Tarpon Springs teen identified as suspect shot, killed by police officers

[Zorro]

Alexander King, an 11th grader at Tarpon Springs High School, was pointing an Airsoft rifle at passing vehicles when he was shot Saturday night, police said.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating after an officer-involved shooting in Tarpon Springs that left a 17-year-old boy dead, according to the Tarpon Springs Police Department.

The boy who was shot and killed by officers Saturday night was identified during a news conference Monday as Alexander King, an 11th grader at Tarpon Springs High School.

Police said they received several calls Saturday evening about a white male walking down Pinellas Avenue/U.S. 19 Alternate and pointing what appeared to be an AK-style rifle at passing vehicles.

When officers arrived at the southeast corner of the intersection of U.S. 19 Alternate and Tarpon Avenue around 9:30 p.m., they spotted King on the northwest corner of the intersection. King pointed the gun at them and at several occupied cars on the road, according to police.

https://www.tampabay.com/news/breaking-news/2021/10/18/tarpon-springs-teen-identified-as-suspect-shot-killed-by-police-officers/

Sounds as if the kid was pretty messed up, but I'd like to know why his parents weren't around.

[Thomas Hurt]

1. That maybe exactly what he wanted.

[Demovictory9]

2. Sad.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

3. FTP. What a garbage-ass system we have.

[NQAS]

4. Just from reading the posts on this...

It looks like the police weren’t wrong. Should they have realized it was a replica gun? Should they gave waited for the kid to turn the gun on them to see what happened?

I’m not a big police fan either, but I’m not sure if they deserve the blame on this.

No less tragic. Probably more so.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

6. A garbage-ass system is one in which a kid has more than 20 interactions with law enforcement

and ends up shot by cops for carrying a fake gun before he graduates high school.

[LearnedHand]

7. Death didn't have to be the outcome

FTP

[Celerity]

5. sounds like suicide by cop, & he had over 20 interactions with cops in the past, including

2 arrests for battery on a school official, and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon..

https://www.fox13news.com/news/suspect-killed-for-pointing-military-style-rifle-was-teen-with-pellet-gun-tarpon-springs-police-say