Retired SWAT officer acquitted in movie theater shooting

By TERRY SPENCER
Associated Press

A jury in Florida has acquitted a retired police SWAT commander of murder for fatally shooting a fellow moviegoer during an argument over cellphone use. Deliberations in the trial began Friday and the jury returned its verdict late that night. Defense attorneys contended that retired Tampa police Capt. Curtis Reeves feared for his life when he pulled his gun and shot Chad Oulson in the 2014 movie theater altercation. The prosecutor told jurors during closing arguments that Reeves killed Oulson because he threw popcorn in his face during the confrontation, angering him because it violated his self-image as an “alpha male.”