Handcuffed Philadelphia man shoots himself

November 22, 2006



On Monday morning, a 26-year-old man named Oliver Neal was stopped in southern Philadelphia by police, who took him into custody after finding four packets of cocaine in his possession.

According to a police statement, Mr. Neal shot himself in the back of the head while handcuffed in the back of a patrol car, and after having been searched for a weapon. Neal was treated at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, with news reports listing his condition as critical or stable.

Neal's family held a press conference on Tuesday. His father said, “He had his problems in the past, but that has no bearing on what occurred.”

Both Internal Affairs and a Philadelphia homicide team are investigating the shooting.