Stephon Clark killed by Sacramento police - he was in his own family's backyard

[RavenSky]

Sacramento police officers shot and killed a black man in his grandmother's backyard because they believed he was pointing a gun at them, police said.

But investigators say they did not find a weapon at the scene, only a cellphone near the man's body.

The fatal shooting of Stephon Clark on Sunday night was recorded by two officers' body cameras and from a police helicopter; that footage was released Wednesday.

The videos show a brief encounter between police and Clark, lasting less than a minute, from the moment one of the officers spotted him in the driveway and yelled, "Hey, show me your hands. Stop. Stop."

In the dark, the two police officers chased Clark into the backyard of his grandmother's home.

"Show me your hands!" one of the officers yelled. "Gun, gun, gun."

Then police opened fire. Clark crumpled to the ground, momentarily tried to crawl before falling motionless as more shots erupted around him.

Minutes after the shooting, as more officers arrive on the scene, a voice is heard saying, "Hey, mute," and the audio on the body camera cuts off.

Clark's grandmother said she was inside the house when the shots were fired and saw him with an iPhone.

Then they handcuffed his dead body.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/22/us/sacramento-police-shooting/index.html

 

[Toni]

I almost vomited when I heard this on the radio.

 

[LordKiran]

Because this is what happens when you enable incompetency by shielding individual officers from culpability for their shitty decision making.

 

[Rhea]

Jesus fucking christ. They handcuffed his corpse?

This is so tragic and so systemically wrong. And so vile.

 

[Jolly_Penguin]

Handcuffing his corpse is ridiculous, unless they thought he was still alive?

I went ahead and read the full CNN article you linked to. Your quote above leaves out some pertinent details claimed by the police, which if true changes my view of this a little.

The incident began on Sunday after 9 p.m., when Sacramento officers responded to a report that a man had broken car windows and was hiding in a backyard. The man was described as 6-foot-1, thin and wearing a black hoodie and pants, police said in a statement.

Officers arrived and were aided by a team in a Sacramento Sheriff's Department helicopter. Police said the helicopter personnel observed that the suspect had picked up a "toolbar" and broken a window to a residence. The helicopter team observed the man running and looking into another car, police said. The helicopter then guided officers to the man's location in the backyard of a home.

The camera from the helicopter showed a man running through a backyard and hopping a fence into another yard. The aerial footage captured the moment when two officers began heading toward him.

Officers arrived at the front yard and gave the man commands to stop and show his hands, according to police. The man immediately fled to the backyard, police said, and they pursued him. At that point, the man "turned and advanced toward the officers while holding an object" extended in front of him, according to police.

"The officers believed the suspect was pointing a firearm at them. Fearing for their safety, the officers fired their duty weapons, striking the suspect multiple times," the police news release states.

CNN quotes his brother saying:

"He was arrested before, but he's been different lately, he really changed his life. He was a people person who everybody wanted to be around. We came from underprivileged, broken homes, but he didn't care about nothing else but his kids."

CNN article then says they fired 20 times. 20 times????? That's a bit nuts. Why are they not carrying tasers?

More training and better equipment definitely would have helped here.

 

[Mumbles]

...Yeah, I watched the damn video, even though I rarely do these days. A few things stand out...

The big one is that the police do not identify themselves until after they've shot him. The problem is that he's in a dark environment, and they show up shining a flashlight directly at him - which means he also could not see them. As far as he knows, it's just some unknown people shouting commands at him for no reason. This reminds me of Dymond Milburn, who was confronted in her own yard by three plainclothes officers who jumped out of a van, shouted "You're a prostitute, you're coming with me.", and then beat her for not meekly complying. I don't think the cops every explained how they confused the 12-year-old black girl for the three white prostitutes they were supposed to be looking for...

Second - 20 shots fired, I'm told 5 hit Clark and killed him. So another case of police panicking and firing wildly, putting everyone around at risk.

Third, of course, is how a white rectangular phone suddenly changed into a gun, and then into a "toolbar". It's remarkable how often we hear that story about IDs, phones, and the like - never mind that a "toolbar" is a set of buttons on MS Office apps. Were they worried that he'd lasso and "undo" them or something?

 

[laughing dog]

Just wait - the usual explainers of this insanity will tell us why it was normal police procedure to handcuff a dead unarmed suspect.

 

[Jolly_Penguin]

The big one is that the police do not identify themselves until after they've shot him. The problem is that he's in a dark environment, and they show up shining a flashlight directly at him - which means he also could not see them. As far as he knows, it's just some unknown people shouting commands at him for no reason.

Excellent point. Especially if they suspected him of smashing car windows, which they say is their reason for coming for him, and especially since he had a previous criminal record. It should have occurred to them that they may have appeared as rival gang members or thugs mugging him or something other than police. Isn't the very first thing they are supposed to say "Freeze! Police!" or something like that?

This reminds me of Dymond Milburn, who was confronted in her own yard by three plainclothes officers who jumped out of a van, shouted "You're a prostitute, you're coming with me.", and then beat her for not meekly complying.

That is ridiculous if as described. Such officers should be fired immediately and face charges.

Third, of course, is how a white rectangular phone suddenly changed into a gun, and then into a "toolbar". It's remarkable how often we hear that story about IDs, phones, and the like - never mind that a "toolbar" is a set of buttons on MS Office apps. Were they worried that he'd lasso and "undo" them or something?

Can't agree with this. It was dark. He ran away from the police and then towards them holding an object. He didn't stop when told to or show his hands. It was reasonable for them to take him down at that point. They didn't have to do so with a gun. They should have tasers.

 

[Politesse]

Last night I attended a social engagement where a police officer was also a guest. As dinner wore on, the topic of Prop 57 (a state law that mandated among other things earlier paroled release of nonviolent offenders from our overcrowded prison system) came up, and during the ensuing rant she said the following:

"There is no such thing as a nonviolent felon. If they put all these thugs back out on the street, we will be in direct personal danger until we get them back behind bars or six feet under. Whichever comes first."

She is Modesto PD (a smaller city about seventy miles from Sacramento).

 

[Derec]

Some thoughts:
- it's a bit misleading saying that he was standing in his grandma's backyard. It implies that he was there minding his own business, and in fact some commentators have been claiming just that. However, what actually happened is that he entered the yard just seconds before, by jumping over the fence. Which indicates he knew he was wanted, or else he would have entered the yard the usual way.

- I agree police should have identified themselves as soon as they spotted him. However, I think it is pretty certain Stephon knew who they were. After all, he was evading them by trespassing through neighbors' yards up until they caught up with him in his grandma's yard. He entered her yard seconds before police encountered him by climbing onto some boxy object and jumping over the fence. Besides, rival gangs do not have helicopters.

- He ran around the corner and then turned around and came back at police. And in the dark it's difficult for police to tell one object from another. Why did he have his phone in his hands anyway? Would it not have been easier to run, jump and climb with both his hands free?

- Real life is not like GTA. Your wanted stars do not vanish once you reach your save house.

- Regardless of you think of the shooting itself, it is completely unacceptable to block I5 or the Kings-Hawks game. Unfortunately, Sacramento PD has not arrested those creeps, which will merely encourage them to do it again and again whenever they have some grievance.

 

[Derec]

CNN quotes his brother saying:

"He was arrested before, but he's been different lately, he really changed his life. He was a people person who everybody wanted to be around. We came from underprivileged, broken homes, but he didn't care about nothing else but his kids."

The "he was turning his life around" is a bit of a cliche in these types of cases, right up there with "church every week" and "aspiring rapper".

Other than breaking into cars, what did Stephon Clark do for a living anyway?

 

[ideologyhunter]

20 shots, 5 hitting their target -- is this so? And Trump and LaPierre want teachers to set up crossfire in schools?

 

[RavenSky]

Even if there was any evidence that Stephon Clark was the "suspect" they were looking for, a cell phone looks nothing whatsoever like a gun or a crowbar. (The two police officers changed their stories as to which they feared for their lives from )

Police managed to apprehend Nikolas Cruz - someone they knew irrefutably had murdered 17 people - without killing him. I guess current day BSO are just that much better than Sacramento police?

- - - Updated - - -

20 shots, 5 hitting their target -- is this so? And Trump and LaPierre want teachers to set up crossfire in schools?

exactly

 

[laughing dog]

CNN quotes his brother saying:

"He was arrested before, but he's been different lately, he really changed his life. He was a people person who everybody wanted to be around. We came from underprivileged, broken homes, but he didn't care about nothing else but his kids."

The "he was turning his life around" is a bit of a cliche in these types of cases, right up there with "church every week" and "aspiring rapper".

Other than breaking into cars, what did Stephon Clark do for a living anyway?

Thanks for adding absolutely nothing relevant to the discussion.

 

[Trausti]

CNN quotes his brother saying:

"He was arrested before, but he's been different lately, he really changed his life. He was a people person who everybody wanted to be around. We came from underprivileged, broken homes, but he didn't care about nothing else but his kids."

The "he was turning his life around" is a bit of a cliche in these types of cases, right up there with "church every week" and "aspiring rapper".

Other than breaking into cars, what did Stephon Clark do for a living anyway?

The cops here may have had a reasonable fear for their life which turned out wrong. However, it is immensely important never to excuse incidents like this on the notion that the victim otherwise deserved it or was valueless to society. He may have been a worthless piece of shit. But for our justice system to work everyone must be treated equally. The lowest of the low enjoys the same rights and protections as the rest of us.

 

[James Brown]

CNN quotes his brother saying:

"He was arrested before, but he's been different lately, he really changed his life. He was a people person who everybody wanted to be around. We came from underprivileged, broken homes, but he didn't care about nothing else but his kids."

The "he was turning his life around" is a bit of a cliche in these types of cases, right up there with "church every week" and "aspiring rapper".

Other than breaking into cars, what did Stephon Clark do for a living anyway?

Wonderful. The Bill of Rights is hereby applied on a prorated basis based upon the average of your last three years' taxable income.

 

[James Brown]

It's Time to Stop Treating Every Fleeing Teenager Like a Crazed Killer

Teenagers just aren’t unusually dangerous these days. If you chase one into a backyard and you see a glint in his hand, you probably don’t need to unload 20 rounds into his body as if you were trying to bring down a PCP-crazed rhinoceros....

In the year 2018, there’s just no excuse for cops or anyone else to routinely treat black teenagers as scary hoodlums who might kill them at the drop of a hat. They’re back to being ordinary people these days, just like teenagers of every other color.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

Jesus fucking christ. They handcuffed his corpse?

This is so tragic and so systemically wrong. And so vile.

Clearly showing you don't understand what's going on.

Only doctors pronounce death barring damage obviously incompatible with life.

Thus the cops have to consider the suspect alive. They're going to cuff.

(Note that in a triage situation cops may tag someone as "dead"--this is not a declaration of death. Rather, it is an analysis that when medical resources are overstretched that they should be directed towards the patients with a greater chance of being saved. Barring a sudden influx of a bunch of doctors a black tag is a death sentence, though.)

 

[Loren Pechtel]

Handcuffing his corpse is ridiculous, unless they thought he was still alive?

I went ahead and read the full CNN article you linked to. Your quote above leaves out some pertinent details claimed by the police, which if true changes my view of this a little.

The incident began on Sunday after 9 p.m., when Sacramento officers responded to a report that a man had broken car windows and was hiding in a backyard. The man was described as 6-foot-1, thin and wearing a black hoodie and pants, police said in a statement.

Officers arrived and were aided by a team in a Sacramento Sheriff's Department helicopter. Police said the helicopter personnel observed that the suspect had picked up a "toolbar" and broken a window to a residence. The helicopter team observed the man running and looking into another car, police said. The helicopter then guided officers to the man's location in the backyard of a home.

The camera from the helicopter showed a man running through a backyard and hopping a fence into another yard. The aerial footage captured the moment when two officers began heading toward him.

Officers arrived at the front yard and gave the man commands to stop and show his hands, according to police. The man immediately fled to the backyard, police said, and they pursued him. At that point, the man "turned and advanced toward the officers while holding an object" extended in front of him, according to police.

"The officers believed the suspect was pointing a firearm at them. Fearing for their safety, the officers fired their duty weapons, striking the suspect multiple times," the police news release states.

CNN quotes his brother saying:

"He was arrested before, but he's been different lately, he really changed his life. He was a people person who everybody wanted to be around. We came from underprivileged, broken homes, but he didn't care about nothing else but his kids."

CNN article then says they fired 20 times. 20 times????? That's a bit nuts. Why are they not carrying tasers?

More training and better equipment definitely would have helped here.

1) In other words, the cops mistook a metal bar for a gun in the dark. No surprise--the portion of a handgun outside one's grip has a substantial resemblance to a metal bar. Note, also, that even if they had correctly identified the item they would shoot if he got too close.

2) 20 shots isn't unreasonable. Two cops, less than 3 seconds of fire. It was dark, they aren't going to be seeing exactly what happens, all they can go on is whether the guy goes down and then human reaction time still adds most of a second to this.

3) Tasers aren't for use in a situation like this. Against a guy without a ranged weapon they can be used with planning but they have to agree that one has the taser, one has the gun as backup. That's not going to happen in a pursuit situation.

4) Note the brother admits the dead guy was a criminal. They always say they've turned around, they almost never actually have.

- - - Updated - - -

...Yeah, I watched the damn video, even though I rarely do these days. A few things stand out...

The big one is that the police do not identify themselves until after they've shot him. The problem is that he's in a dark environment, and they show up shining a flashlight directly at him - which means he also could not see them. As far as he knows, it's just some unknown people shouting commands at him for no reason.

Doesn't justify advancing on the cops.

 

[laughing dog]

Jesus fucking christ. They handcuffed his corpse?

This is so tragic and so systemically wrong. And so vile.

Clearly showing you don't understand what's going on.

Only doctors pronounce death barring damage obviously incompatible with life.

Thus the cops have to consider the suspect alive. They're going to cuff.

Providing an explanation for the insanity does not justify the insanity.