[mamamia54]

Originally Posted by Bikeracer2009

"As he was walking away to check on his children, police fired their weapons seven times into his back at point blank range."

I can't imagine the thinking behind his decision to check on his kids while the police were pointing guns at him. I'm sure they were also giving him commands to follow.

I will not rush to judgment on whether the cop acted properly or not.

I can say that I wouldn't want to be the officer that felt the need to shoot Mr Blake. I can imagine the fear of the situation. A man clearly disregarding my commands as I point my gun at him and goes around his vehicle, opens the drivers door and reaches inside as I pull at his shirt. Now I have to decide if I want to wait and see what he's reaching for and hope it's not a gun. If it's a gun I'll probably get shot, if he's just taking this moment to check on his kids then I'll be in a lot of trouble. If I shoot I'm a bad cop, if I don't I could be a dead cop.

If I was a cop, I would quit my job. I would not want people like Mr Blake putting me in this situation because he wanted to go check on his kids while 3 cops have guns pointed at him.

I have defended blm and stand against racism where racism exists but I don't defend the actions of people that put our police officers in dangerous situations so they can call it racism, for a money grab or whatever.

Hopefully the investigation will exonerate the police and Mr Blake will recover fully.

The video I saw on the news doesn’t show him walking away. It shows him reaching in his car. How are the police supposed to know what he is reaching for. It’s a split second decision. Like my dad always said he was told in WWII “it’s kill or be killed”. I don’t really like or condone violence or murder, but we need to put ourselves in the officers shoes. Another saying I like
If you haven’t walked in my shoes, don’t act like they fit you.

[Byte1]

Originally Posted by santiagobob

There was no mention of a weapon of any kind in Blake's car. But there were 3 small children in the car, what responsible police officer would fire seven times into a car with 3 children in it? Any of the rounds could have ricocheted and killed one or more of the children.Shooting someone in the back has always been considered a cowardly act and is normally called murder.

Let's see; a known felon refuses instructions by the police and reaches into a car, possibly reaching for a gun to kill you. Perhaps you do not see the children in the car or in a moment of increased adrenaline you respond how you were trained. His back is turned but you may see something in his hand. You shoot but it happens so fast that he does not immediately seem to be hit or effected by the hurriedly fired bullets. Even though you are trained constantly to count your expended rounds, you forget in the moment and fire a couple more until he falls to the ground. Later, someone tells you that there were children in the car, and you panic as you wonder if any of them might have been hit by a stray bullet. In your mind, you go over the scenario over and over again to see if there might have been another way to handle it. It is easy to see AFTER the fact how it might have gone differently. NO ONE goes on patrol thinking that "today is a good day to shoot someone."

Someone I know was on patrol and got a call for a domestic. He responded knowing his closest backup was 20 minutes away. He pulled into the driveway, late at night and saw a man leaving the house with an AX in his hands, brandishing it in a threatening manner and moving toward him. He drew his weapon and demanded the man to drop the ax. Eventually, the man complied. The man was cuffed and put in the patrol car. The man had just put the ax in his wife's forehead.
Another incident where two men in a car were chased at speeds exceeding a hundred mph and eventually forced to a stop in a used car lot. Three officers surrounded the car and the two were ordered from the car. The passenger door was opened and the passenger immediately reached down between the door and his feet for something. A shiny silvery object reflected sun in his hands as he brought his hands in view. The officer on the passenger side, immediately drew his pistol and put it right against the suspect's head. He did not fire. The suspect raised his hand with a can of beer that would have spilled if he had not reached down quickly for it. No one was shot. The driver was removed to the ER with a head wound when he attempted to flee the police officer after tearing the officer's badge from his uniform and running. The officer struck him with his baton when he caught up with the fleeing suspect and the suspect had attempted to fight him. Both instances someone could have been shot, and the shootings would have been justified if the officers were the shooters.

Officers that work to protect us, also take tremendous risks every day. They wish to return home safely to their families. They deserve our support and ALWAYS the benefit of their service when we consider whether or not they responded properly to a situation.

[Byte1]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

Everyone we know who owns guns has them safely locked away.

I do not think that assault weapons should be legal.

Perhaps if you defined "assault weapons" and how they relate to the subject?

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

Having a record does not allow you to be shot however it is rather remarkable that in all the police shootings we have seen the guy getting shot has a record a yard long.

Having said this if the police are guilty they deserve to be held accountable.

And this is an excuse for a new round of riots and destruction.

Basically this tells me that "all lives" don't really matter afterall. People with criminal records' lives don't matter. Not even if they are free after serving their sentence. Their lives don't matter. If their lives mattered, the cops wouldn't use their criminal history as an excuse to kill them.

And, since a person convicted and sentenced just ONCE is now branded as "mattering less" than everyone else, it's no wonder that they are repeat offenders.

[ProfessorDave]

Seven shots? In the back? Justified under any circumstance. WOW. Some people can justify anything.

[Kenswing]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

Everyone we know who owns guns has them safely locked away.

I do not think that assault weapons should be legal.

For the most part "Assault Weapons" aren't legal. To get a permit for an automatic weapon you need to fill out a 12 page background application with finger prints and photo. Send the Feds a $200 check and wait for up to a year to get approved.

And to throw a few more wrenches in owning automatic weapons. The gun must have been manufactured before 1986. States can ban automatic weapons so the federal permit will do you no good.

So, it's great that you don't think "Assault Weapons" should be legal since they already aren't..

[cassjax2]

He wasn’t a kid .... he was an adult with children. When will they learn to comply with police commands???

[Byte1]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

Basically this tells me that "all lives" don't really matter afterall. People with criminal records' lives don't matter. Not even if they are free after serving their sentence. Their lives don't matter. If their lives mattered, the cops wouldn't use their criminal history as an excuse to kill them.

And, since a person convicted and sentenced just ONCE is now branded as "mattering less" than everyone else, it's no wonder that they are repeat offenders.

Sounds like someone is attempting to make excuses for bad behavior.
If Cops killed Ex-Cons only because of their record, there would be a lot more dead in the news. Come to think of it, that would solve a lot of problems.

[Byte1]

Originally Posted by cassjax2

He wasn’t a kid .... he was an adult with children. When will they learn to comply with police commands???

He had is chance and blew it. Glad none of the responding officers were killed.

[Mrprez]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

What drives you to try and detract from the fact that there exists a problem, whether merely perceived or based on actual data, that the gun-deaths of black men by police officers is rising?

Do you have some links to statistics to support this claim?

[Veiragirl]

Originally Posted by Bay Kid

Major news reported a police shooting of a black man yesterday. Showed the black man refusing to listen to the police then reached into his car for something, then police shot him.

Why can't they just listen to the police for the moment. Now it is the policeman's fault. Bad kids.

We don't know many details of the incident...which I find odd. My question is whatever he "did" wasn't there another way of restraining him? After all there were alot of cops there. You tell me this group couldn't contain ONE person?

[Byte1]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

Why do you insist on continually changing the subject by demanding to know "what about" everything EXCEPT what is being discussed?

Why are you so uncomfortable participating in the topic at hand? What drives you to try and detract from the fact that there exists a problem, whether merely perceived or based on actual data, that the gun-deaths of black men by police officers is rising?

Yes - what about everything EXCEPT this - but all those other things belong on other threads. THIS thread is about the gun-deaths of black men by police officers rising.

The more you demand to know "what about" everything else, the more I get the feeling you approve of the actual topic - that maybe you feel it's okay for black men to be killed by police.

If there is an "increase of gun deaths of black men by police" then maybe the question should be is, why is there an increase in "black" crime? Or, maybe there is an increase in "black" defiance of the police? It may very well be race related or racist related, but I do not think that the position of the police has changed for the worse. If one wishes to be blind to ALL the stats related to police arrests, regardless of race or the stats related to police shootings regardless of race and then compare them to ALL shootings in America, as well as the demographics of the incidents, then it is easy to accuse everyone of being racists. Perhaps it is not white racists but black racists? If so, are they being given excuses? Is something that happened a hundred years ago pertinent to giving bad behavior to anyone that wishes to use the race card today?

It's been a long time since I have seen a sign on a business for separate entrances for blacks. It has been a long time since I have seen anyone denied service because of their color. And as far as I know, affirmative action changed the problem with color discrimination when it comes to employment. The problem may not be with white racists but actually a failure of some folks to assimilate into American culture.

Time to quit making excuses for bad behavior. Listen to the police when they give you instruction and you will live another day to complain about your being singled out. Better yet, if you don't do anything wrong, you will likely have little to no interactions with the police.

[New Englander]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

Seems like rioting has already started. So many of these people seem to be looking at an excuse to steal or destroy other peoples property.

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by Byte1

If there is an "increase of gun deaths of black men by police" then maybe the question should be is, why is there an increase in "black" crime? Or, maybe there is an increase in "black" defiance of the police? It may very well be race related or racist related, but I do not think that the position of the police has changed for the worse. If one wishes to be blind to ALL the stats related to police arrests, regardless of race or the stats related to police shootings regardless of race and then compare them to ALL shootings in America, as well as the demographics of the incidents, then it is easy to accuse everyone of being racists. Perhaps it is not white racists but black racists? If so, are they being given excuses? Is something that happened a hundred years ago pertinent to giving bad behavior to anyone that wishes to use the race card today?

It's been a long time since I have seen a sign on a business for separate entrances for blacks. It has been a long time since I have seen anyone denied service because of their color. And as far as I know, affirmative action changed the problem with color discrimination when it comes to employment. The problem may not be with white racists but actually a failure of some folks to assimilate into American culture.

Time to quit making excuses for bad behavior. Listen to the police when they give you instruction and you will live another day to complain about your being singled out. Better yet, if you don't do anything wrong, you will likely have little to no interactions with the police.

Your right, the problem is making the officer feel threatened. Show them your hands and the outcomes will be a lot better.

[tophcfa]

I feel very bad for current day LEO’s. They have an extremely difficult, important, and risky job. Their jobs often put them in situations where they are caught between a rock and a hard place. They act in accordance with their training, in the hope of living another day to go home to their families. The result can put them in an unfortunate predicament where they are wrongfully labeled as racist and their livelihoods are put in jeopardy. If things continue as is pretty soon there will be a serious shortage of good qualified candidates to fill the necessary job openings.