Coroner's Inquest Looking Into Fatal Hempfield Twp. Police Shooting
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – A coroner's inquest was held Thursday to investigate the death of a man who was shot by police in Hempfield Township.
Investigators are looking into the death of Rodney Golden.
Authorities say they had to shoot Golden, after he slit a woman's throat and they couldn't subdue him with a stun gun. The incident happened in January of 2014.
Pennsylvania State Police rushed to the Hempfield Towers after getting a frantic 911 call from a man who witnessed a murder.
Golden, 41, was the man with the knife. His girlfriend, 56-year-old Anita Sabol, was the victim. According to sources, the two had a long history of domestic violence.
Today, the coroner's inquest was looking into whether police were justified in their actions.
First on the stand at the inquest was Stephen Gray. His third-floor apartment was directly across from Golden's inside Hempfield Towers.
Gray testified he had heard Golden yelling, "Where are all the twenties at?" Shortly after, Gray said he opened his door to see Golden holding Sabol with this knife to her throat.
"He [Golden] stood behind her and sliced her throat left to right. She [Anita Sabol] grabbed her throat and screamed, 'Call 911,'" Gray said.
Sabol would die shortly afterward from massive bleeding.
Taking the stand next was Officer Dave Sargent of South Greensburg Police. He was the second officer on scene. He discovered Golden, knife in hand, in a standoff with State Trooper Brian Lumsden.
Sargent testified: "He [Golden] had a large knife in his hand. We gave him direct orders to drop the knife.
Officials say Trooper Lumsden used a Taser in Golden with no effect. Officer Sargent did the same with the same result.
Officer Sargent told the inquest, "He [Golden] looked at me and had a smirk on his face. He [Golden] beat the knife on his chest yelling at Trooper Lumsden saying, 'Shoot me, grow some and shoot me."
Moments later, officials say Golden lunged, knife raised at the trooper who then shot the suspect twice in the chest killing him.
"Any time there's an officer-involved shooting, just to treat them all the same, fair way, no matter how bad or good they look, we hold an open inquest on each one of them," said Westmoreland County Coroner Ken Bacha. "That way everything is exposed. Not looking to see if the officer so much did something wrong, but also to expose that they did something right."
All officers say they were justified in shooting Golden because their lives were being threatened.
It will be about three months before the results of the inquest are given to the Westmoreland County Coroner, and then the coroner will make a decision as to whether or not this shooting was justified.
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