Rayshard Brooks: A justified use of deadly force, explained

[Taz]

Pass a law that says if you resist arrest, you will be shot. End of story.

 

[Cecilie1200]

However, I do feel a $5000 fine and a year in jail is way excessive just for punching someone in the face.

He punched an officer in the face, which escalated it to an aggravated misdemeanor, and ergo, felony resisting arrest.

Still not punishable by death.

Still not relevant.

Very relevant. It showed he was no risk to the larger community.

Nope. It shows that dishonest dipshits try to conflate two very different situations for their own purposes. Take a bow, dishonest dipshit.

This is like saying I shouldn't shoot someone who breaks into my house with a gun, because "armed robbery isn't a capital crime." NOT RELEVANT.

 

[RealDave]

''''my daddy is a better criminal than yo daddy'''''
...'''my daddy bees the best criminal eva'''''
...my daddy got mo $$$$$$ for bing murdered by white racist cops than yo daddy'''''

You wake up being a racist fuck

please explain how is that racist!!!???!!!
I await your reply

Really? You don't know? You must have your racism so inbred into your very being that you don't know how racist you are.

You must have your racism so inbred into your very being that you don't know how racist you are.

WOOOHOOOOO--you CAN'T explain it because it's not racist--you just proved it
hahahhahahahhaah

OK

1) You stereotype the talk
2) You infer fathers are all criminals.
3) You say blacks are proud of being a criminal.

But hey, you must be an uneducated, ignorant redneck driving a jacked up 4x4 with the Conferate flag on the back window with your gun rack & "I Love Trump" bumper sticker and refuse to wear a mask and at one time dated a family member.

 

[Bush92]

is it that you accuse the female posters here of making emotional arguments?

It has nothing to do with your gender. Employing such a tactic means your argument is no longer viable.

Liberals of your stripe and of both genders are prone to making overly emotional and non factual arguments.

Right the cops should not be judge jury and executioner.

They have a right to self-defense. Quit advocating for anarchy, crime and lawlessness. Point a weapon at me and I'll cap your ass just as fast.

Cops do not have the permission to shoot a person that is not a direct threat to them or to another person in the immediate area.

Already pointed out Brooks WAS A direct threat. End of story. Cop will beat the charges. Throw a shovel of dirt on Brooks and be done with it. Scum got what he deserved.

Self defense never comes into play in this scenario.

Yes it does. The moment Brooks chose to violently resist arrest and attack the arresting officers. The moment he aimed that taser at Rolfe's head. He presented himself as a threat and he was treated like one.

If your rounds are fired into his back as he was fleeing, then legally he is no longer considered a threat and legally you are not allowed to shoot at him.

That has always been the law but you're trying to craft this scenario so that because of everything that occured prior to him running off, the officers were within their right to shoot him, which simply is not the case.

If they had shot him while they were on the ground and he was fighting them or when he first took the officers taser, that would have been the time when they could truthfully say he was posing a threat to them and/or that they were in fear for their lives or in fear of grievous bodily harm. But once he got away from them and was abscounding, the threat to them that could be addressed utilizing deadly force had ceased and they were no longer within their rights to shoot him, let alone shoot to kill him.

I'm guessing that because cops have been getting away with shooting people, including shooting people in the back for so long in this country that you all believe that the doing so is legal however it's not nor has it ever been.

Your asinine attempt to use your gender as a weapon in this debate has discredited you and your argument.

If your argument were so infallible, you wouldn't have needed to stoop to that level.

I will not be replying to you any further in this thread.

The only stooping I need to do is in order to look you in the eye but I am surprised to discover you're intimidated by the fact that I'm female. I would have never guessed that to be your problem however I made the comment I did about you discounting my inital response to you as emotional, because you accused both DragonLady and Coyote of being emotional as well, while I found their comments were well reasoned and on point.

Not agreeing with someone is one thing. Throwing a pissy hissy fit and declaring you're taking your balls and going home is very pedantic but is certainly your perogative but know this. My comments are based on the training I've received from firearm instructors who are certified by the agency that trains all of the law enforcement officers in the state. I will put their opinions, court testimony, and beliefs above those of an childish and insecure little man any day of the week.

500 non-whites shot by police last year and 50 blacks. 2-1 ratio. It is a politically motivated myth that black's ate disproportionately targeted by police. Complete bullshit for political purposes. But, blacks and liberal media need something to crybaby around about.

Over 500 non-whites were shot last year - over 400 blacks and about Hispanics. 47 of the people police shot were unarmed.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/national/police-shootings-2019/

88 of 429 this year you leftist tool. Stop using this site for your bullshit efforts at some fantasy you have of a communist revolution.
This is a liberal organization as well.

People shot to death by U.S. police, by race 2024 | Statista

The trend of fatal police shootings in the U.S. seems to only be increasing each year, with 1,097 civilians, 225 of whom were Black, killed by police in 2022.

www.statista.com

You website is bullsit. The WAPO article is the correct number.

Sure, liberal media site is correct over a site that deals in pure statistics. Her, don't think Post has a biased angle now do you? Nope, your to stupid and have been indoctrinated my radical left.

 

[Bush92]

However, I do feel a $5000 fine and a year in jail is way excessive just for punching someone in the face.

He punched an officer in the face, which escalated it to an aggravated misdemeanor, and ergo, felony resisting arrest.

Still not punishable by death.

Still not relevant.

Very relevant. It showed he was no risk to the larger community.

He was a common criminal who had been incarcerated by the people of his own society because he was a violent risk.

 

[harmonica]

''''my daddy is a better criminal than yo daddy'''''
...'''my daddy bees the best criminal eva'''''
...my daddy got mo $$$$$$ for bing murdered by white racist cops than yo daddy'''''

You wake up being a racist fuck

please explain how is that racist!!!???!!!
I await your reply

Really? You don't know? You must have your racism so inbred into your very being that you don't know how racist you are.

You must have your racism so inbred into your very being that you don't know how racist you are.

WOOOHOOOOO--you CAN'T explain it because it's not racist--you just proved it
hahahhahahahhaah

OK

1) You stereotype the talk
2) You infer fathers are all criminals.
3) You say blacks are proud of being a criminal.

But hey, you must be an uneducated, ignorant redneck driving a jacked up 4x4 with the Conferate flag on the back window with your gun rack & "I Love Trump" bumper sticker and refuse to wear a mask and at one time dated a family member.

hahahahha
1.that STILL is not racism
2.and you had your chance before and didn't take it = you are making crap up now
3. wooohooo--stating facts and truth is racist!! hahahahhahahahah
blacks are proud of their criminals--here's the PROOF:
black aldermen--the '''leaders''!!--- honoring a black criminal:

St. Louis aldermen pass resolution remembering Anthony Lamar Smith, angering police

The city's top officials embraced Smith's mother, Annie, and her husband during Friday's board meeting.

www.stltoday.com

Plaque placed near where Michael Brown was killed in Ferguson

Bronze dove also placed in sidewalk.

www.stltoday.com

 

[Crixus]

Rayshard Brooks: A justified use of deadly force, explained

What Brooks did by punching an officer in the face was an aggravated misdemeanor, punishable by a $5,000 fine and up to 1 year in jail (see Ga. Code Ann. § 17-10-4.).

GA CODE § 16-5-23 (e)

(e) Any person who commits the offense of simple battery against a police officer, correction officer, or detention officer engaged in carrying out official duties shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished for a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature.

Brooks, by resisting arrest, punching the officer in the face and later firing a taser at the police officer was guilty of a felony under Georgia Law, punishable by a maximum of five years in jail:

GA CODE § 16-10-24 (b)

(b) Whoever knowingly and willfully resists, obstructs, or opposes any law enforcement officer, prison guard, correctional officer, probation supervisor, parole supervisor, or conservation ranger in the lawful discharge of his official duties by offering or doing violence to the person of such officer or legally authorized person is guilty of a felony and shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years.


GA CODE § 16-11-123

As soon as Brooks gained possession of the taser, he was facing five years in jail for illegally possessing a firearm. As the law states:

"A person commits the offense of unlawful possession of firearms or weapons when he or she knowingly has in his or her possession any sawed-off shotgun, sawed-off rifle, machine gun, dangerous weapon, or silencer, and, upon conviction thereof, he or she shall be punished by imprisonment for a period of five years."

GA CODE § 16-11-106 (a)

Tasers are considered firearms under Georgia Law:

(a) For the purposes of this Code section, the term "firearm" shall include stun guns and tasers. A stun gun or taser is any device that is powered by electrical charging units such as batteries and emits an electrical charge in excess of 20,000 volts or is otherwise capable of incapacitating a person by an electrical charge.

GA CODE § 16-5-21 (c)(1)(A)

What Brooks did with the taser he stole would have warranted 10 to 20 years in jail under Georgia law had he survived the encounter. As stated above (in § 16-11-106), tasers are classified as firearms:

(c)

(1) A person who knowingly commits the offense of aggravated assault upon a public safety officer while he or she is engaged in, or on account of the performance of, his or her official duties shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished as follows:

(A) When such assault occurs by the discharge of a firearm by a person who is at least 17 years of age, such person shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than ten nor more than 20 years.

GA CODE § 16-3-21 (a)

First conclusion: Officer Rolfe was justified in using deadly force to prevent the commission of a "forcible felony" (as defined in GA CODE § 16-11-131), given that the one or more of the above offenses committed by Brooks would have resulted in imprisonment of more than one year in jail:

(a) A person is justified in threatening or using force against another when and to the extent that he or she reasonably believes that such threat or force is necessary to defend himself or herself or a third person against such other's imminent use of unlawful force; however, except as provided in Code Section 16-3-23-, a person is justified in using force which is intended or likely to cause death or great bodily harm only if he or she reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or herself or a third person or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.

GA CODE § 17-4-20 (b)

Second conclusion: Rolfe was permitted to use deadly force to apprehend the felon or misdemeanant:

(b) Sheriffs and peace officers who are appointed or employed in conformity with Chapter 8 of Title 35 may use deadly force to apprehend a suspected felon only when the officer reasonably believes that the suspect possesses a deadly weapon or any object, device, or instrument which, when used offensively against a person, is likely to or actually does result in serious bodily injury; when the officer reasonably believes that the suspect poses an immediate threat of physical violence to the officer or others; or when there is probable cause to believe that the suspect has committed a crime involving the infliction or threatened infliction of serious physical harm. Nothing in this Code section shall be construed so as to restrict such sheriffs or peace officers from the use of such reasonable nondeadly force as may be necessary to apprehend and arrest a suspected felon or misdemeanant.


I won't dive into the federal offenses he committed before he died. I am making the case that the police followed Georgia law to the letter. A grand jury will likely not convict Rolfe and Bronson based on these facts.

I challenge you, the reader, to prove me otherwise.

I agree with them that say the man's shooting was bad. It shouldn't have happened.no one made that man drive drunk. Had dude just called a cab none of this would have happened. Weather this cop walks or not his life is destroyed. As for the black community, if they want equality they need to learn some accountability. You fight cops you stand a decent chance of getting shot.

And whyt the fuck can't you see that this is the problem?

Maybe we all should do this. "My neighbor stopped over & started a fight & we wrestled around because I threw trash on his property...so I shot & killed him" Really?

If he pointed a weapon at you, you would likely be acquitted of a murder charge should it be filed.

a taser, while running away?

Yes.

So, when is a police office not justified in shooting someone?

" I feared for my lfe" OK

"He thought he was reacjing for his waistband" OK

"He was blc k & a black guy has been robbing cars" OK

" I thought his cellphone was a gun" OK

Can't say, but I can say with surety that punching a cop in the face, grabbing his taser, running off and attempting to shoot the cop chasing him with said taser is a good way to end up with a few bullets in ones body. Know what? The district atturnies office that's prosecuting the cops agree.

 

[toobfreak]

Brooks had not been told he was under arrest for DUI..... Hard to believe they had him held there for 45 minutes and not once by either cop, told that he was under arrest, and for what, and his Miranda rights given. How can that happen?

I just love the deflections and irrelevancies. The guy was given a sobriety test, a breathalyzer test, arrested and handcuffed, or at least attempted so before he broke away, tried to kill a cop and forced the police to fire on him. The Earth is relieved of yet one more idiot.

 

[toobfreak]

However, I do feel a $5000 fine and a year in jail is way excessive just for punching someone in the face.

He punched an officer in the face, which escalated it to an aggravated misdemeanor, and ergo, felony resisting arrest.

Still not punishable by death.

Still not relevant.

Very relevant. It showed he was no risk to the larger community.

So now, you can see into the future and forecast future actions. You're an amazing person.

 

[Dragonlady]

However, I do feel a $5000 fine and a year in jail is way excessive just for punching someone in the face.

He punched an officer in the face, which escalated it to an aggravated misdemeanor, and ergo, felony resisting arrest.

Still not punishable by death.

Still not relevant.

Very relevant. It showed he was no risk to the larger community.

Nope. It shows that dishonest dipshits try to conflate two very different situations for their own purposes. Take a bow, dishonest dipshit.

This is like saying I shouldn't shoot someone who breaks into my house with a gun, because "armed robbery isn't a capital crime." NOT RELEVANT.

False equivalency - from top to bottom.

No one invaded a private space with a deadly weapon with intent to do harm. Mr. Brooks stopped off at a Wendy's drive through on his way home, after one drink too many, and fell asleep.

 

[toobfreak]

However, I do feel a $5000 fine and a year in jail is way excessive just for punching someone in the face.

He punched an officer in the face, which escalated it to an aggravated misdemeanor, and ergo, felony resisting arrest.

Still not punishable by death.

Still not relevant.

Very relevant. It showed he was no risk to the larger community.

Nope. It shows that dishonest dipshits try to conflate two very different situations for their own purposes. Take a bow, dishonest dipshit.

This is like saying I shouldn't shoot someone who breaks into my house with a gun, because "armed robbery isn't a capital crime." NOT RELEVANT.

Mr. Brooks stopped off at a Wendy's drive through on his way home, after one drink too many, and fell asleep.

Then was found drunk passed out unresponsive blocking traffic, failed a sobriety test while operating a vehicle, broke arrest, and tried to flee while aiming a weapon at a cop. God only knows what else he might have done had he gotten away or connected with the taser and gotten the officer's gun. Thank God the Earth has been relieved of yet one more asshole idiot.

 

[Cecilie1200]

However, I do feel a $5000 fine and a year in jail is way excessive just for punching someone in the face.

He punched an officer in the face, which escalated it to an aggravated misdemeanor, and ergo, felony resisting arrest.

Still not punishable by death.

Still not relevant.

Very relevant. It showed he was no risk to the larger community.

Nope. It shows that dishonest dipshits try to conflate two very different situations for their own purposes. Take a bow, dishonest dipshit.

This is like saying I shouldn't shoot someone who breaks into my house with a gun, because "armed robbery isn't a capital crime." NOT RELEVANT.

False equivalency - from top to bottom.

No one invaded a private space with a deadly weapon with intent to do harm. Mr. Brooks stopped off at a Wendy's drive through on his way home, after one drink too many, and fell asleep.

You want to equate self-defense in one instance with capital punishment, and I'm demonstrating how ludicrous that is.

The only false equivalency here is the constant parroting of "the shooting was wrong because nothing he did was a capital crime".

Next time you open your wrinkled gob to defend someone else's bullshit statement, perhaps you should first consider whether you have any frigging notion what they're saying.

 

[Coyote]

Anyone?

Anyone??

Hello, is this thing on? Did my internet go out?

He was shot in the back. Running away.

He was shot in the back running away . . . and firing a weapon at the cop behind him.

That last part is sorta important.

Rarely lethal, with a limited range. They could have opted not to shoot him but follow at a distance or pick him up later with reinforcements. He was drunk.

I'd have to check, but I'm pretty sure Atlanta police procedure doesn't give them an "option" on just letting someone who's committed multiple felonies run away.

Perhaps that is where procedure surrounding the use of deadly force needs to be re-examined. He wasn’t someone with a record of violence and he wasn’t armed with a gun, and they had his car and id.

 

[CowboyTed]

Pass a law that says if you resist arrest, you will be shot. End of story.

Great Idea... Death Penalty for resisting arrest

 

[toobfreak]

Anyone?

Anyone??

Hello, is this thing on? Did my internet go out?

He was shot in the back. Running away.

He was shot in the back running away . . . and firing a weapon at the cop behind him.

That last part is sorta important.

Rarely lethal, with a limited range. They could have opted not to shoot him but follow at a distance or pick him up later with reinforcements. He was drunk.

I'd have to check, but I'm pretty sure Atlanta police procedure doesn't give them an "option" on just letting someone who's committed multiple felonies run away.

He wasn’t someone with a record of violence

Neither were most of the kids who one day came to school and committed serial murder killing hundreds.

 

[Cecilie1200]

Anyone?

Anyone??

Hello, is this thing on? Did my internet go out?

He was shot in the back. Running away.

He was shot in the back running away . . . and firing a weapon at the cop behind him.

That last part is sorta important.

Rarely lethal, with a limited range. They could have opted not to shoot him but follow at a distance or pick him up later with reinforcements. He was drunk.

I'd have to check, but I'm pretty sure Atlanta police procedure doesn't give them an "option" on just letting someone who's committed multiple felonies run away.

Perhaps that is where procedure surrounding the use of deadly force needs to be re-examined. He wasn’t someone with a record of violence and he wasn’t armed with a gun, and they had his car and id.

Why does it need to be re-examined? Because a bunch of Armchair Police Chiefs on the Internet saw a video and read a bunch of op-eds that got their feelz in an uproar?

He WAS someone with a record of violence, and whether he was or not, he WAS someone who was in the process of committing violence. I don't give a fuck if he had a gun or not, nor do I give a fuck about this constant refrain of "they had his car and ID", like that's some hallelujah moment of revelation. I don't care if they had his bank account and his fucking family tree all the way back to the 17th century. Anyone who thinks effective policing is done by standing around with your thumb up your ass, going, "Well, we can mosey by later tonight and pick him up" while someone who has just committed multiple felonies in the presence of police officers takes off down the street WITH THE OFFICER'S TASER is too stupid to be allowed out of the house without a babysitter.

 

[TemplarKormac]

However, I do feel a $5000 fine and a year in jail is way excessive just for punching someone in the face.

He punched an officer in the face, which escalated it to an aggravated misdemeanor, and ergo, felony resisting arrest.

Still not punishable by death.

Still not relevant.

Very relevant. It showed he was no risk to the larger community.

Nope. It shows that dishonest dipshits try to conflate two very different situations for their own purposes. Take a bow, dishonest dipshit.

This is like saying I shouldn't shoot someone who breaks into my house with a gun, because "armed robbery isn't a capital crime." NOT RELEVANT.

False equivalency - from top to bottom.

No one invaded a private space with a deadly weapon with intent to do harm. Mr. Brooks stopped off at a Wendy's drive through on his way home, after one drink too many, and fell asleep.

Never mind he was driving drunk on the way there, putting innocent people in danger with a 3000 lb machine.

 

[TemplarKormac]

Pass a law that says if you resist arrest, you will be shot. End of story.

Great Idea... Death Penalty for resisting arrest

Now you know why the officers tried to talk him down for 41 minutes prior to the incident. They didn't come there fully intent on killing him because he was drunk.

 

[Cecilie1200]

Pass a law that says if you resist arrest, you will be shot. End of story.

Great Idea... Death Penalty for resisting arrest

Now you know why the officers tried to talk him down for 41 minutes prior to the incident. They didn't come there fully intent on killing him because he was drunk.

That also brings up the fact that bodycam footage shows Officer Rolfe giving the guy CPR and trying to keep him alive. I don't know of any murderers who do that.

 

[TemplarKormac]

Anyone?

Anyone??

Hello, is this thing on? Did my internet go out?

He was shot in the back. Running away.

He was shot in the back running away . . . and firing a weapon at the cop behind him.

That last part is sorta important.

Rarely lethal, with a limited range. They could have opted not to shoot him but follow at a distance or pick him up later with reinforcements. He was drunk.

I'd have to check, but I'm pretty sure Atlanta police procedure doesn't give them an "option" on just letting someone who's committed multiple felonies run away.

Perhaps that is where procedure surrounding the use of deadly force needs to be re-examined. He wasn’t someone with a record of violence and he wasn’t armed with a gun, and they had his car and id.

All of that becomes meaningless when he starts attacking the police trying to arrest him. The 41 minutes he spent being cooperative mean nothing after that. Having his car and his ID was also meaningless. He was a threat as soon as he secured the taser. He was an even greater threat when he fired it at Rolfe. He had a partially loaded taser and was attempting to flee into the larger community with it.

You seem to think that having his car and his ID would have stopped him from becoming violent, from making the choices he would later make. Had those officers exercised that kind of naivete in that situation, they would have both been injured or killed.