Illinois State Police Sgt. Bryan Falat is either a hero who used justifiable force to save the lives of himself and his partner, or a quick-tempered cop who opened fire on an unarmed off-duty prison guard.
An eight-member federal jury considered the contrasting portraits today as Falat's civil trial opened.
Falat twice shot Lernard Grigsby after responding to a 911 call at 4:15 a.m. April 24, 2008, inside an employee dormitory at Stateville Correctional Center near Joliet. The 48-year-old guard died four days later, leaving three children who are seeking unspecified damages after accusing Falat of using excessive force.
Grigsby's ex-girlfriend had called 911 saying he refused to return her cellular phone. She did not accuse Grigsby of being violent, but Falat and his partner, Trooper Kristine Quick, say the pajama-clad guard attacked without provocation. Falat shot Grigsby after he pinned the sergeant against a wall and reached for his gun, said Rachel Fleischmann, an assistant Illinois attorney general.
"Falat will tell you about the split-second action he took to save his life and Trooper Quick," Fleischmann said.
However, attorney Michael Kanovitz told jurors the officer killed Grigsby without justification after seeing his partner punched in the face. Kanovitz said bullet projectory evidence will prove Falat shot Grigsby from behind.
"Nothing had happened up to that point that would justify taking out a gun and killing someone," said Kanovitz, who displayed photos of the officers who, but for some scratches, appeared physically uninjured.
Grigsby's prints were not found on Falat's duty belt or weapon, but two of the retrieved prints remain unidentified.
U.S. Northern District Judge William Hibbler granted the defense's request to bar any mention of Falat's involvement in the case of Drew Peterson, a retired Bolingbrook police sergeant accused of murdering his third wife.
Falat testified earlier this year that he was "sort of disgusted with" the state police investigation into the 2004 drowning of Kathleen Savio, whose death originally was ruled accidental but later was reclassified after the 2007 disappearance of Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy, sparked a renewed probe.