Posted on 10/21/2014 11:46:32 AM PDT by Laissez-faire capitalist
I believe a decision from the grand jury is just around the corner. With this in mind...
Do you think that Officer Darren Wilson will face charges - or not?
Do you think the grand jury should give equal weight to both sides (eyewitness Officer Darren Wilson and the 5 other eyewitnesses)? Are civilan eyewitness accounts (be it one person or more) ever equal to that of a police officer? If so, in which cases?
If the 5 eyewitnesses don't agree on all things, should the grand jury take into account everything the 5 eyewitnesses do agree upon?
Does the witness of 5 outweigh the witness of 1, or is an Appeal to Numbers automatically fallacious? In that case, if more than 1 eyewitness acount cannot be relied on, how then can just 1 eyewitness account (Officer darren Wuilson) be relied upon?
Yeah, that was my recollection - some technicality about the timing of the suit, IIRC - something that could be refiled, I think. It is an outrage that Zimmerman doesn’t own NBC after what they did to him.
I agree totally. I thought it was just “pay back”.
A friend of mine just was hired and started his training as a cop. He’s 35 years old - not a yahoo, and smart.
Based on what he’s learned and told me ... in my opinion ... given the evidence of the assault in the car, unless there is probable cause that Brown was headed away from the officer, there is no way to indict.
The standard seems to be here, the cop has the right to use the gun if ‘a reasonable person would have feared for his safety’.
Also, once you start shooting, you don’t shoot to wound. 2 to the mid section, one above the nose. That seems to be the general pattern Wilson followed.
So ... unless there is probable cause that Brown was headed away, not towards, Wilson is in the clear. Once he started shooting, wouldn’t even matter if Brown raised his hands in surrender after the first bullet hit him. Once you shoot at all, you shoot to end it, fast.
I am the friend of a good guy in training but not yet at the academy ... I’m not an authority and nor is he yet.
I’ll copy what I wrote and send to my friend, see if he has anything to add. I’m sure some real coops have already commented.
coops = cops, and even contains the word ‘oops.’ A self correcting mistake.
Unfortunately, (because I used to love St. Louis) St. Louis js fast becoming the next Detroit.
No indictment. Remember this officer voluntarily put himself with benefit of counsel in front of 12 jurors and 2 prosecutors who could ask him any question they wished reference the case. He stayed in there for four hours.
Guilty people do not subject themselves to this. This was always a non-starter and the key witness for the prosecution, Dorian Johnson, is a proven liar who was instrumental in fomenting the violence that went afterward.
I think that Johnson was interviewed by the FBI, and after being duly warned that lying to an agent was a criminal offense, and that if he assisted in the assault of Wilson, he could be charged with murder 2nd Degree under Revised Statute of Missouri. Johnson spilled to save his butt and now is in hiding, like Wilson.
Look at the events.
Sharpton and Jackson abruptly depart
Holder announces resignation
the autopsy proves that Johnson was lying
“Josie”, friend of Officer Barbara Spradling, girlfriend of Wilson, gives her account as told to her by the couple
the DOJ leak
Sen. Jamilah Nasheed making a last ditch symbolic submission to arrest to promote non-violence
then Governor Nixons sudden meeting in Ferguson to talk about non-violence and moving forward in the aftermath.
Yep, this one is a no-bill all the way. It’s three more weeks of conciliatory talk until the elections are over then the press conference by the prosecutor comes out.
The the blood flows and fires rage.
Yep, it may be “No Justice, No Police”. These effing protesters have gotten local law enforcement so keyed up and played out, that something bad is just bound to happen.
What if he was standing still?
Not enough data to make an informed opinion.
I would like to offer that the standard is not what a reasonable person would do, it’s what a reasonable police officer with similiar training, experience, knowledge and in a similar situation would do.
Wilson would have been justified in shooting Brown in the back based on the case law of Tennessee v. Garner.
There are some websites that have followed this story closely. They have analyzed the inaccuracies of the eye witnesses that have gone public. There are other witnesses. There is forensic evidence. It does not come down to 4-5 witnesses versus 1.
Understand what you're saying. I was speaking specifically to the point that I believe the standard for an officer to use force is if 'a reasonable person would believe himself to be in danger.' ...
Not what a reasonable person would necessarily DO in the situation ... but that 'the justification for the officer to commence defending himself using is if 'a reasonable person would believe himself to be in danger in the same situation'.
That said ... I'm not an officer nor expert, nor arguing ... just clarifying my intent in using those exact words.
There is more evidence than just witness testimony to back up stories or shoot them down...like blood spatter IN THE CAR and on the gun backing up the officer’s statement that the dead man reached in the car for his gun so he shot him.
That is how the case will be decided - on all the evidence which we are not privy to yet - in addition to witness jaws flapping.
I agree. Wait until the first snow and ice storm then announce the results. Make it really uncomfortable to be outside rioting and protesting. However, there needs to be heavy guarding of businesses so they don’t burn them to stay warm.
You would think - but then again, the rest of the nation couldn't seem to figure out that Obama was a dirtbag thug and re-elected him....
Some of that evidence and analysis is here:
I GUESS YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE FREAKIN VIDEO OF THE ROBBERY AND ASSAULT O THE OFFICER HAVE YOU GOT MUSH FOR BRAINS
oops I had caps on, my bad. I meant to say did you not see the video of the robbery and assault on clerk
a fair person need not see another thing after that, the officer had no way to know what he was about to experience, a 6 foot 4 300 lb angry male
I hope you are never on a jury, yes I read your posts you have gone overboard to be fair to Big Mike at the officers expense
oops I had caps on, my bad. I meant to say did you not see the video of the robbery and assault on clerk
a fair person need not see another thing after that, the officer had no way to know what he was about to experience, a 6 foot 4 300 lb angry male
I hope you are never on a jury, yes I read your posts you have gone overboard to be fair to Big Mike at the officers expense
I don’t think grand juries hear from defense lawyers at all; only from the DA and his staff.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.