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Execution, murder or accident?

Discussion in 'Too Hot for Swamp Gas' started by studegator, Nov 28, 2022.

  1. studegator

    studegator GC Legend

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    Arizona city pays $8 million to family of unarmed man gunned down by cops as he begged for his life
    Mesa police had responded in January 2016 to a report of a man pointing a rifle out of a hotel window and confronted Daniel Shaver in the hallway, and body camera footage showed the unarmed 26-year-old on his knees, begging for his life, when former officer Philip "Mitch" Brailsford opened fire five times, killing him, reported AZ Central.
    Brailsford was fired shortly afterward for violating department policies, and Maricopa County prosecutors charged him with second-degree murder, but he was found not guilty in 2017 and temporarily rehired by the department to apply for a pension and then took medical retirement.
    Shaver had been in Mesa on a work-related trip, and police later found a pellet gun in his hotel room that he used for his job as a pest-control worker.

    The Acquittal of Officer Brailsford and the Crisis of Police Impunity | News & Commentary | American Civil Liberties Union
    There is no training that justifies the behavior seen on the video. Screaming at a person that is crying cannot be a legitimate technique for officer training. And if Shaver did something threatening, why was Brailsford the only officer who fired his weapon, not just once or twice, but five times?
    And Daniel Shaver was white. Deliberate or unconscious racial bias played no role. Black or brown skin was not a proxy for a threat. This video demonstrates how far we have gone as a country in accepting the culture of police violence. Policing in America has advanced to the state where anyone can be killed for no good reason.
    The jury that acquitted Brailsford did not hear about the two words that were on his dust cover because the judge excluded that evidence. The laws in virtually every state do a great job of protecting police. Snoop Dogg has said that policing in America is a “Resident Evil, it’s all on camera and they still don’t believe you.” This is the police/community relationship we have created for ourselves.
    Discussion of police training is not unimportant — it can be the difference between life and death. Don’t assume that police violence will be limited to Black and brown people — the culture of violence will not exempt white people.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 28, 2022
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  2. danmanne65

    danmanne65 GC Hall of Fame

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    Is this the one where the guy was trying to follow the police instructions but they were contradictory and the cop opened fire when he couldn’t follow them.
     
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  3. WarDamnGator

    WarDamnGator GC Hall of Fame

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    I remember this one. Couldn’t believe he got acquitted when it happened. IIRC, the cop that shot him said he was scared for his life, which really doesn’t fit the video.
     
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  4. lacuna

    lacuna The Conscience of Too Hot Moderator VIP Member

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  5. Gator515151

    Gator515151 GC Hall of Fame

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    I remember this one too. As long as race was brought up in the original post I guess it is OK if I say imagine the peaceful protests if he were some other race.
     
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  6. G8trGr8t

    G8trGr8t Premium Member

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    murder
     
  7. WESGATORS

    WESGATORS Moderator VIP Member

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    Jury wisely acquits Arizona cop in killing of unarmed man

    I never agreed with this ruling; I'm sure most here didn't either. But I understand the opposing viewpoint from a strictly objective and legalistic point of view. I'd personally classify it as incompetence and it seems to fit the bill for AZ's murder 2 in my non-legal mind: 13-1104 - Second degree murder; classification

    I don't understand why the police officer's instructions weren't deemed to be a significant contributor to why there was even any risk to begin with. In other words, the shooter created his own perceived risk. I think of situations like this and the motorcycle helmet guy at Walmart whenever people say "if you see something, say something."

    Go GATORS!
    ,WESGATORS
     
  8. citygator

    citygator VIP Member

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    Where was a good guy with a gun when you need him? Oh wait.

    Shooter getting his pension while hanging out at home. o_O
     
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  9. ursidman

    ursidman VIP Member

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    I remember this when it happened or rather when the video first came out. I thought it was murder then and haven’t changed my mind.
     
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  10. okeechobee

    okeechobee GC Hall of Fame

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    Sounds like at some point, the deceased was pointing a pellet gun out of a hotel window. It was reported and of course to the untrained public eye, whoever reported it very likely could have thought it was a real gun. So the question is, why was the deceased pointing a gun out of a window? It seems the police interaction would have never taken place without that happening first.
     
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  11. docspor

    docspor GC Hall of Fame

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    It was like Squid Games Simon sez
     
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  12. GCNumber7

    GCNumber7 VIP Member

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    Straight up murder. Terrible that this POS gets to walk around free with a lifetime pension.
     
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  13. G8trGr8t

    G8trGr8t Premium Member

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    you got him, death sentence it is. hell, maybe he was cleaning it and didn't want wd-40 to stink up the room. too bad we can't ask him
     
  14. okeechobee

    okeechobee GC Hall of Fame

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    In any event, it sounds like it could have been an honest mistake by the officer after doing some more reading, which is likely why he was found not guilty. The idea that cops are looking for reasons to shoot someone dead is pretty extreme.
     
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  15. wgbgator

    wgbgator Premium Member

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    Anyone who's watched the video and has come to the conclusion that it's "an honest mistake" has some real issues, or is just a cop apologist
     
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  16. gatordavisl

    gatordavisl VIP Member

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    This cop was obviously looking for a reason to shoot someone. It's probably the most despicable shoot I've seen. He literally got away with murder.
     
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  17. okeechobee

    okeechobee GC Hall of Fame

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    Even if what you wrote is true, it would represent the extreme rarest of rare cases and in no way represents the norm or anything like it, which seems to be the crux of the OP….suggesting this is somehow a “thing” and it’s not.
     
  18. gatordavisl

    gatordavisl VIP Member

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    ??? This thread is about an isolated incident and whether or not it was murder, execution, etc. Who suggested this incident represents the norm? OTOH, there's you, who suggested it could have been an "honest mistake." :rolleyes: Goodness gracious, have you watched the video?
     
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  19. wgbgator

    wgbgator Premium Member

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    It represents the 'norm' in that nothing happened to the cop
     
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  20. archigator_96

    archigator_96 GC Hall of Fame

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    Since he was wearing a uniform I say Execution. If he was undercover, then murder.
     
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