The Houston cop who was hailed as a hero for engaging in a bloody firefight with two drugs suspects during a January no-knock raid has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
Gerald Goines is also being investigated for allegedly stealing guns, drugs and money. His partner, Steven Bryant, was charged with witness tampering.
The raid uncovered no evidence that the couple killed during the raid, Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas, were dealing heroin.
Both men are expected to turn themselves in today, according to the Houston Chronicle. And both retired in the weeks after the incident when it became apparent the police narrative was falling apart.
Prosecutors who are reviewing more than 2,000 cases involving the two cops have already dismissed dozens of cases.
The incident took place on January 28, 2019 when Houston cops raided the couple’s home after obtaining a warrant on the false claim they were peddling heroin out of the home. At the time, Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo spewed the usual spin we hear after these shootings without confirming the facts.
“The neighborhood thanked our officers,” Acevedo boasted after the raid. “It was a drug house. They described it as a problem location.”
But that was a lie because the neighbors had nothing but good things to say about the couple who hardly had any visitors. The opposite of the bustling drug house described by Acevedo.
Then there was the over-the-top attack by police union chief who tried to paint the officers as victims from the mythical War on Cops which you can see in the above video.
“Enough is enough,” declared Joseph Gamaldi, president of the Houston Police Officers’ Association, in the hours following the deadly raid.
“If you’re the ones out there spreading the rhetoric that police officers are the enemy, well just know we’ve all got your number now. We’re going to be keeping track on all of y’all, and we’re going to make sure to hold you accountable every time you stir the pot on our police officers.”
During one of the early press conferences, police were sure to maintain grim expressions on their faces while holding up the photos of the victims to further manipulate the public into believing the cops were the real victims.
But it was all a facade to distract the public away from the fact that Goines and his counterparts had been conducting questionable raids based on fake informants for years. It was all part of the Police PR Spin Machine which we broke down in-depth in the story below.
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