I think you’re overstating the threat here. The above commenter, though being facetious, is making a good point. The cop told her to take her pasta off the stove and even joked with her about avoiding the steam. Then he shot her. She was standing at a sink behind a raised-bar style countertop with a pot of water. Assuming she’s going to be able to chuck it over the counter at the cop is a bit of a stretch, particularly given her demeanor throughout the encounter. Nevermind the fact that she’s standing there with two armed men that could easily kill her (and one did), it’s bonkers to assume she would have both the motive and capability to do so.
It’s one thing if she behaved erratically to that point, but she didn’t. Additionally, if the cop was really concerned about the pot he could have said, “no, stay on the couch.” It’s just an odd hill to die on stating the cop was concerned about the pot.
I think y’all need to rewatch the video then. Keep in mind that I agree that the cop fucked up big time and should’ve handled the situation differently, but it does more harm to not get the facts right. He didn’t shoot her when he was standing away and she was at the sink. She ducked behind the counter, he got closer so he could see her and make sure she’s not doing anything sketchy, and then he shot her as she was starting to stand back up with the pot in her hands still. Also I don’t like the defense that it’s bonkers to assume she couldn’t do harm to one or both of them since there are two of them. There are plenty of videos of people doing crazy shit even when outnumbered. That’s the scary thing about these situations is that things can become very bad very quickly.
I do agree with your last point though. She could still be alive if the whole situation leading up to the shooting was handled differently. But I think it’s silly to deny that there was potential for harm and that the cop had any right to be worried about the pot of hot water.
I think the bit of context here that is lacking is why she felt the need to drop to the floor in the first place. Was she hurt? Dizzy? Pain medication kick in? Did he point his gun at her and she reflexively dropped? The pot didn’t go with her; it was still on the sink. From the cops’ vantage point he would’ve likely seen that.
Beyond that, she’s the victim. Granted, police should use due diligence when responding to calls, but taking the stance that anyone is an adversary leads to guns being drawn and people being beaten waaay too early in the interaction and with little provocation. Suspicion of all leads to paranoid responses, and we see the fruits of that in this and other encounters.
I’f be curious to know which you see as being more important here - the cops’ life or the civilians? Just trying to understand the frame of reference.
Nope, she still had the pot in her hands up until the point he shoots her. You can even see steam coming off the ground after she gets shot.
I don’t think either of their lives are more or less important than the others, but I do think the officer has the full responsibility for how that situation plays out.
I just hate the dishonesty about the situation, it makes your criticism look weaker. You can 100% criticize the cop without lying about the facts.
I think you’re overstating the threat here. The above commenter, though being facetious, is making a good point. The cop told her to take her pasta off the stove and even joked with her about avoiding the steam. Then he shot her. She was standing at a sink behind a raised-bar style countertop with a pot of water. Assuming she’s going to be able to chuck it over the counter at the cop is a bit of a stretch, particularly given her demeanor throughout the encounter. Nevermind the fact that she’s standing there with two armed men that could easily kill her (and one did), it’s bonkers to assume she would have both the motive and capability to do so.
It’s one thing if she behaved erratically to that point, but she didn’t. Additionally, if the cop was really concerned about the pot he could have said, “no, stay on the couch.” It’s just an odd hill to die on stating the cop was concerned about the pot.
I think y’all need to rewatch the video then. Keep in mind that I agree that the cop fucked up big time and should’ve handled the situation differently, but it does more harm to not get the facts right. He didn’t shoot her when he was standing away and she was at the sink. She ducked behind the counter, he got closer so he could see her and make sure she’s not doing anything sketchy, and then he shot her as she was starting to stand back up with the pot in her hands still. Also I don’t like the defense that it’s bonkers to assume she couldn’t do harm to one or both of them since there are two of them. There are plenty of videos of people doing crazy shit even when outnumbered. That’s the scary thing about these situations is that things can become very bad very quickly.
I do agree with your last point though. She could still be alive if the whole situation leading up to the shooting was handled differently. But I think it’s silly to deny that there was potential for harm and that the cop had any right to be worried about the pot of hot water.
I think the bit of context here that is lacking is why she felt the need to drop to the floor in the first place. Was she hurt? Dizzy? Pain medication kick in? Did he point his gun at her and she reflexively dropped? The pot didn’t go with her; it was still on the sink. From the cops’ vantage point he would’ve likely seen that.
Beyond that, she’s the victim. Granted, police should use due diligence when responding to calls, but taking the stance that anyone is an adversary leads to guns being drawn and people being beaten waaay too early in the interaction and with little provocation. Suspicion of all leads to paranoid responses, and we see the fruits of that in this and other encounters.
I’f be curious to know which you see as being more important here - the cops’ life or the civilians? Just trying to understand the frame of reference.
Nope, she still had the pot in her hands up until the point he shoots her. You can even see steam coming off the ground after she gets shot.
I don’t think either of their lives are more or less important than the others, but I do think the officer has the full responsibility for how that situation plays out.
I just hate the dishonesty about the situation, it makes your criticism look weaker. You can 100% criticize the cop without lying about the facts.