Gardena police shooting video: Justified or 'cold-blooded' killing?

LA Times ^ | July 14, 2105 | RICHARD WINTON

[Half Vast Conspiracy]

Dramatic video released Tuesday showing Gardena police officers shooting two unarmed men -- one fatally -- is once again igniting debate about police use of force. And like other cases, some people view the same video in very different ways.

A judge's decision to release the tape capped months of legal battles, with the city fighting to keep the tape private.

[Half Vast Conspiracy]

The kid was not following instructions, but....

[Michael.SF.]

I’m leaning very far towards: cold blooded killing

[boycott]

Was the release of this tape to coincide with Obama’s statements today about blacks and Latinos being arrested and imprisoned more than whites?

I like how Obama is angling for Latinos to hate whites too.

[LoneRangerMassachusetts]

The kid was not following instructions, but....

Maybe the cops need to have emergency translators riding with them. /s

[gaijin]

direct link to video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkjGBEbfKyo

[Eagles6]

He’s only got 18 mos left, he’s got to get things moving to implement the “fundamental transformation”.

[Above My Pay Grade]

The idiot in the front with the dark shirt kept bringing his hands down to his waist, where he could have had a weapon. Not sure if it was justified, but it was not a “cold blooded killing”. At worst it was nervous cops overreacting to potentially threatening behavior.

[Frank_2001]

“The kid was not following instructions, but....”

KEEP YOUR HANDS AWAY FROM YOUR WAIST. ALWAYS. That being said, those cops should find another line of work, such as breaking rocks or making license plates....

[Half Vast Conspiracy]

...nervous cops...

That's redundant.

[Half Vast Conspiracy]

KEEP YOUR HANDS AWAY FROM YOUR WAIST. ALWAYS.

Agree. I realize that I have the luxury of calmly viewing the video at my desk. But, the shooting doesn't seem to coincide with an action (such as *right* when he pulled his hat off) that might trigger the shooting.

[mass55th]

At one point he reached into his back pocket. I’m surprised they didn’t shoot him then. It looks like they might have thought he had a weapon hidden under his hat because they blasted him shortly after he took it off. When the cops have a gun/rifle pointed at you, you don’t want to be dancin’ around like a fish on pole. Stupid mo-fo.

[Half Vast Conspiracy]

At one point he reached into his back pocket.

It looks like he drops something from his pocket. Drugs?

[boycott]

He’s only got 18 mos left, he’s got to get things moving to implement the “fundamental transformation”.

—

I am not sure this nation could take 18 more months of the sorry bastard.

[Half Vast Conspiracy]

From the article:

The shooting occurred about 2:30 a.m. on June 2, 2013, after a bicycle was stolen from outside a CVS Pharmacy on Western Avenue. A police dispatcher mistakenly told officers that the crime was a robbery, which usually involves a theft using weapons or force, and officers headed to the area in search of two suspects.

Sgt. Christopher Cuff saw two men riding bicycles east on Redondo Beach Boulevard. The men were friends of the bike theft victim and were searching for the missing bicycle. Mistaking them for the thieves, Cuff ordered the men to stop and put their hands up, according to a district attorney's memo written by a prosecutor who reviewed the police videos.

[kiryandil]

The idiot in the front with the dark shirt kept bringing his hands down to his waist, where he could have had a weapon. Not sure if it was justified, but it was not a “cold blooded killing”. At worst it was nervous cops overreacting to potentially threatening behavior.

I agree. The young peasant didn't understand that his place, like all American "civilians", was groveling on the ground on his belly, licking the boots of the officers, and hoping that he wouldn't get shot for not following the different barked orders shouted by the three policemen.

• The dispatcher mistakenly told the officers the crime was a robbery, which usually involves a theft using weapons or force...
• The yutes were actually looking for a bicycle that had been stolen from THEM
• The officers mistook them for the "robbers"
• The dead peasant had the TEMERITY to explain to his Betters that they had stopped the wrong people. How DARE he!!!
• The polices involved got to view the videos before they talked to an investigator, who was investigating them. You know, the way "civilians" and "peasants" are allowed to "get their story straight" when The Man has grabbed them... /s
• The deputy persecutor prosecutor did a deadsmear on the deceased, before the video was finally released.

Fortunately, the employers of the perps got nicked for $4.7 million smackeroos. LOL! :)

PAY those taxes, Gardena taxpeasants!

[glasseye]

That was a fear shooting.

[spel_grammer_an_punct_polise]

“Cold Blooded Killing” by the copthugs.

Probably frustrated, had gotten kicked out of the U.S. Army and just itching to kill someone.

[kiryandil]

When the cops have a gun/rifle pointed at you, you don’t want to be dancin’ around like a fish on pole. Stupid mo-fo.

He was under the mistaken impression that he wouldn't be killed out of hand just because his buddies were the actual victims of the crime that they were being stopped for.

You know: "Hey, I'm completely innocent of any wrongdoing, and you stopped my buddies by mistake. THEY were the ones who got robbed! Are you listening, offic...? BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM"

"We doan have to lissen to dead peasants, kid."

[kiryandil]

That was a fear shooting.

They should be required to turn in their underwear as evidence in such cases...