Video Footage Shows Dallas Police Fatally Shooting Mentally Ill Man

Those cops are lucky the guy only had a flathead screwdriver and were able to contain the situation with their sidearms. God forbid he had walked out with a phillips head and they probably would've needed to call in SWAT to handle that one.

F'n cops.

 

While I agree with you that screwdrivers can be used as a lethal weapon, I'd estimate an overwhelming of screwdriver attacks end up in scratches or punctures and not many deaths. I understand the danger that cops place themselves in day in and day out, but in evaluating the footage, do you believe without a doubt that the man was aggressive and intended harm to the cops? Now, if he came out with a knife, then drawing a firearm is absolutely necessary, but a screwdriver is not a typical weapon one would wield if they are intending to harm someone.

Hindsight is 20/20, but we can still learn something from these documented events. Cops should try to deescalate if possible. With a two-on-one situation there, the officers had an advantage in disarming the man, who didn't exit the house in an aggressive stance. They might have risked incurring some injuries, but at least they could go home and sleep knowing they did not kill a man, an event that can psychologically damage them along with the stress of the investigation.

I'm not familiar with the training involved in police academy, maybe you can shed some light on it, but do officers do any type of situational case studies on how they should react to certain stimuli? Any type of negotiation, problem solving, defusing tactics, etc? I think it'd be a valuable experience.

 

Hey they knew what they were signing up for. You want to be a cop, then you can take your chances using nonlethal, hand to hand, retreat/de escalation techniques etc. when someone attacks you with a screwdriver.

 

The problem is the the mentality of those that become cops. You're basically getting the bullies and jocks from high school that were too damn dumb to get a real job and wanted to find a way to get paid to bully people as a career.

 

So here's the rules:

White people - ok to carry guns to rally's and point them at anyone. So long as you don't shoot you are ok.

Black people - do not carry guns or you will be shot. Do not even hint that you might have a gun - keep your hands in the air. If you are carrying anything pointed - screwdriver, pen, bottle opener - and you walk towards a police man, expect to be shot.

 

Associates degree from a community college being the most eduction required is a contributing factor.

 

If there are no repurccusions, no one will learn.

 

O please. Your job isn't even empirically one of the 10 most dangerous jobs in the US.

 

You forgot Mexicans with rocks who are running away.

 

****...I just realized why A-Train might be missing from the bbs all these years.

He was Running With Scissors!!

 

I feel that you are trying to convey a message you feel strongly about, and I support that.
All you need to do is refine your process and keep pushing forward.

Thanks for the response. Crisis Intervention (CIT) training is mandated now. Especially with all of the vets coming back home. We deal with mentally disturbed people every. single. day. It's really sad. You can never train enough when it comes to dealing with the mentally ill.

But it's the only one where someone will try to kill you for the uniform you're wearing. In no other profession does that happen.

 

Using education as an argument after self admittedly stating that he was a "grunt" in the military which required, what, a diploma or GED and 12 weeks of basic.

Solid E-3 statement...

 

Except as soon as I was honorably discharged I was accepted into one of the better public universities in the nation thanks to my prior high school career and SAT scores and now am attending that school for free thanks to the GI bill and on my 3rd year working towards a bachelors.

 

Well you seem like a pretty decent person, and I appreciate the years you volunteered your service to this country first and foremost. At no time during a debate with you would I ever call you a p***y. You obviously have a very strong opinion of the police, probably due to a situation either you or a person you care about had when they were negatively affected by law enforcement.

This, and only this, is the reason why I chose typically not to argue or debate on threads such as this one. You are going to have a preconceived notion of what "should" have happened. I would never critic a situation you dealt with while deployed because I have no experience in this matter, yet you know exactly how an officer should handle himself in a situation that escalated in less than a minute. I suppose that is where I take exception to your previous posts.

I also don't understand where this "first kill" mentality you speak of comes from in Law Enforcement. I have been in the business for nearly 8 years, most of my friends are cops, and I have never once seen one of them itching to take a life. We prepare in the event that it would happen, but as I currenly sit in my driveway just home from work typing this, I never "hope" that it happens on any given night.

Have a good day and good luck in your current endeavors with your education.


PS...since we have to prerequisite our posts with current level of education...

Bachelors from SHSU.
Advanced Peace Officer License
Currently working towards a law degree thanks to grants and scholarships from the wonderful 100 Club

 

What does that tell you? Either everybody else are all assholes and are selectively hating cops or you are doing something wrong.

 

I think the debate will come down to whether or not the screwdriver in the hands of this man is seen as "lethal" against a group of armed police who are also armed with Tasers.

 

Incompetent was yelling at a mentally disturbed man and causing him to get upset enough to lunge at you. Incompetent is not having a non-lethal weapon at your immediate disposal in that situation knowing you were dealing with a mentally disturbed individual.

 

Thanks for the pointless, irrelevant to this situation and stupid response.

 

The thing with a screwdriver being a lethal weapon is that it can be, but the only way it would typically be lethal is if a person was able to sneak up on someone and stab with it unawares in the head/throat area.

A person who is aware will not be in serious danger of a fatal screwdriver stabbing.

Either way the police need to have a higher threshold for using deadly force than a person with pretty much any object that is harder than a pillow in their hand in close vicinity.

When we lower the threshold so much it doesn't hold police accountable, or cause them to use the care and prudence they should use in these situations.

 

Ever heard of soldiers.... Or Cowboy fans for that matter