Berkeley (MO) officials: Man killed by police had pointed gun at officer

[branford]

57. There are always a lot of "witnesses" after these events.

In the majority of cases, they are revealed to be friends and family of the deceased who quickly speak to the press and claim they "know" that the suspect would never engage in anything untoward, no less criminal, despite not actually being present at the event at issue (and often despite a lengthy and damning criminal history).

This is how the rumor started that Myers was only armed with a sandwich or the ambulance allegedly intentionally did not arrive at the scene of the Martin shooting for over a half an hour. Even after such stories are thoroughly debunked, true believers still cling to them lest their narrative and preconceived notions fall apart.

I really fail to see why people try desperately to challenge justified shootings. They might be tragic, but focusing on them while ignoring evidence rarely induces sympathy with the public and ends up bolstering police credibility in more questionable matters. Aren't there more than enough indisputable or highly questionable incidents of police violence to justify reforms without harping on incidents where the police really acted to save their own lives?