Yes, but my understanding is that the second time they stopped her, she had crashed into something. You could block her in with squad cars and make an arrest. I understand they didn't know she was unarmed. They didn't know she wasn't a terrorist. They want to make sure their own people don't get killed. They want to exercise an abundance of caution. But, I'm depressed that their abundance of caution exacts a very high cost on other people in an attempt to completely negate any risk of cost to themselves. Yes they have a dangerous job (not as dangerous as a roofer's job, or a fisherman's, but still), they deal with lowlifes all the time, and it's not fair for a cop to die because someone's gone off the handle. But, this woman is only dead because the police put a higher priority on the chance of further harm over the certainty of her death. I wouldn't call it excessive force, just damn depressing.
some of you guys 1) over analyze things way too much 2) are always out to call out the police every chance you get, even without evidence sad
There are barriers in DC on roads that service the White House, Capitol Building, as well as various other government buildings that rise and fall from the road to regulate access, sort of like a security checkpoint. The cop either thought the barrier was down, or it was raised as he was approaching it. Here's video: <iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/MCu80iDid_Q" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
By the way, if you think these cops/agents acted with unnecessary deadly force, you haven't been paying attention to the world (specifically DC) at all recently, and you are probably a bit delusional when it comes to the way these things work.
While others don't think very deeply and are more interested in sniping than having an honest conversation.
Very sad situation but it sounds like there was nothing political here. Another case of mental illness.
Does it change your thinking a little if you also include potential injury/death to innocent bystanders she could have run over? There's typically tourists walking all over that road and in the vicinity.
I don't know. I'll probably keep reading on the story as more information comes out. I don't think they had an opportunity to kill her until she was stopped. Is she still a public danger at that point? Maybe, but it doesn't seem like the journalists are interested in fleshing that part out and would rather report on who was hiding in the cloak room.
They initially tried an even safer way that your idea. They initially tried to open her doors, but she GTA'd into reverse and speed straight at officers.
This guy thinks the force was justified: http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/04/opinion/weinblatt-capitol-shooting/ [rquoter]Did D.C. cops have to shoot to kill? By Richard Weinblatt, Special to CNN updated 8:38 AM EDT, Fri October 4, 2013 Editor's note: Richard Weinblatt is a former police chief and dean of the School of Public and Social Services at Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis. (CNN) -- The images filled the screen. A black car hitting barricades at the White House and on Capitol Hill, marked police cars being rammed, and the popping sounds of shots fired. More images rolled in, of heavily armed United States Capitol Police officers and of tourists running with scared and confused expressions. In the aftermath of the scene that unfolded Thursday, a Connecticut woman is dead and a 1-year-old girl is in protective custody. The natural question people are asking is: Was it necessary for the police to shoot? Washington Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier said that, yes, officers of the Capitol Police and Secret Service acted within commonly accepted use-of-force policies and practices in reaction to an intentional series of violent acts. But some have wondered whether police overreacted in this case. This is a question that comes up every time there is a shooting by police. In fact, many studies have found that police use force less often than the public realizes. For example, a 12-month study by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics found that only 1.4% of people who had contact with the police had force used or threatened to be used against them. I certainly concede that sometimes bad officers do bad things, and occasionally good officers do bad things accidentally. However, I also have found that most officers are honorable men and women making split-second decisions while trying to serve their communities. So how should you judge the use of force by law enforcement officers? Consider reasonableness: Police officers are trained to quickly assess possible threats. Force, particularly deadly force (with firearms, in this case), may be used if officers can explain their perception of the physical threats that put them and/or others at substantial risk of serious bodily injury or death. We can't Monday-morning quarterback the officers based on information that comes out later. We can only look at what a reasonable officer knew or should have known, and did or should have done, in a given situation. Departmental policies and police training in the United States reflect the "objective reasonableness" principle put forth in the U.S. Supreme Court's 1989 Graham v. Connor decision, which applies a three-part test to assess the seriousness of the offense, the suspect threat, and the suspect's resistance or evasiveness. And let's also consider facts, not emotional spin. Even though at first blush it appears to be a justified shooting, there should be no rush to final judgment in either direction before an examination of the facts in a fair and impartial investigation. As Lanier indicated in her press conference Thursday night, the Metropolitan Police will be investigating, with support from the Capitol Police and Secret Service. In the wake of last month's Naval Yard shooting, and with the specter of other past violent acts -- such as the shooting of two heroic U.S. Capitol Police officers by a man who breached security in July 1998 -- law enforcement in Washington has been on heightened alert. Cars can be used for delivering explosive devices. And let's not forget, as at least two injured federal officers experienced in this incident: The car itself is a 2,000-pound weapon that can cause serious injury or death when used as a battering ram. Would a reasonable officer -- faced suddenly with a driver trying to ram barricades at high-profile targets like the White House, ramming police cars and injuring uniformed officers repeatedly -- perceive a serious offense, threat, or evasiveness? Whether the driver was mentally ill was not a factor that the officers had the luxury of contemplating as they quickly assessed the threat and decided on a course of action. Pending the final facts, it appears that all three prongs of the "objective reasonableness" standard were present.[/rquoter]
So does anyone with a good set of eyes and a decent memory. If you think this woman just accidentally happened to bump into the front gates of the White House and then "freaked out" when police officers told her to stop with guns drawn, leading them on a GTA-style chase to, just by chance of course, the other icon of power in DC (Capitol Hill-area), then you might want to re-think this. This city has seen all too well what one crazy person is capable of doing.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>yesterday's Road Rampage is entirely forgotten by the media because it involves Mental Illness and not Guns.</p>— The_One_Who_Brings (@AceofSpadesHQ) <a href="https://twitter.com/AceofSpadesHQ/status/386224915583488002" data-datetime="2013-10-04T20:22:50+00:00">October 4, 2013</a></blockquote> <script src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Mother Of Obama “Love Child” Gunned Down By Elite Hit Squad A new report circulating in the Kremlin today prepared by the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) claims that the unarmed 34-year-old woman named Miriam Carey who was gunned down last Thursday (3 October) in Washington D.C. was, in fact, “deliberately targeted” by an elite hit-squad under orders to assassinate what Russian intelligence officials say was the mother of President Barack Obama’s “love child.” http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/mother-of-obama-love-child-gunned-down-by-elite-hit-squad/
There was also no death count other than her own. If she ran over like dozens of people in her rampage then it'd be a news story.
