Man cleared in '04 death of off-duty deputy

[GeneralSumter]

I bet this was an expensive legal battle... but what else do you do when a person comes in your yard with an AR15 and an attitude? It's unfortunate that he had to wait this long to be cleared of what seems to be an obvious self-defense shooting, even if it was against a state deputy. They're just "Civilians On Patrol" and not above the law. Glad to see the system working, sorry to hear it had to end with a death.

Man cleared in 2004 death of off-duty Beaufort deputy The Post and Courier - Charleston SC newspaper

COLUMBIA, SC — A man has been cleared in the 2004 shooting death of an off-duty South Carolina sheriff's deputy.

The State reported that 63-year-old Thomas Rye of Eastover was found not guilty of murder late Monday in the death of 22-year-old Robert Odam, a Beaufort County sheriff's deputy from Bluffton.

Rye had shot Odam after a number of Rye's pets had been killed on his property.

Rye was convicted of murder in 2005, but the South Carolina Supreme Court ordered a new trial, saying property owners have the right to use "reasonable force" against a person who is trespassing.

Testimony indicates Odam was carrying an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle when he went onto Rye's property on Aug. 14, 2004. The property was fenced and had No Trespassing signs.

Rye had a .30 caliber rifle and fired after a confrontation.

[PascalFleischman]

Off duty or not, what was this JBT doing on the guy's property with a rifle?

[Wolfling68]

This is a strange one.

Palmetto Cops - Man who killed deputy freed on bail
"]Earlier that day, Rye, who owns adjacent property, called 911 and said someone had shot a cat on his property and was trying to break into his shed, according to the Richland County Sheriff�s Department. Rye later called 911 again and said he confronted a man on his property and had shot and killed him.

When deputies arrived shortly after 4 p.m., they discovered Odam, 22, had been shot four times with a semiautomatic rifle.

In court, Rye, who pleaded not guilty, said he feared for his life and acted in self-defense when he saw two men trespassing.

Prosecutors said Odam and a friend, Mason Mitchell, had been shooting at stray cats.

The prosecution argued that Rye �lay in wait� for Odam after the initial call to authorities and that Rye had no grounds to believe he was in danger."

"Kenneth Mathews, argued that Robb Odam shot at Rye and Rye fired back in self-defense. Rye also claimed defense of habitation, meaning he applied deadly force to prevent entry to his home.

But Zelenka, the prosecutor with the Attorney General's Office, offered a different story about what occurred that day.

In his motion for reconsideration, Zelenka wrote that Robb Odam put his gun on the ground when confronted by Rye, and a witness saw Rye shoot Odam in the back while Odam was lying on the ground.

A medical examiner testified in court that Odam was shot three times in the back and once in the neck.
"


Wierd. I would think they should be able tell if he was laying down when he was shot. And I think taking pics for the Police would heve been better than shooting a guy in the back. But what were they doing on his property shooting his cats?