I was out of town when this happened, but friggin' A...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKy-WSZMklc
That is some messed up NYPD shit there. Who the heck is in charge of training BART cops anyway? Are they even subject to oversight and IA like the other cops? I guess they're one step up from Blackwater. But the video clearly shows the 2 other officers had the young man pinned down, he wasn't struggling (at the time of the shooting), and didn't seem like a danger to anyone. But the third just takes out his weapon, aims, and fires point blank in the back - for no valid reason that I can discern. It doesn't appear accidental. What was he thinking with all the witnesses around? My coworkers said that the BART police confiscated as many cell phones/cameras as they could find on people in the vicinity, supposedly for "evidence" (or cover-up?). But moot point, since some leaked to the press anyway.
And we wonder why urban minorities don't really trust police.
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http://www.ktvu.com/video/18426902/index.html
Take a look at this video. I looks as if one officer was off to the side talking on the radio, while officer Mehserle (the shooter) and another officer pinned the young man down. It is evident that the officer pinning the young man near his head moved up and away before the shot was fired as if expecting a stun gun shot and moving clear so as not to be secondarily tased. You can see the stupid look on Mehserle's face immediately after the shot, as he looks up and down at what had just happened.
I agree there's no valid reason to shoot the guy, even stun gunning the guy seems excessive. I disagree with your assertion that this does not appear to be accidental.
Now I'm not gonna defend this in anyway shape or form aside from saying this looks accidental. It's poor judgment anyway you cut it. It's bad protocol to have officers have stun guns near their firearms... most departments have them place it opposite their pistol on their non dominant side facing the opposite direction. As far as taking cameras from witnesses... hell who knows what standard operating procedure is on that one, but it does look suspicious.
This incident certainly doesn't help police win over urban minorities, but this incident looks like officer incompetence, lack of training, and poor protocol rather then the "white cop kills urban/minority youth" reaction this is getting on the streets of Oakland.
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But as far as I know, isn't a stun gun much lighter than a handgun? It's like reaching for a wood pencil at your desk and accidentally picking up a Mont Blanc - you should know the difference. I guess in the "heat of the action", maybe he just got confused. But I'm not sure if that "excuse" makes it any better, since there is an ongoing controversy about police over-use of stun gun submission that actually turns out to be more lethal that the manufacturers or cops claim.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/06/11/national/a114135D39.DTL
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Yeah, I mean I agree with Juan that it was probably accidental and the cop wasn't looking to whack the kid. But you know in the navy how the officers repeat orders all along the chain of command to make sure that it was correct before executing? Isn't that to make sure the end result is proper and intentional? Captian: all ahead full, 2nd in command: all ahead full roger, helmsman: roger all ahead full, and then finally he puts the boat in gear. I believe surgical teams do similar stuff in hospitals, obviously because mistakes are too costly (and yet they still happen, but anything to reduce them is desirable). So would it have been so hard for Mehserle to tell his partners, "I am planning to tase the suspect, I am drawing my taser now, I am preparing to fire." And the onlooking cop could actually verify that he was holding his taser and not his Glock, instead of just looking away and hoping for the best.
I have no idea what the effed up "rules of engagement" are for cops (or BART rent-a-cops), but maybe there needs to be some major overhaul to verify the use of force before actually using it. I know if a perp draws a weapon on you or other emergency situation, your life comes first and you just have to react based on your training (seen "Burn After Reading"?), but if the officers are in no hurry and under no immediate threat, one person shouldn't unilaterally have the right to use his weapons when and how he/she wants. That is a violation of the public trust, because obviously we are unarmed and at their mercy.
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