In 2014, Juan was on a party bus with about 20 other people, including an off-duty police officer, Thedrick Andres. Tensions rose when a party member suggested that the officer dance on the pole in the vehicle, and he reacted angrily. When the bus returned to the meeting place, the officer approached Juan and they argued and fought. The officer then ran towards his car to get a weapon, and Juan turned and ran towards him. Witnesses say that he was trying to stop the officer from reaching his car to draw his weapon, but he was too late. The officer got his gun and fatally shot Juan.
Throughout this encounter, the party participants did not know that the officer was a member of the police. In 2018, Officer Andres was tapped to be the deputy police chief in Henderson, TX. There are no known charges. (Arlington, TX)
In 2016, India Beaty was in a parking lot when two plainclothes police officers approached her from behind. It is unclear why they did so – some accounts claim that India was arguing with a man, while others say that the argument was between two men. Either way, the Norfolk Police Department officers were not called to the scene and were originally there for a different purpose.
While there are contradicting accounts of exactly what transpired, what is clear is that within seconds of their arrival, police officers opened fire, shooting India five times in the back and ending her life. Officers claimed that they thought India was holding a real gun in her hand, which later turned out to be a non-firing replica. India’s family disputes this account, and a witness at the scene said that India was holding her cell phone.
In January, 2017, the Norfolk Commonwealth Attorney’s Office announced that no charges would be leveled against the officers who killed India. This is unconscionable. Police officers should not be able to kill a wholly unrelated woman purely on suspicion of her behavior, and those that do should be removed and charged for homicide. (Norfolk, Virginia)
Byron Williams was riding a bike, on his way to visit his son early in the morning, when police officers Benjamin Vasquez and Patrick Campbell pulled him over for not having safety lights on his bicycle. Byron tried to run away on foot, leading to a short chase. When officers caught up to Byron, they ordered him to get on the ground, and he complied.
The officers then handcuffed him, using a knee and a hand to put pressure on his back. After a minute, a third officer arrived, and both he and one of the arresting officers knelt on Bryon lower back for about 30 seconds. Byron repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe,” at least 17 times.
More officers arrived, and they tried to pull Bryon to his feet, but his body reacted limply. Officers then dragged Bryon around the corner and dropped him to the ground. Bryon asked for an ambulance and was ignored as the officers laughed and discussed weekend plans. Officers then turned off their body cameras until the EMT finally arrived. By then, Bryon was lying lifeless on his back.
In 2017, Charles was killed after breaching a TSA security checkpoint at the Honolulu International Airport. Charles had run through the checkpoint, and was tackled by two Island Air employees and a private Securitas officer.
He was pinned down on his stomach for approximately three minutes before they noticed that he was unconscious. Despite attempts at CPR, Charles was pronounced dead prior to making it to the hospital. He was unarmed at the scene.
Though his death was officially ruled a homicide, the Kosi family never received any form of autopsy report and the people involved in the homicide were never identified.(Honolulu, HI)
In 2015, Jamar was at a party with his girlfriend when his girlfriend got into a fight with the party’s host. Jamar pulled his girlfriend aside, and someone called for medical help, leading to the arrival of both paramedics and police. As his girlfriend was being escorted to the ambulance, Jamar tried to talk to her, and was told to step away from the ambulance. According to witnesses, that was when Jamar was attacked by officers Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze, handcuffed on the ground, had a knee placed on his chest by an EMS supervisor, and shot fatally. Police dispute that Jamar was ever handcuffed, but it is indisputable that they shot and killed an unarmed man without any attempt at deescalation. (Minneapolis, MN)
Interview of Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, who is an African American studies professor at Princeton University, regarding the murder of George Floyd, and the protests and riots that have followed.
Now is not the time to stay silent. People of all races need to speak up. This is NOT okay, and we will NOT tolerate this any longer. Too much blood has been spilt. Too many black lives have been lost. They’ve gotten away with it for too long. We demand justice. How many more people need to die before the system changes!?
it’s actually worse. the police know she’s on probation and charging her with an offense will automatically trigger a probation violation charge. police are legally going for the throat on parents speaking out about their gross negligence.
Good news– she went to the judge who sentenced her and he was like…. oh, no. Nonononononononono. Don’t worry, you go ahead and call the press.
