[MO] Officer that shot officer girlfriend in the face, APPEALS

December 2005
This past week, ex-St. Louis Police Officer Thomas Zeigler went to court to appeal the drug felony and 2nd degree assault on his record claiming faulty jury instructions and double jeopardy. In 2003 Zeigler shot his girlfriend, fellow-officer Patricia (Patty) March, point blank in the face with his .40-caliber Glock pistol. I pause. She had just told him that she was breaking up with him. Zeigler gave police several versions in oral, videotaped and audiotaped statements - that he had fired his personal semiautomatic pistol into her face by accident, that she shot herself in a suicide attempt, that it was just sex-play-gone-bad, that he had amnesia so it was a forced confession that he shot her, etc. etc. etc. In January he was convicted and FINED for shooting Patricia, FINED for 6.7 grams of marijuana, and jailed for 3 months on the 1.6 grams of crack cocaine. (Officials assured there was no evidence that Zeigler used drugs on the job. Hunh?) Of course the court set it up so he could be bailed out to await his appeal because as the defense pointed out - jail isn't a good place for officers. (Seems the OFFICER should consider that, not the courts.) While he was OUT on that bond - he was arrested for domestic violence assault on his ex-wife, released, and not prosecuted.
Watch this - If Zeigler wins this current appeal, he could get back his police license back. Imagine that.
And what of Officer March?

She has had, at last public report, had10 operations (the first one 14 hours long) to "remove bullet fragments from her brain, to replace the eye she lost with a glass one, and to rebuild her face..."
Selah.