(See Bottom Of Article For Viewer Comments From The Westplex)

As Kaspar Broadcasting mentioned at the beginning of the Nic Forler involuntary manslaughter trial, the jury's decision would hinge on which side presented a more compelling argument... the prosecution, or the defense.  Otherwise, it would be a tough call to determine who had the advantage... since there were seemingly no independent witnesses to corroborate claims made by Forler and the victims' family and friends.

In this particular trial, Forler and his defense team were able to sway the minds of the jury members.

The jury in Boone County returned a verdict of "not guilty" Thursday evening in Columbia.  Forler is exonerated, pending an appeal if it is made by the prosecution... and the families of the late Tyler Teasley and Michael Brown are wondering why the scales of justice did not tilt in their favor.

Forler was acquitted of involuntary manslaughter, in the shooting deaths of 22-year-old Tyler Teasley of Silex and 23-year-old Michael Brown of Troy.  On October 23rd of 2005, Forler was a deputy with the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department who attempted to pull over Teasley, Brown, and four other passengers in a pickup truck... who committed a traffic violation. 

Teasley, Brown, and their passengers tried to elude Forler by pulling into a subdivision driveway and turning out the lights.  Forler was able to find them, and as he got out of his patrol car to confront the occupants of the pickup, the pickup began to move backward into the path of Forler.

From that point, two divergent explanations developed regarding what happened next. 

Forler claimed that the truck was rolling toward him in a manner that endangered his life, therefore he fired two shots in an attempt to stop the truck.  Those two shots struck Teasley and Brown, and they died a short time later.

Those who were with Teasley and Brown in the pickup, and members of their families, accused Forler of using unnecessary excessive force that led to the deaths of Teasley and Brown.  They claimed that the truck was accidentally left in neutral, it was rolling toward Forler in a non-threatening manner, and Forler could've taken steps to avoid using his gun to resolve the situation.

In the end, the jury appeared to give Forler the benefit of the doubt.  Was it because Teasley and Brown chose evasive measures in an attempt to avoid a traffic stop?  We may never know that answer to that question.  What we do know is that two young men suffered very unfortunate early deaths.

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NOW READ COMMENTS FROM WESTPLEX TODAY VIEWERS....

The kids evaded police which sets the deputy in a certain mindset: this pick up is criminal. Then, whether intentional or not, the truck began to roll backwards at the deputy. Now the deputy is already inclined to believe that the occupants are criminal, compound that with a vehicle moving toward the deputy. I would fear for my life too.
 
Now the real question is how fast was the truck progressing toward the deputy? If it was going very fast, then the shots were more justified. Did he have options, yes; but I wouldn't convict a man for choosing the wrong life saving option had he believed his life was in danger.
 
SSgt Adam R Motlik, USAF
Warrenton

I totally disagree with you, Adam.  You mention "how fast" the truck was progressing towards the deputy.  I ask you, how fast can a truck roll back in a small average driveway?  Certainly any young deputy can dodge the truck, shoot into the air some warning shots, or shoot the tires, and demand the occupants quickly exit the truck with their hands in the air.  With absolutely NO evidence of ANY firearms in the truck or no firearms waving in the air by the kids, I don't see any reason for shooting right into the cab of the truck!  I know the officer was angry.  He had been in chase.  I've seen many officers get mad, they are human.  But there are those who tell me that Forler was a bit trigger happy in the past.  He validated that in this case.  Two young men are dead....yes....they received a death sentence for a traffic violation.  What message does this send to other trigger happy officers?  Where is the justice for the parents and families of those two boys?  Witnesses said that the truck was rolling back at about 3.5 miles per hour.  Even if you don't want to believe the only other witnesses to the events other than Forler, how fast could that truck have been going down a small driveway from a parked position?  I think you are wrong, with all due respect, sir. 

Steve Kaspar, Westplex Today.com

However, one fact that I cannot disagree with is that two teenage children are DEAD because a police officer took action.  The family claims that Forler could have taken further measures to prevent the usage of firearms.  Maybe this is true, and maybe it's not.  I'm sure Nic Forler had no intention of killing two teenage kids that night, even after he pulled out his pistol. 

...But with or without motive, a horrible incident occured that night, and the officer responsible has now been acquitted.  The charge was involuntary manslaughter.  We can agree that it was an accident... Involuntary.  We can agree that it was manslaughter.   This was the charge.  Why wasn't he convicted?

-Anonymous Viewer and Fan of Westplex Today.com

St. Charles County