Lawyer: Transit cop may have pulled wrong gun

YAHOO NEWS! ^ | 31 Jan 2009 | TERRY COLLINS

[roadcat]

According to the article they claim they had not handcuffed him yet when the victim allegedly went for his waistband for a possible weapon.

Bogus. Lord help us if you have a nervous twitch because a cop is kneeling on your neck while you're held face down, and that's just cause for another cop to pull the trigger on you. This is simply a bad cop that needs to be put away for good.

[umgud]

Don’t know what models they had, but there sure are models that mimic handguns. Be that as may, you’re right that it is a very weak defense.

[umgud]

[Uri’el-2012]

u>Many tasers have pistol grips and actually simulate the feel of a pistol

I've noticed that, in the tasers I've seen at gun shows. Major design flaw.

If the Department chose a taser that in any way mimics
the service pistol, they, the Department, would be liable.

[SWAMPSNIPER]

The guy was flat on his belly, why taze him?

[LuxMaker]

According to the article:

"According to a statement from Officer Tony Pirone, Mehserle told Grant to stop resisting and put his hands behind his back. Then, according to Pirone's statement, Mehserle said: "I'm going to taze him, I'm going to taze him. I can't get his arms. He won't give me his arms. His hands are going for his waistband.""

[Richard Kimball]

Let any “civilian” try such a lame arsed excuse and see just how long he spends in prison.
Saying “Oops, my bad!” isn’t good enough when a man is dead.
And why would he be intending to use a tazer on a man in handcuffs in the first place? Inflicting a bit of blue justice perhaps?

Well, the guy's been arrested and charged with murder, so I suppose they could lynch him, drag him through the streets or something. Maybe just beat the ever loving crap out of him and then shoot him a few times.

WTF else is the justice system supposed to do? He's been charged, it will go to a grand jury, then to trail and whatever the sentence is.

BTW, a civilian I knew beat a guy to death with a 2X4 and got probation. He ended up doing about five years later when he was busted for a DWI, which violated his probation.

[Richard Kimball]

trail=trial. Sorry.

[Centurion2000]

To lawyer: There is a huge difference between an explanation and a valid excuse.

[Dr.Zoidberg]

At no point have I suggested he be lynched.

I was expressing my disgust at such a ridiculous excuse for taking a life.

Care to cut a little bit more of that whole cloth?

[RedMonqey]

And why would he be intending to use a tazer on a man in handcuffs in the first place? Inflicting a bit of blue justice perhaps?

Actually, I believe Our wannabe "Dirty Harry" Calahan wanted to use his new toys on a live subject and was stupid enough to pull his service pistol instead of his tazer.

Stupidity, like it's cousin Ignorance, is no excuse for violating the law.(in this case, murder)

[ellery]

According to the article they claim they had not handcuffed him yet when the victim allegedly went for his waistband for a possible weapon.

And then the cops rushed around and forcibly confiscated the camera phones of all the onlookers (except for a few who beat it out of there before the cops could steal their property).

[bobby.223]

your 3 points are dead on the money Dr. what a freakin’ joke.

[bobby.223]

I need to pay better attention I guess. I had not heard about this.

[Richard Kimball]

Care to cut a little bit more of that whole cloth?

No problem at all.

[Oztrich Boy]

To lawyer: There is a huge difference between an explanation and a valid excuse.

The transit officer who shot and killed an unarmed man may have mistakenly pulled his service pistol instead of a stun gun, his lawyer said Friday.

"may have" makes it neither. It means either the ex-cop is refusing to talk to his lawter, or the lawyer is testing an argument to see how it will sound to the jury pool.

[bronxboy]

or he killed the guy in a blind rage and the look of horror on his face is because he realized...oops my life is over just like this guys. The police chased down people trying to get the cell phone cameras away from them...Where do you suppose these cell phones are now?

[bronxboy]

Well I’ve seen multiple videos...one cop hit this guy before the shooting. He sure didn’t look like he was resisting to me. But I get it...Cops have the right to kill those they consider to be bad guys at will. You better hope they don’t mistake you for one of these bad guys...you could take a dirt nap.

[count-your-change]

Happens to me all the time. I always wondered why the stun gun made so much noise though.

[wac3rd]

I live in Oakland and travel past Fruitvale daily.

It was an accident, the funny part is the “protestors” are mainly Left Wingers funded by Soros from San Francisco (white kids/agitiators).

These protestors also had nothing to say about the other 125 murders in Oakland the past 12 months.