Posted on 12/03/2014 8:58:20 PM PST by TigerClaws
Charles Krauthammer said Wednesday on "Special Report with Bret Baier" that a grand jury's decision not to indict a New York City police officer in the death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man who died in July after the officer placed him in a chokehold, is "totally incomprehensible."
"It looks like they at least might have indicted him on something like involuntary manslaughter at the very least," Krauthammer, a syndicated columnist and Fox News contributor, said. "The guy was unarmed, and the crime was petty as they come. He was selling loose cigarettes, which in and of itself is almost absurd that somebody has to die over that."
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
I agree with Krauthammer.
Really? What's your source?
So you’re saying they should keep a reserve of 6’ 8” police officers on hand for guys like this.
Okay. Thanks.
My take would be:
1. obey the law
2. if you choose not to, obey the officer that will site you
3. if you choose not to, expect to:
....a. be taken into custody
....b. if you resist this, you will be taken down force-ably
....c. if you are taken down force-ably, it may not turn out well
....d. there is a small chance a health condition you don’t know about might flare up
....e. it’s a possibility you won’t be around to complain about the outcome
....f. if you had complied along the way, you would have
Being obese and asthmatic, he may well have died even if they had used perfect technique.
Exactly! If they would have treated this as though it was just a minor offense (which it is), they would have just given him a citation and gone on their way. To do otherwise suggests that this was a felony which required immediate arrest - which is just silly!
I don’t know if the choke hold was legal or not but it doesn’t appear necessary.
The guy was a career criminal, albeit a petty one, but what got him killed wasn’t “selling loose cigarettes,” it was resisting arrest. And no cop is going to pussy - foot around a 6’+ 350-pounder!
Felony yes, minor infractions like this - why? Give him a ticket as you would for a traffic violation.
Selling cigarettes is minor. Resisting arrest is not minor. It’s the fact that he resisted that changes the logic of this thing.
In the video, Garner said “I can’t breathe” eight times, but the police still kept using force and pressure on him. Some kind of charge should have been made.
There was no evidence of asphyxiation, so let's stop with the media propaganda calling it a choke hold.
The problem in this incident isn’t centered on race or the hold used. The problem is that when the obviously large man was taken down and held he told the LEOs he was having difficulty breathing.
He should have been cuffed and emergency medical services called but instead he was left in difficulty.
Negligent yes but >probably< short of manslaughter and certainly not murder.
If they would just have given him a citation, there would be no need for an arrest!
Just the nanny state determined to end smoking through confiscatory taxation, resulting in the formation of a cigarette black market with associated thuggery. He was probably in more trouble selling the cigarettes than he would have been if they contained marijuana...small amounts of pot are apparently now being handled with a civil summons, like a speeding ticket! The outrage OUGHT to be directed at outrageous taxation and nanny-state social engineering schemes, which of course will be completely dismissed by the MSM, for the solution lies in CONSERVATISM...the “Taxed Enough Already” Party, for example ;)
The guy did not attack an officer.
He was alive, the cops got involved, now he’s dead. He did nothing to warrant being deprived of his life.
I agree with the Ferguson grand jury, but the NY decision is outrageous. They should be rioting about this one, not Ferguson.
In both cases however, it’s RAT on RAT violence.
He was not cooperating in any way shape or form. He started teeing off on the officers that approached him. They may have only sited him if he had complied. He alluded to them harassing him. Turns out he was in trouble eight other times (from what other posters have said).
What do you do with a guy like that? He had already been given a number of chances to clean up his act.
You start letting him sell cigarettes unregulated, what happens next? Then others do the same thing. Pretty soon it’s all over town that folks can sell cigarettes on the street with impunity.
Is that how things are supposed to work?
I’ll bet cops hear “I can’t breath” all the time.
I agree with what you’re saying but if they had to arrest him why not use a tazer? This seems like the perfect situation for one.
I agree with you. This is the kind of case the blacks, and whites, should be pissed off about. Ferguson was not the right symbol.
And everyone should be pissed about the Cleveland cop who left another police force because his superior said he was unstable and “dismal” in the use of firearms. He pulls up, shoots the kid and doesn’t even give the seasoned officer with him the chance to say “Hands up or I’ll shoot!”
“Actually, for the crime of “selling cigarettes” that is exactly what I would do, “Sir, please sign this citation. If you decide to plead guilty, you can just send in a check for $ XYZ.”
From what I understand, they do exactly that for marijuana joints in NYC!!!
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