Sean Bell shooting officers found not guilty

[micfranklin]

A New York judge has found three police officers not guilty in the death of an unarmed black man who was hit by a barrage of bullets and died hours before his wedding.

Justice Arthur Cooperman cleared two officers of manslaughter and other charges and a third of reckless endangerment in the death of Sean Bell, 23. Along with two friends, Bell was shot after a bachelor party at a Queens strip club on Nov. 25, 2006. The officers fired 50 shots at him.

The case has generated outrage in New York's black community. A crowd of at least 200 people gathered outside the building, waiting for news of a verdict. Some wore buttons with Bell's picture or held signs saying "Justice for Sean Bell."

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89938081

I was listening to this on the radio and I know the incident happened 2 years ago but all I got to say is three words: what the fuck?!?!

[Cobra]

Cops claim the guys charged them in a vehical and were just defending themselves. It's possible but 50 rounds does seem excessive.

[micfranklin]

The word "claim" strikes me as suspicious, plus Bell didn't have a weapon on him as has been told.

[Cobra]

Nope but a car can be a dangerous weapon if someones trying to use it to run you down. There will be apeals. We'll see what happens.

[Pookie]

It can be, but apparently there wasn't enough damage to vehicles to disable any.
I think the police might have over-reacted, and I wish that response had been brought up in court.
Well, I think shooting an unarmed man is wrong, but then again, I used to be a cop, so I am biased.
What can I say? I feel very sad for Sean's family and for the cops. I'm not so sure there are any easy answers to this.
Pookie

[preservanation]

Sharpton vows to 'close this city' after officer acquittals

By VERENA DOBNIK

(AP) Reverend Al Sharpton comments on the not guilty verdict of the three New York City detectives.

NEW YORK (AP) - Hundreds of angry people marched through Harlem on Saturday after the Rev. Al Sharpton promised to "close this city down" to protest the acquittals of three police detectives in the 50-shot barrage that killed a groom on his wedding day and wounded two friends.

"We strategically know how to stop the city so people stand still and realize that you do not have the right to shoot down unarmed, innocent civilians," Sharpton told an overflow crowd of several hundred people at his National Action Network office in the historically black Manhattan neighborhood. "This city is going to deal with the blood of Sean Bell."

Sharpton was joined by the family of 23-year-old Sean Bell - a black man - and a friend of Bell who was wounded in the 2006 shooting outside a Queens strip club. Two of the three officers charged were also black.

The rally at Sharpton's office was followed by a 20-block march down Malcolm X Boulevard and then across 125th Street, Harlem's main business thoroughfare, where some bystanders yelled out "Kill the police!"

Fifty of the marchers carried white placards bearing big black numbers for each of the police bullets fired at Bell and his friends.

Sharpton urged people to return for a meeting this coming week "to plan the day that we will close this city down" with the kind of "massive civil disobedience" once led by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

"They never accused Sean Bell of doing anything. Then why is he dead?" Sharpton asked, his voice roaring with anger. Authorities "have shown now that they will not hold police accountable. Well, guess what? If you won't, we will!"

"Shut it down! Shut it down!" the crowd chanted, standing up and applauding wildly.

Sharpton didn't say exactly how they would protest the acquittals of the officers who fired the 50 shots. He said Bell's supporters could demonstrate all over the city, from Wall Street to the home of Justice Arthur Cooperman, who on Friday acquitted the three detectives after a nonjury trial.

Sitting behind Sharpton as he spoke were Bell's parents, his sister and Nicole Paultre Bell, who took her fiance's name after his death.

"The justice system let me down," Paultre Bell told the crowd in a soft voice. "April 25, 2008: They killed Sean all over again. That's what it felt like to us."

It was her first public comment since she stormed out of a courtroom Friday after the NYPD detectives were cleared in Bell's killing as he left his bachelor party.

One of Bell's companions, Joseph Guzman, also spoke briefly on Saturday, saying: "We've got a long fight."


I expect both Hillary and Obama to be asked about this.

Anyone who thinks that Sharpton wants to heal wounds by picking at the scabs is delusional.
This was a tragic occurrence, and questions should be answered, but to turn this into a black vs white 'war' like Sharpton seems to want to do is race baiting opportunism at it's height.
Protesting the police or the decision is one thing and maybe justified, but this is just more divisive racial strife incited by the usual suspects.

[Trish]

I don't know that this is a white vs. black thing. After all, 2 of the 3 police officers on trial for the killing were black. This is more of a police vs. blacks thing.

I don't know what Rev. Sharpton expects demonstrations to accomplish. Demonstrating is just going to piss off people that might otherwise have been real supportive. It seems to me that it would be much more productive to help Bell's family investigate the possibility of filing a civil suit for wrongful death. The standards for winning a civil case aren't as exacting as those for a criminal case. In a civil case you only have to prove guilt by a preponderance of the evidence rather than reasonable doubt. Don't forget this is outcome for OJ Simpson - not guilty in the criminal trial - guilty in the civil trial. Different standards - different outcomes.

[micfranklin]

It can be, but apparently there wasn't enough damage to vehicles to disable any.
I think the police might have over-reacted, and I wish that response had been brought up in court.

Overreacted is an understatement, and it's not like this is the first time an unarmed person got killed by a hail of bullets from the police.


I don't know that this is a white vs. black thing. After all, 2 of the 3 police officers on trial for the killing were black. This is more of a police vs. blacks thing.

This isn't a race issue at all it's more of a police brutality/overkill issue.

I don't know what Rev. Sharpton expects demonstrations to accomplish. Demonstrating is just going to piss off people that might otherwise have been real supportive.

Is he going to then say something about the 30 people killed in Chicago?

[Buck Laser]

I was listening to this on the radio and I know the incident happened 2 years ago but all I got to say is three words: what the fuck?!?!
My sentiments exactly. How in hell can a guy get shot 50 times by mistake? This sounds like something out of a bad movie.

[apdst]

They should have waited until one of the cops was shot and killed, before they started shooting. Only thing wrong with, is which one is going to die?

[Cobra]

No cop is gona be shot an killed when no one but the cops in this incident had a gun.

[Osborn F. Enready]

I was wondering if anyone knows, were the police uniformed or plain clothes?

[Truth_and_Power]

Some of the newer model tasers have cameras attached that take a picture when the weapon is fired. Considering how cheap and small digital cameras are now and how expensive litigation is, I think all police departments should endeavor to have this technology installed on every officer's service revolver. I think you could probably tell if the car was moving at the time of the first shot if this technology were used. Frankly, it should probably start recording video and audio as soon as the weapon is drawn.

[AlanC]

No cop is gona be shot an killed when no one but the cops in this incident had a gun.

Are you aware of how many cops are shot each year with their own weapon?

But that aside, being run over by an unarmed man still leaves you dead.

[Truth_and_Power]

Are you aware of how many cops are shot each year with their own weapon?

But that aside, being run over by an unarmed man still leaves you dead.

Only a cop is legally allowed to shoot someone whose vehicle is moving towards them, anyone else is required to get out of the way or face murder charges.

[Osborn F. Enready]

T&P said:
Only a cop is legally allowed to shoot someone whose vehicle is moving towards them, anyone else is required to get out of the way or face murder charges.

Exactly.

[micfranklin]

Whatever the car had to do with it, you don't just shoot an unarmed man 50 times and reload in the process, most people would be down after two shots.

[Osborn F. Enready]

I could see Bell and anyone else failing to comply if the people giving them orders to cease and desist are not identifiable as police officers.

Were these officers in uniform, or plainclothes?