Cleveland, US. Police kill boy, 12

[Bonzo77]

Emotions aren't the same in everyone, some people get angry very easily, you also wouldn't want someone like that to be an armed cop. One would hope that anyone wishing to be a cop would be weeded out if their emotion are likley to get the better of them and stop them carrying out their duties effectively.

 

Are you getting confused with policing and the military? Last thing I would want is a emotionless, militant police force that don't think twice before pulling the trigger.

[truman]

As far as I can see the police are damned if they do and damned if they don't..

[skinz]

Emotions aren't the same in everyone, some people get angry very easily, you also wouldn't want someone like that to be an armed cop. One would hope that anyone wishing to be a cop would be weeded out if their emotion are likley to get the better of them and stop them carrying out their duties effectively.

 

Yes people get angry, seems the stats show that being the wife of a cop is pretty hazardous, let alone a Black kid.

[charmer]

It seems the surveillance tape is about to be released. What I find a little unnerving is that they got within 10 foot of the child..almost touching distance.

 

Do you get that close if you suspect an individual as armed and dangerous?

 

You do if he doesn't have his hand on his gun. He was only shot when he tried to take his gun out.

 

Obviously no emotion at all, otherwise why become a cop? You don't become emotionally devoid because you've done 10 weeks of textbook training. you're inference is that to carry out a specific action you have to dump emotion in order to carry out an act as though it's some sort of hindrance, my argument is emotions are a VERY useful tool, dumping them is almost impossible to the point of emotional increase and awareness as a counter.

 

It isn't about having no emotion, but being able to control your emotion and do the job to the best of your ability. Our hero soldiers in the world wars would have had the same thing when shooting German kids (often aged in their mid teens).

 

Sometimes you are in a situation in which you have to make a terrible decision. Think of a paramedic deciding which person to treat in a car accident, this decision can effectively condemn someone to death. The decision has to be rational and free from emotion based on who they think they can save.

 

Or you could go the polar opposite and shoot a totally innocent (and technically unarmed) 12 year old boy with his whole life ahead of him.

 

What did the phone call to the police go like again?

 

“There’s a guy with a pistol…you know, it’s probably fake but he’s pointing it at everybody.

 

“I don't know if it's real or not."

 

And let's not forget the fact that he was black.

 

The cops can't trust the judgement of a (likely) untrained eye witness as to whether the gun is real or not. They have to prepare for the worse case scenario. Remember, the markings had been removed to make the gun look real.

 

I would normally be with you on the black front. With Trayvon Martin and many other shootings (there was a guy shot in a wall mart wlaking to the till to buy a gun), I do believe colour played a part. In this, and the Fergusson incident, I don't believe colour played a part.

[Bonzo77]

With a clear fascination of guns and his colour is irrelevant so I have no idea why people keep bringing it up.

 

---------- Post added 26-11-2014 at 19:51 ----------

 

 

Until a kid with a gun shoots one of your kids whilst the police stood by and watched.

 

Millions of Americans have a fascination with guns, this was a kid, how many kids do you know in the UK that play with toy guns, never mind the US where guns are as common as mobile phones.

 

Even if this kid did have a real gun, you don't know that he would have used it. I honestly can't believe the police are being defended for shooting a kid with a toy gun

 

The phone call to the police even said that the gun was a suspected toy gun?!?

 

If you don't think the fact that he's black had anything to do with it, you need to have a look at some stats.

[skinz]

He was only shot when he tried to take his gun out.

 

Sorry I haven't seen the footage yet..maybe you could point the way.

[Ellco]

Or you could go the polar opposite and shoot a totally innocent (and technically unarmed) 12 year old boy with his whole life ahead of him.

 

What did the phone call to the police go like again?

 

“There’s a guy with a pistol…you know, it’s probably fake but he’s pointing it at everybody.

 

“I don't know if it's real or not."

 

And let's not forget the fact that he was black.

 

Its an impossible job to do.

 

We need more clarification of the fact in relation to gun crime.

 

Are black young men more likely to be involved in gun crime? If they are then more will be shot by the police.

 

Perhaps the reason more black young men are more likely to be shot is because they are more likely to be involved in gun crime.

 

Considering black men are a minority in the USA they are disproportionally more likely to be involved in gun crime.... more likely to use a gun.

 

If it was about race and random black people being shot by police then there would be as many black women shot as well.

 

There is a lot of anger with Hispanics at the moment with the border being constantly breached, with illegal immigrants flooding into the country. I'm sure if this was about race there would be lots of Hispanics being shot as well. But there isn't. This is because they are much less likely to be involved in gun crime.

 

It may be an uncomfortable truth but the reason the cops shoot more black youth than any other group is that they are more likely to uses a gun.

 

This will of course make the cops a little more wary when they hear a black youth is involved in a crime and they may be more likely to shoot first and ask questions later because they feel at most threat from this group.

[Bonzo77]

The cops can't trust the judgement of a (likely) untrained eye witness as to whether the gun is real or not. They have to prepare for the worse case scenario. Remember, the markings had been removed to make the gun look real.

 

I would normally be with you on the black front. With Trayvon Martin and many other shootings (there was a guy shot in a wall mart wlaking to the till to buy a gun), I do believe colour played a part. In this, and the Fergusson incident, I don't believe colour played a part.

 

Cops should be highly trained for these kind of situations. Pulling the trigger, with intent to kill, should be a last resort, not a quick decision just in case things might go bad. Especially when the call stated that the gun could be a fake.......and the suspect is 12 years old.

 

---------- Post added 26-11-2014 at 20:04 ----------

 

Its an impossible job to do.

 

We need more clarification of the fact in relation to gun crime.

 

Are black young men more likely to be involved in gun crime? If they are then more will be shot by the police.

 

Perhaps the reason more black young men are more likely to be shot is because they are more likely to be involved in gun crime.

 

Considering black men are a minority in the USA they are disproportionally more likely to be involved in gun crime.... more likely to use a gun.

 

If it was about race and random black people being shot by police then there would be as many black women shot as well.

 

There is a lot of anger with Hispanics at the moment with the border being constantly breached, with illegal immigrants flooding into the country. I'm sure if this was about race there would be lots of Hispanics being shot as well. But there isn't. This is because they are much less likely to be involved in gun crime.

 

It may be an uncomfortable truth but the reason the cops shoot more black youth than any other group is that they are more likely to uses a gun.

 

This will of course make the cops a little more wary when they hear a black youth is involved in a crime and they may be more likely to shoot first and ask questions later because they feel at most threat from this group.

 

...........I don't know where to start with this?!

 

Why are young black Americans more likely to be involved with crime in the first place? That's the root of the problem.

[truman]

Cops should be highly trained for these kind of situations. Pulling the trigger, with intent to kill, should be a last resort, not a quick decision just in case things might go bad. Especially when the call stated that the gun could be a fake.......and the suspect is 12 years old.

 

If a 12 year old with a real gun pulls the trigger the effect is the same as a 20 year old doing it..just saying

[martok]

Millions of Americans have a fascination with guns, this was a kid, how many kids do you know in the UK that play with toy guns, never mind the US where guns are as common as mobile phones.

 

Even if this kid did have a real gun, you don't know that he would have used it. I honestly can't believe the police are being defended for shooting a kid with a toy gun

 

The phone call to the police even said that the gun was a suspected toy gun?!?

 

If you don't think the fact that he's black had anything to do with it, you need to have a look at some stats.

 

Then why ring the police, why not just ask him for the toy gun, surely the scould have dealt with a kid and a toy gun.