Why isn't this man in jail? Oh wait...

[ngc_7331]

He's a cop.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-...in-wheelchair/

What I really really don't get is that the article says the man came within inches of the cop. How in the name of all that is good and fuzzy are you not able to tell a weapon from a -pen- at that close range?

[Greenday]

What I really really don't get is that the article says the man came within inches of the cop. How in the name of all that is good and fuzzy are you not able to tell a weapon from a -pen- at that close range?

This is what I would be asking in court. "You stated he came to within a foot of you. How were you unable to identify that the object in the man's hand was a pen?"

The police department needs to be more strict with vision guidelines of its officers.

[Mytical]

Ok, I will be on the unpopular side here and say this. In the heat of the moment, adrenalin pumping..your flight or fight kicking in..it can be hard to tell what somebody could be holding..

Now .. on the other hand..I still think it is a questionable move. The guy was that close and the officer could not have taken the object away? No stun weapons available? No other choice but to shoot the guy? Now that..that I do have issue with. I wasn't there, and we don't know how we would react, but something about this just doesn't sit right with me.

[gremcint]

Actually I'm with the cop on this one. Guy was heading towards, got very close, moving very fast, some knives are very small, if he didn't shoot then if it had been a knife we'd be asking why he hesitated.

Further, Rule 1: if a cop points a gun at you and says to drop something you fucking drop it or he will drop you. it's that simple.

[Greenday]

Actually I'm with the cop on this one. Guy was heading towards, got very close, moving very fast, some knives are very small, if he didn't shoot then if it had been a knife we'd be asking why he hesitated.

Further, Rule 1: if a cop points a gun at you and says to drop something you fucking drop it or he will drop you. it's that simple.

He was in a wheel chair, only has one leg, and only one arm. Just how fast could he possibly have been closing in? Very fast does not seem to be a description I'd expect.

[BlaqueKatt]

was it a Tactical pen?

[Gravekeeper]

He was in a wheel chair, only has one leg, and only one arm. Just how fast could he possibly have been closing in? Very fast does not seem to be a description I'd expect.

^ That right there.

I mean really? A dude in a wheel chair with only 2 limbs inside of a group home waving a pen? And you shot him rather than subdue him? >.>

[ngc_7331]

I don't know, maybe he was afraid that the guy would run over his toes with his wheelchair. That hurts, ya know.

Here's another point that someone brought up in the comments on another article, something that I didn't think of at all: the guy had one arm, how the hell did he roll his wheelchair towards the cop and brandish a pen at the same time? Something ain't adding up here.

[insertNameHere]

I will side with the cop here, you start waving around a metal object threatening me at close range, I'm going to make judgement you mean to harm me or others. Depending on the metal pen it can still be dangerous even if it is "just a pen". I can understand having to make the snap judgement of shiny equals knife.
I'm appalled that many people harp how handicapped people are just as capable as those without disabilities for any other aspect such as employment, so I refuse to believe they would not be as effective at trying to kill me.

For the just i knife folks checkout this link http://blogidaho.blogspot.com/2007/0...th-knives.html it has graphic pictures of an officer who thought "it was just a knife" Don't have the forward my father showed me before with a more detailed description. But it was forwarded as a warning to all those in law enforcement the officer in the pictures has EXTENSIVE experience in hand to hand combat and still lost. Also note, bullet proof vests are meant to stop certain projectiles NOT sharp knifes. Most bullets are lead that is easily deformed compared to a steel blade. Which is why armor piercing bullets usually have some type of a core that is extremely hard. Furthermore, most departments only carry body armor meant for what typically would be encountered... Ie small arms mostly of the caliber the officers carry. Why pay for armor meant to stop a .50 BMG sniper round when 99% of officers never encounter that sort of resistance and would be hindered by additional weight.

The police show up and start pointing guns, screaming for compliance it a good idea to follow them as many cases have shown EVEN if it is later determined they are completely wrong for pulling the trigger that won't make you any less dead.

[Andara Bledin]

I'm appalled that many people harp how handicapped people are just as capable as those without disabilities for any other aspect such as employment, so I refuse to believe they would not be as effective at trying to kill me.

"Many people" are utter morons. And this argument is a complete cop-out. Even a rudimentary grasp of physics and physiology will tell you that a man with one arm in a wheelchair cannot both move quickly and wave a pen around. Plus, the man was in a group home, so it's pretty obvious that he wasn't "just as capable."

My take on the whole thing is that a lot of why the officer shot the double-amputee stems a lot from the last time the officer had to fire his weapon, which was a legitimate case of a physically able person threatening him with a knife after having stabbed someone else to death.

Also, I do have to question how good his training is if he let himself get cornered by an irate man confined to a wheelchair.

^-.-^

[ngc_7331]

I'm appalled that many people harp how handicapped people are just as capable as those without disabilities for any other aspect such as employment, so I refuse to believe they would not be as effective at trying to kill me.

There's handicapped and then there's handicapped. There's a big difference in capability between a person who's just blind or just in a wheelchair than a schizophrenic double amputee in a wheelchair. I would expect that his capability is going to be somewhat lower. And by somewhat I mean a metric shit-ton, which is considerably larger than an imperial shit-ton.

Still trying to figure out how a one-armed man in a wheelchair can advance on a cop while brandishing a weapon. Seems like a physical impossibility.

[TheHuckster]

Still trying to figure out how a one-armed man in a wheelchair can advance on a cop while brandishing a weapon. Seems like a physical impossibility.

Only thing I can think of is he can use his single leg to sort of move the wheelchair. Still, it's quite hard for an able-bodied trained police officer to get outmaneuvered by this.

To those who bring up adrenaline and other stuff, police officers are supposed to be trained to handle this to prevent accidents. An officer could be startled by a child, for instance, and if he/she shoots the child, there's going to be very few sympathizers who would take the officer's side.

I understand people, especially those who are mentally unwell, can't easily be talked down and aren't even aware of the danger they're putting themselves into, but there's other non lethal methods to deal with them.

[crashhelmet]

The article says the victim was stabbing at him with the pen. An uncapped pen can and will puncture the skin and do damage.

I don't know what gear the Houston PD is required to carry, but here in Vegas, cops carry both lethal and less-lethal sidearms. In other words, they carry their pistol (they're allowed to choose from 4 different models and varying calibres) and a taser.

This guy, being in a wheel chair, was no definitive threat with the pen. The cop could've easily step out of the way, in any direction, and restrained him or incapacitated him. No need for the shoot to kill.

[Greenday]

Honestly, if this cop is so stupid/out of shape that he can't outrun a guy with only one arm and one leg, he needs to be fired anyway.

[Andara Bledin]

Go check the article: the officer allowed the irate, potentially crazy guy with only half his limbs and confined to a wheelchair trap him in a corner. >_<

Of course, that raises another question: Where the hell was this guy's partner during this whole thing?

^-.-^