A group calling itself Mapping Police Violence.org has come out with a study with statistics they say demonstrate much higher numbers of people killed by police than other studies by Department of Justice (DOJ) or the FBI.  I looked at one section of their Study that deals with the killing of unarmed black men.  According to the authors, more than 100 unarmed black people, not all were Americans, were killed by police in 2015.  They provided a picture and short synopsis regarding 101 individuals. 

I reviewed the report dealing with  unarmed individuals.  I used only the information that was provided in the Study.  In evaluating each case I went with first impressions.  Here is what I found.

Eighteen people who died, died after being tasered.  Current use of force policy puts the deployment of a Taser at the lowest level of the force.  It is above an unkind word and below physical restraint holds.  It is appropriate to use a taser on an unarmed individual who offers resistance.  It would be inappropriate to use a taser on an individual displaying a weapon capable of causing death or serious bodily injury.

There are some indications that the abuse of dangerous drugs along with strenuous physical activity coupled with overall poor physical condition may lead to an increased risk of death when a taser is deployed. However, there is no consensus of opinion.

Six of the reported deaths were the result of criminal activity on the part of a police officer, unconnected to official duties. Keara Crowder was killed by her husband an Atlanta Police Officer.  Jeffrey Ragland died after arguing with a police officer about a woman they were both dating. Jeremy Lake was killed by an irate father, accompanied by his wife, both police officers.

Six individuals died in a jail or correctional facility and were unarmed.  It turns out there was a seventh who managed to smuggle a pistol into the facility. He used it on himself.  These are “in custody” deaths but I don’t find it noteworthy that they were unarmed, they are supposed to be. Some of these people may have died as a result of injuries sustained during their arrest, some by actions of jailers and some by a combination of the two. One had no apparent cause of death.

Fifteen of the unarmed suspects, weren’t unarmed.  Four individuals were killed after using their vehicle as a weapon or ramming police vehicles.  Three had cutting stabbing weapons that run the gambit from a “replica” sword, to a screwdriver to a spoon. (Google “shank”pictures).  One flailed away with a cane (club). The remaining seven used BB, pellet, and airsoft guns. Never bring a knife or toy gun to a gun fight.

Nine individuals were killed in eight car accidents three of them were victims in auto pedestrian accidents. One was involved in an incident and was subsequently killed as a pedestrian.  The information provided was not sufficient to indicate whether the two events were related or separate. One was an innocent third party killed during a chase. The remainder were actively evading arrest when their lack of driving skills impeded their getaway.

You would think people would have learned from Letterman and all those shitty “Top Ten” lists.  Sure the first three are easy, maybe even funny,  but by the time you get to seven the attitude is, #1 is really funny, throw some shit in there to get to ten and done. Either the authors weren’t fans of Letterman or this was another lesson, never learned. They had to stretch to reach 100 and it turned out to be a reach too far.

Let us not lose sight of the fact that with the exception of the 6 homicide and 1 car accident victims these people were not walking down the sidewalk when a safe fell out of a third story window and landed on them.  All of these individuals were actively involved in criminal activity and had they met their obligations as civilized people, they would be alive today.  They could not do that they had to add one more bad decision to a whole host of bad decisions and it was their last.

In case I haven’t made myself clear, of 100 incidents reported 52 do not meet the criteria stated in the report in that the individuals identified were armed, victims of a car accident unrelated to enforcement activity, victims of criminal homicide by police officers not in the performance of their duties, or in a custodial situation where weapons should not be a factor. That leaves 48, less than 50%, that is a failing grade.