SBI turns over report in Strickland case

The State Bureau of Investigation report into the Dec. 1 shooting death of Peyton Strickland is in the hands of New Hanover County District Attorney Ben David.

David received the report Friday and said he does not intend to present any evidence Monday to a grand jury in connection with possible charges against Christopher M. Long, the former New Hanover County sheriff's deputy and member of the Emergency Response Team who fired the shots that killed Strickland, an 18-year-old Cape Fear Community College student.

David said he plans to review the information in the report. Under those circumstances, the earliest a grand jury would hear evidence in the Strickland case is Jan. 29.

"I can confirm that the SBI handed over the results of its investigation into this case to the district attorney today," SBI spokeswoman Noelle Talley said in an e-mail sent Friday to the Star-News in response to a question about the report's status.

The Strickland family could not be reached for comment. Don Beskind, a law partner and friend of Don Strickland, Peyton's father, said he didn't believe the information in the SBI report had been made available to the family.

"I don't think anything has changed, to my knowledge," Beskind said.

Strickland was shot as members of the ERT, similar to a police SWAT team, served search and arrest warrants at the home Strickland lived in on Long Leaf Acres Drive. Long, 34, was covering another deputy and later told investigators he mistook the crashing noise of an ERT battering ram for gunfire from inside the home. Long fired through the front door, hitting Strickland twice and inflicting a fatal head wound.

Long was fired by Sheriff Sid Causey several days after the shooting.

David presented second-degree murder charges against Long to the grand jury Dec. 11.

A clerical error by a grand jury foreman that same day resulted in an announcement that Long had been indicted when in fact the grand jury had found no grounds for a second-degree murder charge. The mistake was corrected the next day.

David had suggested in court on Dec. 11 that there was criminal wrongdoing on Long's part, and others at the scene did not agree with his perception of gunfire coming from the home.

David has said his office would not rush to judgment in the Strickland investigation and would set no timetable for grand jury action.

The arrest warrants were issued in connection with the Nov. 17 robbery of University of North Carolina Wilmington student Justin Raines on the college campus. Raines was beaten with a blunt object and robbed of two Sony PlayStation 3 game systems. ERT members were assisting UNCW police with the investigation when the shooting occurred.

Two friends of Strickland's, Ryan Mills and Bradon Riley, are charged in connection with the robbery. Charges against Strickland were dropped after his death.

Ken Little: 343-2389

ken.little@starnewsonline.com