Police officer fired for not shooting black suspect wins $175,000

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Police officer fired for not shooting black suspect wins $175,000

Stephen Mader, a former officer in West Virginia, sued after he was fired for not shooting a black suspect during a standoff in 2016

Jamiles Lartey in New York
Mon 12 Feb 2018 18.33 GMT

A former police officer who alleged he was fired for not shooting a black suspect during a standoff has settled a wrongful termination suit with his former department for $175,000.

“At the end of the day, I’m happy to put this chapter of my life to bed,” said Stephen Mader, a former officer in Weirton, West Virginia, who was also granted a pledge that his former employer would not prevent him from obtaining a new job in law enforcement elsewhere.

Mader was the first responding officer to a 2016 call involving RJ Williams, a 23-year-old black man believed to be suicidal. Mader, who is white, made the determination that Williams did not pose an immediate threat to him or fellow officers, even though he was holding a gun. Mader began trying to talk Williams down.

“He wasn’t angry,” Mader previously told the Guardian. “He wasn’t aggressive, he didn’t seem in position to want to use a gun against anybody. He never pointed it at me. I didn’t perceive him as an imminent threat.”

-snip-

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/feb/12/stephen-mader-west-virginia-police-officer-settles-lawsuit

[oasis]

1. Stephen Mader's respect for human life is worthy of high praise.

[mythology]

3. Only in comparison to the lack of concern in his department

You aren't supposed to shoot first and ask questions later. He did what the expectation should be.

[malaise]

2. Well done Mr Mader

Rec

[BlueDog22]

4. Good Man

That's a good man. We need more people like him in law enforcement.

[JI7]

5. We need more people like this.

[TheBlackAdder]

6. Must be one of those towns that teaches officers to shoot at cans--Africans, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans