​What were the cops doing assisting a stopped motorist with guns drawn?

Police describe unarmed black man as 'a bad dude' before shooting him

More below.

"The video clearly shows at the time of  his death Crutcher had his hands in the air as he stood beside his SUV which had broken down.  

Terence Crutcher was first tasered by Tulsa officer Tyler Turnbough and then shot once by officer Betty Shelby before he died in the hospital on Friday, police spokesperson Jeanne MacKenzie said. 

Pictured: Somali Minnesota mall knifeman, 22, described as a...
Police said that Crutcher approached the officers after his SUV broke down on the road, but refused commands to raise his hands and reached inside the vehicle.

However the footage, which was released Monday, shows Crutcher did have his hands up as police approached. It shows four officers surrounding Crutcher by his car when one of them - identified as Shelby - shot him."

Never invite the police to the party, their level of competence in situations as difficult as a stalled vehicle are always questionable. 

"He also explained some of the basic facts, including that no gun was found on Crutcher or in his vehicle. He did not elaborate because of what he called a pending criminal investigation.

'It will come out,' Jordan said of the details surrounding the fatal shooting, Tulsa World reported. 

'I will make this promise to you: We will achieve justice in this case.'"

Gun? The story seems to indicate that the man's car stalled on the roadway. So why two (or more) police cars, and why guns drawn? This police department needs to lay out all the facts, as it sits it looks like nothing more than a bunch of Keystone cops, bumbling around with tasers, and guns, ultimately killing an unarmed, black man with his hands raised. 

Perhaps this police department felt left out on all the Black Lives Matters shenanigans so they shot the pastor to get some attention?! 

"The initial moments of Crutcher's encounter with police are not shown in the footage. Shelby did not activate her patrol car's dash cam, said police spokeswoman Jeanne MacKenzie, and the ground-level video released Monday came from the car of a second officer who arrived at the scene."

Whose idea was it to give this control to the officer? Brother.

"Jeanne MacKenzie, the Tulsa police spokesperson, said an officer responding to another call saw the vehicle in the middle of the road and called for backup, and the two officers were walking toward the SUV when Crutcher approached them from the side of the road.

'He refused to follow commands given by the officers,' MacKenzie said. 'They continued to talk to him, he continued not to listen and follow any commands.'"

Huh? Backup for a stalled vehicle? Guns drawn for a stalled vehicle? Police officers issuing commands to a man walking near his stalled vehicle? This is all BS. If this is all these police officers had, they are on a power trip, and they need to be arrested, and forced to account for their actions in court.

"Online court records show Terrence Crutcher of Tulsa with the same date of birth as the man who was killed pleaded no contest in 1996 to carrying a concealed weapon and resisting an officer and was given a six-month suspended sentence."

"Terence Crutcher was first tasered by Tulsa officer Tyler Turnbough and then shot once by officer Betty Shelby before he died in the hospital on Friday, police spokesperson Jeanne MacKenzie said."

I can see nothing in the video which would have given reason for either officer to draw weapons, let along fire either weapon. These two better start tap-dancing, fast. 

Basic gun safety rules:

1. Always keep your firearm pointed in a safe direction.
2. Treat ALL firearms as if they were loaded.
3. Keep your trigger finger outside the trigger guard and off of the trigger until you are ready to fire.
4. Be certain of your target, your line of fire, and what lies beyond your target.

Frankly, police officers should be held to the same standards as the rest of us, meaning that until there is an actual threat of serious bodily harm, or death, these gun rules are fully in play. I will allow that police officers may need more leeway in allowing the officer to draw the weapon, but pointing the weapon at an individual is only appropriate after there is a serious threat. An individual not obeying police commands is not such a threat.

Both officers broke all the rules except for rule 2. Officers breaking these rules when there is no serious threat should be terminated, without rehire ability. 

These are the rules I expected my children follow, and I certainly demand all police officer follow these simple rules. 

Accidental fire occurs because one or more of these rules are broken. There are no accidental fires in these cases, there are only negligent fires. 

The video below shows an accidental fire. Mishandling a gun is not accidental. This event should have resulted in a reprimand for drawing his service handgun while loaded, in public, without threat. He should have unloaded (removed the magazine) his weapon in a secure location, cleared the action, then placed the weapon in a carrier, then brought it into the gun store to compare the two weapons. This is not a termination offense but it is a reprimand offense. 

​The following is not an accidental shooting, the officer makes a number of basic gun handling mistakes, in public.This officer makes so many mistakes it is impossible to give him the benefit of the doubt. He is simply incompetent at gun handling. First he fails to open the breech to determine whether the gun is loaded, second he places his finger on the trigger, and triggers the weapon, third he is pointing the weapon in an unsafe direction. Notice how he carelessly waves the gun in the direction of the men at the far end of the counter. He moves the slide, which apparently loaded the gun with a cartridge from the magazine. He then points the gun at his hand, and triggers the gun. This is incomprehensible to anyone who follows safe gun handling rules.

From the YouTube description: "An American police officer has sued a sporting goods store, Barren Sports in Kentucky, after he injured his hand while testing a gun. 

An attorney for the officer says that he "was was unaware he’d been handed a loaded weapon" during his visit to the store on January 9."

I would terminate his employment. The lawsuit only makes this more imperative, since the officer is unwilling to accept his responsibility.  

As a judge, I would, if not raised by the defense, sua sponte, require his testimony regarding the basic gun handling rules, and whether his department requires he follow them as part of his job. The defense has a good case for dismissal, or negligence on the part of the officer.