Friends and family seek answers on shooting

MORE:
http://lancasteronline.com/insider/friends-family-seek-answers-on-why-columbia-teenagers-shot-at/article_402660b8-5845-11e6-a31f-cf7630330579.html

The article also states:

"In August 2015, he was involved in afight over a Confederate flag at Sixth and Locust streets. Rentas removed a flag from the back of a truck, his mother confirmed Monday afternoon."

(Actually, the incident occurred at Sixth and Walnut. Columbia Spy first made the connection between the two incidents in a previous article.)

NAACP Statement On The Shooting Of Police Officers In Columbia, Pennsylvania

August 01, 2016

Baltimore, MD -Today, NAACP President and CEO Cornell William Brooks released the following statement after the arrest of Marquell Rentas and Trenton Nace in the non-fatal shooting of four police officers in Columbia, Pennsylvania.

'Yet again as a nation we are an unwilling witness to alleged violence against the police. While much is yet unknown in the circumstances of the arrests of Marquell Rentas and Trenton Nace, the NAACP is profoundly concerned about hostile actions against police and committed to nonviolent means of change.

'The NAACP is committed to ending moments such as this by steadfastly condemning brutal violence against the police and police misconduct. Neither form of violence is an excuse for the other. Such realities go against the values of America and the values of the NAACP.

'The events in Columbia this weekend are disheartening, but this particular incident creates an opportunity to improve police-community relations, thankfully without having to mourn the loss of life. We commend the efforts of the Lancaster County NAACP and local law enforcement, and echo their call for community dialogue in this time of turmoil. While we gather further details on the two teenagers charged we offer our support to all citizens of Columbia, Pennsylvania.

National Night Out Tuesday August 2

Everyone is welcome to attend the 4th Annual National Night Out event on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Glatfelter Memorial Field. The Borough will have a recycling booth with free items for the kids.

Candidate criticizes borough council appointment process

Columbian Joe Nikolaus was one of several candidates to run unsuccessfully for recently vacated council seats.  Nikolaus offered the following assessment of the process and of council: 

Columbia Borough not cowed by lawyers

In a recent letter to the editor to LNP, Columbia Borough Manager Greg Sahd responded to a recent article that suggested the borough was cowed by LNP's lawyers.

Sahd stated: "Columbia is a heritage-rich yet financially poor community. We believe in providing our community with every opportunity to tell us how to spend its hard-earned money. And it did. By a margin of nearly 3 to 1, citizens asked Columbia Borough Council to continue advertising with LNP, even though it cost them and fellow taxpayers twice as much. We respect our citizens’ wishes.

We stayed with LNP not because of your Philadelphia lawyers’ attempt to intimidate us, but only because of the respect we have for the voices of Columbia’s citizens whom we ultimately serve."

The full text of the letter is HERE.

The original article is HERE.

Shooting picked up by pro-gun site - and more info

Friday morning's shooting incident in Columbia in which two teens shot at police officers has been picked up by an online publication titled Bearing Arms, which is apparently affiliated with the National Rifle Association.  The article's pro-gun slant unfortunately devolves into a slam against the press for creating a culture that puts police lives in danger.

The article states, in part: "This attempted assassination of Columbia, PA police is being largely ignored by a mainstream media attempting to dodge responsibility for the officers they’ve put at risk by crafting anti-police narratives . . ."

The complete article is HERE.

The following information is from the Columbia Borough Police Department's Crimewatch page:

 

Marquell Robert Rentas

Marquell Robert Rentas, 17 of Columbia as an adult with the following charges after an incident on 07-29-16.

Attempted Criminal Homicide of Law Enforcement Officer
Conspiracy to commit Criminal Homicide of Law Enforcement Officer
Aggravated Assault
Assault of Law Enforcement Officer
Possession of Firearm by Minor
Recklessly Endangering Another Person

Case Number:
3312107-29-16
Arrest Date:
Friday, July 29, 2016

Charges:
Criminal Attempt at Criminal Homicide of Law Enforcement Officer
Aggravated Assault
Assault of Law Enforcement Officer
Possession of Firearm by Minor
Recklessly Endangering another Person

Source:
Columbia Borough Police Department

Trenton Michael Nace

Trenton Michael Nace, 18 of Columbia was charged with the following after an incident that occurred on 07-29-16 at approx. 3:25AM.

Attempted Criminal Homicide
Conspiracy to commit Criminal Homicide of Law Enforcement Officer
Aggravated Assault
Assault of Law Enforcement Officer
Recklessly Endangering Another Person

Case Number:
33121-07-29-16
Arrest Date:
Friday, July 29, 2016

Charges:
Attempted Homicide of Police Officer
Aggravated Assault
Assault of Law Enforcement Officer
Recklessly Endangering another Person

Source:
Columbia Borough Police Department

On Friday morning, Columbia Spy twice observed Trenton Nace being allowed outside behind the Columbia Police Station for a "smoke break," each time accompanied by an officer. Both times, Nace behaved defiantly toward members of the press, who were standing at a nearby parking lot.

River Park to be closed all day Monday August 8