"I thought I was dead."
Officer Adam Bandy’s voice came over the video, footage from the body camera that the Greenwood police officer was wearing on June 27, 2016.
Moments before, the video had showed Bandy firing shots at a suspect who had pulled a gun on him, capturing that he feared for his life. Bandy was able to shoot the man and incapacitate him before officers arrived to provide back-up.
The body camera footage was the first piece of evidence presented to jurors Tuesday as the trial of Paul J. Kinnaman started Tuesday in Johnson County Superior Court 3. Kinnaman, 38, Metamora, is accused of leading police on a pursuit and then pulling a gun on Bandy. He is charged with attempted murder, pointing a firearm, possession of a firearm by a violent felon and resisting law enforcement.
"We will present evidence that you will see and hear that will prove each of these charges without a reasonable doubt," said Megan Smither, deputy prosecutor.
The trial, which was presided over by Judge Lance Hamner, started with jury selection, following by opening statements by the prosecution and defense.
Kinnaman has maintained his innocence in the case, pleading not guilty to the charges. In his opening statement, Matt Solomon, Kinnaman’s attorney, questioned Bandy’s decisions from the moment he first spotted Kinnaman’s car.
"You folks will have a big choice to make about what kind of community you want to live in, what kind of police department you want and how you want the police dealing with admittedly high-intensity situations," he said.
According to the police report filed in the case, the charges stem from an incident that started in a neighborhood on the west side of Greenwood. Bandy, a patrol officer with the Greenwood Police Department, saw Kinnaman drive by while he was in the middle of a traffic stop. The officer started following Kinnaman’s car.
When the Bandy went to stop the vehicle for speeding and crossing the center line, the vehicle fled, and a pursuit began. The pursuit ended when Kinnaman’s vehicle crashed into a line of vehicles at Shelby Street and Stop 11 Road on the southside of Indianapolis.
According to the police report, Kinnaman then climbed out of the passenger side of the vehicle and tried to run. As Bandy was preparing to get out his Taser, he saw Kinnaman pull a gun from his side, the report said. Kinnaman pointed the gun at the officer, but it did not fire.
The officer fired 10 shots until Kinnaman dropped his weapon, the report said. Kinnaman was struck near his waistline and tried to run but collapsed shortly after. Officers found the handgun near Kinnaman with a bullet in the chamber, the report said.
Bandy was the first witness called by the prosecution, and he was able to give part of his testimony. He outlined the events that happened on the day of the incident, describing police protocol and why he made each decision.
Then prosecutors showed the body camera footage, which Bandy had turned on during the pursuit of Kinnaman’s car. The jurors stared up at the projection screen as Kinnaman’s car accelerated away from Bandy, wove through traffic and eventually crashed.
The video of Kinnaman exiting his vehicle, pointing the gun at Bandy and then Bandy firing shots at Kinnaman is chaotic and shaky. But the panic is clear in Bandy’s voice as the incident unfolds.
The trial adjourned for the day following the body camera footage, stopping in the middle of Bandy’s testimony before the rest of the prosecution’s questions and Solomon’s cross-examination. But in his opening statement, Solomon asserted that the entire incident was driven by Bandy’s actions and the pursuit.
He questioned Bandy’s methods of following the car, whether he could have seen the traffic violations that he claimed, and why the officer chose to start a high-speed pursuit during rush hour in one of Johnson County’s busiest areas.
Solomon admitted that Kinnaman made poor choices that day, but also alluded to life experiences that could explain it. He said that the body camera footage would support that.
"I can’t wait until you see the body cam, because the body cam is going to show someone desperate to get away from danger," he said.
The trial continues today.
