WHAT ARE THESE FOLKS THINKING!!!
A man sitting in town shooting a gun.
A man runs from police and takes gun with him.
A man repeatedly ignores officer commands
A man pulls gun from pocket .
The police shoot the foolish man......
And they choose to protest instead of praise the officers.
I will never understand these folks.
A man sitting in town shooting a gun.
A man runs from police and takes gun with him.
A man repeatedly ignores officer commands
A man pulls gun from pocket .
The police shoot the foolish man......
And they choose to protest instead of praise the officers.
I will never understand these folks.
The issue here -- again -- is did police need to escalate this from the get-go? They rolled up on Blevins, who was sitting on a curb with a kid in a stroller nearby, with guns drawn and yelling profanities. There was no indication he was an imminent threat to anyone. The citizens the officers talked to just one minute before they encountered Blevins were unconcerned or unaware of any threat.
ReplyDeleteYes, once Blevins ran, what the officers did was justified. But did it have to be this way?
Yes the officer could and should have avoid swearing...
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think the gun owner or his wife should be put in jail.
And yet the locals are out protesting against the officers who permanently removed a known felon from their streets.
I keep wondering when these idiots will start protesting in front of the gang houses and get serious about cleaning up their neighborhoods?
ReplyDeleteJust an interesting piece
ReplyDelete"I keep wondering when these idiots will start protesting in front of the gang houses and get serious about cleaning up their neighborhoods?"
ReplyDeleteDo you have proof that they're not?
Moose
So now felonies are death sentences?
ReplyDeleteMoose,
ReplyDeleteI keep waiting for that news coverage to show up on my TV...
Sean,
I am fine with...
Felonies + Having gun you are not supposed to + Running from Police + Pulling Gun from pocket = Death
Are you not?
"I keep waiting for that news coverage to show up on my TV..."
ReplyDeleteI've seen it covered on my TV. But even if it's not covered, that doesn't mean it's not happening.
"Are you not?"
Did the police have precognition that the person they were encountering had a felony record and a gun they were not supposed to? I'm not aware of that being in the record, and even if it were, that doesn't justify a police shooting in and of itself.
I am sure a community blocking the streets in front of a gang head quarters would make the news. Especially if they called the media.
ReplyDeleteHowever the reality is that people down there are likely either scared for their safety or worried for their friends or family who are in the gang. Therefore they begrudgingly tolerate the crime and violence. It is a sad situation.
Given the small crowds at the Blevins protests, I am guessing most of the community is just fine with his passing.
Well, that's quite the dodge.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure if they would need "precognition"...
ReplyDeleteIf they are community cops and he is a known community felon...
They may have just recognized him...
We will need to disagree, I am perfectly fine with the equation.
Felonies + Having gun you are not supposed to + Running from Police + Pulling Gun from pocket = Death
I mean why should any community have to deal with this stuff?
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that you're in favor of execution before conviction.
ReplyDeleteMoose
I am more of a fan of officers have the right to kill any idiot who is unwilling to drop their weapon.
ReplyDeleteSo what do you folks think should have happened once Blevins started running with a loaded weapon?
ReplyDeleteShould the police have let him go?
If Blevins had then killed or robbed...
Should they have risked not making it home to their families?
"They may have just recognized him..."
ReplyDeleteThey didn't. It's in the case file. Page 2051, if you want to be specific.
"I mean why should any community have to deal with this stuff?"
What evidence is there that Blevins was in a gang? I'm not aware of any. There's nothing in the case file about it. So why do you keep dragging this into it?
"So what do you folks think should have happened once Blevins started running with a loaded weapon?"
ReplyDeleteAlready answered. Try to keep up.
"Should the police have let him go?"
ReplyDeleteNobody has said that.
I agree with Sean that the police may have escalated the encounter by the aggressive way they approached him, otherwise with the way the incident went down I am OK with it being ruled a justified shooting. If I was on a jury I would not find these 2 officers guilty of anything.
ReplyDeleteIt does seem that black people do not have the same right to carry a weapon as white people. How did the police know that this guy did not have a permit before they started yelling and swearing at him. Also, is there any training for police to initiate contact with a suspect in a calmer, more respectful, less escalating way?
Sean,
ReplyDeleteGang violence is why police officers in urban centers are more twitchy than those in boring Plymouth... It has nothing to do with race, except that a LOT higher percentage of Blacks and Hispanics are in gangs and live in urban areas.
Now whether Blevins was in a gang or not, according to investigative data, the same firearm was linked to a burglary the month before. He was not "a good guy" by any stretch of the imagination.
So again... Why should any community have to deal with this stuff?
And yet folks keep protesting the police instead of the violent folks within their community. Thankfully it is only a small portion doing so, I am guessing many more are thankful one more violent loser is off their streets.
"He was not "a good guy" by any stretch of the imagination."
ReplyDeleteOutside of his close acquaintances, I don't see anyone making this argument. Can you deal with what is actually being said, instead of arguing against points that aren't being made?
Sean,
ReplyDeleteGiven the chance of losing him, him taking a hostage, or other... I think all's well that ends well.
And hopefully the criminals will learn to stay where they are when ordered by a police officer. Even if the officer is rude, abrupt and inappropriate.
"I think all's well that ends well."
ReplyDeleteWell, that speaks volumes.
Seems more logical than "try to keep up" with a guy who had been firing a weapon in the city while drinking, and was now running down the street with it...
ReplyDeleteIf not this guy... Who would you have officers shoot?
I'd rather we take steps to avoid creating the need to shoot people in the first place.
ReplyDeleteI agree... Let's get rid of the crime and gangs from our urban centers.
ReplyDeleteAnd I have just the way to help accomplish that... :-)
Well that and community people protesting their bad elements, not the police.
News today the Blevins demonstrators were blocking LRT and freeways. Way to draw people to your side!
ReplyDeleteCan't remember which state passed a law that says if you unlawfully block traffic or threaten motorists, they have the right to run you over. Short of that, a few arrests of these crazies would help. If they have a beef, let them take it up with the proper authorities, or file a lawsuit.
This isn't just an "urban" problem. Cops struggle with de-escalation everywhere.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet the protests seem to almost all occur in urban high crime centers.
ReplyDeleteIt just seems counter-intuitive...
Folks of color are more likely to experience the inequities of the criminal justice system on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteBut, I can also tell you that while people out in my area aren't protesting, you can bet they've noticed what happened to Archer Amorosi. You can bet his mom didn't expect or want her son to end up dead when she called the police. If someone you love is having a mental break, calling the police is a high-risk move, because they just aren't trained to handle those situations.
Sean, I agree that "folks of color" are more likely to encounter the police, but that is because of the disproportionate concentration of crime among "colored folks." (Odd, that used to be a pejorative.) So now we find that the outrage over DEALING with that crime rate is also disproportionate.
ReplyDeleteOTOH, I disagree that police aren't trained to handle people with mental problems. I don't think anybody CAN be so trained. By their nature these people are unpredictable and irrational and therefore assumed dangerous. If there were /effective/ non-lethal ways to contain/restrain/subdue them, they should be employed but I'm not sure those exist.
Chicago’s anti-violence march is trying to force the city’s white and wealthy to pay attention
ReplyDeleteDo those tactics really produce sympathy for whatever [misguided, IMHO] cause? Or do they provoke anger and obstinance?
ReplyDelete