Quote:
Originally Posted by southern151
Well, here may be a major kink in everyone's gripe about police brutality. Several sources are reporting(and Allstate Ins confirmed) that this guy was getting a settlement for a neck injury and, had recently had neck surgery.
http://beforeitsnews.com/politics/20...t-2707800.html |
If confirmed, this would certainly be an interesting development, but it is not completely exculpatory regarding the police actions. Questions yet to be answered:
1. What was the reasonable suspicion for the original detention? The police have yet to articulate a specific crime he was suspected of that day. Courts have consistently ruled that suspicion of unspecified "criminal activity" is insufficient to detain a suspect. Police need to show that the original detention was legal and justified.
2. Was the "spring assisted" knife really a switchblade as defined by applicable laws? The arrest on this charge needs to be justified.
3. Why wasn't Gray secured with a seatbelt in the police van per protocol? Did failure to secure Gray in a seatbelt contribute to his injury?
4. Why were police so slow in calling for medical assistance?
5. Was Gray intentionally taken for a "rough ride" in the police transport in order to "teach him a lesson"? Even had there been a pre-existing neck injury related to the surgery, failure to properly restrain Gray in the van and intentionally making the ride rough would make the government employees involved culpable.
Even a citizen who has recently had neck surgery and should be resting at home has civil and constitutional rights not to be abused by police. Autopsy results should be able to determine how much force was applied to cause the neck injury. Hopefully, there are high quality CT scans available for review by outside experts.