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It sure seems like the safest route whether it is a cop or an intruder holding a gun. Put your survival before your pride.
I wouldn't be feeling very confident that compliance would ensure my survival. Someone comes into my home waving a gun around, and I think the safest route to me would be to get away from this person. To barricade myself in the bedroom, to get to a phone to call for help, to scream to my neighbors for help. Quietly putting my arms up and falling to my knees when I don't know who this person is or what their intentions are doesn't sound like the safest route to me.
Not so much an "obligation" per se - more like, "choosing one's battles" in the present moment, perhaps looking forward to proper justice when cooler heads prevail.
As terrible as this situation was, and as much as I think the officer was at fault, the more I think about it the more I agree with you. You should never “have to” comply if you’re not doing anything illegal in your own home, however, if there is a possibility of lost life, it makes sense to do so and then sue the heck out of the officer after the fact.
Although with the caveat that if it’s dark and someone tells you to put your hands up in your own home, there would be a lot running through your head regarding your safety. The officer should have made it very clear that she was a cop, and if she was at a distance from him, you’d think that would spark some dialogue that would clear up the whole “mistake.”
There are just too many things about this story that don’t make sense, even if you believe parts of the officer’s story. This is one of them. What did he say in response to her commands (one would assume he would say something along the lines of ‘why are you in my apartment,’ which would have caused for pause), Why weren’t the lights turned on? If he wasn’t moving towards her then why was he shot? If she noticed someone as soon as she walked in, why not turn the light on, step out, close the door and call for backup?
So she's going to only be charged with manslaughter?
If the roles were reversed, and a black man walked into a white woman's apartment, shot her head, and claimed it was an accident because he entered the wrong apartment. I wonder if he would get just manslaughter?
If somebody walks into my child's home and kills them, I want Murder 2 charges. To say this woman cop was "unbelievably irresponsible" doesn't even begin to capture her fatal mistake. Somebody is dead because she's an idiot.
Just because you don't like someones race or profession or whatever doesn't mean you get to reinvent legal definitions because you're angry.
Unless it turns out there was more to it than her being an idiot, manslaughter is the proper charge unless you want them to intentionally charge her with the wrong crime so she gets off scott-free??
Just because you don't like someones race or profession or whatever doesn't mean you get to reinvent legal definitions because you're angry.
Unless it turns out there was more to it than her being an idiot, manslaughter is the proper charge unless you want them to intentionally charge her with the wrong crime so she gets off scott-free??
I wouldn't be feeling very confident that compliance would ensure my survival. Someone comes into my home waving a gun around, and I think the safest route to me would be to get away from this person. To barricade myself in the bedroom, to get to a phone to call for help, to scream to my neighbors for help. Quietly putting my arms up and falling to my knees when I don't know who this person is or what their intentions are doesn't sound like the safest route to me.
With a gun pointed at you, it is. The armed person has full advantage. You will be shot down if you run. If the armed person is a cop the odds of your being shot dead increase.
A neighbor of mine years back got turned into swiss cheese for not complying with police in a middle of the night raid. He was just a low level drug dealer and they didn't find much in his apartment so he would have probably just got a fine for possession.
As terrible as this situation was, and as much as I think the officer was at fault, the more I think about it the more I agree with you. You should never “have to” comply if you’re not doing anything illegal in your own home, however, if their is a possibility of lost life, it makes sense to do so and then sue the heck out of the officer after the fact.
Although with the caveat that if it’s dark and someone tells you to put your hands up in your own home, there would be a lot running through your head regarding your safety. The officer should have made it very clear that she was a cop, and if she was at a distance from him, you’d think that would spark some dialogue that would clear up the whole “mistake.”
There are just too many things about this story that don’t make sense, even if you believe parts of the officer’s story. This is one of them. What did he say in response to her commands (one would assume he would say something along the lines of ‘why are you in my apartment,’ which would have caused for pause), Why weren’t the lights turned on? If he wasn’t moving towards her then why was he shot? If she noticed someone as soon as she walked in, why not turn the light on, step out, close the door and call for backup?
This was a trained police officer. She is the one who should have been in control in this situation. Either she was poorly trained, or she had no business being a cop to begin with, if she is unable to put her training to use in a stressful situation--which is what we expect from our LE.
I go with the second option. Given her "shoot first, ask questions later" mode of operating, she obviously had no business on the force to begin with.
I guess the important bit is to make sure you have a witness on hand who can hear you say "Ooops".
No the important bit is having absolutely no motive, prior grudge, history with the other person....which they'll be investigating via the shooters digital footprint as well as interviews with the various apartment neighbors.
Shooting your ex after a bitter break-up for example, doesn't get murder 1 or 2 reduced to manslaughter because you said "oops".
With a gun pointed at you, it is. The armed person has full advantage. You will be shot down if you run. If the armed person is a cop the odds of your being shot dead increase.
A neighbor of mine years back got turned into swiss cheese for not complying with police in a middle of the night raid. He was just a low level drug dealer and they didn't find much in his apartment so he would have probably just got a fine for possession.
Maybe, in a fully lit apartment. But in the dark, did Jean even realize she was holding a gun? It's 10 o'clock on a Thursday night. He's probably just laid down to sleep when he hears something strange, he gets up to check it out, hasn't even turned the lights on yet, when a voice shouts "Hands up! Put your hands up!" and then opens fire. It doesn't sound like she gave him a chance to comply.
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