#3060: I Thought Guard Called For Gun, Detective Says (fwd)

[Robert Corbett <bcorbett@netcom.com>]

From:nozier@tradewind.net

I Thought Guard Called For Gun, Detective Says 
By JOHN MARZULLI Daily News Staff Writer
  Original Publication Date: 03/30/2000 

 The detective who shot Patrick Dorismond believed the victim was
calling to another man to pass him a gun as the pair scuffled, his
lawyer said yesterday. Detective Anthony Vasquez's belief that the third
man was handing off a gun prompted him to pull out his 9-mm. Glock,
which was secreted in a holster in his pants, said lawyer Philip
Karasyk. The lawyer also said Vasquez twice yelled, "Police! Police!"
before firing the fatal shot — suggesting the slain man knew he       
was confronting cops. Vasquez has said the gun accidentally            
discharged.The new details emerged as President Clinton weighed in on
the shooting for the first time, calling it "tragic." The issue of the
third man has emerged as crucial since the March 16 shooting of
Dorismond outside the Wakamba Cocktail Lounge in midtown. The man has
never been located, and NYPD investigators have said they have doubts  
he exists.The incident began when undercover Detective Anderson       
Moran approached Dorismond, asking where he could buy crack — not
marijuana as police first said. Dorismond reacted angrily and a fight
ensued. Vasquez and Detective Julio Cruz charged into the melee, their
guns still holstered, Karasyk said.Vasquez then heard someone — maybe
Dorismond — twice yell, "Get the gun!" and believed it was directed at
the unidentified  third man standing on the sidewalk, but who wasn't
involved in the fight, Karasyk said. Vasquez "believed a gun was going
to be produced and used on him," Karasyk said. "Only after twice hearing
'Get the  gun!' did he form the perception in his mind that he was in  
mortal danger."Moran and Cruz have also told investigators they heard
someone yell, "Gun!" and Vasquez identify himself, said a source
familiar with their account.A senior police official said Moran's gun
was under his shirt   and Cruz's was stuffed in the back of his waist.
The official  downplayed the role of a third man. "When we first got the
initial story, there was information about possibly a third person with
a gun," the official said, "but we think we have all the players."    
Joseph Librie, the lawyer representing Moran and Cruz,refused to
comment.