Aquil pled guilty to two counts of assault on a law enforcement officer in the first degree and two counts of armed criminal action, and was sentenced to a total of 60 years in prison. According to Missouri's sentencing statutes, offenders who commit so-called "dangerous felonies" like assault in the first degree are required to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences before becoming eligible for parole. Brown and Schoen received letters from the Missouri Department of Corrections informing them that Aquil would not be eligible for parole until January 2037.
At some point, the Department of Corrections' list of "dangerous felonies" drew a distinction between assault in the first degree and assault on a law enforcement officer, and the latter was no longer included as an offense under the sentencing guidelines' 85 percent rule. This loophole in the statute was closed by the Missouri legislature in 2003, which added assault on a law enforcement officer in the first degree back to the list of dangerous felonies. But because Aquil's crime occurred in the window between 1994 and 2003, he isn't required to carry out 85 percent of his 60-year sentence. He will appear before the parole board at Crossroads Correctional Center on January 6, 2010.
At the press conference, Schoen expressed frustration over the fact that, had he been a civilian rather than a police officer when he was shot, his assailant would be expected to serve 85 percent of his sentence. "I feel like a second-rate citizen," said Schoen.
Schoen said there are 56 inmates currently incarcerated in
Missouri prisons who were convicted of assaulting law enforcement
officers during the window in the sentencing laws. He said that, to his knowledge, none had been released
from prison.
The Jackson County Sheriff Department's Hugh Mills remembered training Brown when Mills was with the KCPD, and telling him, "You are not dead until I respond to the scene and tell you that you are dead." He said of Aquil, "There is no more vicious criminal than he who would attack the protectors of society."
Schoen and Brown, along with Kanatzar and other law enforcement representatives, plan to attend Aquil's January 6 parole hearing and explain why they think Aquil should remain in prison for the duration of his sentence. Schoen urged citizens to call the Department of Corrections, the parole board and elected officials to express their desire to keep Aquil in prison.
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The cops stop us for nothing. They said they had a call of shooting on 12 and prospect Aquil said in return yeah but we are on 37th. because he got smart they jumped out on us we ran across the street his sister live right there. they came around the corner and start shooting . i was 13 when this happen they said if i did not say what they wanted i was going to jail for life. As a little kid i was scared and the question ing with on with out my mother in the room.
Obviously Saeed did something for somebody to be able to get eligibility for parole that quickly after shooting two cops at point-blank range
Did the cops stop Saeed Aquil for any reason other than being black? Probably not, and they got shot for it.
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