WHY is deadly force against UNARMED black men by law enforcement so ACCEPTABLE?

John Crawford, III

John Crawford, III was shot and killed on August 5 by law enforcement officers of the Beavercreek, Ohio Police Department in a Walmart in Beavercreek.  The shooting preceded the shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson, Missouri by four days.  Yet, both shootings have remarkable similarities.  Both were unarmed and both were young black men shot and killed by law enforcement officers.  There is one noticeable distinction, though.  John Crawford, III's killing was caught on tape.  Thus far, no such tape has been presented or made available to the public in the Mike Brown case.  On Wednesday, the Greene County (OH) Grand Jury ruled the Beavercreek Police were JUSTIFIED in shooting and killing John Crawford. III - DESPITE a video tape that not only showed that Crawford posed no threat to the officers at the time he was shot, but also contradicts the 911 call that brought the police to the Walmart to begin with.  Take a look at the video and we'll pick up on the other side.  Perhaps you can see something different from what I saw. 



 





Ronald Ritchie

The initial call to 911 from Ronald Ritchie, who was in the Walmart the same time as John Crawford, painted an entirely different picture from what I saw on the video.  Ritchie claimed that Crawford was "waving the gun" and "aiming it at people".  Ritchie went so far as to tell the dispatcher that "He (Crawford) was loading the gun".  I didn't see Crawford do anything that resembled Ritchie's account.  By now, we all know that Crawford was carrying a BB gun that he picked up off of a shelf in the store.  

Apparently, Ritchie didn't see anything that resembled his initial story, either.  To put it mildly, he "recanted" the story he gave to the 911 dispatcher.  To put it bluntly, Ritchie admitted to being a MONSTROUS liar that caused the death of TWO people.  In a story in The Inquisitr News, Ritchie admitted that Crawford "at no point shouldered the rifle and pointed it at somebody."  The cynic in me now wonders how large a dose of Sodium Pentothal aka "truth serum" did Ronald Ritchie take.  This LIAR should have to pay a penalty for directly and indirectly causing the deaths of two people.

Ohio is an "Open Carry"  state, which means gun owners can do just that: carry around their guns to grab a burger, a cup of coffee or some groceries - wherever they go. How many times and in how many places have we seen pictures and video of scenes like this one on the right? Just some regular guys with assault weapons hanging out. 

What if the BB gun John Crawford, III was carrying around in the store WAS real?  He would have been well within his rights to do so.  From what I can tell from the video, as soon as police got near Crawford they shot him.  It doesn't appear that he was given a chance to distinguish if the gun was real or not.  Another minor detail that should have been considered is this: Walmart is one of the leading retail gun dealers in the United States.  They SELL guns.  What was so alarming and frightening about a guy walking around with a gun in an "Open Carry" state in a store that sells as many guns as any retailer in the country?  Will SOMEONE ... ANYONE answer that question for me? 

 



Sean Williams

Despite reviewing the store's surveillance video; despite the guy who called 911 from the store "recanted" his story and despite the fact Ohio is an "Open carry" state, the Greene County (OH) Grand Jury ruled that Sean Williams was justified when he shot and killed John Crawford, III.  Considering the racial polarization in America these days, the ruling was not all surprising.  In fact, it would have been surprising

The number of unarmed black men killed recently by law enforcement is both staggering and numbing.  On a recent segment of Melissa Harris-Perry on MSNBC, host Melissa Harris-Perry offered up a macabre roll call of unarmed black men killed by law enforcement:

 

It's enough to make you cry.  I have cried about it.  Knowing that I or any black man can arbitrarily be killed by law enforcement for simply walking in the street or walking the aisle in a retail store or seeking help after having a traffic accident is emotionally overwhelming.  We black people are constantly told by RACISTS and CLUELESS others that racism no longer exists and that America is race neutral.  When we dispute that nonsense we are labeled "race baiters" and "racists".  But these murders are REAL. These black men ARE dead and they were all unarmed and they were all killed by law enforcement.  We know racism is America's biggest denial because I told you as much over three years ago in a piece I wrote (Racism: America's BIGGEST denial). 

What's disturbing is that law enforcement killing unarmed black men is so acceptable to so many.  Read any of the comments connected to any of the stories about unarmed black men killed by law enforcement and you'll see some of the most racist, vile and hate filled comments imaginable in support of cops killing black men.  Grand Juries won't indict and trial juries won't convict law enforcement for killing unarmed black men, either.  We're always told the officers "feared for their lives" at the hands of unarmed black men.  That is what the Grand Jury in Beavercreek, Ohio bought when they decided not to indict Sean Williams.  He was in fear of his life although the video clearly shows John Crawford, III didn't raise the gun at all.  Another heartbreak in the name of the law. 

A black man's life is threatened even when he COMPLIES with the law.  Check this out:

The latest shooting victim, Lavar Jones, was shot for simply retrieving his driver's licenses as South Carolina State Trooper Sean Goubert asked him to.  There was no resistance.  When Jones asked the trooper why he was shot, the trooper said he made a head first move into his truck.  HUH?  You see a guy pull his truck on a gas

Sean Williams mug shot

station parking lot, you turn around and pull on the lot behind him; you justify your action by saying he wasn't wearing his seat belt while his vehicle was PARKED on a parking LOT; you ask for his licenses and when he gets them, you shoot him.  Hmm.  Okay.  In a surprising turn of events Goubert was suspended, then fired and THEN was ARRESTED and CHARGED with assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature.  In South Carolina, of all places.  (Hello, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCullough!)  Goubert faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.  Perhaps there is hope after all.  (From The State: SC trooper charged with felony in shooting at traffic stop over seat belt violation)

 

The Department of Justice will probably conclude that John Crawford, III's civil rights were violated and DOJ may very well try Sean Williams in a federal civil rights case.  Crawford's family will undoubtedly file an unlawful death suit against the city of Beavercreek, Greene County and the state of Ohio.  Crawford's family should also seek legal action against Ronald Ritchie, too.  So should the family of Angela Williams who suffered a fatal heart attack in the Walmart while running for cover when the shooting started.  (Funeral set for woman at Walmart shooting)  Ronald Ritchie NEEDS to be criminally charged. 

 

Until law enforcement officers are charged, arrested, tried and convicted in their LOCAL jurisdictions - where they LIVE, the chances of law enforcement shooting and killing unarmed black men without suffering consequences will likely continue.  Cops know they can simply say they were in fear of the unarmed black men and that will be the end of it.  End of story.  Those on grand juries and trial juries will render decisions based on their own fear of black men.  After all, NOTHING on Earth is more menacing than black men, right?  Okay ... maybe the last one was embellishing some.  But at times it does seem to ring true.  WHY are black men so FEARED?  WHY are black men so DEHUMANIZED? 

 

WHY is deadly force against UNARMED black men by law enforcement so ACCEPTABLE? 

 

Peace, peace.

 

Craig Riggins

Email: therigginsreport517@gmail.com

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