Minneapolis police in the news again

[makattak]

Apparently I'm a racist white supremacist for saying character is more important than race.

No, you're not.

You're a racist white supremacist because you're white. Doesn't matter what you say.

[Blakenzy]

I don't know how this affair got sidetracked into all about "racism". The real issues here are the heavy-handed militarized policing that has become standardized now and the near 0 accountability that police have in the judicial system for damage they cause to others. Institutionally police have been conditioned to show "depraved indifference" towards everyone and anyone not in uniform or without political connections/celebrity status, color need not apply.

But noooo...

[WLJ]

Everything is about race and only race otherwise it's racist.

[kgbsquirrel]

I don't know how this affair got sidetracked into all about "racism". The real issues here are the heavy-handed militarized policing that has become standardized now and the near 0 accountability that police have in the judicial system for damage they cause to others. Institutionally police have been conditioned to show "depraved indifference" towards everyone and anyone not in uniform or without political connections/celebrity status, color need not apply.

But noooo...

Easy, it is a manufactured distraction to pull attention back off the growing police state.

[Hawkmoon]

Chauvin (the cop with the knee) now charged with second degree murder. The other three cops have also been charged, as accessories to murder.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/3-more-minneapolis-officers-charged-george-floyd-death-derek-chauvin-n1222796

[Ben]

Chauvin (the cop with the knee) now charged with second degree murder. The other three cops have also been charged, as accessories to murder.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/3-more-minneapolis-officers-charged-george-floyd-death-derek-chauvin-n1222796

If they get a completely unbiased jury, will they get 2nd degree to stick? IANAL and I have no idea what all evidence they have, but if they're trying for the highest thing they can get and he gets acquitted, I'm gonna be carrying my AR in the car even out here in the sticks.

[WLJ]

This is all a white supremacist conspiracy to spread C19 in the black community. Or something

    Let's be clear about something: if there is a spike in coronavirus cases in the next two weeks, don't blame the protesters.

    Blame racism.

    — Mark D. Levine (@MarkLevineNYC) June 3, 2020

    And let's remember that the police are increasing covid risk by:
    * using tear gas
    * herding demonstrators into tight spaces
    * putting people in crowded jails

    — Mark D. Levine (@MarkLevineNYC) June 3, 2020

https://twitchy.com/gregp-3534/2020/06/03/nyc-councilman-says-to-blame-racism-and-the-nypd-if-theres-a-coronavirus-spike/

[WLJ]

Tear gas? you ask

    NEW: The widespread use of tear gas could contribute to a coronavirus rebound.

    One study of Army recruits found evidence of significantly higher rates of respiratory illness after they were exposed to tear gas.https://t.co/7vS8aYtkQs

    — Mike Baker (@ByMikeBaker) June 3, 2020

https://twitchy.com/brettt-3136/2020/06/03/new-york-times-study-suggests-widespread-use-of-tear-gas-could-intensify-covid-19-pandemic/

[zxcvbob]

If they get a completely unbiased jury, will they get 2nd degree to stick? IANAL and I have no idea what all evidence they have, but if they're trying for the highest thing they can get and he gets acquitted, I'm gonna be carrying my AR in the car even out here in the sticks.

ACLU says 3rd degree murder charges will get thrown out.  I thought it fit, but the MN supreme court has previously said it doesn't because the "depraved indifference" was directed at a single person (who then died) rather than to a group or people or the public at large..  I thought I posted a link to that, but maybe it was in another thread or something.  1st degree is a big stretch and he'd probably be acquitted of that.  Don't know about 2nd, ACLU says it fits.

[Blakenzy]

So if you are killing many people it would make it a lesser(3rd) degree of murder? That doesn't make sense, but well that's law for you I guess

[lupinus]

Well someones decided to weigh in on the whole military thing.....

https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/03/politics/mattis-statement-trump/index.html

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[dogmush]

We've been getting really interesting e-mails from the DOD Chain of Command all day.  Let me see if I can find one open source.

ETA:  I can't easily find it.  Service members have posted it all over FB, but you'd need to be their friends.  Not sure what the distro limitations on it is, It's not classified.

That said, the interesting part is thus:

Throughout these response efforts, I have been incredibly proud of our Service members and their hard work to assist our fellow Americans. This past week, our support to civil authority mission - that had been focused on COVID-19 - changed. Our National Guard are now also being called upon across the country to help protect our communities, businesses, monuments, and places of worship.
 
Department of Defense personnel have taken an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States. I myself have taken it many times in my military and civilian careers, and believe strongly in it. As part of that oath, we commit to protecting the American people's right to freedom of speech and to peaceful assembly. I, like you, am steadfast in my belief that Americans who are frustrated, angry, and seeking to be heard must be ensured that opportunity. And like you, I am committed to upholding the rule of law and protecting life and liberty, so that the violent actions of a few do not undermine the rights and freedoms of law-abiding citizens.

Reading between the lines, we are not all about "dominate[ing] the streets".

Interesting times indeed.

[lupinus]

This one contains the full text of the release at the bottom of the article

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/06/james-mattis-denounces-trump-protests-militarization/612640/

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[sumpnz]

So if you are killing many people it would make it a lesser(3rd) degree of murder? That doesn't make sense, but well that's law for you I guess

No.  For 3rd degree murder it's intentional life threatening behavior that results in a fatality that is either directed a large group of people or to the public in general.  E.g. arson that results in someone random dying, or shooting knowing there is a group people who are in the path of the bullet and it hits and kills someone but not aiming at anyone in particular.

Intentional life threatening actions directed at a specific individual that cause death without premeditation (or the legal equivalent) is 2nd degree murder.

At least in Minnesota.

[zxcvbob]

So if you are killing many people it would make it a lesser(3rd) degree of murder? That doesn't make sense, but well that's law for you I guess

The sentence for 2 (or more) 3rd degree murder convictions is longer than one 2nd degree murder, so it kinda makes sense.   

[MechAg94]

https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/local/st-louis-riots-missouri-attorney-general-says-circuit-attorney-not-prosecuting-criminals/63-3cf5934f-623d-4f71-ac9f-05c2c2882b78
Looters, rioters not being prosecuted by circuit attorney, says attorney general
St. Louis police arrested 36 people during violent protests. All have been released without charges

https://www.kmov.com/news/missouri-ag-says-all-st-louis-looters-rioters-have-been-released/article_03b7fa9a-a5be-11ea-b8ae-fb15756c0a9d.html

https://twitchy.com/dougp-3137/2020/06/03/what-the-actual-f-missouri-ag-says-local-prosecutor-released-back-onto-the-streets-every-person-arrested-for-rioting-and-looting-in-st-louis/
This link looks familiar so maybe this is a repeat.

[Hawkmoon]

Well someones decided to weigh in on the whole military thing.....

https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/03/politics/mattis-statement-trump/index.html

I like much of what he said, but I differ here:

"We must reject any thinking of our cities as a 'battlespace' that our uniformed military is called upon to 'dominate,'" Mattis said. "At home, we should use our military only when requested to do so, on very rare occasions, by state governors. Militarizing our response, as we witnessed in Washington, D.C., sets up a conflict—a false conflict—between the military and civilian society."
"It erodes the moral ground that ensures a trusted bond between men and women in uniform and the society they are sworn to protect, and of which they themselves are a part. Keeping public order rests with civilian state and local leaders who best understand their communities and are answerable to them."

When the civilian authorities abdicate their responsibility, and are part of the problem rather than part of the solution, and when unknown actors are fomenting riots that arguably rise to the level of rebellion, then I believe it is right and proper to use the military to suppress the insurrection.

Caveat (important): If the insurrection is in support of the Constitution, rather than an attempt to tear down the Constitution, then I expect the military to honor its oath to protect and defend the Constitution, and to side with the Constitutionalists rather than the aw-thaw-rih-tays. This insurrection is NOT in support of the Constitution.

[lupinus]

I like much of what he said, but I differ here:

When the civilian authorities abdicate their responsibility, and are part of the problem rather than part of the solution, and when unknown actors are fomenting riots that arguably rise to the level of rebellion, then I believe it is right and proper to use the military to supprerss the insurrection.

Caveat (important): If the insurrection is in support of the Constitution, rather than an attempt to tear down the Constitution, then I expect the military to honor its oath to protect and defend the Constitution, and to side with the Constitutionalists rather than the aw-thaw-rih-tays. This insurrection is NOT in support of the Constitution.

Except a for the most part people are protesting peacefully. By all means deal with the rioters, vandals, etc. Someone's burning a car? Toss their ass in jail.

But there's also a whole lot of otherwise lawful protestors, hell multiple instances of protestors self policing, whose only crime has been civil disobedience via ignoring a curfew or orders to disperse being tear gassed, herded, shot at with rubber bullets, etc. That is in no way shape or form something warranting the military. And frankly a lot of the curfews have been, in my not very humble opinion, bullshit. And heavy handed tactics breaking up or rounding up members of a peaceful protest have had numerous examples of the underlying problem through law enforcement and civil leadership in some of these localities.

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[Ben]

I like much of what he said, but I differ here:

I respect Mattis' opinion regarding the military aspect of this. The part of his statement that kinda surprised me, however, was:

Former Secretary of Defense James Mattis on Wednesday castigated President Donald Trump as "the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people"

What - did he pull a Rip Van Winkle during the entire Obama presidency?

[RoadKingLarry]

I'm losing respect for Mad Dog. Damn good general, piss poor politician.

[Andiron]

I'm losing respect for Mad Dog. Damn good general, piss poor politician.

I wouldn't have it any other way.  At least he's an honest general. Cant agree with his latest  bit of stupid.

[WLJ]

And now we got Obama urging on the protests

The town hall was hosted by the Obama Foundation's My Brother's Keeper Alliance, which supports young men of color. During the event, Obama said he rejected a debate that emerged in “a little bit of chatter on the internet" about “voting versus protests, politics and participation versus civil disobedience and direct action.”

“This is not an either-or. This is a both,” he said. “And to bring about real change, we both have to highlight a problem and make people in power uncomfortable, but we also have to translate that into practical solutions and laws that could be implemented and monitored and make sure we’re following up on.”

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/obama-urges-george-floyd-protesters-to-push-for-change-make-people-in-power-uncomfortable

In other words keep doing what you're doing and be sure to vote democrat in Nov

Burn on people

[K Frame]

Something I posted on my faceplace page the other day after some cursory looking into it. No one in the media is talking about this. They should be.


"I've been looking into something over the past few days, and it's rather disturbing, yet no one is talking about it...

The information is spread out, and is somewhat tough to come by, but it's slowly coalescing, and it's startling...

The majority of the cities with the worst record of their police departments killing unarmed black men are, and in more than a few cases have been for decades, controlled either completely or in large part by Democrats.

Chicago, St. Louis, New York. All places where shocking incidents have occurred in which unarmed black men have been killed by police.

Now add Milwaukee to the list.

Include Baltimore, Detroit, Washington, DC, Philadelphia and others.

All bastions of Democratic power and control.

The Democrats claim to be the party of the oppressed, against racism, promoting equality for all.

Why have they ignored their police departments? Why have they allowed this to continue under their watch?

Yes, this is something that occurs far too frequently in police departments that are controlled by Republicans.

But to hear the talking talking heads, the protestors, etc., this is all the fault of the right.

Why are these Democratic machines not being held accountable for the actions of their police departments and for failing to enact proactive reforms that could result in a more positive police/community relationship?"

[WLJ]

Now we know what killed him
Everybody can go home now. Sorry

Autopsy report shows George Floyd had tested positive for coronavirus
https://www.wlky.com/article/autopsy-shows-george-floyd-had-coronavirus/32761418

[Ron]

I'm tiring of this psy-op, can we move on to the next one please?