No indictment in Tamir Rice case, prosecutor says (Let the riots begin!)

CNN Breaking ^ | Updated 2:31 PM ET, Mon December 28, 2015 | By Steve Almasy and Ashley Fantz, CNN

[Old Sarge]

H/T to our FRiend DCBryan1 for the post.

Put on your clown suits, the circus is about to begin...

For thus has the Lord said unto me:
"Go, set a watchman, Let him declare what he sees."
Isaiah 21:6

The Watchman Ping List - FReepmail Old Sarge for details!

[NorthMountain]

ROFL!

Shan’tilla is more than a scintilla ...

[trisham]

The fact is, the citizens in the area who ran into the kid weren’t scared. Only the police officers were.

That is not correct:

“Questions about the shooting arose when police revealed that the man who called 9-1-1 before the boy was shot told dispatchers “the gun was probably fake.”

The caller told the dispatcher he saw “a guy with a pistol” on the swing set pulling a weapon from his pants and “scaring the s...t out of everyone.”

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/11/cleveland_police_officer_fatal.html

[Trailerpark Badass]

Why did the 5'9", 195 lb "kid" take the orange tip off the gun?

Did you run around as a kid, with your new toy, that you modified to look more real, sticking it in random people's faces?

[Greetings_Puny_Humans]

t was only when the “brave”, highly-trained police officers got there that they were “afraid for their lives”, and blew the kid away.

You do realize that middle school kids just like this one have been pulling families out of cars, raping people, and robbing stores, all across the country, right?

[Trailerpark Badass]

I would hope they would not tell the cops it’s a toy, when they have no real idea.

[DownInFlames]

Non-lethal guns are to be affixed s an orange muzzle.

[Oldexpat]

I tried to help a young black teen with steady work and friendship, but when he saved up a little money he went back to Memphis and fell in with his old friends and they got arrested for armed robbery with an airsoft gun. They could have been shot in the act.

[DoodleDawg]

How long would you wait, facing a person with a gun, before you shoot?

If I were a police officer, and if the use of deadly force is supposed to be a last resort instead of a first resort, and if I am supposed to shoot only when my life or the life of bystanders was at risk, then I assume I would wait until those criteria was met. Which I imagine would take longer than one or two seconds.

[Trailerpark Badass]

The only real surprise from this young lad’s hijinx is that no other ghetto dweller shot him before the police ever got involved.

[DoodleDawg]

Non-lethal guns are to be affixed s an orange muzzle.

In this case the kid was dead before the cop had a chance to see if it was lethal or non-lethal.

[Forgotten Amendments]

I believe he is.

The 911 operator resigned.

[Greetings_Puny_Humans]

This is a child playing with a toy gun, doing what children do.

You do realize that "children" just like him are killing people and robbing stores, right?

[Leaning Right]

I'm not saying my hypothetical is identical to the Cleveland incident, or even close to it. But what I am saying is that there are levels of threat. And IMO neither my hypothetical nor the Cleveland incident was at a shooting threat level. The cop was not responding to a shots-fired call, or a bank robbery, etc.

And as for the kid turning towards the cop, yeah, people get mixed up when they are surprised. Especially when those people know they didn't do anything wrong.

You might disagree, and you might be right. But you could also someday be an innocent guy holding a cell phone that some cop sees as a threat.

[Forgotten Amendments]

He did NOT point the gun at the cops. In 13 months you must’ve seen the tape at least once.

[Trailerpark Badass]

police have the same lethal force criteria as other citizens, so you're assumption is absurd.

why don't you answer the question instead of evading it?

[glock rocks]

And now, ...

The Post-Christmas Grand-Opening Going-Out-of-Business Fire-Sale. 100% Discount Subject to Supplies On Hand.

[Leaning Right]

Excellent post.

[El Cid]

Good. It’s a shame that a 12 y/o thug wannabe acted like a real thug, but the cop’s decision to shoot was not a crime.

I might have the cases mixed up (there have been so many lately), but if it is the case I think it was, this 12 year-old was not a thug wannabe. He was mentally slow, or slightly retarded.
I agree it is a shame, and I also agree that the policeman had no good options. He saw danger and reacted. The policeman is not all knowing and all seeing, he can only act based on the information (a 911 call stated that someone was waving a gun around near this club-house), and his eyes - someone waving a gun at him.

Prayers for all involved, and I'm glad the prosecutor made the right call (despite the political pressure).

[MuttTheHoople]

Naaaaww, it’s too cold.