Pembina County police shooting cover-up

BCI records show official version clashes with eyewitness account

by Timothy Charles Holmseth on October 27, 2016, 7:48 A.M. CST

Law enforcement and government officials in drug and crime infested North Dakota face yet another police shooting scandal – this time in Pembina County.

On June 5, 2016 Pembina County Deputy Brad Bowman shot Clifford Edward Monteith III on a rural highway near Neche, North Dakota.

Clifford Edward Monteith III

Media reports at the time described a scene that involved Monteith, the passenger of a vehicle, abruptly exiting the vehicle and physically attacking the deputy and chasing him with a knife before stealing his keys so the deputy could not pursue him.

BCI interviews show those characterizations of the event were largely false.

No media reports ever mentioned Monteith and his girlfriend had traveled from Grand Forks to Neche to look for “the Neche house” and the Grand Forks County Narcotics Task Force immediately became involved after the shooting.

Court records showed the case against Monteith was closed on October 17, 2016 after a plea deal was reached.

The settlement was widely reported.

Man accused of brutally attacking deputy pleads guilty October 18, 2016 PEMBINA, N.D. (AP) – A Grand Forks man accused of attacking a deputy sheriff in Pembina County before being shot has pleaded guilty under a deal with prosecutors. Authorities say 27-year-old Clifford Monteith III pinned Deputy Brad Bowman to the ground during a June 6 traffic stop in Neche, beat and choked him, and tried to grab the officer’s gun. Monteith then allegedly chased Bowman with a knife when Bowman broke free, and the officer shot him. Monteith initially faced nine charges including attempted murder. Prosecutors dropped that charge, and Monteith on Monday pleaded guilty to five charges including assault. The plea deal calls for him to serve 15 years in prison.

However – court records show that on October 18, 2016 an Arrest Warrant was served upon Monteith (who was already in custody) for felony Aggravated Assault and Terrorizing.

The prosecution for the State of North Dakota is Haley Wamstad, Grand Forks County State’s Attorney‘s Office.

Is there a reason law enforcement in Grand Forks wants to keep Monteith jacked up on more felony charges?

Let’s take a look at what was going on behind the facade put up by law enforcement’s media arm, Forum Communications. .

On October 16, 2016 Write Into Action submitted a records request to the North Dakota Attorney General for the BCI investigative records of the Bowman/Monteith shooting.

The North Dakota Attorney General’s office replied on October 17.

“I am responding to your request for records involving Clifford Edward Monteith III and Deputy Brad Bowman. No records will be provided because the requested records are exempt pursuant to N.D.C.C. Section 44-04-18.7,” said Liz Brocker, public information officer, ND AG.

On October 19 Write Into Action re-submitted the records request for the BCI files on the Bowman/Monteith shooting.

October 19, 2016 Liz, I am re-issuing my request for records regarding Clifford Edward Monteith III. The reason I am re-issuing it is because Clifford Monteith has been sentenced (see Grand Forks Herald link below). http://www.grandforksherald.com/news/4139554-grafton-man-who-attacked-pembina-county-deputy-sentenced-15-years-prison Thanks, Tim

On October 20 Write Into Action contacted Brocker about the records again.

October 20, 2016 Liz, I am holding a story that includes information about the shooting of Clifford Monteith. Per below, I re-issued my public records request regarding the Monteith case yesterday. I re-issued it based upon the fact the case is closed. I plan to hold the story through this morning to give your office fair opportunity to respond. Thanks, Tim

Brocker responded on October 20. “We will be happy to provide a cost and time estimate, shortly,” she said.

Write Into Action has since received the files.

So why did the Grand Forks County States Attorney’s Office take an interest in charging Monteith with more felonies after he had reached a plea deal that sent him to prison for 15 years?

The bizarre circumstances surrounding the Bowman/Monteith shooting may actually rival the shooting of David James Elliott, an unarmed man shot in a hospital parking lot by a University of North Dakota police officer in neighboring Grand Forks County in 2015.

Both the Bowman/Monteith and Braaten/Elliott shootings appear to be violent interactions between police and drug traffickers that are part of the same criminal enterprise; after something has gone wrong.

THE OFFICIAL STORY OF THE CLIFFORD MONTEITH SHOOTING IS CONTRADICTED BY AN EYEWITNESS

According to Deputy Bradley Bowman, on Sunday, June 5, 2016, shortly after midnight, he observed an SUV on Highway 18 driving slowly.

Bowman said he pulled up to the SUV, which had stopped alongside the road. The SUV was driven by Rebecca Rausch, Grand Forks. Clifford Edward Monteith III, Rauch’s boyfriend, was a passenger in the vehicle.

The following is a summary of Deputy Bowman’s account of events:

1. Bowman radioed dispatch at 12:18 A.M. but received no response.

2. Bowman approached the vehicle and asked Rausch if she was lost. He asked her to exit the vehicle. He talked to her. He asked Rausch how she got a black eye. Rauch told him somebody other than Monteith did it.  She said she and Monteith were looking for the “Neche House”.

3. Bowman told Rausch to get back in the vehicle.

4. Bowman then asked Monteith to exit the vehicle, which he did. Monteith did not want to tell Bowman his name. Monteith attacked Bowman. Monteith pulled a knife. Bowman deployed a tazer. The tazer failed. The two men fought. The two men ended up in Bowman’s squad car (Monteith on the driver’s side).

5. Bowman shot Monteith three times in self defense. Bowman radioed “shots fired” at 12:23 A.M.

6. Monteith exited Bowman’s squad car; got into the SUV driven by Rausch; and they fled.

7. Bowman radioed dispatch that the maroon SUV was southbound on Highway 18 at 12:24 A.M.

But – not so fast.

An eyewitness account by Sara Letexier, a passing motorist that spoke directly with Bowman during the event, blows gaping holes in the official story because of what she saw and heard when she pulled up to the scene.

Letexier spoke with the media (WDAZ-TV) and was interviewed by the BCI (the BCI interview with Letexier is astonishingly short for an eyewitness to an attempted murder of a police officer).

The first discrepancy is the timeline.

Sara Letexier stated she came upon the scene at approximately 12:35 a.m. Sara Letexier stated she saw a person on the roadway and a deputy. The deputy told Sara Letexier she should find a different way home because he was attacked. – BCI / Special Agent Kraft / Sara Letexier Interview

So – according to Letexier, there is a person lying on the road and the attack is over. As you will see; this does not fit the official version at all.

Bowman radioed “shots fired” at 12:23 A.M. (12 minutes earlier than Letexier recalls arriving). He radioed that the SUV was southbound on Highway 18 at 12:24 A.M.

That means that Bowman shot Monteith; and within a minute or so Monteith fled the scene in a vehicle.

No time to lay around the road while Letexier is talking to Bowman.

Letexier saw a “sedan” at the scene.

Sara Letexier stated she saw a sedan in front of the deputy’s patrol vehicle, but could not describe it. – BCI / Special Agent Kraft / Sara Letexier Interview

Letexier heard gun shots.

Sara Letexier stated she later heard a gunshot. S/A Kraft was told by Sheriff Terry Meidinger a report of fireworks was reported in the downtown area of Neche, North Dakota. – BCI / Special Agent Kraft / Sara Letexier Interview

“I heard the gunshots as well and that was kind of scary,” Letexier said.

Here’s what you have:

1. Letexier pulled up to the scene
2. Letexier saw a man lying on the road
3. Letexier saw a vehicle (other than the squad car)
4. Letexier talked to Deputy Bowman
5. Bowman told Letexier he had been attacked
6. Letexier heard gunshots (It’s not clear by the records if Letexier heard the gun shots while she was at the scene, or after she exited. The BCI report indicates it was after she left the scene).

THE MAN LYING IN THE ROAD

“I just kind of rolled up in the middle of it. I could see the man in the road, he was crumpled,” Letexier told WDAZ.

Letexier told WDAZ she talked to Bowman. “He seemed like he was out of breath, he said I’ve been attacked,” Letextier said.

Letexier says there was a person lying on the road and the attack is over.

That is entirely inconsistent with dispatch logs that show Bowman called in “shots fired” and then radioed the shooting victim had fled the scene within about a minute.

STRANGE AND MUTUAL OMMISSION

In their interviews with BCI, neither Bowman nor Rausch describe a time when Monteith is laying in the road while Bowman talks to a passing motorist.

In fact – no BCI summary makes any mention of Bowman or Rausch ever mentioning that a motorist pulled up and talked to Bowman.

Here are their accounts, and as you will see, neither Bowman nor Rausch’s account has Monteith lying in the road.

CLIFFORD MONTEITH III told Deputy BRAD BOWMAN he could not feel his arm after the shots were fired. Deputy BRAD BOWMAN stated Rebecca Rausch was also yelling, “You shot him!” CLIFFORD MONTEITH III exited Deputy BRAD BOWMAN’s patrol vehicle and entered Rebecca Rausch’s vehicle and they drove away. – BCI / Special Agent Kraft / Deputy Brad Bowman Interview

Rebecca Rausch stated that CLIFFORD MONTEITH III exited PCSO squad car #4504 and entered her vehicle, sitting in the front passenger seat. CLIFFORD MONTEITH III said, “Let’s go,” and at first (1st) told her to go to the hospital, but then instructed her to take him to their residence located at 2129 17th Street Northeast in Grand Forks, North Dakota. – BCI / Special Agent Ness / Rebecca Rausch Interview

Write Into Action has reason to believe the Bowman/Monteith shooting and Braaten/ Elliott shooting are related to a drug trafficking operation that involves members of law enforcement and military personnel.

The criminal enterprise involves members of the Grand Forks County Narcotics Task Force, Minnesota Pine to Prairie Task Force, Grand Forks Sheriff’s Office, Grand Forks Police Department, University of North Dakota Police Department, Polk County Sheriff’s Office (Minnesota), and East Grand Forks Police Department.

Write Into Action continues to investigate.

VISIT WWW.WRITEINTOACTION.COM

North Dakota TV station WDAZ caught participating in on-air hoax of police shooting

by Timothy Charles Holmseth on August 2, 2016, 12:24 P.M. CST

Producers of a North Dakota television station have been caught tricking the American public about a police shooting by showing time-stamps of dash-cam video; but hiding the times on the body-cams.

The reason for the deception is because the Grand Forks Police Department, University of North Dakota Police Department, North Dakota Highway Patrol, and Grand Forks County Sheriff’s Office is covering up what appears to be an attempted murder connected to drug running and the Fraternal Order of Police.

On February 8, 2015, WDAZ, Forum Communications, aired a news story about a police shooting of an unarmed man that happened on February 28, 2015 in the parking lot of a Grand Forks hospital. The WDAZ story featured police body and dash-cam video that was captured during the bizarre two hour long slow speed pursuit of David James Elliott.

The times of events surrounding the pursuit and shooting of Elliott are easy to establish, because Elliott initiated a 911 call very shortly after a police officer tried to pull him over; and he remained on the phone with 911 for 107 minutes until the moment he was shot.

Elliott’s immediate flight from police, as well as other actions, create a strong appearance he personally knew some of the police officers chasing him and was afraid to pull over because he knew he was going to be killed.

Write Into Action has discovered WDAZ-TV used very specific techniques to obfuscate the time stamps on body-cam worn by an officer at the scene of the shooting as the shots were being fired.

WDAZ covered it up because the body-cam times did not correspond to other dash-cam time-stamps that were being used in the same news story.

The news station deliberately perpetuated a fraud upon trusting viewers.

SYNOPSIS OF THE WDAZ-TV POLICE SHOOTING COVER-UP

On February 28, 2015, UND police officer Jerad Braaten emptied his clip into David James Elliott, Grand Forks, in the parking lot of Altru Hospital at 12:47 A.M.

Police refused to talk to the media for three days following the shooting; would not give the public any details and withheld the name of the victim; it was clear something was not right.

Write Into Action made public records requests to obtain police body and dash-cam videos captured before and after the shooting.

Police body-cam shows David Elliott being shot at 12:36 A.M. (note: time stamp is in Greenwich Mean Time) as shown in the snap-shot below taken at the time shots are heard being fired (note: the blue glob you see on the right side of the image is David Elliott’s tail light).

However, dash-cam (shown below) shows David Elliott sitting atop the Columbia Road Bridge in his truck at 12:36 A.M. where he actually remained for several more minutes.

Obviously, David Elliott was not in his truck on the bridge and being shot in a distant parking lot at the same time.

Below is another dash-cam snap-shot taken at 12:39 A.M. where David Elliott can be seen talking to officers out the window of his pick-up truck atop the Columbia Road Bridge.

However, according to the body-cam worn by Sgt. Mark Ellingson, GFPD, the shooting is already over (see below) (see You Tube below for actual sound and video).

UND police chief Eric Plummer stated in a televised joint press release that Elliott was shot at around 12:45 A.M.

That time (12:45 A.M.) is essentially the correct time. Police cam obtained by Write into Action captures the sound of gunshots at 12:47 A.M. when an officer is heard saying “shots fired – shots fired”.

Write Into Action began investigating the shooting in 2015 and began requesting police-cam footage from the Grand Forks Police Department after the case was concluded.

That’s when WDAZ suddenly decided to run a story featuring police-cam video.

On February 8, 2016 WDAZ-TV aired a story about the police shooting where they strategically cover up the time-stamps of the body-cam.

During the introduction to the story, which is entirely critical of David Elliott, body-cam captured at the time of the actual shooting is featured behind the presenters Matt Henson and Stacie Van Dyke.

Van Dyke’s shoulder covers the time-stamp the whole time and it is never seen.

Shortly into the introduction, the video in the background changes from body-cam to dash-cam – the dash-cam shows the time of the shooting is 12:47 A.M. (see below).

It is clear WDAZ is allowing the viewers to see the time-stamps on the dash-cam.

In the video below, WDAZ again hides the time of the time-stamp on the body-cam by covering it with their logo.

PUBLISHED JULY 30, 2016 by WRITE INTO ACTION

Police-cam evidence captured at a police shooting in Grand Forks, North Dakota will not be turned over to Write Into Action by the Grand Forks Police Department (GFPD) without an Order from the federal court.

In a letter dated July 28, 2016, Grand Forks City Attorney Howard Swanson notified Write Into Action (Timothy Charles Holmseth) that existing requests for police-cam public records are now classified as Discovery, and will only be turned over in accordance with Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Swanson cites Holmseth v. City of Grand Forks et al. (16-cv-02496-JRT-LIB) (District of Minnesota) as the basis for the City’s decision.

Timothy Holmseth first initiated civil litigation in United States District Court on July 13, 2016 to request an Emergency Injunction that would forbid the planned destruction of police-cam video that capture the police shooting of an unarmed man on February 28, 2015 in the parking lot of Altru Hospital.

Swanson contacted Holmseth after a formal complaint filed by Holmseth against the GFPD Keeper of Records on July 25, 2016, was referred to his office.

Holmseth asserts the GFPD violated state and federal laws when they responded to multiple public records requests for police-cam evidence by providing video that has been carefully altered using a video editor. The alterations were performed to change critical times and conceal specific video pertaining to the events that led up to the shooting of David James Elliott.

North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) inventory records show that after the shooting of Elliott, investigators located the body-cam of University of North Dakota police officer Jerad Braaten underneath his UND squad car.

Braaten, the officer that shot Elliott, who was not even scheduled to work on the night in question, further claimed he was not able to produce his car’s dash-cam because, he said, he forgot to put the memory card in the camera.

On June 26, 2016, GFPD Police Chief Mark Nelson issued a “Special Order” that changed the Department’s policy on retention dates for police-cam video evidence.

Holmseth asserts Nelson’s action is part of a criminal conspiracy by a group of public officials to destroy records that will reveal the truth about the Elliott shooting and other crimes in the area – including the mysterious death of Caitlin Jenna Erickson, which occurred the same night.

On June 16, 2016, a person that identified them self as David James Elliott contacted Holmseth and said Braaten attempted to shoot Elliott while atop the Columbia Road Bridge in Grand Forks, several minutes before the actual shooting, but his gun jammed.

The first attempted shooting of Elliott may be what the GFPD is attempting to cover-up in the videos, because it reveals Braaten’s actions were not spontaneous, and he, along with other officers, were stalking Elliott to kill him.

BCI investigation records appear to support the fact something happened atop the Columbia Road Bridge with Braaten’s firearm, because investigators located an un-spent cartridge from his gun that linked to that location.

(Elliott) told Holmseth that Braaten lied to investigators about the cartridge, and only admitted that he had performed a function with his gun on the bridge after he was told the cartridge was found with his “fingerprints” on it.

Holmseth has obtained enough police cam video from the event to demonstrate the video has been altered – and segments of body-cam video that would have shown what occurred on the Columbia Road Bridge have been replaced with other video.

Following the 2015 shooting, UND Police Chief Eric Plummer issued a written reprimand to Braaten for his conduct regarding his police cams.

But life only got better for Braaten who was supplied a lawyer by the Fraternal Order of Police.

Grand Forks States Attorney David Jones said in a letter to Plummer that he viewed all the documents and videos surrounding the pursuit and shooting, and determined Braaten acted reasonably when he shot Elliott.

Braaten was subsequently hired by the GFPD to the exception of other candidates.

Some of the altered body-cam was turned over to WDAZ-TV by the GFPD; the regional North Dakota news station presented an entirely misleading story that made no mention of the fact the time of the shooting in the body-cam videos did not correspond with the dash-cams.

VISIT WWW.WRITEINTOACTION.COM

Did North Dakota police officer tamper with body-cam shortly before police shooting?

by Timothy Charles Holmseth on April 7, 2016, 11:08 A.M. CST

Body-camera footage from a police officer during a pursuit in North Dakota contains signs the camera lens was purposely covered shortly before an officer shot the unarmed man in the parking lot of an emergency room.

The select footage was originally released to WDAZ TV by the Grand Forks Police Department (GFPD) four days after investigative journalist Timothy Charles Holmseth, Write Into Action, set up a Go Fund Me to obtain the video and 911 transcriptions of the event.

Write Into Action has obtained the video WDAZ received that starts five minutes before the shooting and ends one minute after the shooting.

The video begins at approximately 12:42 A.M., February 28, 2015.

The implications of the video of the David James Elliott pursuit and shooting are profound.

Here’s why.

It would eventually become known through an investigation by the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) that:

1. Elliott possessed thousands of pills in the truck with him on the night in question
2. Elliott was very angry about being chased by police
3. Elliott arranged to meet with the police officer he’d been talking to on 911 (but was shot before the officer arrived)
4. The UND police officer that shot Elliott:
   1. Was not scheduled to work that night
   2. Was not wearing his regular uniform
   3. Did not have his dash-cam operating
   4. Did not properly use his body-cam (did not capture the shooting on video)
5. No criminal charges were ever brought regarding the thousand of pills found in Elliot’s truck.

While Elliott was alone when he was shot at the conclusion of the second of two pursuits that took place, evidence suggests he may have originally had an unidentified passenger in his vehicle when the initial high-speed chase began at approximately 11 P.M.

for more on the second passenger read – – – Altru shooting 911 records: ‘Second person’ and ‘thousands of pills’ cast doubt upon official narrative of Altru police shooting – Did call to police by Wells Fargo cleaning lady interrupt drug activity involving law enforcement?

There is evidence to suggest the passenger got out of the vehicle at some point after police terminated the first pursuit, due to Elliott’s calling 911 during the chase and telling the police to back off or he would run his vehicle into a bridge.

Facts and circumstances of the entire event suggest Elliott personally knew specific law enforcement officers involved in the pursuit(s) and shooting, including:

1. ND State Trooper Matthew Peschong
2. GFSO Sgt. Any Schneider
3. UND police officer Jerad Braaten

Facts and circumstances indicate Elliott was aware specific officers intended to kill him and he was trying to avoid close contact with those officers until he could meet with GFPD officer Matt Bullinger.

Documents and records reveal subtle clues that what was occurring was personal. For instance, in the BCI interview of Trooper Peschong it says:

“ELLIOTT saw Trooper Peschong pointing his weapon at him and said, “Come on shoot me mother fucker. You’re too big of a pussy to do it. Let’s end this now.” Trooper Peschong also remembered ELLIOTT point at ELLIOTT’s neck and tell Peschong, “Right here, shoot me mother fucker,” the BCI report said.

However, all verbal exchanges between Elliott and law enforcement were redacted so only select quotes are available to the public through the BCI records.

It is also very significant that Peschong and deputies had been ‘following’ Elliott down I-29 in a rural area without emergency lights activated. The activation of emergency lights automatically turns on a police dash cam.

After pulling away from approaching police that were pointing guns at him, Elliott then says something very interesting.

“DAVID ELLIOTT told Grand Forks Police Department Officer Matt Bullinger that he had ran over the spike strips and his tires were going flat. Grand Forks Police Department Officer Matt Bullinger said that DAVID ELLIOTT was upset that his tires were flattened, and told Grand Forks Police Department Officer Matt Bullinger what the tires were worth,” the BCI report said.

Would a suicidal man be worried about the cost of his tires? Elliott’s expression to Bullinger about the tires indicates a relationship or familiarity between them.

Documents and records of the event indicate that at approximately 12:42 A.M. on February 28, 2015, Elliott was sitting atop the Columbia Road Bridge in Grand Forks; he was attempting to wait for Bullinger to arrive.

However, officers were approaching Elliott and pointed their guns at him, which caused him to again proceed forward. There are indications Elliott believed he was going to be killed.

THE VIDEO

The editor of the video allowed a split-second view of David Elliott to be seen at the very beginning of the video to establish the time, circumstances, and location of the video.

After the quick blip of crystal clear quality video showing Elliot sitting in his pick-up and talking to police through his window, the editor redacted everything for two minutes and forty-eight seconds; thus concealing absolutely everything that what was being said.

At the time of the video clip, Elliott is on the PSAP call that he initiated to 911 shortly after the GFPD began pursuing him at around 11 P.M.

When the video resumes from the redacted mode at 2:48, the digital perfect quality picture is no longer visible. It is replaced with darkness although audio can still be heard.  It appears the officer may have placed the video camera underneath his coat.

At 6:40 in the video file the dispatcher can be heard saying “six twenty-seven is on his way”.

BCI records suggest 627 is GFPD officer Matthew Bullinger who had been talking to Elliott over PSAP for over an hour about something.

The radio transmissions that follow indicate officers knew they needed to shoot Elliott before Bullinger arrived.

At 4:46 the dispatcher tells an officer over the radio, “He is willing to talk to 627 in person – he said to give him a little time to get over that.”

The reference to Elliott needing to time to “get over that” may be a reference to something that has taken place that has Elliott angry and/or scared.

The officer responds, “He needs to pull into Altru if that’s going to happen”.

At 6:38 on the video the dispatcher says, “Six twenty seven is on his way”.

At 6:46 on the video an officer on the radio can be heard saying “Is anybody talking to him?” The dispatcher replies and says, “10-4 we still have him on the phone but he requested to speak to six twenty seven in person – he’s the only one he’ll talk to.”

The man on the radio then says, “I understand that [inaudible] stop.”

At 7:48 a flurry of gunshots can be heard and the officer with the body cam says, “Shots fired! Shot’s Fired!”

For a split second the officer’s coat appears to open and video is seen for a second, which proves the camera works properly.

The officer wearing the body-cam is heard screaming “Get your hand’s up! Get em’ up! Get your hands up! Get your hands up!” as another officer says “going to tazer”.

The officer then resumes screaming “Get your hands up now! You’re going to get tazed if you don’t get your hands where we can see them! Get em’ up!”

The officers then declare they are ‘going to tazer’ and another officer is heard saying “stop resisting – stop resisting.”

The officer then says “put your hands behind your back. Do it now!”

It is not known what was driving the nearly maniacal screaming of commands by the officers to Elliott, who had just been shot six times, including three times in the head.

Elliott was unarmed.

No released video shows the actual shooting.

Police would not provide the media any information about the shooting for three days in what may have been a waiting game to see if Elliott would die.

Elliott did not die and the State eventually reached a plea with him. Elliott, who had no prior criminal history, pled guilty to two felony counts surrounding his dangerous and reckless driving.

He was sentenced to one year in jail; sentence suspended with two months home monitoring.

He claims he can’t remember the event.

Write Into Action continues to investigate.

VISIT WWW.WRITEINTOACTION.COM

WDAZ report regarding Altru shooting of unarmed man contains provably false statement

by Timothy Charles Holmseth on February 9, 2016 at 1:44 A.M.

On February 8, 2016, WDAZ aired a news story with video of the David Elliott pursuit and shooting that took place on February 27-28, 2015.

The news report contained a patently and provably false statement.

During a voice narrative featuring video of a high speed chase, the reporter said, “Abut an hour later a second pursuit begins when Elliott re-enters the city,” WDAZ reported.

That is a patently false statement that misled the public.

Factually – the pursuit was ongoing the entire time and there was no “second pursuit” as reported by WDAZ.

During the first press conference following the pursuit and shooting, a news reporter (believed by this writer to be Steve Wagner of The Herald) said, “Well you said multiple counties, so this thing went out of town and back into town.”

UND Police Chief Eric Plummer responded, “Yes, that’s our knowledge yes. It was initially initiated outside of our county, ended up coming within Grand Forks County, within the City and outside of the City, so yes.”

The aforementioned exchange can be heard on the You Tube video below entitled ‘Police shoot unarmed man in front of hospital.’ The applicable portion begins at 6:08.

Additionally – the WDAZ news report never once mentioned the fact David Elliott called 911 the night police began to stalk him. It appears Elliott was on the telephone with 911 during much or all of the pursuit.

The news report contained another bizarre anomaly that shows deviation from the original story regarding the night in question.

“It started around 11 p.m. Friday February 27th when Grand Forks police tried to pull over a suspicious vehicle. Instead the driver of the vehicle, David Elliot, took off at speeds of more than 60 miles per hour thru a residential neighborhood,” WDAZ reported.

The statement referring to 11 p.m. as a start time is accompanied by exciting video of a high speed chase.

But something is wrong.

On March 3, 2015, KNOX reported, “On Friday, February 27, 2015 at approximately 10:41 p.m. officers from the Grand Forks Police Department responded to a suspicious vehicle call in the parking lot of Wells Fargo Bank located on S. Columbia Rd.  After the officers arrived; the operator of the suspect vehicle, later identified as David Elliott, left the area and failed to stop for officers after they had also witnessed a traffic violation committed by this operator.”

That places almost twenty minutes of time and activity between David Elliott and the police that is not accounted for by WDAZ or any other news agency. The reason Elliott was driving over 100 mph and trying to get away may be something that took place between him and the police during those twenty minutes.

The police did not release any video involving those twenty minutes and no 911 records were released whatsoever.

Only all the public records will show what was really going on.

The release of the video appears to have been prompted by the GoFundMe erected by Timothy Charles Holmseth (me); an investigative journalist seeking all the public records surrounding the entire night.

Holmseth was forced to turn to the public for assistance after the GFPD made obtaining the public records too expensive.

You can visit Timothy Holmseth’s GoFundMe to view two videos that show what REALLY HAPPENED and why the public needs to see all the records regarding the night in question.

READ Holmseth’s letter to GFPD Chief of Police Mark Nelson.

VISIT WWW.WRITEINTOACTION.COM