Texas police want bullet lodged in teenager's head

An extraordinary legal battle is taking place in the United States over a bullet lodged in the forehead of a Texas teenager.

Prosecutors say the 9mm bullet is proof that 17-year-old Joshua Bush was involved in the attempted murder of a second-hand car salesman in Port Arthur and that it should be removed so that it can be presented as evidence in court.

But the teenager's lawyer argues that ordering such an operation would be an invasion of his client's privacy and that - for the time being at least - the bullet should stay where it is.

The bullet is located two inches above Joshua's eyes, where small pieces of bone are growing around it.

The first doctor asked to remove the bullet said it would require the teenager, who is being held in custody on unrelated charges, to be fully anaesthetised. Police obtained two search warrants to have the bullet removed. However, doctors are now concerned about the implications of participating in the operation.

Last week a second operation to remove the slug was postponed after the Texas Medical Branch hospital in Galveston decided not to carry out the procedure for reasons it would reportedly not discuss.

"I have said all along this is an invasion of his privacy," Rife Kimler, Joshua's lawyer, said yesterday. "There is nothing unusual about someone being shot Port Arthur. There are shoot-outs in Port Arthur all the time. What is unusual is that a bullet is lodged in someone's forehead.

"Things being equal he'd like to have the bullet taken out but he does not want the police to get it. It's not life-threatening. Let him get it out when he wants to."

Police allege that Joshuawas involved in the robbery and attempted murder of the car dealer, Alan Olive, in July when he and others broke into a lot and tried to steal vehicles.

They say Joshua shot at Mr Olive, and that the car dealer then returned fire with his own weapon.

One of Mr Olive's bullets is believed to have lodged in the fatty tissue of Joshua's forehead.

The prosecutor, Ramon Rodriguez, said that when he was questioned, Joshua admitted taking part in the robbery but denied shooting at Mr Olive.

"The officers noticed the guy looks like hell," Mr Rodriguez told the Associated Press. "One of his eyes is black and he has a big old knot on his forehead. He tells police he got hurt playing basketball... Officers started putting events together."

Seth Chandler, a professor at the University of Houston Law Centre, said: "It's unfortunate this arguably important piece of evidence is in a place where it can't be easily retrieved. You have to balance our desire to convict the guilty against the government not poking around our bodies on a supposition."

But Joshua's mother, Tammie Bush, has insisted her son is innocent, believing instead her son's story of how he was shot in the head through an open window while sleeping at a friend's house.

Ms Bush told The Independent: "The bullet is going down at an angle. If he had been shot like the man says he shot him, then he would be dead."

She said that her son had been on juvenile probation for other matters and that the police had "stereotyped" him. "I think they just made it up," she added.

Mr Olive, who is a competitive pistol shooter, said he had been unable to see Joshua's face because the shooting took place in a dark alley. He said: "I just can't believe I missed him at that distance."