Posted on 08/16/2014 11:19:26 AM PDT by yldstrk
After police in Kenosha, Wis., shot my 21-year-old son to death outside his house ten years ago — and then immediately cleared themselves of all wrongdoing — an African-American man approached me and said: “If they can shoot a white boy like a dog, imagine what we’ve been going through.”
I could imagine it all too easily, just as the rest of the country has been seeing it all too clearly in the terrible images coming from Ferguson, Mo., in the aftermath of the killing of Michael Brown. On Friday, after a week of angry protests, the police in Ferguson finally identified the officer implicated in Brown's shooting, although the circumstances still remain unclear.
I have known the name of the policeman who killed my son, Michael, for ten years. And he is still working on the force in Kenosha.
What if he is carrying a ham sandwich in his pocket?
“one of the officers struggling with Bell felt his gun being pulled and screamed “he has my gun!” at which point another officer shot Bell.”
They discovered that the officer who thought his gun was being grabbed in fact had caught it on a broken car mirror. The emergency medical technicians who arrived later found the officers fighting with each other over what happened.
My rules of engagement as a private citizen would be that I would probably have to see him with the gun before shooting to defend myself. I know the cops are only human too but it seems they have different rules.
The author is a retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force.
I am trying to understand how someone with his hands cuffed behind his back can be considered a threat. Maybe in the movies, but in real life? Isn’t that why suspects are cuffed in the first place, to remove the danger and control the situation?
I don't see were it says that in the article provided. I do see where it says
The officer involved committed suicide.
police are not entitled to “lose it” they are paid not to “lose it”
I am sorry you lost your uncle
G-d Almighty
I for one would, like George Zimmerman, use a weapon to avoid playing Duk-Koo Kim to some drunk idiot's Ray Mancini.
Michael Bell behaved like a lunatic - bad things often happen when you behave that way.
Is it possible that after multiple investigations over the course of a decade the result might just be that Michael Bell was a grown up who was responsible for his own actions and those actions' consequences.
I acknowledge Bell Sr.'s grief and his obsession - they are completely understandable - but his feelings cannot alter reality.
Thank you.
Basic, simple police work would make these kids of raids pointless.
What this parent did...
Wanting to uncover the truth, our family hired a private investigator who ended up teaming up with a retired police detective to launch their own investigation. They discovered that the officer who thought his gun was being grabbed in fact had caught it on a broken car mirror. The emergency medical technicians who arrived later found the officers fighting with each other over what happened. We filed an 1,100-page report detailing Michael’s killing with the FBI and US Attorney.
It took six years to get our wrongful death lawsuit settled, and my family received $1.75 million. But I wasn’t satisfied by a long shot. I used my entire portion of that money and much more of my own to continue a campaign for more police accountability.”
The parents of the SEALS killed during Extortion 17 are still hunting for answers, too. “Calling VP Biden!”
Do we have to count the dogs too? I guess so. It’s my understanding that if you kill a police dog then the charges are the same as if you killed a police officer. I could be wrong...
I can’t decide if that says the most about the dogs, the police, or society in general. I haven’t looked. Does the list further down listing people killed by the police include dogs? If so, it must be huge!
Bashes on cops till they need a lawyer. Or, is it cops bash on lawyers till they need...?
Now I'm curious. How many crimes do cops actually stop?
The SEALS better get some private investigators, maybe Israeli ones
The ACLU probably is the reason why you can't do a lot of that "simple" police work anymore.
“My rules of engagement...”
That’s hilarious.
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.