Trial of Ed Cantrell
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Wyoming v. Cantrell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Court | Sweetwater County District Court |
| Full case name | State of Wyoming v. Edward Lee Cantrell |
| Decided | November 30, 1979 |
| Verdict | Not guilty |
| Charge | First-degree murder |
| Court membership | |
| Judge sitting | Kenneth Hamm |
State of Wyoming v. Ed Cantrell (officially the State of Wyoming v. Edward Lee Cantrell) was a state trial of Wyoming police officer Ed Cantrell for the killing of Michael Angel Rosa, an undercover narcotics agent in Rock Springs, Wyoming.[1] Rosa had previously been working towards uncovering the immense corruption in the city.[2]
After only three hours of deliberations, the jury accepted Cantrell's self-defense argument, and acquitted him of first-degree murder.[3]
Famed lawyer Gerry Spence won the acquittal of Cantrell in what was deemed an "impossible case".[1]
Outside a saloon in Rock Springs, in an unmarked police vehicle, Ed Cantrell shot Michael A. Rosa out of the belief that he was unstable and going for his gun to shoot, with two other officers present in the car during the shooting, those being officers Matt Bider and James Callas.[4]
Michael A. Rosa had been working towards uncovering the largest amount of corruption in the city, with Rosa being set to testify to a grand jury about the corruption.[5][6]
Cantrell's friends posted his bail of $250,000.[7]
Justice of the Peace Nena Stafford ruled on February 7 of 1979 that Cantrell would have to stand trial on the charge of first-degree murder, after 15 days of preliminary hearings.[8]