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Has anyone been following the civil unrest in Ferguson, Missouri?

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    Si_CreweSi_Crewe Posts: 40,202
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    I always thought you weren't allowed to shoot someone if they were fleeing (if indeed he was).

    But it seems you can

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fleeing_felon_rule

    That's been rendered obsolete as a result of more recent case-law.

    Thing is, though, that it is okay for a cop to shoot somebody on the grounds that the person presents a threat to other civilians so it's often going to be the case that a cop will simply assert that they DID think the person presented a threat to others as justification for a shooting.
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    Flat MattFlat Matt Posts: 7,023
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    People need to listen to Johnathan Gentry.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40zMrcEzVH0

    Those are the most sensible words I have ever heard a human being speak.

    If people listened to this guy instead of shit-stirrers like Al Sharpton, we might actually get somewhere.
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    Flat MattFlat Matt Posts: 7,023
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    Chocdoc wrote: »
    Yes this is not just a few black people rioting and looting. It's progressed to peaceful protests taking place nationally around the States with all races taking part.

    I think the riot we had in the UK was just an excuse by chavs to go nuts and steal things. The protest in the States is much more than this.

    No, it isn't.
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    irishguyirishguy Posts: 22,172
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    Flat Matt wrote: »
    Those are the most sensible words I have ever heard a human being speak.

    If people listened to this guy instead of shit-stirrers like Al Sharpton, we might actually get somewhere.

    Sharpton makes me crazy... And he's got De Blasio wrapped around his little finger... Just confirms my belief that ministers should stay out of politics... he's like a Harlem Ian Paisley
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    HowardessexHowardessex Posts: 2,072
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    It's the same people in the community doing the same old thing . Has there ever been rioting and looting by white people because a white person was shot by police ?
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,249
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    Too many trigger happy morons in the American police. A few years back a cop was bitten on the hand by a chihuahua so they tased it, but when that didn't work they shot it dead. A ****ing chihuahua.

    Another incident I saw was a homeless guy with a knife. He was surrounded by maybe 4 cops, at least one with a taser. They were telling him to get down on the ground, and as he turned and began to lower himself they just shot him in the back. Didn't bother with the taser, just shot him. As he's lying face down on the ground they're telling him to put his arms out but he says he can't move and pleads with them not to hurt him. He died the next day.

    There are loads more examples.
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    stoatiestoatie Posts: 78,106
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    It's the same people in the community doing the same old thing . Has there ever been rioting and looting by white people because a white person was shot by police ?

    Perhaps if white people were disproportionately represented among those shot by the police then there might be.
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    iwearoddsocksiwearoddsocks Posts: 3,030
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    It's the same people in the community doing the same old thing . Has there ever been rioting and looting by white people because a white person was shot by police ?


    So do you believe that black people are simply more violent than white people? Its as simple as that to you is it?
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    dee123dee123 Posts: 46,271
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    It's the same people in the community doing the same old thing . Has there ever been rioting and looting by white people because a white person was shot by police ?

    Oh boy. Seriously?
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    Gordie1Gordie1 Posts: 6,993
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    Violence, theft and rioting is the only thing some people know, all it needs is for an excuse to present itself and they will take to the streets to have some fun.

    It happened in London a few times and in other parts of the country as the party atmosphere spread.

    Only scum riot and loot.
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    JakobjoeJakobjoe Posts: 8,235
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    Gordie1 wrote: »
    Violence, theft and rioting is the only thing some people know, all it needs is for an excuse to present itself and they will take to the streets to have some fun.

    It happened in London a few times and in other parts of the country as the party atmosphere spread.

    Only scum riot and loot.

    in the end this is the bottom line..you cant make suburbs no go areas for the police and expect things to be fine.... also if the police think they are going to be attacked they may be more aggressive perhaps. all these people on the streets night after night ..why arent they trying to make their neighbourhoods better places and not the opposite. :confused:
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    TrollHunterTrollHunter Posts: 12,496
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    Red John wrote: »
    Too many trigger happy morons in the American police. A few years back a cop was bitten on the hand by a chihuahua so they tased it, but when that didn't work they shot it dead. A ****ing chihuahua.

    Another incident I saw was a homeless guy with a knife. He was surrounded by maybe 4 cops, at least one with a taser. They were telling him to get down on the ground, and as he turned and began to lower himself they just shot him in the back. Didn't bother with the taser, just shot him. As he's lying face down on the ground they're telling him to put his arms out but he says he can't move and pleads with them not to hurt him. He died the next day.

    There are loads more examples.

    Case in point:
    http://youtu.be/j1ka4oKu1jo
    Eric Garner choked to death by NY police. I'm very surprised there weren't riots following this incident seeeing as it looks like a very clear case of overly aggressive policing.
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 774
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    Red John wrote: »
    Too many trigger happy morons in the American police. A few years back a cop was bitten on the hand by a chihuahua so they tased it, but when that didn't work they shot it dead. A ****ing chihuahua.

    There are loads more examples.

    Indeed. Only last week a young man was gunned down by cops after he picked up a toy gun from the shelves in Walmart:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6N3UuBQjMs8
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,249
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    Case in point:
    http://youtu.be/j1ka4oKu1jo
    Eric Garner choked to death by NY police. I'm very surprised there weren't riots following this incident seeeing as it looks like a very clear case of overly aggressive policing.

    Wow, I've not seen that before. Apparently the cop who did it is still on the payroll.

    The toy gun incident isn't quite so black and white IMO, the gun looked real: http://cdn.pyramydair.com/images/zoomed/Crosman-MK-177-Tactical-Pneumatic-Air-Rifle-Black_CR-30117_zm.jpg

    By the way, if you want to see the incident with the homeless guy I'll put the link in spoiler tags. Don't watch if you can't deal with seeing a guy get shot.
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    Si_CreweSi_Crewe Posts: 40,202
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    dee123 wrote: »
    Oh boy. Seriously?

    Yeah, it's only okay to make sweeping generalisations if they're about the police, right?
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    KikiDafuqKikiDafuq Posts: 203
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    American police shooting innocent dogs makes me far angrier than some waste-of-space criminal being taken out. The latter know the risks.
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    TrollHunterTrollHunter Posts: 12,496
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    Red John wrote: »
    By the way, if you want to see the incident with the homeless guy I'll put the link in spoiler tags. Don't watch if you can't deal with seeing a guy get shot.

    Thank god UK police aren't routinely armed and whenever one of the armed officers fires a shot, there's a full review. That video is awful.
    The report on the incident states that he was shot because the canine officer (who was about 8' away) had his life in danger. So no use of the tazer nor beanbag gun, just shot him multiple times as he turns away.

    The real dangers of a trigger happy police service right there.
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    *Sparkle**Sparkle* Posts: 10,957
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    Red John wrote: »
    Too many trigger happy morons in the American police. A few years back a cop was bitten on the hand by a chihuahua so they tased it, but when that didn't work they shot it dead. A ****ing chihuahua.

    Another incident I saw was a homeless guy with a knife. He was surrounded by maybe 4 cops, at least one with a taser. They were telling him to get down on the ground, and as he turned and began to lower himself they just shot him in the back. Didn't bother with the taser, just shot him. As he's lying face down on the ground they're telling him to put his arms out but he says he can't move and pleads with them not to hurt him. He died the next day.

    There are loads more examples.

    It's one of the reasons I'm against the routine arming of the police. Ideally, there would be very few who are armed, and only those police with a proven record of keeping a cool head should be considered for an armed unit.

    There are so many cases where the police could have easily protected themselves with a good old fashioned baton, or at least a tazer.

    Admittedly, part of the problem is that the police spend their working life in fear of a member of the public also having a gun, so are much more twitchy than the typical British bobby. When the public have guns, the police will be quicker to presume the worst.

    There's always a risk that a certain sort of power hungry person will be attracted to an enforcement role, such as the police, but many more of the 'wrong sort' will be attracted to a position where they can lord it up with a gun. Those are the sort who will take particularly badly to a member of the public being a bit lippy, or for 'resisting arrest'.
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    Si_CreweSi_Crewe Posts: 40,202
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    Thank god UK police aren't routinely armed and whenever one of the armed officers fires a shot, there's a full review. That video is awful.
    The report on the incident states that he was shot because the canine officer (who was about 8' away) had his life in danger. So no use of the tazer nor beanbag gun, just shot him multiple times as he turns away.

    The real dangers of a trigger happy police service right there.

    TBH, that incident seemed like another tragic case of somebody being bolshie with armed cops and it all going horribly wrong for him.

    The guy had, IIRC, spent 2 hours arguing with the police and had brandished a knife so, when the dog handler approached the cops and the guy responded (IIRC, reaching for 2 knives which were found in his hands) the cops were justified in opening fire.

    Think of it this way; if it was you stood there with a rifle and it was your wife or child who was approaching the person when they made a grab for a knife, what would you have done?
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    Fappy_McFapperFappy_McFapper Posts: 1,302
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    Red John wrote: »
    Too many trigger happy morons in the American police. A few years back a cop was bitten on the hand by a chihuahua so they tased it, but when that didn't work they shot it dead. A ****ing chihuahua.

    Another incident I saw was a homeless guy with a knife. He was surrounded by maybe 4 cops, at least one with a taser. They were telling him to get down on the ground, and as he turned and began to lower himself they just shot him in the back. Didn't bother with the taser, just shot him. As he's lying face down on the ground they're telling him to put his arms out but he says he can't move and pleads with them not to hurt him. He died the next day.

    There are loads more examples.

    If people bothered to look beyond what their rag of choice told them to believe they would realize that there is a major problem in the US when it comes to the police abusing their authority.
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    Si_CreweSi_Crewe Posts: 40,202
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    Red John wrote: »
    Another incident I saw was a homeless guy with a knife. He was surrounded by maybe 4 cops, at least one with a taser. They were telling him to get down on the ground, and as he turned and began to lower himself they just shot him in the back. Didn't bother with the taser, just shot him. As he's lying face down on the ground they're telling him to put his arms out but he says he can't move and pleads with them not to hurt him. He died the next day.

    That's a helluva interpretation of the incident, if you're referring to the one others have linked to.
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    bollywoodbollywood Posts: 67,769
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    US police officer do seem to be trigger happy but maybe they just don't want to take chances. The latest figures I can see from 2012 show 120 officers killed in the line of duty.

    I have to agree with this somewhat. On the other hand, cops are lured into situations, or they can approach a parked car and the driver will just shoot them. Or they see toon any senseless deaths and suspects getting off on a technicality.

    It's not an excuse for brutality, though.
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,249
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    Si_Crewe wrote: »
    That's a helluva interpretation of the incident, if you're referring to the one others have linked to.

    No, I'd say that's a pretty fair description of the video I linked to in the spoiler tags.
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    *Sparkle**Sparkle* Posts: 10,957
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    Si_Crewe wrote: »
    TBH, that incident seemed like another tragic case of somebody being bolshie with armed cops and it all going horribly wrong for him.

    The guy had, IIRC, spent 2 hours arguing with the police and had brandished a knife so, when the dog handler approached the cops and the guy responded (IIRC, reaching for 2 knives which were found in his hands) the cops were justified in opening fire.

    Think of it this way; if it was you stood there with a rifle and it was your wife or child who was approaching the person when they made a grab for a knife, what would you have done?

    The problem is that under pressure, people use what's available to them, not what's most appropriate.

    If the police only had batons or tazers instead of a rifle, that's what they'd have used. Unless the man is throwing knives at the police, one of those extendible batons would have been more than enough to disarm him without resorting to lethal force.
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    LojenLojen Posts: 1,009
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    http://www.ijreview.com/2014/08/168698-eyewitness-recalls-important-detail-background-video-mins-ferguson-shooting/

    Another witness unknowingly recorded at scene seems to corroborate the police officer's version of events.
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