Police shoot, kill Chester man outside district court in Delco

The final days of Darren Williams’ life were chaotic, including threatening to kill his ex-girlfriend, stealing her car, and fighting with the police officers who ended his intoxicated joyride in that vehicle, police said.

That chaos peaked Friday morning, when the 34-year-old was gunned down by a Delaware County constable while Williams tried to wrestle a police officer’s handgun away from him, according to Delaware County District Attorney Katayoun M. Copeland.

“Today was a tragic day,” Copeland said outside District Court in Linwood, Lower Chichester Township, where the shooting took place. “It’s always a sad day when an individual’s life is lost.”

Copeland declined to identify the law enforcement officers involved in the shooting as her office continues to investigate. Officials said both are experienced officers: a constable who has served in Marcus Hook for 10 years, and a Trainer police detective who has served for seven.

The fatal confrontation between Williams and the officers took place around 10:30 a.m. outside the courthouse, where Williams had just been arraigned on misdemeanor drug and DUI charges, Copeland said.

It lasted less than a minute.

Williams had been brought to the courtroom of District Judge David F. Griffin after an arrest in Trainer late Thursday. He had been held overnight in a holding cell in Chester, his hometown, Copeland said.

Officers put Williams in a holding cell in the courthouse, removing his restraints and locking the door, she said. Because Williams had been so combative during his arrest, the district attorney said, investigators chose to arraign him inside his cell.

Court records show that Williams was unable to post 10 percent of his $20,000 bail and was set to be sent to the Delaware County prison.

When court officials moved to open the cell to remove Williams, he “shoved the door open” and ran past the officers into the parking lot, Copeland said.

Outside, Williams initiated a violent struggle with the Trainer detective, eventually wrestling with him on the ground. While the two fought, the constable Tasered Williams with “no effect,” Copeland said.

During the skirmish, Williams grabbed the officer’s gun and pointed it at him, though the detective was able to grab the barrel as they struggled, she said.

Williams ignored commands from the constable to drop the weapon, and apparently shot himself accidentally in the stomach during the melee, Copeland said. Almost simultaneously, the constable shot Williams in the back.

Williams was pronounced dead at the scene.

Hours later, as investigators spoke to witnesses and reviewed surveillance footage, Williams’ relatives arrived at the courthouse.

Most were distraught, raging about a lack of information and unaware that he had been arrested hours earlier.

Williams’ uncle Sam Williams said the victim was a father of two children. “He’s OK," Sam Williams said. "He isn’t the best kid, but he definitely didn’t deserve this.”

A woman who said she was Williams’ mother-in-law and identified herself only as Miss Brown said she couldn’t believe this had happened.

“Darren wouldn’t have dared,” she said. “He wasn’t the type of person to resist arrest.”

Investigators said Williams was taken into custody late Thursday in Trainer, when an officer had seen him “driving erratically” and crossing the double yellow traffic lines.

After he was pulled over, Williams ignored officers’ commands to remain in the vehicle, and became agitated, taking a “boxer’s stance” after failing a field sobriety test, according to Copeland.

Ultimately, officers had to use a Taser to subdue him, she said. A white powder was found inside the vehicle, according to Copeland, but it hadn’t been identified as of Friday.

While Williams was in custody, police in Delaware County received a call from law enforcement officials in the state of Delaware, Copeland said.

Williams‘s ex-girlfriend had contacted police on Thursday, saying that she was changing the locks at her apartment because Williams had begun using “wet,” a common street name for the hallucinogenic drug PCP, the district attorney said.

The woman told police officers Williams had threatened to kill her and her friends and had stolen her vehicle from her home in Delaware, according to Copeland. That vehicle was the one Williams was driving when he was pulled over Thursday night.

Court records show that Williams has a long history of arrests and convictions in Delaware County on drug and gun offenses, and previously served stints in state prison.