At least 10 police killings have happened in the month since Michael Brown was murdered on August 9th. None of these victims were armed, unless you count the guy with the BB gun, and the two mentally ill women, one of whom brandished a cordless drill and one of whom charged with a hammer.
Police killing victim Andrew Scott Gaynier. Photo: WFAA.
1. Andrew Scott Gaynier, age 26, Dallas, Texas, August 10: WFAA reports witnesses claim Gaynier — who was unarmed — defiantly cried “Shoot Me! Shoot Me!” so Dallas’ Finest happily obliged. His crime? Making lewd comments to women on the street. Which is obnoxious and sexist but deserves one of those Sexual Harassment Postcards, not a bullet.
Here’s the video from WFAA.
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Police killing victim Ezell Ford. Photo: KTLA.
2. Ezell Ford, age 25, Los Angeles, Calif., August 11: KTLA reports Ford — who was mentally challenged — got shot and killed by police, even though witnesses insist he was lying down and complying with the officers’ orders. The reasons why police stopped Ford in the first place remain murky, but LAPD contradicts the witnesses, and claims they’d made an “investigative stop” and that “a struggle ensued.” Here’s KTLA 5’s video with their report on LAPD’s summary execution of Ezell Ford:
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Police killing victim Dillon Taylor. Photo: CNN.
3. Dillon Taylor, Age 20, Salt Lake City, Utah, August 11: Police fatally shot Taylor outside of a 7-Eleven because he didn’t put his hands in the air and get on the ground fast enough. Taylor’s brother said he was wearing headphones and may not have been able to hear the officers’ orders. Police claim Taylor was wanted on a probation felony, but friends and families dispute that, and Brown’s aunt told CNN the police didn’t even call to let her know Taylor was dead. Here’s the report with his aunt’s account of the police killing, and the protests that followed, from CNN:
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Police killing victim Dante Parker (shown with his widow). Photo: KTLA.
4. Dante Parker, age 36, Victorville, Calif., August 12: CBSLA reports Parker – a husband and father of five — died after being stunned “several times” with a taser. The San Bernadino County Sheriffs picked up Parker after a neighbor accused him of breaking into their house, and claimed they had to subdue him because he’d been combative. Parker’s widow, Bianca, says, “My husband was not aggressive. He was disoriented.” Here’s the report on Parker’s police killing from CBS Los Angeles.
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Police murder victim Omar Abrego. Photo: KTLA.
5. Omar Abrego, age 37, Los Angeles, Calif., August 14: Omar Abrego, a father of three, was driving home from work when Los Angeles Police stopped him. He never made it home. According to KTLA, LAPD beat Abrego to death less than a week after they murdered Ezell Ford, who had also lived in the Newton District. Police told reporters he refused to stop his vehicle when they tried to pull him over, and then pulled over and ran away, but a witness said Abrego cooperated. The witness also reports police beat Abrego for over 10 minutes before calling the paramedics. Here’s KTLA’s report on police beating and killing Abrego.
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Police kiling victim Jacinto Zavala. Photo: Greely Tribune
6. Jacinto Zavala, age 21, Greely, Colo., August 14: The Greely Tribune reports this police killing occurred when police drove to Greely’s house expecting to find gang members and shot him while he was standing outside holding a BB gun. The family admits there had been some gang activity in the past, but Zavala — a veteran who’d come home from the army last year and has PTSD — had never been involved in gangs. [divider]
Police killing victim Diana Showman. Photo: NBC.
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Police killing victim Michelle Cusseaux. Photo: KPHO.
8. Michelle Cusseaux, age 50, Phoenix, Ariz., August 14: Cusseaux’s mother — along with bereaved friends and family — demanded answers from the City of Phoenix after police murdered her mentally ill daughter. She had called for an emergency mental health pick-up, but police shot Cusseaux dead when she charged at them with a hammer! Unlike in so many other cases, Police Chief Daniel Garcia was sympathetic to the family and announced that his department would step aside and turn the investigation over to the Arizona Dept. of Public Safety.
Here’s the report from CBS 5.
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Police murder victim Joshua Paul (left) with fiance Jeff Bolek. Photo: Daily Herald.
9. Joshua Paul, age 31, Carpenterville, Ill., August 17: The Daily Herald reports Paul mysteriously died at Advocate Sherman hospital after police stopped him for “suspected traffic violations.” Paul’s family has hired a lawyer because they’ve been unable to get any answers. Police, of course, claim Paul struggled. Then again, today’s cowardly and overly-militarized cops also consider hammers and power drills to be lethal weapons.
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Police killing victim Joseph Jennings. Photo: KCTV 5.
10. Joseph Jennings, age 18, Ottawa, Kansas, August 24: In Kansas, police are so eager to use deadly force, they’ll even do so with a teenager who already wanted to do the job himself. Jennings had just got out of the hospital, where he had been treated for a failed suicide attempt. His family feels understandably upset that police resorted to shooting him, without trying other options first. Here’s the report from KCTV5:
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h/t Huffington Post.
