Posted on 10/26/2013 1:04:01 AM PDT by moonshinner_09
Cops took no more than 10 seconds to fire six or seven shots into the body of dying teenager Andy Lopez after seeing him with a toy pellet gun. Mr Lopez was spotted by deputies on Tuesday afternoon in Santa Rosa, California, carrying the toy rifle, which they mistakenly thought was a real assault weapon. The time that elapsed between when officers reported the sighting to dispatch and then reported shots fired was only 10 seconds. Hundreds of local residents marched on Wednesday night to remember the popular teen and protest at the senseless shooting. They chanted 'We need justice' as they questioned how the deputies could mistake a pellet gun for an assault rifle.According to a police statement, Lopez was twice instructed to put down his weapon, officers opened fire after he failed to comply - only 10 seconds later. Sixteen seconds later, the cops radioed for medical assistance. Ethan Oliver, who lives across the street, told KTVU.com that the deputies continued to shoot at the boy, even after he had fallen to the ground. Oliver said he went outside after hearing two gun shots and by that time Lopez was already on the ground. ‘Then the cops went at it again and unloaded like six to seven shots,’ he said.When asked if he meant that the deputy shot Lopez while he was on the ground, Oliver said, ‘Yeah. Exactly what I saw.’ Authorities haven't responded to his claims, but it raises the possibility that Lopez was still alive when he hit the ground after the first two shots were fired.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
You say that like letting loose on unarmed people is a bad thing. Tell it to the cops who did just that.
“The reason why the right and the left alike are becoming “cop-haters” (if that’s the term you like) is because modern policing is more and more being viewed as a menace instead of the honorable profession it once was. “
Interesting that this is one of several areas where political consensus is emerging.
We know the gun was a pellet gun ...after the fact.
Why after the fact?
Because all the indicators that it was a “toy gun” were removed, before the incident.
So all those things that may ...may have saved this kids life...were missing.
Cops for years have been complaining about mistaken id on “toy guns.” I agree the 10 second window seems pretty darn quick to shoot, but would that window have been different if the ‘toy gun’ had not been devoid of those indicators?
The legal standard is supposed to be the same, except cops absolutely have the right to use deadly force against a fleeing felon. The reason civilians are held to a higher standard than the police is that the police and their enablers in the legal system are easy on each other, and they act to advance their "monopoly." Lots of ways the dual standard can be implemented.
Cops are legal "insiders," are the system doesn't police itself well. See too, judges and prosecutors. All on the same team, one hand washes the other.
Our soldiers in Afghanistan are expected to do just that. Is it your contention that civilian law enforcement operating in US cities should have a less restrictive ROE against US citizens than our military has operating in hostile territory?
Mister Da wants to say I’m against the 2nd amendment, I can play that game too.
Try reading your own comment.
It’s exactly what you said when read by someone not being fueled by pure emotion.
It would seem easier to repaint or touch up than to cut it off. I don’t understand cutting it off.
Anyhow. People are getting stupider. The boy ought to have known that acting like an ass with a toy gun could get him killed. People have no X ray vision that will tell them “Ah, a Toy! No danger!” A private citizen who got pointed at with that thing would have been within rights to do the same.
This would be one good use for those otherwise silly warning tags. “Acting like an ass in public with this toy can get you killed.”
That said, it’s sad. I don’t have any further ideas, but to simply lynch the cop seems like a possible vast overreaction.
Google “Air soft guns” see what they look like,some “all metal heavy weight. Take the colored tip off and no one can tell the difference, without actually handling it
“Why? Their paradigm had shifted. Their reality was rocked.”
A large part of the reason I open carry.
Nice snakey snakey snakey
Double edged sword here. This could be part of lessons in being callous. Why not actual actors where practical (using guns with blanks and computerized aim evaluation).
Anyhow, tasers need to be more common. With tasers come the temptation to tase someone you’d never ever think of shooting just because it’s easy. But that’s a lesser problem than that of shooting the kids.
Well in civilian situations, tasers would be helpful. I know there’s been a backlash against tasers because of over-tasing, but over-tasing is better than over-shooting.
Also some wisdom could apply to situations like this. “Kid, that gun looks real. Drop it!” would have been helpful. Wisdom has gone out the window, replaced by buck naked dumb bravado.
So, whenever a cop sees a 14 yo walking the street he should shoot him, right?
And again... tasers can change the picture for the better. That’s why the taser was invented. Over-tasing may be a problem but that’s a training issue.
Given some of the videos I’ve seen of police shootings, I’m skeptical that the 13 year old pointed the ‘gun’ in their direction. 10 seconds from ‘I see him’ to shooting doesn’t allow a person time to comply with orders. It reminds me of the Costco shooting, when they went from seeing the ‘suspect’ to shooting in 7 seconds, and just 2 seconds from command to shooting.
This springs from the ‘guilty until proven innocent’ attitude, along with too many cops who don’t understand that they ARE being paid to risk their lives.
Any bets whether they come out with, "Someone called in saying a person was waking down the street intimidating people with an assault rifle" to justify the response time?
How about doing what they're paid to do: Approach the "perp" and talk to them instead of jumping out of the car and hiding behind the door with guns drawn?
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