Officer Hugo Arango of the Doraville (Georgia) Police Department was murdered by an illegal alien Bautista Ramirez May 13, 2000 — there's no dispute about those facts. But the June trial has not been a pretty picture as admitted cop-killer Ramirez pleaded self-defense because he thought Officer Arango would kill him otherwise, saying "if I don't kill him, he's going to kill me." The prosecution contends that Ramirez shot the police officer simply to avoid arrest. The original altercation occurred outside a nightclub, when Arango approached Ramirez, then 19, and his cousin. Ramirez was an illegal alien from Mexico, and possessed a concealed gun. Also injured by Ramirez was nightclub manager David Contreras, who survived being shot in the face. Update, June 25, 2003: Bautista Ramirez was found guilty of the murder of Officer Arango, as well as of carrying a concealed weapon and aggravated assault against David Contreras, who was blinded in one eye in the attack. Evidently the jury was not impressed with the defense strategy of blaming the victim. The jury decided Ramirez should get life in prison (with the possibility of parole) plus 20 years for shooting Contreras and one year for gun possession. According to the strange math of sentencing, the convicted cop killer could be out in 46 years or less.
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