Saturday, April 26, 2008

Makes me wanna holler

Right now, I’m supposed to be enjoying my vacation and I am. However, there’s a cloud of sadness and disgust hanging over me.

It all started when I got the text message from a friend Friday morning informing me that the three police officers charged in the murder of Sean Bell were acquitted.

Acquitted?

For murdering an unarmed man leaving a bachelor party with friends the night before his wedding day?

How can that be?

The news instantly sparked within me feelings of disappointment, outrage, hopelessness, fear, nausea. And it brought back memories of other such police murders of unarmed men, like Amadou Diallo, Marquise Hudspeth.

One emotion I didn’t feel was surprise.

I know some of you don’t see it this way. Some of you may say Bell and all these other men got what they deserved. Others may say there are no winners.

But that’s just not enough for me. I cannot mentally reconcile the justice of this verdict. I can’t understand how the law says shooting and killing an innocent, unarmed man 50 times is justifiable. I can’t understand how the law seems to always protect murderers who wear badges.

I keep trying, but I just can’t see how this is fair.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

First off, bringing Marquise Hudspeth into this argument makes your whole statement reek worse than his dead, decomposing body. That guy deserved to get shot for pointing a metallic object at a Cop after a high speed chase, everyone knows not to do that and if you don't, its just Darwin's theory in practice. In the case of Amadou Diallo, the officers involvled were cleared by a jury, it really illustrates the importance of not reaching into your pockets and doing what the Police tell you when you are dealing with them, they take their safety very seriously, I believe that this case is tragic becuase he probably was genuienly confused. As for the this case, I think alot of things went wrong, but I just don't see why people think that Cops just go out looking to shoot and kill innocent people, when you have multiple shooters in an urban enviroment echos play hell on you and it sounds like you are in the middle of Armageddon and thus being fired upon(google contagious shooting), you just don't shoot that many rounds unless you are scared out of your mind. Do these guys deserve some sort of punishment, I am sure, that and a lot more training at the range, their punishment though should be through the NYPD Administration for any policy violations they had, but I do not see any criminal action here and neither did the judge.

Anonymous said...

the law does not allow this kind of stuff to happen. the shoot first ask questions later, billy bad ass cop culture and apologists like the previous commenter do.

Anonymous said...

I keep trying, but just can't see how someone who wasn't a part of the circumstances and doesn't know all of the facts of the incident can be so emotionally tied to the outcome.

I think it would behoove you, in your quest to become a reporter, to learn to look at cases objectively, which you clearly fail to do by referring to the police officers as murderers even as you report news of their acquittal.

Anonymous said...

If the police were close enough to think that he was about to run over one of them, then they should've been close enough to see that he was not shooting at them. I know I wasnt there but, it seems like the barrage of bullets was focused at the driver who clearly was not shooting at them or even holding a weapon. Explain that to me?

Anonymous said...

"the law does not allow this kind of stuff to happen. the shoot first ask questions later, billy bad ass cop culture and apologists like the previous commenter do."

---GLAD I COULD HELP!

Anonymous said...

To the person who wants it explained while the barrage of bullets was aimed at the driver ... according to reports it was b/c the officers believed the man was fixing to run over one of the officers.
Police officers are involved in high stress, dangerous arrest situations every day. If police were truly a "billy bad ass cop culture" and shot first before asking questions then these incidents would be a daily occurrence in every state in the country.
A lot has been made of the fact that the suspect was getting married the next day. I cannot fathom how that ties into the circumstances around his death other than he was possibly intoxicated after leaving the bar and made a poor choice in choosing to not stop when ordered to do so.

Anonymous said...

Only the judge and jury had access to the evidence, so they made decisions based on that. The press spun the result as a tragedy. It's unfortunate, but the police can only go by what's presented to them in a fast-moving situation. The cops like to go home at night, too. Bottom line: if you get pulled over, don't try to play Oppressed Person. Just do what they tell you. You can take up a false arrest issue later when you are STILL ALIVE. We're playing with real guns here!

Samtastic said...

You would have to be a complete idiot (or drunk) to not pull over when a cop tells you too. The excuse that you have done nothing wrong is not a good one. I got pulled over the other night driving in my small home town. I was going the speed limit and obeying all the laws. He pulled me over because he said my tires were too big on my brand new Honda Fit (it is a very small car), then he told me I had blue lights (I did not), Then he said my tint was too dark (I had no tint). This was all before he pulled his gun on me ordered me out of my car with my hands up...he said it was because I did not stop soon enough (it was dark and being a female I waited for a lighted area). I tell this story because I was treated this way and I did nothing wrong. But I am not stupid, although I was scared out of my mind (at first) I got out of my car with my hands on my head and did not make another move. The officer was wrong on all accounts but that means nothing when they have a gun pointed at you. What he did was wrong and yes he got in trouble for it later. But because I was smart there is no tragic story of my death to read about. Be smart people!

Anonymous said...

Exactly, you argue in court, not on the street

Anonymous said...

jcoltf. has to be a white BOY instead of a man i know that the actions of Marquise Hudspeth were not right but be a realist and know that when he got out of that car the first officer saw exactly what he had in his hand..and if he thought it was a gun he should have fired then not wait until this guy walks away and start shooting him in the back and make the excuse that he thought it was a gun i say B.S. and you should too if this was your son you would be the first to cry that he was murdered but no the deal is that he is black and for a dumb ass like you that make's it alright but the tide will one day turn and black cop's will be killing white folks and i hope you are around to blog about that DUMB ASS...

Anonymous said...

You must be a stupid ass black boy, independent crime scene analysis confirmed it, your buddy (that piece of shit Hudspeth) got what he deserved, eight well placed shots, the world is better off with him dead. I wonder if there is prison in hell??? Hudspeth knows...

Glad I happened to re-read this