US Police Have Killed Over 5,000 Civilians Since 9/11


Though Americans commonly believe law enforcement’s role in society is to protect them and ensure peace and stability within the community, the sad reality is that police departments are often more focused on enforcing laws, making arrests and issuing citations. As a result of this as well as an increase in militarized policing techniques, Americans are eight times more likely to be killed by a police officer than by a terrorist, estimates a Washington’s Blog report based on official statistical data.

Though the U.S. government does not have a database collecting information about the total number of police involved shootings each year, it’s estimated that between 500 and 1,000 Americans are killed by police officers each year. Since 9/11, about 5,000 Americans have been killed by U.S. police officers, which is almost equivalent to the number of U.S. soldiers who have been killed in the line of duty in Iraq.


Racist policing

A big element in the police killings, Prysner says, is racism. “A big majority of those killed are Latinos and Black people,” while the police officers are mostly White, he said. “It’s a badge of honor to shoot gang members so [the police] go out and shoot people who look like gang members,” Prysner argued, giving the example of 34-year-old Rigoberto Arceo, who was killed by police on May 11.

According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, Arceo, who was a biomedical technician at St. Francis Medical Center, was shot and killed after getting out of his sister’s van. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department says Arceo “advanced on the deputy and attempted to take the deputy’s gun.” However, Arceo’s sister and 53-year-old Armando Garcia — who was barbecuing in his yard when the incident happened — say that Arceo had his hands above his head the entire time.





http://www.mintpressnews.com/us-police-murdered-5000-innocent-civilians-since-911/172029/

Miami police kill 2 unarmed suspects by shooting disabled car 377 times





MIAMI, FL — In perhaps the largest case of contagious fire on record, a suspect’s vehicle was riddled with hundreds of bullets in a chaotic and frenzied show of police force following a pursuit. Witnesses emphatically said that the vehicle’s 2 occupants were trying to surrender, but that did not stop a total of 23 police officers from firing at least 377 shots at the vehicle. The officers’ wild volleys of bullets struck not only the suspects, but also neighboring houses, businesses, vehicles — even fellow police officers.

A robbery suspect, Adrian Montesano, had his vehicle pinned between a utility pole and a tree following a pursuit at approximately 5:00 a.m.

As the blue Volvo remained stationary, officers aimed their rifles towards it from every angle. For nearly 2 minutes, officers tensely waited with weapons aimed.

Suddenly, one of the officers opened fire. The gunshots caused other officers to join in. Roughly 50 shots were fired at once.


http://www.policestateusa.com/2014/adrian-montesano/

Police shoot teenage special-needs girl within 20 seconds of arriving to ‘help’


HALF MOON BAY, CA — A family was crushed and a community is outraged after a call for help turned into a hasty death sentence for a disgruntled teenage girl with special needs.





On June 3rd, 2014, the Serrano family was having difficulty with a young female family member who suffers from a mental illness and depression. Yanira Serrano-Garcia, 18, had apparently gone off of her medication and became agitated and hard to control.

During past episodes, the Serrano family had called medical personnel to help them control Yanira. That Tuesday evening, they called the fired department for help once again. This time, however, police officers arrived instead of paramedics.

The family had instructed the dispatcher that the girl was acting erratically and wouldn’t put down a kitchen knife. San Mateo County deputies responded to the scene expecting to confront an armed suspect


http://www.policestateusa.com/2014/yanira-serrano-garcia/

Police burst into wrong apartment, shoot innocent woman hiding in closet


HEMPSTEAD, NY — An innocent woman hid in a closet when armed strangers unexpectedly broke into her apartment. While cowering in fear, she was discovered by one of the intruders — actually a police officer raiding the wrong address — who promptly shot her in the chest after opening the closet door.







A Flawed Warrant



The botched raid was part of a joint narcotics investigation by the Nassau County Police Force Bureau of Special Operations (BSO), the Town of Hempstead Police Department, and the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office.

When officers had reason to suspect that someone was in possession of arbitrarily banned substances, a search warrant was signed by a New York judge, authorizing police to break down the suspect’s door at any time they felt appropriate without warning. The no-knock warrant was “justified by the possibility that evidence would be destroyed,” according to official documents.



http://www.policestateusa.com/2014/iyanna-davis/#prettyPhoto

HOMER, LA — Two police officers crashed a family cookout to harass a man who was not wanted or suspected of any crimes, then shot the man’s elderly father and allegedly planted a gun on him, according to numerous witnesses.

This incident took place in the town of Homer, home to only 3,800 residents. The poor, northern Louisiana town had made it a priority for its 8-cop roster to get “tough on drugs.”

In doing so, Homer Police officers were instructed to stop and question young black males without cause, and to go after certain individuals for targeted harassment. One of these specific targets was 38-year-old Shaun Monroe.

Shaun Monroe was not wanted for any crimes and had no warrants for his arrest. There was no tangible or legal reason that the police should have been harassing him, yet officers were told that if they ever saw him carrying a black bag, that they should stop and search him because the bag “probably contained drugs.” On the afternoon of Friday, February 20th, 2009, two officers intruded upon a family cookout for exactly that reason.

http://www.policestateusa.com/2014/bernard-monroe/#prettyPhoto

Witnesses say 12-year-old male pitbull inside fenced yard was not lunging, growling or barking.


Police shot a dog Tuesday in North Toledo while executing a search warrant with the SWAT team.

Gregory Schrecongost, 26, of 1868 Chase St. was arrested on three drug-related charges after police searched his home.

People at the scene said officers shot Schrecongost’s 12-year-old male pitbull that had been inside the fenced yard when police arrived.

Police allegedly shot the dog — which onlookers said was not lunging, growling, or barking — from the sidewalk in front of the house before entering the gate

http://www.norwalkreflector.com/article/4429856

An Idaho police officer was caught on video fatally shooting a dog just yards away from the house where a birthday party was being held for the owner's 9-year-old son.

Dashcam video shows Officer Tarek Hassani of the Filer Police Department approaching dogs on the street and shooting Rick Clubb's 7-year-old black Lab.

“He didn’t have to pull out his .45 and shoot my dog,” Clubb told the Times-News, which obtained the video. “It was right outside my son’s bedroom. What if it had ricocheted through the window?”

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/idaho-kills-dog-yards-birthday-party-article-1.1609642

Ky. state police won’t investigate teen’s fatal shooting despite cam video evidence

Kentucky state police declined to investigate the fatal shooting of a 19-year-old woman by a sheriff’s deputy, saying the Boone County sheriff had waited too long to ask for help.

Deputy Tyler Brockman shot and killed Samantha Ramsey in the early hours of April 26 as she tried to drive away from a party in a field along the Ohio River.

The deputy, who was investigating reports of underage drinking, said he grabbed onto the hood of Ramsey’s 2001 Subaru with his left hand and felt the car beginning to speed up – so he thought the driver was about to kill him.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/05/02/ky-state-police-wont-investigate-teens-fatal-shooting-despite-cam-video-evidence/