Mom sues Long Island police for shooting her unarmed son in his bedroom

26-year-old Callahan shot in the back as he cowered in fear, unarmed, and recently released from hospital

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Long Island mother Patrica Callahan and her family are suing the police

Photo by Newsday

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A Selden, Long Island mother is suing Suffolk County and eight police officers for shooting her unarmed 26-year-old son, Kevin Callahan, in his bedroom, and leaving him to bleed to death.

Patricia Callahan is charging the police with the murder of her son, claiming that the shooting was unlawful and they failed to provide him with medical attention. The Irish American mother spoke at a press conference, alongside another son, Christopher and their lawyer, Amy Marion.

She told the press, “Nothing can bring my son back. He was a good kid, but he was deathly afraid of the police. I don't know how this could have happened.”

In January, a grand jury convened and it was ruled that the shooting of Kevin Callahan, a former heroin addict, was an accident.

His mother calls it “a senseless and horrible death” and believes the midday shooting was caused by  poorly trained police who were too quick to shoot and slow to admit their mistake.

She said, “These officers shot blindly into the bedroom, killing Kevin Callahan.”

The police officer who fired the fatal shot, Thomas Wilson, told the authorities he “had not been confronted” so “there was no basis for speculative fear”.

Last September, Kevin’s brother, Christopher, called 911 and said “there might be a man with a gun endangering his brother,” according to New York Daily News reports.

The Callahan family were concerned about Kevin who had been released from Stony Brook Hospital just the day before, according to AP.

As the police entered the room the door was suddenly closed trapping one of the officers in the room with his gun drawn. He feared that his gun would be taken and fired to stop someone “killing” him. The court records show that Wilson then fired at least two shots through the door, from the hallway.

Kevin was shot in the chest and abdomen and then a third time in the back, as he cowered on the floor behind the door.

His mother and Christopher were taken into custody. They were interrogated for an hour, according to their lawyer, Amy Marion. They were questioned about Kevin’s drug and criminal history. The police did not tell his mother and brother that Kevin was dead until later that day.

Jay Salpeter, the Callahan’s private investigator, said the medical examiner did not pronounce Kevin dead until 7:50pm, his body was not removed from the property until 11pm. That was 10 hours after the shooting.

The lawyer noted that none of the police officers involved were hurt but they were all rushed to the hospital for immediate medical attention. Callahan received no medical attention.

Marion and the Callahan family believe the Suffolk County Police are trying to cover up the story. They claim Kevin and his family were denied his constitutional rights, unlawfully detained, and falsely imprisoned.

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