Daryl Cagle, MSNBC.com

Mike Lane, Baltimore, Maryland

In a controversial decision, the three detectives charged in the 50-shot killing of unarmed groom-to-be Sean Bell were acquitted of all charges two hours ago.

Justice Arthur Cooperman delivered the verdict in a Queens courtroom packed with spectators, including the victim’s fiancee and parents. At least 200 people congregated outside the building.

Bell’s case had become a police brutality issue as the officers stood accused of using excessive firepower.

When the verdict was read, Bell’s fiancee immediately fled the room, sayingI just have to get out of here.”

Outside the courthouse, the crowd - surrounded by police officers and some holding signs saying “Justice for Sean Bell”- reacted to the news, many began crying. Others became enraged, swearing and screaming “Murderers! Murderers!” or “KKK!”

Bell, a 23-year-old black man, was killed on Nov. 25, 2006 outside a strip club the accused officers claim was known for illegal activity. Bell was leaving his bachelor party with two friends when the group was barricaded from exiting the parking lot by the cops - who were undercover.

The officers, Michael Oliver, 36, Gescard Isnora, 29, and Marc Cooper, 40, said Bell and his friends did not respond to requests to stand down, instead opting to try to quickly exit the parking lot by ramming the police officer’s car.

But Bell’s friends claimed that the group was frightened by the unidentified cops who had guns drawn and thought it was a robbery. Oliver fired 31 shots; Isnora fired 11 rounds; and Cooper shot four times.

It happened so quick,” Isnora said in his grand jury testimony. “It was like the last thing I ever wanted to do.”

Bell’s friends — Trent Benefield and Joseph Guzman - were both wounded. Guzman still has four bullets in his body.

Referring to Isnora, Guzman said during his testimony of the night:

This dude is shooting like he’s crazy, like he’s out of his mind.”

No weapon were found inside Bell’s car.

Oliver and Isnora stood trial for manslaughter while Cooper was charged with reckless endangerment. Two other shooters weren’t charged. A conviction on manslaughter could have brought up to 25 years in prison; the penalty for reckless endangerment, a misdemeanor, is a year behind bars. In his decision, the judge said that the police officers’ version of events was more credible than the victims’ version.

The people have not proved beyond a reasonable doubt that each defendant was not justified” in firing, he said.

To many, the case brought back memories of other controversial NYPD shootings, such as the 1999 shooting of Amadou Diallo — an African immigrant who was gunned down by 41 bullets when police officers mistook his wallet for a gun.

The officers, who complained that pretrial publicity had been unfair, opted to have the judge decide the case rather than a jury.

After the verdict, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said:

We don’t anticipate violence, but we are prepared for any contingency.”

More testimony from the night after the jump>>

Less than 10 days ago the Chinese Foreign ministry demanded an apology from CNN over CNN commenter Jack Cafferty’s remarks that the Chinese are “basically the same bunch of goons and thugs they’ve been for the last 50 years”.

Now, a Chinese primary school teacher and a beautician in New York have filed a $1.3 billion suit- $1 per person in China - against CNN over remarks they say insulted the Chinese people.

Cafferty also said the United States imported Chinese-made junk with the lead paint on them and the poisoned pet food”.

According to Reuters, CNN said Cafferty was just expressing an opinion about the Chinese government. Now the network, as well as its parent company Turner Broadcasting and Cafferty, are facing this case along with another suit filed in Beijing.

Both suits allege that Cafferty’s remarks violated the dignity and reputation of the Chinese people.

In New York, Liang Shubing, the beautician, and Li Lilan, a Beijing-based elementary school instructor, claimed Cafferty’s words insulted all Chinese people and “intentionally caused mental harm” to the plaintiffs, a Hong Kong newspaper, the Ta Kung Pao, reported yesterday.

Sidenote: Interesting to see how this plays out. Seems to me (and I’m not a lawyer) that this case involves too many plaintiffs (1.3 billion Chinese) to prove defamation.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu described the New York suit as “spontaneous activity by Chinese civilians”.

We will wait and see CNN’s response,” Jiang said in a news conference. “We hope CNN will take this seriously, because what CNN said and did has not only hurt China’s feelings, but also CNN’s own image.”

Watch video of Cafferty’s remarks after the jump>>