Cop Kills Double Amputee in Wheelchair

A police officer took action yesterday against a double amputee who was waving a pen around—by shooting him dead in his wheelchair, the AP reports. Houston officer Matthew Jacob Marin was responding to a call about the amputee causing a disturbance at a group home, when the man cornered Marin and tried to stab him with a metal object later identified as a pen. "Fearing for his partner's safety and his own safety, he discharged his weapon," said a police spokeswoman.

The amputee was known to be mentally ill and had lost an arm and part of a leg when hit by a train, said John Garcia, the home's owner. "He sometimes would go off a bit, but you just ignore it," Garcia said. As for Marin, he was given a standard 3-day leave from the department. Records show Marin gunned down another suspect 3 years ago who refused to stop stabbing a neighbor at an apartment complex. (More Houston stories.)