I read with amazement how an unarmed black man was killed by a white officer in Oklahoma. The man was walking away with his hands up when he was first tasered, then shot dead.
Despite the sweep of events in the media, I still find myself shocked that an officer would so blatantly kill a person.
Justice should be swift. The officer who fired the fatal shot, Betty Shelby, should have been arrested on the spot by the other officers. Lacking that, if she has not already been arrested, she should be immediately. When citizenry commit such an act, they are arrested on-spot, if caught in the act. Should we treat our officers any differently? Shelby should be placed in jail and a trial should be quick in coming.
And, I cannot imagine there not being a conviction. The video is clear. We may not yet know all the details of the conversation between the officers and the victim, Terence Crutcher, but we can see the murder was not justified.
The proceedings should be quick. We speak of how criminals must know they cannot get away with these things. Officers, also must know they cannot get away with them. But, it will take more than court justice to bring about change. Officers must be trained. I wonder if Officer Shelby sat through many training sessions where she was told you do not kill, you do not pull the trigger if you do not have to, and if you do inflict death unnecessarily you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
You do not betray your badge. And, when you take your conduct to the other side of the badge, the badge is no longer yours.
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