Difficult Turn of Events Became Tragic and Criminal in the Rayshard Brooks Case
https://www.facebook.com/newshour/videos/564996017738047/ I wanted to share this update I found online on Wednesday, June 17th, 2020. The family is sharing the words that 'African Americans should not have to celebrate getting a piece of justice over events that should not have happened. This is the first time a policeman has met with the District Attorney has decided to testify against another officer.' New footage today showed that Rayshard Brooks was dying and a policeman had his foot on him and kicked him. That was after Rayshard had grabbed a taser and run away from the police. He was shot in the back twice, after having turned back and possibly used the taser. The family is seeking to find the full story. The wife of late Mr. Brooks said she was 'grateful that he was coming forward with the truth. She was very hurt by hearing of what happened to her husband....She said it 'hurt really bad.'
I will look into more of the news coverage but wanted to post this to let others stay informed. In other news, NY Rep. Hakeem Jeffries was proposing legislation to ban chokeholds by police and prevent police brutality. These are tough times in this country. The public needs to hear what police have been trained to do in various situations, which can vary by state, and options for interventions should be explored with more informed communities and professionals working together, particularly anyone unider the influence or having a mental health concern should be treated as more of a medical situation and have an advocate from the community and a family member or friend contacted to 'witness' and intervene on the person's behalf.
The call when tragedy strikes could be one that would possibly be prevented by those measures. With some kind of medical intervention one retired nurse told me, people can be subdued for a while...and then address things in a more calm, clear setting with accountability. On his part, what if Rayshard had thought to use the bathroom or make a call to his wife or sister? Would the officer have allowed him to use the bathroom or would the police have talked with someone to encourage them to give him a ride?
That option should be on the table since it seems there was some kind of 'pressure to make sure Rayshard Brooks was not driving under the influence or due to other instability. He could have had a reaction from alcohol mixing with medication he may have taken, or had some kind of concussion that may have explained his confusion. I have heard a story or two where someone was having times of blacking out but then was at a public restaurant. In that case he asked the policeman for help becaues he realized he didn't know where he was. His car was a mile or two away.
He didn't recall a part of the evening but had tried to drop a letter off at a prior girlfriend's house. He was arrested for breaking a restraining order when he saw one of her children by chance at a campground an hour away, and said hello. Also there was a video of 'someone' in her home but he felt he could prove it was not him based on the difference in height.
Since he did not have money for a better attorney, he went to jail for 18 months. That's just one of those stories that If is were true seems a miscarriage of justice. In small towns or even in social circles in a city, there can be a myriad of ongoing conflicts. It's not just fluke encounters in a parking lot or in a neighborhood or along the highway that can create a set of serious unintended consequences.
We likely could list and label each kind of situation so more people would feel aware of 'trouble brewing' and possibly by open to filming or providing some support, yet clearly needing to realize the risk so to maintain a safe space (and even view things from indoors or leave one's phone filming and go indoors, etc. Just thinking out loud here in case someone else is found in such a situation.
