7 bounty hunters shot at wrong car, charged with murder

[brassmonkey]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Seven bounty hunters who descended on the wrong car outside a Wal-Mart have been indicted on first-degree murder charges in the killing of an unarmed man and the wounding of another, Tennessee police announced Wednesday.

The charges come after a chaotic scene in Clarksville on April 23, where police said the bounty hunters shot at the four people in the sedan and chased them for seven miles.

Not one of the men in the sedan was wanted on outstanding charges.

In fact, the Clarksville bounty hunters were looking for someone else, and there is no indication that any of the victims fired at the defendants or were even armed, police spokesman Jim Knoll said in an email.

Bail bondsmen are empowered to hire or act as bounty hunters to bring in people who violate the terms of jail bonds, but they can't use deadly force unless it's self-defense.

Killed was 24-year-old Jalen Johnson, a father of three from Clarksville. His family called him an innocent man who died in an act of terrorizing violence.

Johnson's uncle, Toni Jenkins, told The Associated Press that his nephew and the three men in the car with him had no idea why people would suddenly block their car in the Wal-Mart parking lot. Fearing an attack by gang members, they tried to flee.

The bounty hunters, Jenkins said, started shooting in the parking lot and continued to fire on them during the chase, even ramming the Nissan along the way.

Clarksville police would not confirm or deny these details, but authorities have said they are troubled by how the bounty hunters put people at risk.

The Montgomery County grand jury charged all seven men with first-degree felony murder, three counts of attempted second-degree murder, three counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, attempted especially aggravated kidnapping, four counts of aggravated assault, employing a firearm in commission of a dangerous felony and felony reckless endangerment, police said.

Some of the men charged were bonding agents and others were strictly bounty hunters, Knoll said.

The men charged include: William L. Byles, 31; Kenneth Chiasson, 38; Antwon D. Keesee, 32; Jonathan Schnepp, 31; Roger D. West, 31; Prentice L. Williams, 34 and Joshua Young, 27.

They do not yet have court dates or attorneys listed, the Montgomery County Circuit Court Clerk's office said.

All the men are from Clarksville, a city about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northwest of Nashville near the Kentucky state line.

article...

[mineistaken]

These 7 are bounty hunters? I knew typical bounty hunter is not the most intellectual, but all these look like typical criminals.

[Struggle4Bucks]

Originally Posted by mineistaken

These 7 are bounty hunters? I knew typical bounty hunter is not the most intellectual, but all these look like typical criminals.

at least 3 don't look like typical criminals...

[brassmonkey]

Originally Posted by Struggle4Bucks

at least 3 don't look like typical criminals...

[makko2]

Originally Posted by Struggle4Bucks

at least 3 don't look like typical criminals...

And some would say 3 look like criminals who usually get away with crimes because others blissfully assume they don't look like criminals.

[brassmonkey]

Originally Posted by makko2

And some would say 3 look like criminals who usually get away with crimes because others blissfully assume they don't look like criminals.

yep! a white man in texas was cleaning out houses! he wore a suit drove a nice car so nobody questioned what he was doing in upscale sides of town. he made millions and vanished.

[makko2]

Originally Posted by brassmonkey

yep! a white man in texas was cleaning out houses! he wore a suit drove a nice car so nobody questioned what he was doing in upscale sides of town. he made millions and vanished.

exactly..... and those who still don't get what we're saying have this reaction;

[directfiesta]

[Horatio Caine]

Originally Posted by makko2

exactly..... and those who still don't get what we're saying have this reaction;

Oh we get it.. You dindonuffins to deserve the reputation ..

[escorpio]

Originally Posted by Horatio Caine

Oh we get it.. You dindonuffins to deserve the reputation ..

OMG those statistics are RACIST!!

[Struggle4Bucks]

Originally Posted by makko2

exactly..... and those who still don't get what we're saying have this reaction;

Corrected it for you...:

[mineistaken]

Originally Posted by escorpio

OMG those statistics are RACIST!!

Indeed. You can not post statistics in libbyland. Unless that stat shows whitey in negative way, than it is allowed.

[JFK]

Originally Posted by makko2

And some would say 3 look like criminals who usually get away with crimes because others blissfully assume they don't look like criminals.

[Fat Panda]

theyll get off

it was misunderstanding

[Bladewire]

Originally Posted by Fat Panda

theyll get off

it was misunderstanding

Yeah but they'll throw the black guys in jail for life, or execute them, it's Tennessee

[crockett]

Originally Posted by mineistaken

These 7 are bounty hunters? I knew typical bounty hunter is not the most intellectual, but all these look like typical criminals.

They are criminals, they are charged with 1st degree murder...

[Paul Markham]

They will fit right in with the prison community. Ugly and stupid.