Oh stop it, I am not in the mood for a second amendment debate with this story. The police responded to a call in a very unstable neighborhood, with a reputation for drugs and violent crime. A person came out of the apartment where the call had been made from, he was brandishing a weapon. There were two other suspects running away and he was the only one with a weapon, which he refused to drop. It is being investigated and I am sure Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson will get it resolved.
Actually you are inventing details.
Let me remind you:
“Thomas was found with a gun next to his body, but police haven’t said where that gun came from or whether Thomas even had it in his hand when he was shot. “
Even if Thomas had a gun (which hasn’t been established) he has the second amendment right to self-defense. Since it has not been established that he was pointing any gun at police or running toward the police, the officer who shot him is guilty of murder.
The second amendment is a very important consideration in this case. “He had a gun in his hand/in a holster” should NEVER be appropriate justification, by any government employee, for shooting a citizen.