Believe it or not, cop-killer, former fugitive, and now deceased Christopher Dorner has supporters out there, and this has resulted in the following:
The re-opening of the investigation that got him fired
When Dorner was fired from the LAPD, it was as a result of allegations that his training officer kicked a mentally ill person on the streets. After his termination, he claimed that the LAPD took the side of the training officer as a result of racism. The LAPD had closed the case, but has since agreed to re-open it.
The public belief that officers may have intentionally started the cabin fire
The cabin where Dorner was hiding out was burned to the ground while police attempted to apprehend him. Initial public opinion had people claiming that this was an intentional move by police; that in some sort of vigilante justice for their fallen comrades they put Dorner through a torturous death.
Due to the violence exhibited by Dorner, and the strategies he used while evading the police, it came as no surprise to anyone that the pursuit ended in death. However, there is a strong likelihood that he was burned alive, so death could have come to him in a different manner. Police have since claimed that the fire to the cabin that killed Dorner was not intentional – and that initially, they were not even certain if it was the fugitive in the cabin. But, they do admit to using pyrotechnic tear gas to attempt to get the armed man they believed to be Dorner to exit the cabin. This tactic did start the fire, and the individual never exited.
Today, dental records positively identified that the body in the cabin was that of Dorner. However, the speculation continues that police did this intentionally.
The impact?
The public support for Dorner says something about the public perception towards police. While the majority of the world hoped that he would be apprehended without further incidents occurring to law enforcement or their family members, some were distracted. The above points only support why it is so important to protect and support law enforcement.