'Disturbing' Helicopter Footage Shows Tulsa Police Kill Unarmed Man

[KamaAina]

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/disturbing-helicopter-footage-shows-oklahoma-police-kill-unarmed-man-n650866

Video footage released Monday showed Tulsa police shooting an unarmed man to death on Friday night after he approached his SUV with his arms raised.

In footage filmed from a police helicopter, Terence Crutcher, 40, can be seen slowly walking from the edge of a street north of Tulsa toward his vehicle, which authorities said had been reported abandoned at 7:36 p.m. (8:36 p.m. ET) and left running in the middle of the road.
Helicopter view of the officer involved shooting of Terence Crutcher.

For several seconds, an officer follows Crutcher from behind with a gun trained on him. Three more officers then converge on the scene as Crutcher lowers his hands and approaches his SUV. While standing beside the driver's side door, he suddenly drops to the street. Moments later, blood can be seen saturating his white t-shirt....

During a news conference Monday, a Crutcher family lawyer, Melvin C. Hall, said that Crutcher was only having problems with his SUV before he was shot to death. "They treated him like a criminal," added a second lawyer, Benjamin Crump. "They treated him like a suspect. They did not treat him like somebody in distress who needed help. Instead of giving him a hand, they gave him bullets."

[BSdetect]

1. What I saw shocked me again

How is this even remotely possible?

How many cops were attending and not one sought to tame the shooters?

Insanity.

Do we shoot those who surrender now?

The victim probably thought they would see his two arms up?

I think we need a serious plan to change police cultures.

[Egnever]

2. No doubt this shooting is unjustified.

Still I know at least in my case I recognize that cops are trigger happy at times and so when confronted by them I submit. I don't like it for a second but I don't fuck around when people are pointing guns at me.

What happened in this case is unquestionably wrong.

Why in the hell didn't he comply. I just don't understand when people do that, you are arguing with a gun. Seems very stupid to me to take chances with cops especially in this day and age when we have all seen they are more than willing to shoot if not eager to.

Again this shooting is unquestionably wrong.

It is long past time to hold police accountable for every time they pull the trigger. Not only did these cops shoot for no apparent reason but they shot into incoming traffic. You can see a car pulling up at the end of that video in what looks to be the direct line of fire. Not only did they unjustly shoot a man they were interacting with they also put other innocent lives in danger as well.

[lame54]

3. He didn't comply?

[Egnever]

5. No he did not

cops don't pull guns on you and tell you to walk around.

A female officer's voice can be heard in the dispatch recording saying, "I've got a subject that won't show me his hands."

You hear the helicopter recording say he has his hands up for her now. Reinforcing her statement that he would not show her his hands.

Then he walks to his car and reaches in with no direction to do so.

None of this should ever earn him a death sentance.

Still he was not complying despite having his hands up. He apparently refused to remove his hands from his pockets to begin with. This is not something I would ever do as a white guy with all my white privilege I do not take chances with guns pointed at me.

Again I don't see this in any way as an excuse to shoot this man. I am merely baffled when people take chances with their own lives when guns are pointed at them. Even more so in this day and age when we know there are cops out there with itchy trigger fingers.

[cwydro]

20. I agree.

I simply do not understand how people don't do as they are told when confronted with police.

The police may be wrong, but comply and live.

I was with a friend who was pulled over years ago. Both of us white females.

This was a small town, and I got out of the car just to speak to the cop. I was ordered back immediately. No idea why. I'm a small woman, but I did as I was told.

There is simply no point in arguing with police. Take it to court.

[lame54]

24. I did not see him reach into car...

View was obstructed

[Waldorf]

7. If the officer told him not to move and he kept walking towards his vehicle that would

be not complying with officers orders.

[Beaverhausen]

13. walking toward his own car? How is that a threat to the cops?

he stopped because he had car trouble and wanted their help for fuck's sake. Jesus are you actually defending this?

[Waldorf]

15. Not defending this at all. Just somebody posted about compliance. If the officer had told him not

to move and he kept moving, that's not complying with the officers orders.

[lame54]

23. If...

I wasn't replying to an if

[Angry Dragon]

6. I would like to know why they had their guns drawn in the first place

[Egnever]

8. Because initially he refused to take his hands out of his pockets.

according to the dispatch recording.

Considering in the helicopter recording you hear them say he has his hands up for her now. I find that believable but not certain.

Again I do not find this in any way a reason to shoot this man. Cops are far too quick to shoot.

What I do question is why they start the recording they released when they do. A few more minutes of recording from that helicopter could probably add a lot of clarity to this situation. It would still be an unjustified shooting regardless in my mind, but it is a strange starting point for that video.

I am going to go out on a limb here and say what I think happened.

I think this female officer came on the scene and he gave her a hard time which frightened her. As more cops came on the scene he put his hands up. But this woman was still rattled. Then he walks to his car and reaches in and one of the other officers fires his taser but the female cop was so far on tilt that she heard the taser and squeezed her trigger.

Not excusable but that is what appears to have happened to me.

[Angry Dragon]

9. One has the right to have their hands in their pockets

[Egnever]

11. Sure go for it

I would never do it with a gun pointed at me and the person on the other side of that gun telling me not to but you are certainly free to make that decision yourself.

Why you would take that chance in this day and age when we have such solid evidence that cops are far too quick to pull the trigger is beyond me but you are certainly free to do so.

[Angry Dragon]

12. I have

[Egnever]

14. Certainly your right to do so

And if they shoot you when you do it it will be found to be justifiable.

Not a chance I am willing to take. Again certainly your prerogative to push that line if you want to.

[CBGLuthier]

26. There is not a black man in America who truly has that right and we all fucking know it.

On paper, sure. Real life murdering cops America. not any more. Maybe never.

[Marr]

31. I'm sure your 'right' will make the bullet hurt a lot less, too.

[DLevine]

16. He couldn't have been reaching into his car- the window was closed.

The family's lawyer had a press conference. He showed a photo of the obviously closed window with the victim's blood on it.

[Egnever]

30. Fair enough

Again in no way do I think this was a justified shooting.

Window up or down.

My only point was that he was not complying with the officers and how crazy I find that when guns are pointed at you. It does not in any way justify it. I just find it baffling after so much evidence that cops are more than willing to shoot that you would take a chance like that.

I have had plenty of run ins with the police in my day, and every time I do I worry about the gun on their hip drawn or not. Doesn't matter how right I think I might be it won't stop a bullet.

[citood]

28. Per the police chief

They recieved a call that the man was saying 'its gonna blow'. Who knows if he really said that...but that sets the stage for the officer's mentality when she got there.

[patsimp]

4. They murdered this poor innocent man

the cops have become murders getting away with horrible crimes against the black community

[DLevine]

17. This man was murdered.

To the victim-blamers: no, it was not his fault that he was murdered.

[Baclava]

18. Here's the cop who did the shooting

"She was yelling at him to stop, for probably at least 10 to 15 seconds. He gets to the window of the SUV, and has his hands in the air, looks at them ... and his left hand goes into the window," at which point one officer deployed his Taser and Shelby fired her service weapon.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/20/us/oklahoma-tulsa-police-shooting/

[DLevine]

19. There is a photo showing the window was definitely closed.

It has the victim's blood on it.

[Baclava]

21. That was her story, according to her lawyer

Where's that pic you're talking about?

[DLevine]

22. I saw it on MSNBC, and just now on NBC news with Lester Holt.

ETA: the family's lawyer released the photo to the press. It looked pretty clear to me the window was closed.

[CBGLuthier]

27. Video and photos show this officer to be lying.

[madokie]

25. I'm just 35 miles east of Tulsa

and in todays news they're saying that they found PCP in his vehicle and that his vehicle wasn't stalled. They're saying he was acting weird and had tried to reenter his vehicle. From the video I seen and what I've read up to this point I think maybe there is some planting going on here and the police department is trying to defuse the murder by planting evidence.

Anyways this all scares me

[doc03]

29. He puts his hands up and walks away? I am sure the cops didn't say put your hands up and walk away.

What are the cops supposed to do let him get in his car and drive off or maybe get a gun. If a cop tells you to put your hands up
you comply period.

[Runningdawg]

32. I live in Tulsa

My father in law is an attorney who spends a lot of time downtown at the court house. The rumor is the shooter will claim negligent discharge. Remember I said RUMOR, but it seems a plausible way to save her butt.

[rusty fender]

33. Why bother?

This murdering cop isn't going to be prosecuted any way.

[Runningdawg]

34. Perhaps you aren't familiar

with other shootings in Tulsas recent history. Google Eric Harris and have a look at his shooters fate.