Stupid - Stupid - Stupid....

[UPCrawfish]

Cleveland, Ohio.    Report of a firearm in a park...  Police respond..   Confront young male....  Youth pulls pistol out of pants....  Police respond with deadly force....  Turns out the pistol is a bb gun, similar to a Berreta M2, with the ORANGE TIP sawn off...

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/11/cleveland_police_officer_shoot_6.html

[greg58]

Do what you are told and everyone goes home in one piece.

Greg58

[ILoveCats]

Yep.  Cop shot a 12-year old and the boy's dead. 

Here's a quote from the newest article...

"The shooting came after a man at the park adjacent to the rec center called police when he saw "a guy with a gun pointing it at people."  The caller twice said the gun was "probably fake" and told dispatchers the person pulling the gun from his waistband was "probably a juvenile," according to audio released by police officials late Saturday."

Ok.... Probably fake and probably a juvenile.  Yet if you listen to the audio file in the story (hyperlink below) the guy says it's scaring him.  In other words, you can summarize the 911 call as, "Operator, there's a young boy playing in the park with a toy and it scares me.  Would you please send one of Cleveland's finest over to kill him?"

Plenty of blame to go around here but some of rests on the shoulders of good 'ol fashioned hoplophobia, which is why I find myself moving more and more in the direction of staunchly supporting the open carry activists.  No I'm not talking selfies with an AR at McDonalds, but I want to move to a society where any whackos who call 911 because "they see someone with a pistol" are asked by the dispatcher, "Uhhh... is he shooting someone?" and "If not, then why are you calling 911???" 

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/11/12-year-old_boy_shot_by_clevel.html#incart_related_stories

[FarmerRick]

Looks like a 1911 copy to me...

The officer got out of the car and told the boy to put his hands up. The boy reached into his waistband, pulled out the gun and the rookie officer fired two shots, Tomba said.

Eh, I'd most likely be shooting the dumb kid too. 

[ILoveCats]

Do what you are told and everyone goes home in one piece.

Greg58

Generally that's my attitude when people get shot by cops.   However, he was a little 12-y.o. boy probably being shouted at by the rookie cop.  It may be too soon to jump to any conclusions that he didn't do what he was told, or understand what he was told.  Big difference in maturity between 12 and, say 16, 17, 18.

[FarmerRick]

Generally that's my attitude when people get shot by cops.   However, he was a little 12-y.o. boy probably being shouted at by the rookie cop.  It may be too soon to jump to any conclusions that he didn't do what he was told, or understand what he was told.  Big difference in maturity between 12 and, say 16, 17, 18.

How do you know he was "little"? 

My 12 y.o. son wears XL shirts, size 10.5 shoes, is 5'6'' and about 180 pounds.  In other words, the size of the average adult.

Ask an OPD officer how many 12 year old gang-bangers they deal with, who are more often than not in possession of stolen/defaced firearms. I'm sure the $hithole called Cleveland has more than their share of little thugs as well.

[SemperFiGuy]

Here's More.  This One is Way Beyond Stupid:

http://nypost.com/2014/11/21/police-fatally-shoot-man-in-brooklyn-building/

NYPD LEOs shoot unarmed man in stairwell.

sfg

[ILoveCats]

How do you know he was "little"? 

My 12 y.o. son wears XL shirts, size 10.5 shoes, is 5'6'' and about 180 pounds.  In other words, the size of the average adult.

Ask an OPD officer how many 12 year old gang-bangers they deal with, who are more often than not in possession of stolen/defaced firearms. I'm sure the $hithole called Cleveland has more than their share of little thugs as well.

Maybe.  Twelve's right on the edge of an age where kids take a big jump, but it's still pretty young to go in guns a-blazin'.   If the cops would have done that when I was growing up and everyone had a cap gun (without an orange thingie on the tip! -- Gasp!) on their hip 24/7, there'd have been nobody who survived elementary school.

[OnTheFly]

Maybe.  Twelve's right on the edge of an age where kids take a big jump, but it's still pretty young to go in guns a-blazin'.   If the cops would have done that when I was growing up and everyone had a cap gun (without an orange thingie on the tip! -- Gasp!) on their hip 24/7, there'd have been nobody who survived elementary school.

A)  A LOT of conclusions being made here with only a report from the media, which should have proven to all gun owners not to be trustworthy.  I'm not saying the particular "news" sources linked/referenced, but ALL of these sensationalism driven outlets.

2) My assumption here is that you are talking about a smaller city/town or at least a city that had nowhere near the crime rate of present day Cleveland.  Correct me if that is a wrong assumption on my part.  Otherwise, comparing how a large city police department approaches things in present times with how things were years ago in a comparatively smaller and/or safer city is not fair.  Sadly, there are many present day examples of misguided youth being a deadly threat. 

Once we get more information, it might become apparent that the 12 year old was small for his age, was wearing Mutant Teenage Ninja Turtle pajamas and Big bird slippers, and yelled clearly to the police officer "I have a toy gun" before he pulled it out.  Until then, we can't jump to conclusions with what the media has told from their perspective/agenda.

Fly

[farmerbob]

Do what you are told and everyone goes home in one piece.

Greg58

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^This is the key^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Over the years I've watched a lot of episodes of COPS, the amount of belligerent people that can't follow simple instructions is amazing, now throw a gun in the mix (real or fake) and you have the recipe for disaster.

What next? Law enforcement having rules of engagement where they have to be shot at first before returning fire. What comes around goes around.

if history repeats itself the media will use pictures that are 5 years old.

[farmerbob]

http://mobile.wnd.com/2014/11/it-happens-again-toddler-targeted-by-cops-bomb/

I don't know about you but this sounds like a new higher level of stupid!!!