Police officer convicted of murdering suicidal man still being paid by department

Jury found William Ben Darby guilty in killing of Jeffrey Parker in May this year

Police officer William Darby (pictured) was convicted of murder in the fatal shooting of Jeffrey Parker (Madison County Sheriff's Office)

An Alabama police officer convicted of murdering a man who was suicidal is still getting paid by his former police department, a report has claimed.

Huntsville officer William Ben Darby, 28, was convicted of the 2018 murder of Jeffrey Parker in May this year and was stripped of his law enforcement certification.

AL.com has reported that documents obtained through an open records request show that Darby remains employed by the police department.

The records reportedly showed that he has been paid about $2,162 before taxes every two weeks since his conviction while he is free on bond awaiting sentencing. He is not on active duty.

Darby is said to have been on paid sick leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act which requires employers to give workers extended time off for medical or family reasons under federal law. The city confirmed in May that Darby was absent on “accrued leave”, AL.com said.

The killing of Mr Parker unfolded in 2018 when officers were dispatched to his home after he called 911 expressing that he was suicidal and had a gun.

Evidence at Darby’s trial said that two officers found Mr Parker, who was white, sitting on a couch and holding a gun to his own head, which later turned out to be a flare gun.

The jury heard that Darby entered the house and ordered the man to drop his weapon while one officer was talking to him. Within seconds, the 49-year-old fired a shotgun at Mr Parker.

The officer claimed he shot the man in self defence, saying he feared for his own and the other officer’s safety.

The city and police department have been vocal in their support of Darby even since his conviction, voting to use money from Huntsville taxpayers help fund his defence against the Madison County charges.

“While we thank the jury for their service in this difficult case, I do not believe officer Darby is a murderer,” said Huntsville Police Chief Mark McMurray in a statement following the conviction.

According to AL.com, an email was sent to Huntsville police officers from Mr McMurray’s email address appealing for officers to donate unused leave time to an unnamed employee less than two weeks after the trial ended.

“We have an employee who would like to receive donated leave but has elected to leave their name and medical condition off the request,” says the email seen by the outlet.

It purportedly continues: “If you would like to donate leave, please complete the attached Request to Donate Leave Form for an anonymous recipient and submit to my office for processing.”

City officials declined to tell the outlet whether the request was made for Darby and Mr McMurray denied personally sending the email. “I would never send out any email asking for donations from my office,” he told AL.com.

The officer had been previously cleared of wrongdoing by a Huntsville review board, which concluded the use of deadly force was justified.

District Attorney Rob Broussard said that Darby “was not justified in any way with what he did to Mr Parker,” adding that he “had no business being a police officer.”

Darby could face from 20 years to life in prison for the fatal shooting, prosecutors said.  He is reportedly set to be sentenced on 20 August in Madison County Circuit Court.

The Independent has contacted the Huntsville Police Department for comment.

If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.

If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). The Helpline is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press