I'm not surprised this news made it to MFK. I read about this incident and saw the multiple videos. While I can not prove that the police officer was intentional/unintentional in his shooting of a pinned unarmed man, I can positively discern that what he did was wrong- and he should be tried for that young mans murder.
Not only was the motion unnecessary, the officer was simply not mentally capable of assessing the reality of the situation. To claim that he was reaching for his taser is ridiculous.
"George Kirkham, a professor of criminology at the Florida State University who also viewed the footage, said he finds that hard to believe because most Taser stun guns do not look or feel like pistols, and the officer fired in a manner consistent with a handgun, not a Taser."
"It's not believable that any officer can mix up a Taser and a firearm," said Kirkham, who has examined almost 500 police shootings over the past 30 years. "It's like looking for your steering wheel on the right side of your car rather than the left side." -APress
While our perspectives are skewed, there was no reason for the police officer to pull out any weapon on an unresisting man.
The coverage of the protesting not only exposed the outcry of a community, but also clouded the story with the involvement of vandalism and riots. Everyone has the right to assemble and partake in civil obedience, but the added negative actions only disrupts and obscure the facts and injustice. To add to the confusion, there have also been reports of outsiders taking part in the protests, burning, trashing, and disregarding the need to peaceably assemble and address the deep and heated relationships between the police and black community in Oakland.
I hope the police charge this shamed officer accordingly. Just imagine if there were no bystander videos..
Not only was the motion unnecessary, the officer was simply not mentally capable of assessing the reality of the situation. To claim that he was reaching for his taser is ridiculous.
"George Kirkham, a professor of criminology at the Florida State University who also viewed the footage, said he finds that hard to believe because most Taser stun guns do not look or feel like pistols, and the officer fired in a manner consistent with a handgun, not a Taser."
"It's not believable that any officer can mix up a Taser and a firearm," said Kirkham, who has examined almost 500 police shootings over the past 30 years. "It's like looking for your steering wheel on the right side of your car rather than the left side." -APress
While our perspectives are skewed, there was no reason for the police officer to pull out any weapon on an unresisting man.
The coverage of the protesting not only exposed the outcry of a community, but also clouded the story with the involvement of vandalism and riots. Everyone has the right to assemble and partake in civil obedience, but the added negative actions only disrupts and obscure the facts and injustice. To add to the confusion, there have also been reports of outsiders taking part in the protests, burning, trashing, and disregarding the need to peaceably assemble and address the deep and heated relationships between the police and black community in Oakland.
I hope the police charge this shamed officer accordingly. Just imagine if there were no bystander videos..
