Quit coming over to Detroit and killing our children

[thecarl]

“I pray you find another means,� the teen’s aunt, Dedra McGlory of Detroit, said about using the pistol-shaped device that is meant to stun — but not injure — a suspect with high-voltage bursts of electricity. “Or give these officers some training, so they know how to treat a child, and maybe a child with a disability, and maybe a child who’s black.�

http://www.freep.com/article/2009041...+plans+lawsuit

[lilpup]

Anybody want to guess who taught the kid to not cooperate with police?

[crawford]

Hey, auntie, maybe your family should have learned how to raise a child right, no? Too bad the kid's dead, but it wouldn't have happened if you didn't raise a thug.

And I wouldn't be surprised if the family is happy about the whole situation. They obviously didn't care for the child, seeing how they neglected him. And now they can profit off his death to the tune of millions! What a country!

[gnome]

The boy was a little over 5 ft and 125 pounds. In the old days you'd just get a nice clubbing for making a cop run after you but I guess tazers are more humane.

hmm

[funjon1]

Running from the police does not give them the right to murder anyone, much less a 15 year old.

[Detromb21]

If you run from the police, all bets are off

[Johnnny5]

“Or give these officers some training, so they know how to treat a child, and maybe a child with a disability, and maybe a child who’s black.”

My guess is that the cops learned their lesson on how to treat 16 year old Detroiter's when they attended Oak Park Officer Samborskis funeral. Another unarmed 16 year old Detroiter resisting arrest, but apparently that did not stop him from murdering the 28 year old officer.

http://abclocal.go.com/wjrt/story?id...ion=news/state

I applaud the efforts of these officers for doing their jobs in attempting to apprehend this young man and for attempting CPR after he fell unconscious.

[gazhekwe]

Lots of stereotypes up there. What indicates the family raised him to resist police, or neglected him? Why should police assume every black teenager is like the one who killed Officer Stamborske?

The real issue here is why is Tazer not being recognized as a deadly force? This is not the only person who has died from it.

[emuaaron]

wow, some of the comments here are as pathetic as the one's on freep.com, which has long been a bastion for the ignorant to spout off.

[Johnnny5]

Why should police assume every black teenager is like the one who killed Officer Stamborske?

Black or white it does not make a difference. Samborski's tragic death just reiterated the fact that officers have to assume that every teen willing to break the law is also capable of committing murder. If the young age of these criminals causes them to let their guard down they risk the same fate.

[Lowell]

I always like to put the shoe on the other foot in these controversies.

What is every one's opinion on what kind of uproar would have ensued if a five foot kid from Warren was pursued from Detroit to his home in Warren and tasered to death there? Somehow I think it would be an even bigger story.

I also think there is too little known, until a full investigation is finished, to pass judgment on anyone, police, parents or civilians, at this time.

[gazhekwe]

Any person may be capable of committing murder. All they need is a gun or knife that can be concealed on their person. Officers should never let down their guard. The Tazer needs scrutiny. Should it be the first thing the officer reaches for when confronting a fleeing or resistant person? Should the officers have to consider the relative size of the person? Small, no Tazer? Grown men have died after being physically restrained, no Tazer. I have seen two healthy young men who died after being restrained according to professionally trained methods. No one intended them any harm, but they needed to be restrained to protect themselves and others. There are risks with any method, we just need to make sure they are being responsibly addressed. The tragedy of anyone's death is a wake-up call. How can we prevent this from happening again?

[Wintersmommy]

i havent looked up the stats in a while but something like 340 people have died from being tasered by police since the forces started using them..running from the police should not be a death sentance..its like all the deaths that happen from high speed police chases. My belief is let them go because most will reoffend another day and there will be another chance to catch them without loss of life

[Bigb23]

My belief is let them go because most will re offend another day and there will be another chance to catch them without loss of life.

???
Or another car chase, after another offense against people or property. Finish what's started, until other non-lethal ways are found to stop and subdue offenders.

[Blueidone]

I stand by the police. What is it about "STOP - POLICE" that some people don't understand? Black, white, arab, native american, pink, orange or polka-dotted...when the police say stop...STOP! I do not believe in the "let them go for another day" theory. Next time it might be a worse crime where the person is running after committing a murder or assault.

I'm sorry this young person died...but he should have STOPPED. He should not have run from the police. He may have been charged with a minor crime, but he would still be alive. I would rather have the police using a tazer than a gun. If the tazer misses its target no one gets injured. If a gun missed its target some innocent person could die. In most cases the tazer is not lethal. Yes, there are exceptions...but again...if you STOP when you are told to, there is NO RISK.

[Single Malt]

The intent of the taser is to subdue the assailant, not to kill. It is meant as a non-lethal way to apprehend. It is not meant to kill. Sad, in two cases in Michigan it is the end result of teens being tasered and ultimately killed. But I do not believe the officers involved wanted this boy dead. If they didn't have the taser and they used fist strikes and headlocks to subdue him, after he broke the law, fled, and physically resisted arrest the outcome of a racists would be the same. They used a taser, which subdues the assailant just enough to restrain him. It's maybe the taser company that should be looked at, not the cops. The cops were just doing their job. It is not easy being a cop these days I'm sure.

[rjk]

It's maybe the taser company that should be looked at, not the cops. The cops were just doing their job.

Even the mayor of Warren is calling for an independent investigation so it's not known whether the police acted appropriately at this point.

[TKshreve]

wow, some of the comments here are as pathetic as the one's on freep.com, which has long been a bastion for the ignorant to spout off.

So what is it that irks you so much posted above? Please enlighten us where the ignorant are spouting off. Or do you prefer to look and judge with no direct account.

Do we not have a smiley that has the guy shooting himself in the head?

The intent of the taser is to subdue the assailant, not to kill.

Why on earth did they need to subdue the 16 year old? Why?

Oh, that's right, he ran from the cops.If people would stop supporting the "Burgular tripped on my son's rollerskate" mentality, maybe we could get something going right in this country. But instead I'll sue you and you sue me, and let's tape it red and never hear the end of it.

[CYNTHIA DUDAL]

Wow, this family is grieving and in much pain. Maybe the teen was doing wrong. You dont run from anything when your doing right! Ok, sometimes parents are absent and this is what happens to the children. They grow up running down the wrong path. But, I think a softer approach is appropriate.
Being from a family of law enforcement I have attended fallen officers funerals, and I can relate well to what happens when an officer looses control of a situation. Hopefully, this can be a good message and one can learn from it. Teach your kids right from wrong!

[Fnemecek]

couple of questions... What are some of other forms of non-lethal force that are being used and does rubber bullets work ?

Rubber bullets are intended for crowd control, rather than stopping a fleeing suspect. It hurts when you get hit when you get with one; usually causing people to flee the scene so they don't get hit again.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubber_bullet

Other less-lethal force options include:

• Pepper spray, which has been linked to airway constriction and asphyxiation;
• Chock holds, which have been linked to serious injury to both the officer and suspect; and
• Batons, which break bones, damage tissue and cause internal bleeding.

None of these force options is actually good. It's a matter of giving police officers the one that is the least bad.

[bigjimhp]

Sad. Expired plates is a violation of a revenue code, not the law. Police overreacted and a Wayne county jury will send a clear message back to Warren[[Macomb) police. Most people mistake codes, statue, and regulations for law. Young man violated no laws, injured no one. Electricity kills.

[Johnnny5]

Some here seem to be ignoring the fact that his young man was not tasered for running from the police! He was tasered for "violenty resisting arrest". Considering the circumstances it's likely that he would have simply been detained and released had he not resorted to violence.

[Locke09]

Some here seem to be ignoring the fact that his young man was not tasered for running from the police! He was tasered for "violenty resisting arrest". Considering the circumstances it's likely that he would have simply been detained and released had he not resorted to violence.

Good point.

But sometimes people post generalizations and assumptions and others respond to those specific posts and the more important aspects of an issue get lost.

Someone earlier said wait on the facts and that's a good idea. In the meantime, why is it so necessary for some to paint the young man as a thug? That's primarliy what I respond to.

[Locke09]

If you run you must be guilty. "Of what?", you ask. Something. Because, never in the history of mankind has an innocent person ever run. There is no other possible explanation, other than that you have committed some crime. And it must be a serious one, because who in their right mind would exert the energy it takes to run, over a petty misdemeanor.

This formula: "running = guilty" should be used to determine the verdict in all court cases. An automatic guilty verdict for anyone who runs, because we have already established that innocent people don't run. Why bother with a trial.

Does that mean that if you don't run, then you must be innocent? You wish! You are a teenager in Detroit, so you must be a thug. All responsible parents have left Detroit with their offspring. If you are still in Detroit, it is because your irresponsible parents don't care about you. They are not raising you properly and the only reason you didn't run is because you didn't want to get shot or tasered. You should probably get tasered anyway just for good measure because if you haven't done anything illegal yet, you are probably thinking about it.

"But", you protest, "if you read the news accounts you will not find any evidence of a crime having been committed." So what. Society is free to ignore any information that doesn't fit into the argument or presents complexities that might require a different way of thinking. The formula is simple and we reject any attempts to complicate it.

[lilpup]

This formula: "running = guilty" should be used to determine the verdict in all court cases.

It's "running = suspicious and warranting an investigative stop" not "running = guilty" but don't let that little fact deter you from spinning yourself into the ground.