I try hard not to comment often on highly sensitive topics. However, this situation is extremely sad to me. I do not think there is one single problem that created this event. Of course there are racial tensions and issues. Of course there are bad cops. However, I think that driving the commentary trying to make certain that everybody believes one certain way on an issue such as this is part of the problem. I believe this cop drew the wrong weapon - she made a deadly mistake. I also think that the mistrust between cops and the public, and the mistrust between the public and the cops is a contributing factor. There seems to be a consensus that if a person is being detained by the police, that person has the right to flee. When I was raised, I was told to obey commands - obey the police. There is such a new view that I read over and over again that it is okay to flee - and this is often (not ALWAYS) where the problem begins. Of course, there are obvious times where fleeing and resisting are not the beginning of the “problem”, but often times it is where the situation becomes dangerous. No, citizens should not be killed by police, but police also should not be killed by citizens. Neither deserves a death sentence. I don’t know all of the answers, but I think it requires changes on both sides. Kids need to be taught respect. Cops need to be better trained and taught de-escalation techniques. This cop was trying - and failed - to use a non-lethal method of stopping the fleeing criminal. She had the right idea, but executed it wrong. This cannot be undone. But, kids need to realize that when they flee or resist, sometimes they start a chain of events that cannot be undone.
