Trial of Ed Cantrell
{{Infobox court case
| name = Wyoming v. Cantrell
| court = Sweetwater County District Court
| date decided = {{Start date|1979|11|30}}
| image = Seal of Wyoming.svg
| imagesize = 100px
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| caption =
| full name = State of Wyoming v. Edward Lee Cantrell
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| judges = Kenneth Hamm
| number of judges = 1
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| italic title = no
| verdict = Not guilty
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| charge = First-degree murder
}}State of Wyoming v. Ed Cantrell (officially the State of Wyoming v. Edward Lee Cantrell) was a state trial of Wyoming police officer Ed Cantrell for the killing of Michael Angel Rosa, an undercover narcotics agent in Rock Springs, Wyoming.{{Cite news |last=Ivins |first=Molly |date=1979-12-01 |title=Wyoming Jury Frees Law Official in Killing Knight of Old West Presented |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/12/01/archives/wyoming-jury-frees-law-official-in-killing-knight-of-old-west.html |access-date=2024-10-08 |work=The New York Times}} Rosa had previously been working towards uncovering the immense corruption in the city.{{Cite news |date=1978-07-27 |title=Police Officer, Slain in West, Buried on L.I. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/07/27/archives/police-officer-slain-in-west-buried-on-li-funeral-and-burial-costs.html |access-date=2024-10-23 |work=The New York Times}}
After only three hours of deliberations, the jury accepted Cantrell's self-defense argument, and acquitted him of first-degree murder.{{Cite news |last=Brinkley-Rogers |first=Paul |date=1979-11-30 |title=Wyoming Jury Acquits City Sheriff On First-Degree Murder Charge |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1979/12/01/wyoming-jury-acquits-city-sheriff-on-first-degree-murder-charge/b82a3aca-169c-42d2-b068-173953314b7f/ |access-date=2024-10-08 |work=The Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}
Famed lawyer Gerry Spence won the acquittal of Cantrell in what was deemed an "impossible case".
Background
Outside a saloon in Rock Springs, in an unmarked police vehicle, Ed Cantrell shot Michael A. Rosa out of the belief that he was unstable and going for his gun to shoot, with two other officers present in the car during the shooting, those being officers Matt Bider and James Callas.{{Cite news |date=1979-02-09 |title=Ex‐Lawman Facing Murder Trial |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/02/09/archives/exlawman-facing-murder-trial-not-guilty-plea-entered.html |access-date=2024-10-08 |work=The New York Times}}
Michael A. Rosa had been working towards uncovering the largest amount of corruption in the city, with Rosa being set to testify to a grand jury about the corruption.{{Cite news |last=Brinkley-Rogers |first=Paul |date=1978-07-22 |title=Boomtown Killing of an Undercover Cop |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1978/07/23/boomtown-killing-of-an-undercover-cop/43ad289a-8d94-49f0-8b28-fdf28a1dbeff/ |access-date=2024-10-23 |work=The Washington Post}}{{Cite web |last=McMillan |first=Graeme |date=2020-08-12 |title=How ‘The Last Western’ Uncovers the Truth Behind a Murder |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/how-last-western-uncovers-truth-behind-a-midwest-murder-1306699/amp/ |access-date=2024-10-23 |website=The Hollywood Reporter}}
Cantrell's friends posted his bail of $250,000.{{Cite web |last=Krza |first=Paul |date=2020-07-28 |title=Ed Cantrell, Rock Springs and Boom-time Crime |url=https://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/ed-cantrell-rock-springs-and-boom-time-crime |access-date=2024-10-08 |website=www.wyohistory.org}}
Justice of the Peace Nena Stafford ruled on February 7 of 1979 that Cantrell would have to stand trial on the charge of first-degree murder, after 15 days of preliminary hearings.{{Cite news |last=Brinkley-Rogers |first=Paul |date=1979-02-07 |title=Wyo. Police Chief Faces Murder Trial |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1979/02/08/wyo-police-chief-faces-murder-trial/411c9192-4f89-427b-9430-287ff916d807/ |access-date=2024-10-13 |work=The Washington Post}}
Trial
Despite the murder occurring in Rock Springs, the defense requested a change of venue, which was accepted and granted to Pinedale, Wyoming, with judge Kenneth Hamm kept as the presiding judge.{{Cite news |date=1979-09-06 |title=Cantrell trial rescheduled |url=https://wyomingnewspapers.org/?a=d&d=WYBDI19790906-01.1.8&e=-------en-20--1--img-txIN%7ctxCO%7ctxTA--------0------ |access-date=2024-10-08 |work=The Branding Iron |pages=8}} The prosecutors were from Sweetwater County, those being Robert Pickett and Jack Smith.
Cantrell shot Rosa between the eyes with his .38 caliber pistol, claiming that Rosa was about to draw on him, other witnesses testified that Rosa had a wine bottle between his legs.{{Cite news |last=Hawks |first=Christopher H. |date=2022-10-12 |title=Ed Cantrell and Me |url=https://digitaleditions.walsworth.com/publication/?i=764568&article_id=4363025&view=articleBrowser |access-date=2024-10-16 |work=Wyoming Lawyer}}
After only three hours of jury deliberations, Ed Cantrell was found not guilty, with the jury accepting his argument of self-defense against Michael Rosa.
Legacy
The killing of Michael Rosa and the following trial of Ed Cantrell has left a legacy in Rock Springs. It was listed in the book Great American Trials by journalist Edward W. Knappman.{{Cite book |last=Knappman |first=Edward W. |title=Great American Trials: 1950-2001 |publisher=Gale Group |year=2002 |isbn=978-0787656430 |pages=1023–1026 |language=en}} The Last Western: The Unjustified Killing of Michael Rosa by Ed Cantrell by Rone Tempest covers the infamous case.{{Cite web |last=Beck |first=Bob |date=2021-01-15 |title=Famous Rock Springs Killing Is Reexamined In A New Book |url=https://www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/open-spaces/2021-01-15/famous-rock-springs-killing-is-reexamined-in-a-new-book |access-date=2024-10-08 |website=Wyoming Public Media |language=en}}
Michael Rosa's spouse, Rebecca Rosa, filed a wrongful death lawsuit, seeking $1 million in damages as a result of her husband's killing, but ended up being dismissed by the court.{{Cite web |title=ROSA v. CANTRELL, 508 F. Supp. 330 {{!}} Casetext Search + Citator |url=https://casetext.com/case/rosa-v-cantrell-2 |access-date=2024-10-14 |website=casetext.com}}