General News Police Kill Georgia Tech Student

I agree entirely, mnguy. There were lots of other options.

As well, I think there are many, many police forces where the officers are not trained at all in mental health interventions and therefore their actions have an alarming tendency to escalate such situations, the end result being "suicide by cop".

 

This person, seemingly, is intentionally committing suicide by police force, despite what his mother seems to believe. Why the police shot makes no sense though, they are now party to assisted suicide and potentially murder charges if any lawyer worth half the amount they cost is trying to charge them with it. Non-lethal methods would easily dispatch someone who is walking dazedly to you and halting repeatedly.

 

There was no absolutely no need for this tragedy to happen. The cops started off trying to de-escalate the situation and there was no reason for one of them to abandon that process and shoot the person instead. This was a mental health emergency and that student clearly needed help. The person who was killed was actually the person who made the distress call to the police after leaving three suicide notes in their room. Photos taken after the shooting showed the knife was multi-purpose pocket knife with the blade folded inwards. There was no gun.

Whether it was 'suicide by cop' is debatable. The student had attempted suicide two years previously. What is less debatable is the need for police to have used such unnecessary force in this situation.

The police department in Georgia confirmed their officers are only equipped with guns, and not any less lethal weapons. Hopefully, this tragedy can bring about some change in how their law enforcememt responds to mental health emergencies.

 

Can't they just use a taser or even a pellet gun? Like why did they have to kill them? Anyways RIP.

 

Unfortunately these police don't have tasers and aren't trained to use any. Although, that does raise the question on why don't they.

By the sound of it, it seems like this was suicide by cop. Regardless, they really need to train cops to handle these sorts of situations differently.

Sad and tragic, RIP

 

Can't they aim for an appendage such as a leg or foot in the case of a slowly walking person to subdue them instead of a lethal attack on someone who posed no imminent threat...

 

Really, they do? Have other weapons i mean. Here in the US, a gun is basically standard it seems. Yet obviously there's other options, like tasers. I swear they're just coverign their own asses using the 'the report said they were armed' or 'i feared for my life'. Its bullshit. If you aren't good enough to go into a situation and look at what's right in front of you, and handle it with lethal force only when said is presented at you, then you shouldn't be a cop. And the justice system needs to stop letting them get away with it. There was a case a while back where a guy died in police custody in the back of their truck cause of rough driving and i don't remember if they got charged or not. I don't think so, honestly there's so many cases its hard to keep track. I'm hearing so many stories about cops shooting unarmed people. This student, a deaf person, etc. Its like they aren't taught how to deescalate situations. Makes me scared, like god forbid something happens and i need them or someone in the neighborhood does, will they actually help or will they shoot first and ask questions later?

 

I wish I could say it's surprising, but for me it unfortunately isn't.

It's both the US, and the south. People are judgmental and gun-crazy here, which doesn't often end nicely.

These sorts of things don't always go reported, but then again this time it's the police who are sort of trusted to act responsibly.