claim filed last week in response to a wrongful-death lawsuit being pursued by Bell's fiancée, Nicole Paultre Bell, against him and the other four cops involved.
"[Officer Carey] suffered serious leg injury when [Bell] crashed into the vehicle he was riding in before Officer Carey ever drew his gun and fired a shot," said Carey's lawyer, Richard Signorelli.Bell, 23, and his entourage were shot at 50 times by five officers, including Carey, after they left a strip joint, Club Kalua, in Jamaica, Queens.
And I'm also appauled at some of the comments left by visitors of the NYPost site:
06/29/2010 8:56 AMI absolutely agree with Officer Carey's actions. The other cops were were aquitted should also file suit against the Bell estate.Maybe this lawsuit will stop that 'fiance' Nicole Paultre Bell from going around acting like she's Corretta Scott King.
06/29/2010 4:00 AMGood for you Police Officer Carey. You poor guys had to put up with those Ghetto trash that night....You deserve something! Someone might as well get some money out of this....since his Ghetto azzzz wife sure as hell ain't!!!
hpatrickalexis6806/28/2010 9:05 AMYes, bravo!!!!!. Good Luck officer Carey. It's about time cops sue these perpetrators. Cops in this city are constantly exposed to injury at the hands of perpetrators and the only option available to police officers is line of duty status and the subsequent line of duty compensation. Why should perpetrators and crime victims be the only ones allowed to sue and collect. If they (peerpetrators and crime victims) are allowed to sue, so should the police officers.
I'm truly at a loss for words. R.I.P Sean Bell!
