Man shot, killed by police at Walmart had tattoo depicting assault on officer
It was a case of life imitating art.
A 25-year-old man killed in a shootout with police inside a Walmart early Friday morning decorated his back with a tattoo in which a "thug" was depicted putting a police officer in a chokehold and placing a gun to his head, Las Vegas police Sgt. John Sheahan said Monday.
Marc Hull was shot multiple times by police after he fired a gun at officers trying to arrest him about 4:30 a.m. at a Walmart SuperCenter at 3615 S. Rainbow Blvd., near Spring Mountain Road.
Sheahan said although it’s not unusual for police to encounter such tattoos in the prison system, Hull’s tattoo was disturbing considering the circumstances.
"What makes this tattoo disconcerting is it speaks to the attitude and demeanor of this suspect prior to the encounter Friday morning," Sheahan said.
The tattoo had the words "(expletive) cops" written in old English lettering across Hull’s shoulders and lower back. The officer was depicted in uniform with the letters LVMP on his clothing, Sheahan said.
A picture of the tattoo was not released. Sheahan said a local television station obtained the picture from an "unauthorized leak."
It had not been determined by Monday afternoon whether Hull was a gang member, Sheahan said.
According to county records, Hull pleaded guilty in 2004 to felony discharging a firearm within or from a structure or vehicle. He was sentenced to 18 to 48 months in state prison. In 2007, he pleaded guilty to felony possession of a firearm by an ex-felon. He was sentenced to 16 to 72 months.
Also Monday, Las Vegas police released the names of four officers involved in the shooting . They are Michael Ramirez, 36; John Abel, 33; Corey Staheli, 29, and Beaumont Hopson, 45.
Ramirez was hired in January 2006, Abel in January 2007, Staheli in November 2006 and Hopson in September 2005.
The officers have been placed on paid-administrative leave pending an internal investigation.
Hull shot Ramirez several times in the left arm and once in the chest, police said. The officer was wearing a bulletproof vest, which police said saved his life.
Sheahan said Staheli, Hopson and Abel returned fire. Hull died at University Medical Center. It was unclear whether Ramirez fired his weapon, Sheahan said.
The officers were investigating a couple trying to make a large purchase with a dead man’s credit card, authorities said.
Carrie Helene Reed, the woman with Hull, was arrested Friday on charges of burglary, attempted theft and fraudulent use of a credit card for more than $100.
According to her arrest report, Hull and Reed attempted to buy more than $4,000 in electronics with a credit card owned by Albert Webster, who died in 2000. Reed admitted to using the fake card and had information on several other people, including names, Social Security numbers and birth dates in her purse, the report said.
Court documents show Reed, 27, has a criminal record that includes charges of theft and cocaine possession.
Two of the officers involved in Friday’s shooting have been in the public spotlight before.
Abel was involved in a previous incident in which he fired his weapon on duty. On April 21, 2009, Abel was one of two officers who fired at a knife-wielding man.
On that day, police were called to a home near Fort Apache Road and Patrick Lane by neighbors who said 30-year-old Marcus Jackson was armed with a hunting knife.
Police said Jackson moved toward the officers in an "aggressive manner," and they fired several rounds, fearing for their lives and the life of a woman inside the home.
Jackson was arrested on charges of attempted murder on a police officer and resisting arrest. He was wounded in the shooting.
Six months before Staheli joined the force, his 18-year-old brother was gunned down. In May 2006, Kyle Staheli was lured into the desert, near Hollywood Boulevard and Washington Avenue, by 17-year-old Swuave Lopez, police said. Staheli expected to buy some marijuana.
When they arrived in the desert, Lopez told Staheli to leave his ID in the car and ordered him into the trunk of a Ford Mustang. When Staheli refused, Lopez shot him with a .45-caliber handgun, police said.
When police arrested Lopez for Staheli’s slaying, Lopez was killed by police who fatally shot him in the back as he ran from them while handcuffed. Lopez’s shooting was one of the most controversial police shootings in the past decade in Southern Nevada.
Contact reporter Antonio Planas at Aplanas@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638. Review-Journal reporter Mike Blasky contributed to this report.
