Posted on 07/10/2012 4:37:37 AM PDT by MeneMeneTekelUpharsin
A Houston police officer fatally shot a man Monday who refused commands to stop and approached her with one hand tucked under his shirt, an official said.
Officer J. McGowan shot the man, identified by relatives as Rufino Lara, about 4:30 p.m. in front of a vacant store along the 7000 block of Bissonnet near Fondren.
“I don’t believe this should be happening,” said his sister, Calixta Lara. “He never had a problem with the police.”
McGowan and her partner were investigating an assault at the center. McGowan told detectives five or six people were standing in front of the building when she and her partner pulled up.
The man later identified as Lara began walking away when McGowan’s partner started questioning the others, Houston police said.
She followed him along the walkway in front of the center, telling him to stop in both English and Spanish, said John Cannon, a Houston police spokesman.
“The male is ignoring her the entire time. She continues to tell him, ‘Show your hands. Show your hands,’ ” Cannon said.
At times, Lara would raise one hand but keep the other tucked under his shirt. He suddenly turned and faced McGowan in front of a vacant grocery. He hand was still tucked under his shirt.
The officer told detectives she was in fear for her safety. “She thought he might have a firearm with him,” Cannon said.
McGowan fired once and Lara, 54, died at the scene, police said.
(Excerpt) Read more at blog.chron.com ...
Let me put my hand on my handgun under my shirt and see how fast I can pull it out and shoot you without having to pull it up and aim. Every shot will go into an 8x10 sheet of paper on your chest if you're within 15-20 feet of me. Police can do it even faster and more accurately when they have to and they practice far more than I do. If they're two-handing it and pointing it at you -- you're done. People are beyond stupid.
Maybe he didn’t understand English. Oh well...
Apparently you know different police than I do. I can shoot rings around most of the Barneys at the range and I’m not really that good. A lot of them don’t seem to understand firearms very well.
He was probably holding his pants up. Itchy trigger finger.
Maybe where you are...don’t get in a gunfight with the ones around here.
Dumbass dead guy was probably holding is pants up and could not raise his hand tucked under his shirt without his pants hanging over his ass falling down...
What was the eventual determination about the hidden hand?
No gun?
holding up his pants?
Just an asshole testing police?
drugs?
If he didn’t have any kids yet he could be a darwin candidate.
None of what is alleged is justification to kill a man. The fact that the second officer did not fire is pretty good evidence that she was too quick on the trigger. With so many recent incidents of police misconduct, I don’t even believe the story as presented is true.
I agree with the other poster that he was likely trying to keep his pants up and avoid dropping his pants in front of 2 women police officers.
If you or I did this shooting, we would be a guest of the state for the next 20 years. She will get a commendation, 3 paid days off, and will be back on the job looking to kill the next person that makes her scared or disobeys an order.
From the article:
“The officer did all she could, giving commands in English and Spanish for (Lara) to hold his hands up,” Cannon said.
From the article:
McGowan’s partner was standing next to her when Lara turned and faced them, HPD said. She did not fire but told detectives she also felt in fear for her safety.
Leaving the scene while police are telling you to stop and you hide your hand while instructed to show them is a Darwin action taking place.
“McGowan’s partner was standing next to her when Lara turned and faced them, HPD said. She did not fire but told detectives she also felt in fear for her safety.”
The question is, is their fear reasonable? How would they react to me if I said “I was in fear” and shot someone approaching me like that? I think we all know I’d be getting used to a new life for yhe rest of my life.
Her level of fear wasn’t justified by noncompliance. Another trigger happy pork chop using the fear “get out of jail free card”.
In Texas, if you could reasonably fear for your safety or of those around you, and if you had the gun with you in a legal manner, you would not be going to jail.
Hey! They’re actually in good old fashioned police blues, instead of military getup.
So they’re shooting people over there now not because of any actual, immediate threat but because some cop got scared and thought the guy might present a threat in the future?
And you think this is a good precedent?
I guess its not really a precedent - I hear they’ve been routinely slotting family dogs for the same reason for quite some time.
The brutality and arrogance that people in the US seem willing to put up with from the police never ceases to amaze me. When I lived in Cali, the Modesto police shot a 15 year old kid in the back in a stolen car who was driving away from a traffic. His “crime” was bumping into the police car before taking off.
If that or countless other incidents had happened in the relatively sedate UK where I live, there would be blood, fire and ashes in the streets for a few days, the cops involved would find themselves sitting in the cells. In Greece they’d probably be hanging anything with a badge on from the lamp posts.
“In Texas, if you could reasonably fear for your safety or of those around you, and if you had the gun with you in a legal manner, you would not be going to jail.”
But is that reasonable fear, or and excuse for cowardice? Would I be allowed to walk away after shooting someone under that scenario? I doubt it. The bar for reasonable fear seems pretty low for cops. And getting lower.
She instructed both in English and Spanish...
It could be he didn’t understand either.. but I doubt it.
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