TAMIR RICE, 12 -- KILLED BY CLEVELAND POLICE

[HairOfTheDog]

Yes, I'm fully aware of your location, sweetheart. How many times have you been shot at? How many times have you been harassed for simply doing your job? How many little gang-bangers do you deal with on a day-to-day basis? How many of your coworkers have been killed for simply doing their job? How many murder/drive-by scenes have you witnessed personally, and the aftermath?

I think you must have forgotten the opening line to your opening post in this thread, muffin.

You wrote this: "Those that think the officer acted to hastily have obviously not spent enough time in the crime ridden areas of larger cities."

Your "obvious" observation was wrong. Since I am, in fact, questioning whether the officer responded too hastily, I addressed your original admonishing comment about my qualifications to do so.

Nobody here needs to be Kid65-qualified to question and talk about police action. But, since I like you so much and all, I responded anyhow.

And, yes, I have seen kids with guns in Los Angeles, Long Beach, and San Francisco at different points. Yes, I've encountered gang-bangers. No, I've never been a cop (nor a gang-banger, nor have I been shot mistakenly by a cop...). Beyond that, I don't feel compelled to share my personal experiences with crime and don't think it's relevant here anyway.

And the song remains the same -- I don't need to be Kid65-qualified to "come back and talk" about this case, question the cops/toy manufacturers/911 communications or anything else. If you consider that "sitting back in judgment", imagine me reclining with my feet up and a gavel next to my coffee cup -- or sue me.

The cops were not being fired upon and they were aware that the person they were approaching had not fired a gun at all.

Ahh..so in your world, the police should wait until bullets are being shot at them before returning fire...just sit back and hope the assailant misses with the first few shots, eh?

No. I don't think that, which is why I never said it.

I said the police weren't responding to "shots fired" or "shooting in progress". Perhaps if the officers had been informed that the eyewitness who called into 911 figured that the male was a juvenile with a fake gun, they would have approached the situation differently. Perhaps not. It's a legitimate question.

In any case, Tamir was shot less than 2 seconds from the time the officers rolled up on him and I question whether the officers rushed to action without appropriately assessing the situation. It's possible. I'm interested in what the investigation reveals on that front.

Don't get me wrong here...I'm not all gung-ho pro cop....but I feel for these guys, and the split decisions they have to make...and a lot of the time, they are in no-win situations.

Yes, I can see by your posts that you are emotional and going off general feelings rather than specific case facts and logic, which is also an interesting view point to consider.

I understand your general sentiments and don't disagree with them. But, I wouldn't sit back and judge you even if you were all gung-ho pro cop.