Wednesday, April 19, 2000
Traffic stop ends in fatal shooting
Deputy says man attacked him with pipe
BY Walt Schaefer and Lew Moores
The Cincinnati Enquirer
COLERAIN TOWNSHIP — A routine traffic stop turned deadly early Tuesday when a Hamilton County sheriff's deputy shot and killed a man who attacked him with a steel pipe, said Hamilton County Sheriff Simon L. Leis Jr.
Deputy Robert Viner, 27, “had every right to protect himself” when Timothy W. Lucas came at him with a 14-inch-long, one-inch diameter steel pipe in the parking lot of the United Dairy Farmers store at 3600 Banning Road, Sheriff Leis said.
The deputy fired one shot, striking Mr. Lucas, 39, of Stevie Lane, Green Township, in the abdomen. Mr. Lucas was taken to University Hospital by Colerain Township paramedics. He died at 5:40 a.m., about three hours after the shooting.
Deputy Robert Viner
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Police said there were no witnesses to the shooting. Sheriff's deputies ride alone in cars that are not equipped with cameras.
The convenience store and the pizzeria next to it were closed at the time of the shooting. Mr. Lucas' home on Stevie Lane is less than two miles away.
The sheriff said Timothy Lucas' brother, Michael Lucas of Colerain Township, told detectives he had been distraught because an older man who befriended him had recently been placed in a nursing home.
“There was some indication that the brother was not surprised this had happened,” Sheriff Leis said.
Michael Lucas told investigators his brother “had become very agitated” when his friend, with whom he shared an interest in model railroading, went into the nursing home. Michael Lucas is Timothy Lucas' only living relative, the sheriff said.
The sheriff, relating Deputy Viner's account, said the officer pulled over Mr. Lucas, who was driving his 1986 Buick on Banning Road, at about 2:40 a.m. when he saw the car had two different license plates — a temporary tag and a regular plate.
After Mr. Lucas gave the officer his driver's license, Deputy Viner returned to his cruiser and determined both license plates were expired and the temporary tag had been altered, the sheriff said.
“At this point, the officer advised Mr. Lucas that the (car) would need to be towed. Mr. Lucas became non-compliant and attempted to insert his keys in the ignition,” the sheriff said.
When the deputy reached in to take the keys, Mr. Lucas grabbed the pipe “and started swinging (it) through the window at the officer. The officer retreated and Mr. Lucas came out of the vehicle charging the officer with the pipe above his head,” Sheriff Leis said.
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WHAT'S NEXT
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Whenever a Hamilton County sheriff's deputy is involved in a shooting incident, two separate investigations are launched, said sheriff's spokesman Steve Barnett.
The results of both investigations are reviewed by Hamilton County Sheriff Simon L. Leis Jr. and the Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office.
One investigation is conducted by detectives from the sheriff's Criminal Investigation Section, which is responsible for all criminal investigation, Mr. Barnett said.
The other investigation is done by the Internal Affairs Division of the sheriff's office, led by retired Cincinnati Police Lt. Col. Bruce Knox.
Because there were no witnesses to Tuesday's fatal shooting in Colerain Township of Timothy W. Lucas by Deputy Robert Viner, the investigations will focus on the statements made by the deputy and how those coincide with facts culled from the crime scene, Mr. Barnett said.
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Deputy Viner told investigators he retreated about 40 feet — between his cruiser and the Buick and then toward Banning Road. He twice ordered Mr. Lucas to stop.
When Mr. Lucas came within seven to eight feet of the deputy, he fired the shot and called for a life squad, the sheriff related. There was no time for the deputy to summon help.
A tape of the incident released by the Hamilton County Communications Center indicates the first radio contact after the traffic stop was: “Shots fired” and, then, “Officer needs assistance.”
Mr. Lucas had no prior run-ins with the law. The preliminary investigation does not indicate drugs or alcohol were involved although a blood test has been ordered to verify it, the sheriff said.
Sheriff's investigators described Mr. Lucas as a lifelong resident of the area who never married and as “a loner” who did a number of odd jobs but had no regular employment. He lived alone in a modest brick, ranch-style home.
Jan Highley, a neighbor of Mr. Lucas on Stevie Lane, said Mr. Lucas was a quiet man who lived by himself and offered to mow the lawns of neighbors in the area.
“This is hard for me to believe,” said Ms. Highley. “He didn't bother anybody. There was no trouble. (What happened) doesn't sound like him at all.”
Said Sheriff Leis: “I can't explain how things like that happen. This was a very unfortunate shooting. When (Deputy Viner) was advised that (Mr. Lucas) had died, the first question out of his mouth was whether or not he had any children or a family. I find this whole thing hard to believe, myself. I do not understand what prompted (Mr. Lucas) to do this.”
Deputy Viner had two regularly scheduled off days Tuesday and today and will be provided any administrative leave and psychological help he might need, the sheriff said.
The deputy joined the sheriff's department on June 16, 1994. He served as a corrections officer for 41/2 years, then eight months as a patrol clerk before being promoted to patrol officer a year ago. Sheriff's spokesman Steve Barnett said Deputy Viner's service record is unblemished and the sheriff called him “an outstanding young officer.”
The last time shots were fired by a sheriff's deputy was Oct. 26, 1999 in Madison Place, Columbia Township. Two rounds were discharged during a struggle between Darrell Mann, who was stopped on a traffic violation by Sheriff's Deputy Kevin Illing, Mr. Barnett said.
After the struggle, Mr. Mann took the deputy's gun, pointed it at him, and then drove off in his cruiser. He later abandoned the car and ran to his home on Faith Street. He surrendered to police after a three-hour standoff.
The last time a sheriff's deputy was involved in taking a life in the line of duty was during a robbery stakeout on March 19, 1982, at O'Cull's Drug Store in North Bend, Mr. Barnett said. Cincinnati and Hamilton County officers killed John Henry Durham of Price Hill and Willoughby Lee Murphy of Cincinnati's Mohawk neighborhood.
The names of officers involved in the shooting were not released because authorities feared their lives would be endangered by friends of the two men. The Ohio Supreme Court rejected a request in June 1983, made by the Queen City Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, to release the officers' names.
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