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[KSweeley]

Link https://apnews.com/3d9fad885d744f18...shows-officer-firing-7-shots-into-Castile-car

June 20, 2017

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Video that shows a Minnesota police officer shooting seven rapid shots at Philando Castile during a traffic stop last July was made public Tuesday, just days after the officer was acquitted on all counts in the case.

The video was captured by a camera in the squad car of Officer Jeronimo Yanez, who was found not guilty of manslaughter and other charges in the fatal shooting of Castile, a black motorist who was shot just seconds after he told Yanez he had a gun. The shooting gained widespread attention because Castile’s girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, livestreamed its gruesome aftermath on Facebook.

Unlike Reynolds’ video, the squad-car video shows the situation’s quick escalation and the shooting itself. It was played for jurors at trial but was not released publicly until Tuesday. Though the video has been described repeatedly, the footage offers a disturbing perspective on how a traffic stop for a faulty brake light turned deadly in mere seconds.

The squad-car video shows a wide view of the traffic stop and the shooting, with the camera pointed toward Castile’s car. It captures what was said between the two men and shows Yanez, who is Latino, firing into the vehicle.

 

[KSweeley]

How can a jury say the officer is innocent of all charges after watching this???

The video shows Yanez following Castile’s car, then pulling it over. It shows Yanez approaching Castile’s car and asking for a driver’s license and proof of insurance. Castile gives the proof of insurance to Yanez through the driver’s side window, and Castile puts it in his pocket. Castile is then heard saying, “Sir, I have to tell you, I do have a firearm on me.”

Castile, a 32-year-old elementary school cafeteria worker, had a permit to carry the weapon.

Before Castile finishes that sentence, Yanez has his hand on his own gun and is pulling it out of the holster. Yanez says, “OK. Don’t reach for it then.” There is shouting, and Yanez screams “Don’t pull it out!” before he fires seven shots into the car.

Castile’s body is thrown to the right after the first shot. The video shows Yanez’s backup, Officer Joseph Kauser, standing on the passenger side of the vehicle, jumping back and retreating when the shots were fired.

After the shooting, the video shows Yanez standing at the car window, breathing heavily and cursing repeatedly, with his gun drawn for some time. Reynolds’ then-4-year-old daughter starts to get out of the car and is grabbed by an officer. The video then shows help arriving at the scene.

 

[Musky_Cheese]

How can a jury say the officer is innocent of all charges after watching this???

Reaching for the gun and officer telling him not to I guess

 

[Verelios]

Monstrous

 

[Gragen]

It seems to me that all a cop has to say is he/she feared for their safety and it's justified murder.

 

[GrizzleBoy]

Reaching for the gun and officer telling him not to I guess

Have to wonder whether he actually did, or whether he was just putting his papers back where he took it from.

He told the officer he had a firearm after he was handed back his papers.3


That officer could've killed everyone in that car though......reaching into the damn vehicle with his gun.....firing one handed while panicking.....firing shot after shot with an innocent woman and child in the vehicle.

Piece of shit.

Do something else. Find another fucking job.

 

[Linkura]

How to Get Away with Murder: be a police officer.

 

[KSweeley]

How to Get Away with Murder: be a police officer.

It's fucking disgusting, I do not like admitting that I am an American.

 

[Big Baybee]

Reaching for the gun and officer telling him not to I guess

You believe he was reaching for his gun?

 

[zero_suit]

Reaching for the gun and officer telling him not to I guess

With his SO and daughter in the car? Highly unlikely.

 

[Musky_Cheese]

You believe he was reaching for his gun?

Didn't say that. Gaffer asked a question. Gave the answer. Jury must have believed his story

 

[Dyle]

Absolutely incredible that anyone could watch this and say that the officer was not criminally negligent. It's incredible how quickly this went from traffic stop to vicious murder, there is no legitimate way you can argue that this officer did his job correctly

 

[EdibleKnife]

Reaching for the gun and officer telling him not to I guess

You know jack all about this case don't you? Because knowing about it and saying this is significantly worse

 

[HammerOfThor]

His poor daughter

Also, they way the office is acting makes it seem like he knew he was wrong as fuck right after he did what he did.

 

[jviggy43]

Reaching for the gun and officer telling him not to I guess

He literally in the video is heard saying "I'm not pulling it out".

 

[Vixdean]

Yup, definitely murder.

 

[crazy monkey]

Not feeling like visiting USA ever. It is so scary.

 

[Pepiope]

Reaching for the gun and officer telling him not to I guess

He was licensed, and made the officer aware of that fact. The officer screwed up, and he died because of it.

 

[MJLord]

How do american police officers still have any credibility in the eyes of a Jury? Despite a pretty damning video of a citizen with a carry license doing exactly as asked, all an officer has to do is pull a scout salute and promise they saw him reach for the gun and it's golden.

 

[xxracerxx]

Jesus

 

[jviggy43]

If youre anything other than a white male,
don't come

fixed for accuracy.

 

[Dali]

With his SO and daughter in the car? Highly unlikely.

And after telling the coward he had a gun. Brilliant! I'll get the drop on him by politely telling him I've got a gun then pulling it out and shooting him with it.

 

[arts&crafts]

I dont live in the states but do you have to tell cops you have a legal gun? He should have just not said anything. This is 100% the cops fault but I am thinking maybe it could have been avoided if he didnt mention he had a gun.

 

[Musky_Cheese]

You know jack all about this case don't you? Because knowing about it and saying this is significantly worse

Lol ok I'm out this thread. Don't want to get banned.

You know jack about what I think because I didn't post what I thought. Just how he wasn't found guilty.

 

[ArkhamFantasy]

How do american police officers still have any credibility in the eyes of a Jury? Despite a pretty damning video of a citizen with a carry license doing exactly as asked, all an officer has to do is pull a scout salute and promise they saw him reach for the gun and it's golden.

The jury was mostly white.

 

[CHC]

(post is too dark, suffice it to say I'm not happy about this verdict and not really feeling good right now)

 

[Violence Jack]

A murderer walks free, an innocent good man killed, and a child along with her mother will be mentally scarred for the rest of their lives.

No justice, no peace.

 

[charpunk]

Fuck this shit man, fuck this jury.

 

[datbapple]

how is this not murder?

a man died for a brake light. you ruined his daughters life over a brake light. that little girl will have some major demons to overcome because of this officers over reaction. he killed one man, but ruined the lives of a whole lot more for being a jumpy pussy.

awful all the way round.

 

[100%TrophyMaster]

Sickening to watch. I understand officers need to take precautions and protect themselves but this was not one of those times. Officer should be going to jail for murder

 

[ColdPizza]

I dont live in the states but do you have to tell cops you have a legal gun? He should have just not said anything. This is 100% the cops fault but I am thinking maybe it could have been avoided if he didnt mention he had a gun.

It depends on which state you are in. Even if your state doesn't require it and you get searched anyway it could work against you.

 

[CountAntonius]

That went from zero to 100 instantly. Everybody was calm till the the cop reached in. Even after the victim calmly said he had a gun the cop sounded calm telling him not to reach for it then all hell broke loose. That poor family.

 

[sturgboski]

How do american police officers still have any credibility in the eyes of a Jury? Despite a pretty damning video of a citizen with a carry license doing exactly as asked, all an officer has to do is pull a scout salute and promise they saw him reach for the gun and it's golden.

So aside from racism, you have that douchebag that cops around the country use who shows on video the one case out of numerous attempts that something bad could have happened to the cop. I remember reading about him being able to show a video of someone quickly turning around and throwing a knife that caused a fatal blow on a dummy after hundreds of failed attempts and it was used as justification for allowing a cop to go free after shooting a black kid in the back as he walked away while he had a knife that he was popping tires with (this was I want to say a few years back). Then you have the prosecutors who tend to not "give it their all" for numerous reasons, not the least of which is that they rely on the cops they are prosecuting or that department, etc. Then you got the jury and their shit opinions.

Really you can get away with a lot of shit as a cop because who watches the watchmen? A friend of mine went to break up a fight on his neighbors lawn that someone drove their car on, got decked by the driver, cops came and threatened to arrest him and call child protective services on him and take his kid away. Meanwhile he went to stop the fight because his wife and kid were terrified AND they were the ones to call the cops. Turns out the driver either was a cop or was friends of the cops who showed up. Ain't it grand?

 

[Mammoth Jones]

He literally in the video is heard saying "I'm not pulling it out".

I asked a bunch of cop buddies where they see this going wrong and they all said without exception the moment they hear "gun" they ready to throw down and are taught to take zero chances. None of em outright condone this shooting but all say at a stop like this to keep hands on steering wheel palms up and ask the officer "How should I proceed?"

What gets me is the onus is on the civilian to be in full control of their senses and know what to do and what not to do st all times yet the cop gets to assume and adlib it.

The system is broken.

 

[ArkhamFantasy]

I dont live in the states but do you have to tell cops you have a legal gun? He should have just not said anything. This is 100% the cops fault but I am thinking maybe it could have been avoided if he didnt mention he had a gun.

He was probably worried that the cops would search the car and then freak out when they found it. (which he was correct to be worried about).

If he told the officer he had a gun, he gets shot
If he doesnt tell the officer and they find it, he gets shot
if he runs from the cops, he gets shot.

There is no scenario where he was getting out of there alive.

 

[jetjevons]

If he planned on using the the gun, which he obviously DID NOT, not least of all because his wife an daughter were in the car, but even in an alternate reality where he did, why announce it to the cop?!

 

[Lord Frieza]

How do american police officers still have any credibility in the eyes of a Jury? Despite a pretty damning video of a citizen with a carry license doing exactly as asked, all an officer has to do is pull a scout salute and promise they saw him reach for the gun and it's golden.

I guess you'd say it probably falls within white privilege. Most white people don't have experiences like this with the police, and they generally have a larger respect for the police because of that, given them the benefit of the doubt. Couple that racism and an aggressive and near deification of police by right-wing media, you basically have a system where, to the eyes of a white man/woman, a police officer can do no real wrong.

 

[jviggy43]

I asked a bunch of cop buddies where they see this going wrong and they all said without exception the moment they hear "gun" they ready to throw down and are taught to take zero chances. None of em outright condone this shooting but all say at a stop like this to keep hands on steering wheel palms up and ask the officer "How should I proceed?"

What gets me is the onus is on the civilian to be in full control of their senses and know what to do and what not to do st all times yet the cop gets to assume and adlib it.

The system is broken.

Yeah civillians with no training vs officers who should be undertaking training to handle situations like this, I absolutely put the onus of control on the police. Also if youre going to shoot a cop, why are you telling him you have a gun?

 

[cbrun44]

Fuck this cop. Ridiculous. If you are that scared choose a different profession. No excuse. Guy is a fucking murderer.

 

[EdibleKnife]

If he planned on using the the gun, which he obviously DID NOT, not least of all because his wife an daughter were in the car, but even in an alternate reality where he did, why announce it to the cop?!

So that the cop doesn't freak out if he sees the gleam of a pistol in his pocket. He announced it for the sake of the cops peace of mind but I guess that just wasn't enough. Cop just thinks black people are dumb enough to announce they have gun before surprising them with a gun

 

[elrechazado]

I dont live in the states but do you have to tell cops you have a legal gun? He should have just not said anything. This is 100% the cops fault but I am thinking maybe it could have been avoided if he didnt mention he had a gun.

Yes. There are legal requirements that you have to disclose it. It's literally a crime in most states to not disclose it correctly and timely.

 

[GrizzleBoy]

I guess you'd say it probably falls within white privilege. Most white people don't have experiences like this with the police, and they generally have a larger respect for the police because of that, given them the benefit of the doubt. Couple that racism and an aggressive and near deification of police by right-wing media, you basically have a system where, to the eyes of a white man/woman, a police officer can do no real wrong.

I dont live in the states but do you have to tell cops you have a legal gun? He should have just not said anything. This is 100% the cops fault but I am thinking maybe it could have been avoided if he didnt mention he had a gun.

I just spent about a minute rationalising how the officer could have seen him reaching for his permit or something, then I realised how fucked up it is to essentially be in an instant life or death situation when a police stops you for a broken tail light.

Fuck that, fuck the politics that allows for that and fuck the people who allow that.

Its sickening. I've said it before but the admiration and endearment I had for America as a kid is non existent now. I could never live in a country where this is allowed. I barely want to visit anymore.

When brexit happened I realised that the UK is not really what I thought it was and it kind of mentally affects me in the way I view things around me.

in between government officials having a license to kill, Trump, the GOP in general, confederate loving states and KKK victory marches, having to live in America would probably give me a damn heart attack.

I feel depressed as shit just thinking about living in America.

 

[Lambtron]

Philando Castile was murdered.

Yanez recalled that Castile kept his left hand on the steering wheel, and the placement of his shoulder blocked Yanez's sightline to Castile's right hand. It was at this time that he feared Castile may be reaching for the gun in his waistband or perhaps between the seats. He wondered if Castile may have kept the gun for protection from a drug dealer or someone trying to ”rip" from him.

”And at that point I was scared and I was in fear for my life and my partner's life," he told the agents. ”And for the little girl in the back and the front seat passenger and he dropped his hand down and I can't remember what I was telling him but I was telling him something as his hand went down I think."

He thought he saw Castile grab something and pull it away from his right thigh. ”I know he had an object — and it was dark," he said. He thought he saw a gun.

”As that was happening, as he was pulling at, out his hand I thought, I was gonna die and I thought if he's, if he has the guts and the audacity to smoke marijuana in front of the 5-year-old girl and risk her lungs and risk her life by giving her secondhand smoke and the front seat passenger doing the same thing then what, what care does he give about me?"

Fucking coward with a gun. Abolish the police.

 

[Chmpocalypse]

How do american police officers still have any credibility in the eyes of a Jury? Despite a pretty damning video of a citizen with a carry license doing exactly as asked, all an officer has to do is pull a scout salute and promise they saw him reach for the gun and it's golden.

They won't if I'm ever on a jury. Sorry cops, I can't tell just from the uniform if you're "one of the good ones", so I have to assume you're not.

 

[Baraka in the White House]

That was hard as hell to watch, especially seeing and hearing everything so clearly.

Manslaughter at the very least should have been a slam dunk.

 

[GrizzleBoy]

Philando Castile was murdered.


Fucking coward with a gun. Abolish the police.

Sewage level.

 

[Dartastic]

This is murder. Straight up. Horrific that the officer got off.

 

[DudeWithNoName]

I dont live in the states but do you have to tell cops you have a legal gun? He should have just not said anything. This is 100% the cops fault but I am thinking maybe it could have been avoided if he didnt mention he had a gun.

In the state of Minnesota, you do not have to tell the cops you are carrying a gun.

 

[GaimeGuy]

I asked a bunch of cop buddies where they see this going wrong and they all said without exception the moment they hear "gun" they ready to throw down and are taught to take zero chances. None of em outright condone this shooting but all say at a stop like this to keep hands on steering wheel palms up and ask the officer "How should I proceed?"

What gets me is the onus is on the civilian to be in full control of their senses and know what to do and what not to do st all times yet the cop gets to assume and adlib it.

The system is broken.

Please follow up that response of theirs with what you said in the second paragraph. As long as it's legal to carry a gun, the onus is on the cop to not only be responsible, but to show more restraint than a normal person. That means NOT being ready to throw down when a gun is present, only when it is unholstered and pointed. That is their duty as a civil servant.

 

[Veldin]

Police can kill me for virtually any reason and get away with it.