Where Is The Truth?

Tyre King, Terence Crutcher, Keith Lamont Scott; the one undeniable truth is that these black males are dead. Killed by police. After that we have opinions, and lies, where is the truth?

Tyre King, a 13-year-old boy was killed by police who say he had a “realistic” BB gun with a laser sight. To make their story more convincing they showed us a picture of a different gun. A different gun. Yes, the picture they showed us looked very much like a real gun. It had no orange tip, no laser sight. Why not take a picture of the actual BB gun? Did it differ from the picture they showed us? Police say he pulled the BB gun and pointed it at them, leaving them no choice but to shoot him. An autopsy was performed with no results released. An independent autopsy was ordered by the family which said, “more than likely he was running away.” All three shots hit him in the back. Where is the truth?

Terence Crutcher had his hands up. Shot and killed by Officer Betty Shelby. Thru her lawyer, she said she shot when Terence was reaching into his vehicle. My view of the video and the reflections off the window indicate to me the window was up. A family attorney showed an enlarged photo showing the window rolled up making it impossible for Mr. Crutcher to have reached in. A “source” from within the Tulsa Police Department says the window was rolled down. Why is this even a lingering question? Surely there were hundreds of contemporary crime scene photos showing one way or the other. The Tulsa Police Dept. Could settle it all by making a statement with accompanying time stamped photos or videos. What is the truth? Thru her attorney, Shelby’s story has changed somewhat saying Terence Crutcher wore loose clothing and kept “reaching for his pockets which could contain a gun.” Where is the truth?

 

Keith Lamont Scott, a father of seven was waiting for his son to come home from school. Several witnesses say he was unarmed, he didn’t own a gun, he was reading a book. The police say they recovered a gun. What was its history? Where was it purchased? Was it a throwdown? We know the officer who shot Mr. Scott was wearing plain clothes and wasn’t wearing a body camera. What of the other videos? Why not release them? Recent police statements now say they issued several warnings. The story keeps changing. Where is the truth?

Part of the truth is that the initial police statements are almost always self-serving. And usually fact-free. They tell us to “wait until the investigation is complete,” and then selectively leak information to shape the narrative. Many times they don’t name the officers involved while they scurry to tarnish the victim’s name. In stories about protests in Charlotte, we hear about the number of injured police officers. There was no mention of the citizens harmed, estimated to be about the same number. Where is the truth? As I write this right now. Charlotte police wearing riot gear have fired tear gas into crowds. There are reports of bottles being thrown and broken windows. There is a report of a new shooting with life-threatening injuries. No other information is available. Where is the truth?