Did not sleep a wink after watching the newly revealed raw footage of Eric Garners arrest and death at the hands of some incredibly incompetent NYPD officers. It was absolutely disgusting and deeply disturbing. In the first, roughly three minute long video, two plainclothes officers had approached Garner, who had been previously accused of selling untaxed cigarettes, and instigated a confrontation. Garner was reasonably, non-threateningly denying the allegations. He raised his arms upwards in frustration after asking to be left alone when the two officers moved in. The officer performed a choke-hold on Garner, a move that directly violates departmental policy due to its inherent risk of fatality. By this time, about four other officers who were nearby had moved in as well to bring Garner forcibly to the ground. Garner, roughly 350lbs and asthmatic, could then be clearly heard yelling I cant breathe! numerous times while the officer shoved his face into the pavement. Moments later, he fell silent and went into cardiac arrest and passed away on the scene. In the follow-up video, an especially unsettling seven minute display of gross negligence and incompetence, one officer checked Garners non-existent pulse and, after a few awkward seconds, pat his shoulder and said: Come on big guy, breathe in breathe out. When the EMTs arrived, they did everything in their power to not resuscitate or help, as they are sworn by oath, the unconscious, suffocated Garner. As bystanders looked on, another officer can be heard claiming that Garner was okay and still breathing. To anybody with half a brain and a working pair of eyes, this could not be more evidently untrue. This awkward seven minutes made it abundantly clear to me that the officers could not care less and were immediately trying to cover up and play off their unwarranted homicide of this married father of six and grandfather of two. I have never felt so deeply disturbed or disgusted as I have watching this incredible display of incompetence and police brutality. Given the NYPDs storied history of taking down unarmed black men, racial motive cannot be candidly glossed over. The shooting of Amadou Diallo in 99 is a prime example. Simply put, Eric Garner was killed because he was a black man reasonably defending himself against the accusations of a handful of white police officers in New York City. The level of ineptitude and nonchalant indifference on display by the law enforcement officers and medical services personnel involved was unbelievable and unacceptable. Moreover, there was no semblance of urgency to be found whatsoever once Garner hit the pavement and was very clearly unconscious. Its a deeply upsetting irony that the ones who devote themselves to protecting the innocent did nothing at all, and instead looked to protect their own hides once their mistake was evident. Every single one of the police officers and medical personnel involved in this debacle ought to be punished accordingly. Im appalled at this terrible tragedy, and frankly everyone else should be as well.
Posted on: Sun, 20 Jul 2014 10:36:23 +0000
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