Officer Truong Thai's Accused Killer Will Face 28 Charges, Including Open Murder

The guy suspected of murdering Metro police officer Truong Thai has been charged with murder.

Tyson Hampton, 24, is charged with 28 charges, including open murder.

Hampton appeared briefly in court Tuesday morning, when his court-appointed public attorneys requested that his arraignment be postponed until November 1st.

Steve Grammas, President of the Las Vegas Police Protective Association, told reporters outside the courthouse that he feels this should be a death penalty case.

“Unfortunately, some people don’t need to walk this earth anymore, and he’s one of them,” says Grammas, who was surrounded by several dozen uniformed officers.

Men and women from departments around the valley came to the courthouse to express their support for officer Thai.

“No criminal is going to win the battle on the streets,” says Grammas. “The police officers and corrections officers are going to be the ones that win this thing. And that scumbag in the courtroom is not going to deter these folks from doing their job.”

Thai was killed while responding to a domestic violence incident on East Flamingo last week.

According to police, Hampton opened fire from his car, shooting and wounded his mother-in-law and murdering Thai.

“If there’s nothing more that shows such a disregard for human life, I can’t think of it, so the death penalty is on the table,” says District Attorney Steve Wolfson.

Hampton was also described as a threat by Wolfson.

“This is the gun that did all the damage,’ says Wolfson holding up a picture of the semi-automatic pistol. “This is not a gun you have for self-defense in your home. This is a gun you use to try to kill a lot of people.”

Hampton was arrested shortly after the incident with the help of a Metro K-9.

He was still wearing a bandage on his left arm in court.

“This guy won’t walk into a courtroom without seeing us,” says Gammas. “We’ll stop showing up the day they put him down.”

Credits: 3News