Santa Cruz police officer stabbed in leg, suspect not shot several times in head until dead.

[NYC_SKP]

...In stark contrast to what happened in Ferguson, MO, and countless other places.

Maybe it's the redwoods or the banana slugs, and surely there isn't the same level of racial tension in S.C. as in Ferguson, but these LEOs used some restraint and are to be commended for it:

Santa Cruz police officer stabbed in leg

By Associated Press 9:52 a.m.Sept. 3, 2014

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — A Santa Cruz police officer is recovering after police say he was stabbed in the leg by a man who was reportedly suicidal.

The man's family contacted police around 6 p.m. Monday to say he had cut his wrists and was missing. Police say officers later found him hiding in bushes behind a store.

They grabbed him after he failed to respond to their commands. Police say that's when he stabbed one of the officers below the knee with a pocket knife.

He allegedly tried to stab the second officer in the face before the wounded officer shot him with a stun gun.



http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/santacruz/ci_26456003/cops-and-courts-sept-3-2014-santa-cruz

http://www.kionrightnow.com/news/local-news/santa-cruz-police-officer-stabbed-in-the-leg-suspect-arrested/27845328

[DeadLetterOffice]

1. Not shot in head is GOOD.

Thanks for posting -- helps to remember not all LEOs are trigger happy.

[NYC_SKP]

2. In other news, Google "Ferguson" and find that the victim, Michael Brown, is being tried by media.

Which is crazy, because he's already dead. Can't kill him twice.

Meanwhile, no sign of an investigation of what the officer there did.



But yes, indeed, let this department's SOP and this incident serve as a lesson to others, most of whom I'm pretty sure do not shoot unarmed citizens in the head until they're dead, just for jaywalking.

[DeadLetterOffice]

5. When I saw the bit news outlets trying to get Michael's juvenille records (if any)...

... I almost threw up. What possible difference would it make if he had a juvie record or what might be in it if he does -- he was an unarmed kid shot repeatedly for no other reason than walking while black.

[A HERETIC I AM]

24. What possible difference would it make?

To paint him as the scary, large criminal black man so the cop can say he feared for his life, thats why!


But I know you knew that.

[DeadLetterOffice]

28. Yeah, I did. And I just hate it.

Sometimes I despair for our country...

[Xipe Totec]

4. Maybe Ferguson has raised the level of awareness

Or maybe a white guy with a knife seems less dangerous than an unarmed teenage black man.

But if this courtesy of not shooting in the head catches on and is extended to all citizens that will be a good thing.

[Lancero]

3. Knew it when I read the title, suspect was white.

Explains pretty much everything.

[DeadLetterOffice]

7. Well, yes and no.

Mentally ill folks -- white or not -- do not always survive their encounters with LEOs. This outcome was a good thing.

[BlueCaliDem]

8. Yep. eom

[NYC_SKP]

10. Disagree. Bad cops will take out any race of person if poorly trained.

Is it worse for people of color? Oh HELL yes!

Was the Ferguson matter racial, you know it was. Did it require that specific racial set of circumstances?

I don't think so.

...

[uppityperson]

6. Have you a link?thanks

[NYC_SKP]

9. Oh darn! Updated OP and here's the link:

I heard it on the radio while driving.

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/santacruz/ci_26456003/cops-and-courts-sept-3-2014-santa-cruz

[valerief]

11. Oh, please. WHITE WHITE WHITE. Not at all the same. Apples and oranges.

Other cops HAVE TO shot assault rifles into the "thug's" head. BLACK BLACK BLACK. See? Different reasons, different responses.

Don't you understand anything about America?

[NYC_SKP]

12. Actually, race is always a factor but it's more about community values from one city to another.

And the quality of training of these officers, and the history a community has of fighting back.

Ferguson sucks in every way, with institutionalized oppression of blacks and a look the other way attitude by officials.

Guessing you've never been to the area, but Santa Cruz is quite progressive, with a University of California, lots of terrific support programs for the poor, and very environmentally proactive.

The county had one of the first plastic bag bans in the nation in 2011.

No question but that race is an issue, but it's rarely the ONLY issue at play.

I'm very upset with Ferguson but there are white and Hispanic and Asian victims of wrongful shootings all the time, it's not just about race.

Thanks.

[valerief]

23. Right, and that's why Santa Cruz's target WHITE WHITE WHITE can't be

compared to Ferguson's target BLACK BLACK BLACK. WHITE WHITE WHITE doesn't get shot in the head and BLACK BLACK BLACK does.

[NYC_SKP]

25. I really think you might be missing my point, valerief:

But for the Ferguson travesty of justice, and those like it that happen every day, I would not have posted this.

This OP is in support of our collectively demanding change.

The Santa Cruz case helps to prove how evil cops are in other cities; even while being stabbed in the leg, the SC officers used restraint and found non-deadly means to subdue the citizen.

I'll tell you something, if Darren Wilson had been stabbed in the leg by a white dude, he'd have shot him sure enough.

In other words, while it's true that blacks and other non-whites are disproportionately beaten, arrested, killed, prosecuted, and jailed, it doesn't mean that other truths exist.

In this case, and part of the solution, the truth is that cops like Wilson need to be removed and other cops need to be trained in how to react correctly.

I'm sorry if you misunderstood the meaning of my post.

Police have no excuse in shooting an unarmed man in the head until dead, and here is a case in point.

Take care.

[valerief]

26. I understand your point now. Thanks. I'm letting my anger interfere with my

reading comprehension. However, I'm not sure Wilson would have shot a white dude as quickly as a black one.

I'm an old dame (will I get attacked for using that word?) and sick of a lifetime of racism (not directed at me; I have white privilege).

[NYC_SKP]

27. Oh, I'm pretty sure Wilson (and his bros) would sooner shoot a black man.

And in Ferguson, that kind of reaction seems to be institutionalized, from street cop through to the DA and city council, etc.

The grand jury only has 3 of 12 blacks, and they need 9 to indict!

I remember a clip from Ferguson where a woman basically said of that neighborhood, fuck the lease, I'm out of here.

I wish they could all get out, that city needs a complete rebuilding from the ground up, with representative leadership.

[Beaverhausen]

14. Wrong. Kelly Thomas was white

http://crooksandliars.com/2014/01/cops-not-guilty-beating-tasering-death

[NYC_SKP]

16. Got it here. Kelly Thomas beating. Officers Cicinelli, Ramos, and Wolfe beat homeless man to death

Kelly Thomas (April 5, 1974 – July 10, 2011) was a homeless man diagnosed with schizophrenia who lived on the streets of Fullerton, California. He died after being beaten by Jay Cicinelli, Manuel Ramos, and Joseph Wolfe, three members of the Fullerton Police Department, on July 5, 2011. Thomas was taken to St. Jude Medical Center before being transferred to the UC Irvine Medical Center, where he was comatose on arrival and not expected to recover. He never regained consciousness, and died on July 10, 2011.

Medical records show that bones in his face were broken and he choked on his own blood.[4] The coroner concluded that compression of the thorax made it impossible for Thomas to breathe normally and deprived his brain of oxygen. His parents removed him from life support five days later, and he died from his injuries on July 10, 2011.[6] Officer Manuel Ramos was charged with one count of second-degree murder and one count of involuntary manslaughter; Corporal Jay Cicinelli and Officer Joseph Wolfe were each charged with one count of felony involuntary manslaughter and one count of excessive force. All three pleaded not guilty.

A judge declined to dismiss the charges against the officers in January 2013, finding that "a reasonable person could infer that the use of force was excessive and unreasonable." An appeals court judge also denied a request to overturn the lower court's decision. On January 13, 2014, Ramos and Cicinelli were found not guilty of all charges, while the trial for Joe Wolfe was pending. Following the verdict for the two officers, the district attorney's office announced it would not pursue the case against Officer Wolfe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Kelly_Thomas

WARNING: Articles contain graphic violence and language in the video.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/13/us/california-homeless-beating-verdict/

http://www.ocregister.com/video/v/1628003509001/crime-fullerton-government

.

[hardluck]

20. Race plays a factor in many shootings but being white does not prevent a cop from shooting you

Especially if you are mentally ill. Didn't stop the cops from shooting my dad when he pulled a chef's knife on a cop in a bid to commit suicide.

http://articles.burbankleader.com/2004-08-14/news/export3113_1_burbank-fire-capt-downtown-burbank-burbank-police

[NYC_SKP]

22. Oh, that's a terrible outcome.

I'm afraid some folks are missing the point of my post, which is that well-trained police have alternatives, even when the "subject" has a knife.

Your link looks like a different case from the shooting of your dad, but depending upon all of details and circumstances, it's rare that police are forced to use deadly force unless the person has a firearm.

Did they try using a taser or pepper spray first?

[hardluck]

29. No taser or pepper spray

My sister and brother in law called 911 because my dad had taken a chefs knife out and was threatening himself and my brother in law. Single officer showed up got out of his patrol car. At that time my dad was already outside about 15 feet away or so. The rest follows the news story I posted.

My dad had a history of mental illness and had some prior contacts w the police. It would have been better if they had sent 2 officer so one could have deployed a bean bag or tazer. They didn't, the officer felt threatened, and then shot him.

This was the culmination of a very bad year. That august, he tried to commit suicide by driving off a cliff on the highway. He survived but was in a coma for a month. He spent until Christmas in a facility getting physical therapy and treatment for his mental illness. He was released for Christmas and then this incident happened.

Mental illness in America is such a difficult issue. We spent years in the maze of private insurance, Medicare, the VA, etc. it's so disheartening when you're trying to get help but your family member doesn't want it.

[Retrograde]

21. FWIW, Santa Cruz is about 75% while

only about 2% black - Asians and Central Americans are a much bigger percentage of the makeup. A very different setup than Ferguson.

[pansypoo53219]

13. he's white. result may no apply.

[NYC_SKP]

15. Had the stabber been black, this cop would probably have responded in the same way.

We do nobody favors by broadbrushing all cops or all white cops in this way.

That's shameful, I think.

Let this be an object lesson for all police everywhere, and particularly for leadership in police departments with respect to how to respond to attacks.

[Cha]

17. Lucky he wasn't in Ferguson, MO and Black.. :(

Michael Brown

Thank you, SKP

[NYC_SKP]

18. It made me really angry to hear this good news, as odd as that sounds.

My mind went quickly from being grateful that these officers showed the appropriate restraint...

...to being outraged, again, by the utterly evil criminality that occurs, regularly, in places like Ferguson.

Michael Brown

[Cha]

19. :( Thankfully the Justice Dept is Investigating Ferguson, MO.. past years included.