No it shouldn't. But he wasn't given the death penalty, and he didn't die for selling untaxed cigarettes. He died as a victim of circumstance when he resisted attempts by officers to perform a legal arrest. What you're saying is tantamount to the opinion of some Mike Brown supporters who say that the Gentle Giant was murdered for walking down the middle of the street.
If you happen to think a law is stupid, unjust, or unfairly applied, the time to fight it is not when the authorities are in the process of arresting you.
New York Police Ban Use of Choke Holds
Published: November 24, 1993
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The New York City Police Department has banned the use of choke holds, the restraining maneuvers that cut off the flow of blood and oxygen to the brain and have been blamed in the deaths of suspects in New York and other cities.
The directive comes as police departments around the country have prohibited or reviewed the use of various choke holds by officers. It also underscores a nationwide debate on the appropriate use of police force, from 9-millimeter handguns to “hogtying” to pepper spray.
The number of deaths in police custody in New York, including some involving choke holds, has been rising in recent years. Police officers and other experts said alternatives to the choke hold could include various nonlethal restraining devices like Velcro straps, handcuffs or water cannons.
http://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/24/us/new-york-police-ban-use-of-choke-holds.html
“If you happen to think a law is stupid, unjust, or unfairly applied, the time to fight it is not when the authorities are in the process of arresting you.”
How’d that work out for the Jews in Germany and the Non-true believing communists in the Soviet Union?
Just wait until the police force is nationalized