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Staten Island Grand Jury Does Not Indict in Eric Garner Case

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R

Red Comet

Member
Alright, in Ferguson I could maybe understand the lack of indictment. Maybe. But even there I thought an indictment was called for. In this case, with video evidence, the lack of an indictment is nothing short of legally sanctioned murder. Absolutely disgusting.
 
M

Mononoke

Banned
antonz said:
Man who filmed the entire encounter is being railroaded by the police on supposed gun charges. Gun had no fingerprints on it yet he supposedly had it in his hands. Grand Jury indicted him on gun charges but nothing for the cop
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So it gets even worse....
 
J

jorgeton

Member
I'm so upset by this ruling (this plus the BS Ferguson ruling). The video of the poor guy PLEADING for his life is heartbreaking and I couldn't watch the whole thing when this all went down earlier this year.

Just truly truly upsetting.
 
I

ICKE

Banned
You can't blame the prosecutor if the grand jury does not want to indict. They saw the video and are normal citizens. They believed this was acceptable...

believed this was acceptable....


.....acceptable

Probably saw the victim as intimidating and refusing to co-operate with law enforcement. This is a rather liberal/progressive state as well so the apples are what they are. Can't blame police if they just reflect the mindset of your society.
 
W

Wanderer5

Member
The hell, even with that video? Isn't the chokehold a big ass no, and yet still no indict? This is is pretty mess up.:|
 
F

Foxy Fox 39

Banned
TarpitCarnivore said:
America has a lot of problems that need to be fixed, but I think we're far from a "really sad joke."
Click to expand...

Depends on your perspective. I'd challenge you to tell that to the black community. Or even the LGBT community. Just because we may be better than some places doesn't mean we're not a really sad joke.
 
C

Cagey

Banned
ICKE said:
You can't blame the prosecutor if the grand jury does not want to indict. They saw the video and are normal citizens, they believed this was acceptable...

believed this was acceptable....


.....acceptable
Click to expand...

That's the most problematic and terrifying part about all of this. The prosecutor can do a hatchet job, but the video was still presented, and enough people from the public watched and thought "yep, justified, no evidence of a crime" to not even move towards trial.
 
D

Damaniel

Banned
old said:
WTF! This was so fucking clear cut!
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And sadly there are plenty of cop fellaters here more than willing to blame the victim and excuse the cops for cold-blooded murder. Last I checked, alleged criminals are innocent until proven guilty in America, even those of color. In the case of Ferguson, I don't care how many supposed criminal acts Michael Brown performed, none approached the level of capital punishment, and certainly not before he had a trial in front of a jury of his peers. Likewise in this case - I don't care how many illegal cigarettes the guy sold. Hell, he could have been selling black tar heroin by the kilo out of the back of a truck to 10 year olds - nothing he did warranted capital punishment. It's sad that so many people are so quick to jump to the 'he had it coming' defense.

Nothing will change until all the bad cops are gone. And these days, I'm convinced that *all* cops are bad cops because they work so hard to protect their own even when the guilt of the officer is obvious. Tear it all down and start from scratch.
 
M

Mononoke

Banned
Wanderer5 said:
The hell, even with that video? Isn't the chokehold a big ass no, and yet still no indict? This is is pretty mess up.:|
Click to expand...

NYPD banned that technique, specifically. And even with the video, the union claims no chokehold happened. Basically, an organization will do anything to cover their asses, and make sure they don't get sued, or have any of its members charged with wrong doing.
 
ElRenoRaven

ElRenoRaven

Member
Wow. To me this case was the biggest one. It was clear as day they were in the wrong 100 percent. How can you not watch the video and not indict? I'm floored.
 
I

InfiniteBento

Member
jamesinclair said:
Police parking every vehicle they can find into Union Square leaving no room to protest

B39ks58IQAEHOSG.jpg
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Would straight up pile on top of those cars to protest. Fuck that shit.
 
B

Brawly Likes to Brawl

Member
Next time you're scratching your head at how some people can have so much hatred within their against law enforcement, please look back on this day.

Labor said:
If you like kids and educational fun, think about teaching English overseas
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I've been learning Japanese for over two years, might as well take the jump once I'm finished with college.
 
D

Darknight

Member
This is so fucked up. I cant watch the video without getting sad and pissed at the same time. This poor man was being chocked to death and he was telling them he couldnt breath. But cops see black people as convicts first, not citizens or humans. Those assholes could of stop chocking him but they must of though "oh he is just lying to try to escape! Fuck that!".

That guy who chocked him should be in jail right now. But nope, he is a free man, hiding behind a badge.
 
B

Boy Wander

Member
Just saw it on UK news. Hadn't heard about this incident before. Cops were WAY too fucking heavy handed. The guy didn't even look like he was resisting arrest to warrant anything of that nature.
 
A

Amagon

Member
You know, I believe that the ruling was justified for Darren Wilson but this case right here. Just wow, the grand jury really drop the ball on this indictment ruling.
 
D

Damaniel

Banned
Notrollious said:
ugh this country is so exhausting

any places that aren't racist and care about their citizens in the world I can move to?
Click to expand...

Sadly not. Europe is riding high on a wave of Islamophobia and anti-Roma sentiment (and electing right-wing nutjobs into their parliaments at a faster rate than ever), the Middle East is about as intolerant as they come (anti-blasphemy laws and extensive persecution of non-Muslims), and even most of Asia suffers from rampant xenophobia. Maybe South America? Or Antarctica?
 
I

ICKE

Banned
This is why I have always believed the jury system is absolute nonsense. You have people who are not professionals handling such an incident. It should be a prosecutors job and he should personally be liable for every decision he makes.

That's why in Europe prosecutors are generally not willing to take any chances. When someone dies, there is a trial. End off.

You can manipulate citizens into anything, the jury also operates as a cop-out for the judicial system as no one has to carry blame personally. And on top of everything else, laymen shouldn't be allowed to decide if someone is possibly guilty or not. They don't have the professional capacity to analyze all the evidence properly.
 
A

A Human Becoming

More than a Member
ICKE said:
You can't blame the prosecutor if the grand jury does not want to indict. They saw the video and are normal citizens. They believed this was acceptable...

believed this was acceptable....


.....acceptable

Probably saw the victim as intimidating and refusing to co-operate with law enforcement. This is a rather liberal/progressive state as well so the apples are what they are. Can't blame police if they just reflect the mindset of your society.
Click to expand...
I wonder how the prosecutor presented it. One for Michael Brown was sketchy. We'll never know.

I call bullshit on that last sentence. Laws overrule societal mindset.
 
L

Lime

Member
Damaniel said:
Sadly not. Europe is riding high on a wave of Islamophobia and anti-Roma sentiment (and electing right-wing nutjobs into their parliaments at a faster rate than ever), the Middle East is about as intolerant as they come (anti-blasphemy laws and extensive persecution of non-Muslims), and even most of Asia suffers from rampant xenophobia. Maybe South America? Or Antarctica?
Click to expand...

Well at least those places don't have as many guns in the hands of everyone, nor do they suffer from terrible national paranoia perpetuated by the media that instills fear and anxiety into everyone causing them to lose their minds.
 
K

Kettch

Member
I think it's become quite clear over the years that the general public has completely failed in its responsibility to hold police accountable for their actions. They're held in far too high regard to the point where the law is no longer evenly applied.

Outside of hoping that the public somehow stops seeing police as saints and instead as normal people, do we have any recourse here? Would moving to some kind of military tribunal-style system with judges be feasible or effective?
 
E

ElectricThunder

Member
Shudder to imagine how much further things can even escalate when it comes to this story today and the other comparable ones mentioned in the thread already---utterly reprehensible.
 
G

GhaleonEB

Member
I expected this in the Brown case, it was a clear sham and there was no video. Here we have a video of the cop choking him to death and still no charges.

I'm shocked and appalled. The system is even worse than I thought, and I thought it was awfully broken and bigoted.
 
D

Dabanton

Member
LiK said:
Caling everyone who doesn't follow the letter of the law a thug. Those cops in that msg board are so hypocritical.
Click to expand...

It should send a chill down the spine of any ethnic minority, that people who are supposed to be 'protecting and serving' think this way.
 
C

Chariot

Member
Holy shit. Seriously?
We have at least on video recording of the incident and dozens of witnesses, not counting the policemen.
Pantaleo released a statement after the decision. He offered his condolences to the Garner family and said he "became a police officer to help people and to protect those who can't protect themselves."
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Yeah, fuck you. How about protecting Mr Garner from choking to death?
 
D

Damaniel

Banned
Mammoth Jones said:
Massive civil disobedience is the only thing that's known to work in the USA.
Click to expand...

The problem is that I personally know more people who agree with these decisions and side with the cops than I know who don't. If I see one more 'that thug got what he deserved' Facebook post, I'm going to go insane.

Civil disobedience is totally warranted here, but it will never be seen as anything but a fringe movement and will be sharply criticized by the vast majority of the population. Still needs to happen, though.
 
B

BlackClouds

Member
Special prosecutors aren't a silver bullet either. John Crawford III had one for his killing same indictment result. I know some are desperate for any answers that would work. Laws need to change.
 
S

Snaku

Banned
This is a travesty, but sadly expected with the way things have been going. How long before police are basically Judge Dredd?
 
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