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Showing Original Post only (View all)Was it legal for Darren Wilson to shoot Michael Brown? [View all]
Was it legal for Darren Wilson to shoot Michael Brown?
The department also released documents about the circumstances of the shooting suggesting that Brown was the primary suspect in a "strong-arm robbery" of a convenience store shortly before Wilson encountered him. However, in a later press conference that same day, the Ferguson Police Chief clarified that officer Wilson did not know about the robbery at the time of his initial contact with Brown. Rather, Wilson stopped the teenager for walking in the middle of the street
So what are the standards by which Wilson will be judged for killing Michael Brown? There are plenty of guidelines for use of force by police, but it often boils down to what the officer believed when the force was used something that is notoriously difficult to quantify regardless of how much of a threat actually existed. We talked to two experts to break down the fraught issue.
Constitutionally, "police officers are allowed to shoot under two circumstances," says Klinger. The first circumstance is "to protect their life or the life of another innocent party" what departments call the "defense-of-life" standard. The second circumstance is to prevent a suspect from escaping, but only if the officer has probable cause to think the suspect's committed a serious violent felony.
It's most likely, however, that the whole question is moot. From the Ferguson Police Department's statements on the afternoon of August 15th, it doesn't sound like Wilson even knew about the robbery at all. In that case, there's no way for him to claim that he was justified in keeping a violent felon from fleeing, because he didn't even know Brown was a suspect in a crime at all.
http://www.vox.com/2014/8/13/5994305/michael-brown-case-investigation-legal-police-kill-force-murder
The department also released documents about the circumstances of the shooting suggesting that Brown was the primary suspect in a "strong-arm robbery" of a convenience store shortly before Wilson encountered him. However, in a later press conference that same day, the Ferguson Police Chief clarified that officer Wilson did not know about the robbery at the time of his initial contact with Brown. Rather, Wilson stopped the teenager for walking in the middle of the street
So what are the standards by which Wilson will be judged for killing Michael Brown? There are plenty of guidelines for use of force by police, but it often boils down to what the officer believed when the force was used something that is notoriously difficult to quantify regardless of how much of a threat actually existed. We talked to two experts to break down the fraught issue.
Constitutionally, "police officers are allowed to shoot under two circumstances," says Klinger. The first circumstance is "to protect their life or the life of another innocent party" what departments call the "defense-of-life" standard. The second circumstance is to prevent a suspect from escaping, but only if the officer has probable cause to think the suspect's committed a serious violent felony.
It's most likely, however, that the whole question is moot. From the Ferguson Police Department's statements on the afternoon of August 15th, it doesn't sound like Wilson even knew about the robbery at all. In that case, there's no way for him to claim that he was justified in keeping a violent felon from fleeing, because he didn't even know Brown was a suspect in a crime at all.
http://www.vox.com/2014/8/13/5994305/michael-brown-case-investigation-legal-police-kill-force-murder
Be prepared to see a lot of lying going on in the coming days / weeks
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That could be. Although, I want to know more about the first few seconds before saying for sure
Hoyt
Aug 2014
#32
I get that people accept the use of force to catch fleeing felons, but not deadly force
Hippo_Tron
Aug 2014
#44
Well...the Ferguson PD and all of it's good old boys are doing their damdest to make it fit.
FarPoint
Aug 2014
#7
I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt and assuming you felt the sarcasm tag wasn't necessary
Hippo_Tron
Aug 2014
#24
Historically, racists have compared African American men to apes, like King Kong...
NYC_SKP
Aug 2014
#41
If the autopsy supported the officer's version of events, I believe we would have seen it by now.
wildeyed
Aug 2014
#14