Autopsy: Homeless man shot in the back by police

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Autopsy: Homeless man shot in the back by police

By RUSSELL CONTRERAS, Associated Press | May 29, 2014 | Updated: May 29, 2014 5:26pm

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A homeless camper killed by Albuquerque police — in a shooting that sparked a violent protest and a federal investigation — was shot in the back, had multiple emergency surgeries and then had his arm amputated before he died, an autopsy report released Thursday said.

James Boyd, 38, underwent multiple surgical procedures to control bleeding but died from three gunshot wounds, including one in the lower-left back, a day after the March 16 shooting, according to the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator report.

The report lists homicide as the manner of death.

Boyd, who suffered from schizophrenia and was reportedly camping illegally in the Sandia Mountain foothills, was shot by officers after a long standoff. A helmet-camera video of the shooting showed Boyd gathering his belongings before officers opened fire.

The footage sparked widespread calls for Albuquerque police reform and later a violent protest in the city that forced riot police to use tear gas to control demonstrators.



Read more: http://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Autopsy-Homeless-man-shot-in-the-back-by-police-5512166.php

[billhicks76]

1. Cops Murder

Everyone teaches their kids that now. When I was a kid I was told to go the police when I needed help. Now kids know they or their dogs will be shot. The cops who did this better have murder charges or Albuquercue will have people in the streets again.

[marble falls]

2. But ....but .... but cops deliver free gallons of milk! They play catch with the kids they don't ...

shoot!

[Garion_55]

3. and im guessing the cops will keep their jobs.

[blkmusclmachine]

4. Murder??

[reddread]

5. And THATS the way it is.

the glossy reports of successful homelessness reductions through Housing First styled policies (oh sure, the agenda there is shutting up and even BLAMING abject poverty activists and) hopefully diverting the tidal wave of socioeconomic resentment heading our way.

The very fact that this person received DRASTIC medical attention in his last moments shows not how thorough our healthcare system is, it shows without a shadow of a doubt how wrongful and COMPROMISED this killing was.

Going back a few years to the mysterious death of Pam Kincaid, some very scary cop-related things emerged over a period of weeks leading up to her utimately tragic death only a day or two after the "class action" status of Kincaid vs the City of Fresno was announced.

Its all roses and sunshine in the world of homelessness now, though.
Ask the government funded programs and the municipalities that feed from them.

[tabasco]

6. Dirty rotten motherfuckers

ought to rot in prison.

[olddad56]

7. Is a cop shooting a citizen in the back even still illegal?

[reddread]

8. not if he is JFK n/t

[Lurks Often]

9. It needs to be viewed on a case by case basis

NOTE, NONE OF MY COMMENTS ARE DIRECTED TOWARD THIS SPECIFIC CASE!

It can vary by state law, so this a general explanation and may be different in your state and applies to law enforcement only:
It is generally acceptable to shoot someone in the back if allowing them to escape would present a grave danger, ie a known murderer or someone of equal danger to the public.

The actual trajectory of the bullet through the body is important, it is entirely possible to have a trajectory that indicates that the person shot was turning either away or toward the shooter. Action usually beats reaction so for a police officer to wait for a suspect to turn all the way around and aim a gun, it is usually too late for the officer to prevent the suspect from firing the gun. As an example, the bullet enters the right shoulder from behind and exits through the front of the left shoulder, this would generally indicate a person turning toward their right. Depending on other circumstances this might be considered a justifiable shooting.

In contrast a bullet entering the back and exiting the front of the body in a straight line is almost certainly going to be viewed as manslaughter or murder, absent some other unusual factor and presuming the person shot did not present the grave threat to the public as I mentioned above.

[certainot]

10. RW radio 's role: they usually excuse the cops for anything- they couldn't here because of the

video.

but, they softened it, and rationalized a lot, and when the protestors disrupted a city council meeting, that was outrageous! and a few day later the local morning blowhard actually suggested wouldn't it be funny if a hundred protestors went to the class of one of the protest leaders (a uni of New Mexico prof)!

meanwhile that local blowhard jackass Bob Clark who called for that 'lynch mob' owes a great deal, like so many other rw radio stations (>28% of limbaugh stations), to the colleges and universities that broadcast sports on them