police acquitted in murder of Sean Bell

[© tweed]

I don't agree with any of you. A cop has about a second to consider their actions when it comes to life and death. The jury that tries them has an infinite amount of time in comparison. I suppose it is just trendy to hate the cops and assume they are wrong regardless of whether we know all the facts or not.

the cop reloaded his gun...

[Smash255]

I don't agree with any of you. A cop has about a second to consider their actions when it comes to life and death. The jury that tries them has an infinite amount of time in comparison. I suppose it is just trendy to hate the cops and assume they are wrong regardless of whether we know all the facts or not.

This wasn't a trial jury the cops chose to have a single judge make the decision.  Cops do have a split second to make a decision, but nothing explains 50 shots, nothing.

semi-automatic pistols explain 50 shots. But you and Bruce Springsteen can keep to the same 50 shots mantra if you like. And not it was a jury trial, that was the point of my post, you do understand that right? Cops don't have that option of deliberation.

No it doesn't explain 50 shots, and as tweed pointed out at least one of the officers reloaded his gun.  Cops do need to make split second decisions, but that doesn't mean that can be used as an excuse especially when you unload 50 shots at a group of unarmed men.

[7,052,770]

I don't agree with any of you. A cop has about a second to consider their actions when it comes to life and death. The jury that tries them has an infinite amount of time in comparison. I suppose it is just trendy to hate the cops and assume they are wrong regardless of whether we know all the facts or not.

This wasn't a trial jury the cops chose to have a single judge make the decision.  Cops do have a split second to make a decision, but nothing explains 50 shots, nothing.

semi-automatic pistols explain 50 shots. But you and Bruce Springsteen can keep to the same 50 shots mantra if you like. And not it was a jury trial, that was the point of my post, you do understand that right? Cops don't have that option of deliberation.

If you weren't ignorant, you would know that Bruce Springsteen's song American Skin (41 Shots) is sympathetic to BOTH the police and Amadou Diallo.

[Bay Ridge, Bklyn! Born and Bred]

If some punk was trying to run me over in his vehicle, I would have done the same thing.    But according to sworn testimony, the police were shooting at the vehicle (maybe trying to shoot out the tires), not the driver, with only 3 or 4 bullets actually hitting Bell, with only one proving fatal.

Oh well.  No big loss.

[DownWithTheLeft]

I do not pretend to know what God thinks

You believe the Bible, right?  So you are assuming that you know what God thinks about a large range of subjects.

General beliefs, not this specific murder trial.

[Sbane]

If some punk was trying to run me over in his vehicle, I would have done the same thing.    But according to sworn testimony, the police were shooting at the vehicle (maybe trying to shoot out the tires), not the driver, with only 3 or 4 bullets actually hitting Bell, with only one proving fatal.

Oh well.  No big loss.

So the officers shot at the car 50 times just to shoot out the tires? Are the cops f**kin stupid or something? Would they not just follow the car considering there were undercover cop cars around. Plus they could have always asked for backup/roadblocks and what not. And oh yeah if the cops were to shoot one of you family members would it not be a big loss to you? Or are you trying to say that since they were black they really dont matter. No big loss right? they would just sell drugs and have out of wedlock kids anyways?

[Bay Ridge, Bklyn! Born and Bred]

If some punk was trying to run me over in his vehicle, I would have done the same thing.    But according to sworn testimony, the police were shooting at the vehicle (maybe trying to shoot out the tires), not the driver, with only 3 or 4 bullets actually hitting Bell, with only one proving fatal.

Oh well.  No big loss.

So the officers shot at the car 50 times just to shoot out the tires? Are the cops f**kin stupid or something? Would they not just follow the car considering there were undercover cop cars around. Plus they could have always asked for backup/roadblocks and what not. And oh yeah if the cops were to shoot one of you family members would it not be a big loss to you? Or are you trying to say that since they were black they really dont matter. No big loss right? they would just sell drugs and have out of wedlock kids anyways?

I don't know about them being stupid, more like lousy marksmen.

But attempting to run someone over with your vehicle is assault with a deadly weapon.

[Sbane]

If some punk was trying to run me over in his vehicle, I would have done the same thing.    But according to sworn testimony, the police were shooting at the vehicle (maybe trying to shoot out the tires), not the driver, with only 3 or 4 bullets actually hitting Bell, with only one proving fatal.

Oh well.  No big loss.

So the officers shot at the car 50 times just to shoot out the tires? Are the cops f**kin stupid or something? Would they not just follow the car considering there were undercover cop cars around. Plus they could have always asked for backup/roadblocks and what not. And oh yeah if the cops were to shoot one of you family members would it not be a big loss to you? Or are you trying to say that since they were black they really dont matter. No big loss right? they would just sell drugs and have out of wedlock kids anyways?

I don't know about them being stupid, more like lousy marksmen.

But attempting to run someone over with your vehicle is assault with a deadly weapon.

They were trying to get away not trying to run over someone. Plus they were all undercover cops pointing guns at people inside a car. Imagine yourself in that car, would you not think you were getting carjacked or something? So they were understandably trying to escape and just following them would have been the common sense solution, not plugging them with 50 shots with one officer finding time to reload his damn gun. But seriously I feel this is a problem with NYPD undercover cops. I think they really need to look into their training.

[opebo]

If some punk was trying to run me over in his vehicle, I would have done the same thing.    But according to sworn testimony, the police were shooting at the vehicle (maybe trying to shoot out the tires), not the driver, with only 3 or 4 bullets actually hitting Bell, with only one proving fatal.

Oh well.  No big loss.

Mikey is using a coded phrase to remind us that the victim was merely a 'N****r'.  Thanks Mikey!

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I think the key here was "beyond a reasonable doubt," a standard that at times seems to apply only to cops and celebrities.  The civil suit, like those of Simpson and Blake will probably succeed because of the lower threshold that needs to be met, "preponderance of the evidence".

[Bay Ridge, Bklyn! Born and Bred]

If some punk was trying to run me over in his vehicle, I would have done the same thing.    But according to sworn testimony, the police were shooting at the vehicle (maybe trying to shoot out the tires), not the driver, with only 3 or 4 bullets actually hitting Bell, with only one proving fatal.

Oh well.  No big loss.

Mikey is using a coded phrase to remind us that the victim was merely a 'N****r'.  Thanks Mikey!

So what about the black cops involved?   I think you are artificially injecting race into this whole story, when in fact it is pretty much a non-issue.

[??????????]

Don't play opedophiles game, Mike.

[Sam Spade]

There was far from enough evidence to convict of reckless manslaughter to say the least.

[patrick1]

This shooting occurred in Jamaica, Queens.  The events from my scant reading of it are that:  there were undercover vice detectives sent to investigate prostitution at a local strip club.  Sean Beall and his friends were there celebrate his bachelor party.  Bell and friends were drinking and one of them got into a spat with a stripper and then a bouncer. One of the cops alleges that he heard one of Bell's freinds say he was going to get a gun.  The undercovers trailed Bell and friends to their vehicle.  Confsuions reigned once outside. The cops said the showed their badges and that once inside the vehicle Bell and his the driver started speeding off and was ramming the undercover police cruiser.   One cop started squeezing off rounds at the vehicle and Bell was killed.  In split second decisions and chaos it is hard to judge their the cops actions who are looking out for their own lives.  One cop shot the majority of the rounds @30- That seems hard to justify but I was not there. Most of the cops started shooting when the other officers opened fire.

Sadly. I think the NYPD is in for more of these incidents. I'm not sure they are getting the best candidates at the meager 26,000-28,000 staring pay they are giving new recruits.  Surrounding departments are offering much more lucrative salaries with much less risk.  I think you will find that there will be many substandard officers who make it through the ranks.  There was a recent case of an NYPD rookie who just got caught holding up three banks. You would hope that screening would have caught this type of individual. 

[dead0man]

Hey, facts, logic and reasoning have no place in this thread.  It's about cops damn it.  We all knew they were guilty as soon as the story broke.