Officer kills woman inside her Texas home after welfare call

[Gaius46]

Single woman with an 8-year old inside, I can easily see fearing for her safety and getting her gun for protection. Still, I wonder why the murder charge without fully investigating.

Because under Texas law murder only requires intention or knowing that the act could likely lead to death. The only defense is self defense or perhaps him claiming he didn’t mean to kill her.

 

[Gaius46]

I am not saying the officer was innocent in all of this. I am just shocked that this new fact is just coming out now.

It’s irrelevant. The cop didn’t see the gun. That’s clear from the fact that he didn’t order to drop the weapon at any point in the exchange.

It’s made even more clear by the fact that neither the police nor his lawyer have mentioned that he saw a gun. If the gun was even a remotely possible defense it’d be out there already. It isn’t. The gun is a distraction.

 

[Casper]

Single woman with an 8-year old inside, I can easily see fearing for her safety and getting her gun for protection. Still, I wonder why the murder charge without fully investigating.

The murder charge also comes with a manslaughter possible charge as it did in the Amber Guyer trial, my guess is he will get a similar conviction and sentence, rightly so.

 

[TamleeB]

It’s irrelevant. The cop didn’t see the gun. That’s clear from the fact that he didn’t order to drop the weapon at any point in the exchange.

It’s made even more clear by the fact that neither the police nor his lawyer have mentioned that he saw a gun. If the gun was even a remotely possible defense it’d be out there already. It isn’t. The gun is a distraction.

I don't know for sure what the police officer did or did not see (and honestly, neither do you). I am sure that will come out in the trial. Until then, I will withhold my judgement and allow the process to take place. Sadly, two families are dealing with the impact of this horrible event.

 

[marke]

Doesn't answer my questions.


If a random stranger you believe is breaking into your home demands you to put down the gun are you obligated to do it?

Is it a crime to have your door open?

No, but the woman was not shot for leaving her door open was she? The cops were dispatched by the police department to investigate whatever it was that the caller said looked suspicious. I don't see how either the cops or the woman did anything clearly and absolutely wrong in the ensuing circumstances. This was a tragic accident and the woman lost her life and the cop is facing prison. We should let the court handle it from here nd not play into the hands of leftists who wish to promote the wicked, destructive, uncivilized, barbarian lie that all cops are wicked and racist.

 

[Terryj]

I hope cops who are guilty of murder will be found guilty and cops who are not guilty of murder will be found innocent in a trial, providing they survive the condemnations of the street mobs.

People are shot an killed by police officers everyday, most of these shooting are justified, this is why you rarely see reports on the news about these shootings. Police officers who are in the wrong will pay the price for their actions.

The so called street mods, are just concerned citizens that see a wrong and want it fixed.

This officer did everything wrong in this matter, his body cam shows this and he should be held accountable for his bad decisions because it cost a person their life.

 

[dirtpoorchris]

No, but the woman was not shot for leaving her door open was she? The cops were dispatched by the police department to investigate whatever it was that the caller said looked suspicious. I don't see how either the cops or the woman did anything clearly and absolutely wrong in the ensuing circumstances. This was a tragic accident and the woman lost her life and the cop is facing prison. We should let the court handle it from here nd not play into the hands of leftists who wish to promote the wicked, destructive, uncivilized, barbarian lie that all cops are wicked and racist.

I think another thing we should be looking at is who is training these cops to say "PUT YOUR HANDS UP!" and then shoot 1 second later for legal reasons.

 

[marke]

Enough details already have come out.

Does that mean we are ready to convict and condemn? Does the officer deserve to present a defense before being condemned by unruly lawless mob opinion?

 

[marke]

As I understand it he’s charged with both. Manslaughter would give the jury something to convict if they decide his actions don’t rise to the level of murder. Or perhaps the DA is contemplating a plea deal though I’d guess that wouldn’t sit well with many people.

I’ve honestly not seen much in the way of racist rants in this thread though I admit to not reading every post.

However the case ends though it’s indisputable that a completely innocent woman who shouldn’t have died is dead at the hands of an agent of the state. That happens far too often and something needs to be done to fix it.

The whole purpose of declaring the cop guilty without any consideration of possible arguments in his defense is to propagate the lying leftist bigoted racist idea that cops in general are evil and do evil "far too often." That racist democrat lie is of the devil and should never be allowed any acceptance at all in civilized societies.

 

[Terryj]

No, but the woman was not shot for leaving her door open was she? The cops were dispatched by the police department to investigate whatever it was that the caller said looked suspicious. I don't see how either the cops or the woman did anything clearly and absolutely wrong in the ensuing circumstances. This was a tragic accident and the woman lost her life and the cop is facing prison. We should let the court handle it from here nd not play into the hands of leftists who wish to promote the wicked, destructive, uncivilized, barbarian lie that all cops are wicked and racist.

No, this was not a tragic accident, it was the result of an officer not following protocol, huge difference. His firearm did not accidently go off, he pulled the trigger. He did not accidently find himself in the back yard looking in windows, he did not accidently not announce himself as a FWPD officer, this was a tragic mistake on his part, if he had only followed basic protocol this mistake would not have happened.

 

[Gaius46]

I don't know for sure what the police officer did or did not see (and honestly, neither do you). I am sure that will come out in the trial. Until then, I will withhold my judgement and allow the process to take place. Sadly, two families are dealing with the impact of this horrible event.

I’m fine with that.

 

[dcsports]

You think "Don't blast a person within 1.5 seconds of seeing them." wasn't a part of their training?

The guy saw the woman and in a split second blew her away. Tell me how that's the fault of the police force or the training. Should they have given him a pop gun instead of a real gun until he had ten years experience on the force?

I don't think they get enough training, especially recurring training. They also, in many cases, don't have enough support that they can feel safe.

In this case, there are two principles - quickly shoot someone threatening you, and take the time to assess if someone is truly a threat. They don't receive enough training on assessing how to resolve this conflict - reaction drills, how to better assess the situation without exposing yourself, etc. They also likely don't have enough training on this type of call - the fact that two officers didn't think to ring the doorbell makes me think there's something lacking. I wouldn't be surprised if this is the normal approach in the field - we're only hearing about it here because of the outcome.

 

[Gaius46]

The whole purpose of declaring the cop guilty without any consideration of possible arguments in his defense is to propagate the lying leftist bigoted racist idea that cops in general are evil and do evil "far too often." That racist democrat lie is of the devil and should never be allowed any acceptance at all in civilized societies.

There’s nothing racist about it. I’m a white guy and not likely to die at the hands of a cop and have family that are/were cops and it pisses me off that innocent people die at the hands of police.

And it’s not only a legal issue. Even if the cop is legally found not culpable that doesn’t make Ms Jefferson undead. Nor any of the other people who shouldn’t have gotten killed in our name.

 

[marke]

People are shot an killed by police officers everyday, most of these shooting are justified, this is why you rarely see reports on the news about these shootings. Police officers who are in the wrong will pay the price for their actions.

The so called street mods, are just concerned citizens that see a wrong and want it fixed.

This officer did everything wrong in this matter, his body cam shows this and he should be held accountable for his bad decisions because it cost a person their life.

People are not shot by cops every day and cops are not shot by people every day. There is no good reason to promote the hysteria surrounding this incident by declaring the cop guilty and evil. That has not been proven in court. No evidence has been given in the cop's defense as it will be in court. Only wicked unruly lawless mobs condemn and hang someone based upon mob rule and mob justice.

What rushing to judgment in this case does is promote the lying leftist narrative that most cops are evil, just like the dummass leftist commie mayor of New York taught his own children. This wicked leftist racist bigoted narrative is doing great damage to peace, harmony and fair justice in this nation.

 

[marke]

I think another thing we should be looking at is who is training these cops to say "PUT YOUR HANDS UP!" and then shoot 1 second later for legal reasons.

What should a cop do to a thug who has been assaulting him and trying to steal his gun if he continues to approach the cop with his hands up and shouting don't shoot, all while not stopping his threatening approach after being ordered by the cop to stop?

I feel sorry for Mike Brown. He had no idea he had been given bad advice and guidance in his short life. We need to try to stop wicked leftist bigoted racists from teaching kids to hate cops, thus endangering their own lives and the stability of America.

 

[Crosscheck]

I wonder if those who lie in this thread fine the hypocrisy to be downright laughable when they call others liars.

Perhaps it takes one to know one.

 

[marke]

No, this was not a tragic accident, it was the result of an officer not following protocol, huge difference. His firearm did not accidently go off, he pulled the trigger. He did not accidently find himself in the back yard looking in windows, he did not accidently not announce himself as a FWPD officer, this was a tragic mistake on his part, if he had only followed basic protocol this mistake would not have happened.

Do you think it would be wise to try to calm down the hysteria to allow for the officer to present a defense? Or should we just condemn him and lynch him to show others how wicked cops should be dealt with for being wicked and racist?

 

[dirtpoorchris]

What should a cop do to a thug who has been assaulting him and trying to steal his gun if he continues to approach the cop with his hands up and shouting don't shoot, all while not stopping his threatening approach after being ordered by the cop to stop?

I feel sorry for Mike Brown. He had no idea he had been given bad advice and guidance in his short life. We need to try to stop wicked leftist bigoted racists from teaching kids to hate cops, thus endangering their own lives and the stability of America.

What im saying... Is who is teaching these cops to say "PUT YOUR HANDS UP!" and then shoot 1 second later. Someone is teaching them to spurt it out before they fire with no intention of letting the suspect obey. That way in their report they can say "I told him to put his hands up" but in reality the person never had a chance to. Someone is teaching cops to do this to CYA. (cover ass)

 

[marke]

There’s nothing racist about it. I’m a white guy and not likely to die at the hands of a cop and have family that are/were cops and it pisses me off that innocent people die at the hands of police.

And it’s not only a legal issue. Even if the cop is legally found not culpable that doesn’t make Ms Jefferson undead. Nor any of the other people who shouldn’t have gotten killed in our name.

Cops have killed innocent people by mistake possibly dozens of times in my lifetime, but cops practically never kill innocent people on purpose. That is the leftist lie that wicked racist bigots want to promote in contradiction to the facts.

 

[Terryj]

People are not shot by cops every day and cops are not shot by people every day. There is no good reason to promote the hysteria surrounding this incident by declaring the cop guilty and evil. That has not been proven in court. No evidence has been given in the cop's defense as it will be in court. Only wicked unruly lawless mobs condemn and hang someone based upon mob rule and mob justice.

What rushing to judgment in this case does is promote the lying leftist narrative that most cops are evil, just like the dummass leftist commie mayor of New York taught his own children. This wicked leftist racist bigoted narrative is doing great damage to peace, harmony and fair justice in this nation.

I'm saying that let the officer have his day in court, correct. However, his body cam video is very incriminating and does him no favors, couple that with his inexperience and his past reprimands does him no favors either. I would be willing to state that the best he could hope for is a manslaughter charge, the worst would be 2nd degree murder.

 

[marke]

What im saying... Is who is teaching these cops to say "PUT YOUR HANDS UP!" and then shoot 1 second later. Someone is teaching them to spurt it out before they fire with no intention of letting the suspect obey. That way in their report they can say "I told him to put his hands up" but in reality the person never had a chance to. Someone is teaching cops to do this to CYA. (cover ass)

We'll see what the jury says after hearing all the evidence. The cop appeared to call for the woman to put up her hands but when she did she was pointing a gun at him. How long should he delay before responding to the obvious deadly threat? Long enough to get shot first since he had no idea if she intended to pull the trigger immediately or not? What would cause a person to point a gun at a cop after being told to show empty hands?

 

[marke]

I'm saying that let the officer have his day in court, correct. However, his body cam video is very incriminating and does him no favors, couple that with his inexperience and his past reprimands does him no favors either. I would be willing to state that the best he could hope for is a manslaughter charge, the worst would be 2nd degree murder.

You may be right but that is no justification for the unlawful unjust condemnation of the cop without a fair trial just so the leftists can keep promoting the dummass DeBlasio lie that cops are wicked and not to be trusted. One reason we should not get too hyper in trying this case on the street is that there are liars in the street mob who are saying all cops are racist and evil. We do not need to do anything dumb which will allow dummass leftist racist bigots to promote the uncivilized barbarian savage lie that all cops are evil and not to be trusted. I don't care if the barbarian savage NY mayor thinks that or not.

 

[Logician Man]

Cops have killed innocent people by mistake possibly dozens of times in my lifetime, but cops practically never kill innocent people on purpose. That is the leftist lie that wicked racist bigots want to promote in contradiction to the facts.

What about the wicked rightest racist bigots ? Why do you not call them out ?

 

[TU Curmudgeon]

Does that mean we are ready to convict and condemn? Does the officer deserve to present a defense before being condemned by unruly lawless mob opinion?

Lock him up.

Lock him UP!

LOCK him UP!!!

LOCK HIM UP!!!!!

LOCK HIM UP!!!!!!!​

Does that sound sort of vaguely familiar?

 

[dcsports]

We'll see what the jury says after hearing all the evidence. The cop appeared to call for the woman to put up her hands but when she did she was pointing a gun at him. How long should he delay before responding to the obvious deadly threat? Long enough to get shot first since he had no idea if she intended to pull the trigger immediately or not? What would cause a person to point a gun at a cop after being told to show empty hands?

A cop? That's part of the problem. How would she know that it was a cop? He was shining a flashlight at her, so all she could see was someone in dark clothing nosing around her back yard. He never identified himself, and she may not have even been able to hear his shouting through a window with the TV going.