The unarmed Black man who was attacked by a police K-9 while surrendering to authorities with his hands up earlier this month told emergency dispatchers that officers were “trying to kill” him and he did not feel safe pulling over, according to audio recordings of his 911 calls.
They pulled a rifle on him for a missing mudflap, so yeah, I’d be terrified, too.
I’m glad you said it because I was trying to remain somewhat… objective in my reply, but yeah, he got guns drawn for a routine infraction. That’s super fucked up to the point that his reaction is the -only reasonable reaction- available.
Evidenced by the fact that he even called dispatch??? Who the fuck calls dispatch/911 over getting pulled over if they don’t have a fear?
Didn’t he also fail to stop and led them on a chase?
I mean, it’s still not justified but things happened in-between the initial pull over attempt and the guns being drawn.
Supposedly, yes. Although from the sound of it, chase is the wrong word. He was in a semi, those suckers are governed at 70-75mph absolute tops. It sounds like, from the cops, he made eye contact, slowed down to stop, all the things you are supposed to do. But they drew guns.
From my take of the article, this is If we believe cops who want nothing more than to protect themselves.
But as you say, even then it’s not justified.
This reminds me of a study I read earlier this week, that routine stops of POC that escalate are clearly different right from the start. And that the people on the receiving end of those interactions, even just listening to the first chunk of it on recording, feel less safe, more anxious, and can predict escalation.
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2216162120
I, too, would feel unsafe pulling over if someone pointed a gun at me… and I, too, would probably not want to stop knowing there’s a better-than-even change I’m going to get shot…
This is why nobody can or should trust the police. Because they hire horrible people that are not deserving of authority.
All cops are murdering bastards, or at best willing accomplices, so yeah, that makes perfect sense to me.
