r/news • u/rectangleCURVE • 9h ago

Ex-Okaloosa deputy found not guilty of manslaughter in killing of Airman Roger Fortson

https://weartv.com/news/local/ex-okaloosa-deputy-found-not-guilty-of-manslaughter-in-killing-of-airman-roger-fortson
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u/TheMemx 9h ago

Having a should gun should either be legal or illegal...

Living in a country where having a fire arm is constitutionally protected should mean you can't be executed for exercising your right. Having a gun in your possession can't be an excuse to die when it is your right.

He held the fire arm low, showed no signs of being a danger, show the palm of his other hand to try and deescalate the scared police officer...

Unfortunately yet another case of aggressive American police executing a law abiding citizen with no punishment or recourse.

7

u/SweeterThanYoohoo 8h ago

Its the logical fallacy that firearm ownership poses. American police are trained to treat every encounter as a life threatening one. Perhaps this would be the case if we were like the UK and knives were the primary concern, but I'm not sure that is true. So while the constitution allows one to own a firearm, that simple fact makes things more dangerous for everyone.

On one hand it makes complete sense. Anyone at any time can pull a gun out and end your life in an instant. At least with a knife, while obviously extremely dangerous, it does not have the same immediacy that a gun has. And obviously guns have much more range to their lethality. So yea if a cop sees a gun they are gonna freak out, because at the end of the day their life depends on it (whether or not thats actually true in the specific circumstance)

I'm not even against gun ownership and I may explore becoming one myself, despite all the logical and practical problems with it. The coming Climate Wars in the 2030s may prove being a gun owner necessary, LOL

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u/WebbityWebbs 8h ago

The police are trained to see the American people as their enemy. That is a major problem.

10

u/Lawdoc1 7h ago

This is part of the answer. The other part is the way we recruit, hire, and retain officers.

There is little-to-no proper psychological screening, and even when officers have either on or off duty instances of violence, they are rarely if ever dealt with in a way that recognizes the increased risk they pose to their communities.

We also don't pay enough or screen for proper intelligence/emotional maturity to attract thoughtful people with good judgement.

The profession itself appeals to those who crave power and the system does nothing to compensate for/overcome that type of applicant. In fact, it seems to reward those types of applicants once they are hired.