The Blog Of Cops Shooting People

By on August 29, 2012 in News 21

Perhaps designed to satisfy your morbid curiosity or shed light on the workings of our society, Cops Shooting People provides a round up of each day’s local news stories of fatal police shootings (not necessarily faulting the officers) from across the country. It’s staggering how many of these happen. A random sampling:

THEODORE WANN, 23, ALLEGEDLY WIELDING SHOVEL, SHOT AND KILLED BY COPS IN YUCAIPA, CA

“A parent’s request for help in dealing with an agitated son led to the son’s shooting death by a sheriff’s deputy, sheriff’s officials said. Deputies were summoned at 6:25 a.m. Monday, Aug. 13, to the 34000 block of Avenue G in Yucaipa, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said in a news release. One of the man’s parents told deputies the son returned home exhibiting symptoms of paranoia and believing that he was being followed, the department said.

The parent also said that the son might have ingested drugs and wouldn’t settle down. When deputies arrived, the son, identified as Theodore Wann, 23, had fled on foot and was running through yards in the neighborhood, the department said. A deputy caught up with Wann, who immediately engaged the deputy in a physical altercation, the department said. Wann attacked the deputy with a shovel; the deputy, fearing for his life, shot Wann, who was pronounced dead at the scene.”

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  • Calypso_1

    Krvna Osveta

  • VaudeVillain

    That is probably the most upsetting thing I’ve seen in a good long while.

  • Abouthadit

    of course all the donut eating thugs “fear for their lives” any time anything physical takes place.  They are as soft as Mr. Marshmallow Man and have no other course but a lethal one. 

  • BadApple

    Hopefully this will keep people from calling the cops when their kid “won’t settle down”. Those parents thought it would teach the kid a lesson but it seems they received the lesson. The article does not even mention that he was aggressive towards his parents. Just that he was paranoid and agitated.

  • BD

    I hope his mother is pleased with herself.

    High? Showing signs of paranoia? I’ll give you something to be paranoid about. Look, I’m phoning the police to bust your ass!

    • Murray

      BD you’re a pig! How DARE you say anything bad about his mom…and my good friend. She’d been trying for days to have him arrested, because he had broken the terms of his probation. He was wasted and she could not control him. She feared he would take a vehicle and possibly hurt himself or someone else. She wanted ABOVE ALL ELSE to have him somewhere where he could detox and BE SAFE. She never dreamed she was calling his executioner. Now she has to live with this for the rest of her life. Again, YOU ARE A PIG! I wish they’d take a gun to you and all like you who pass hurtful judgements without knowing all the facts. I hope I never find out who you are and meet you in a dark alley.

  • Bender

    Cops are out of control… why didn’t he just call for backup or use a tazer (they sure seem eager to use them any other time).  Now a family has lost their son, probably because he had a couple of hits of weed.  Unbelievable!

  • Calypso_1

    This illustrates one of the most unfortunate gaps in the mental healthcare system, one for which there is absolutely no viable model to cope with at this time.  When someone is obviously experiencing mental problems that are affecting them to the point of being physically out of control the only ones to turn to are the police.  Outside of a mental health institution they are the only ones that have the authority to legally use force, restrain, and detain these individuals.  In the hospital they are a patient but unless a cop has the presence of mind to maintain first and foremost that the person is a medical case and not a criminal than there is a very good chance of the person being hurt.  The police will fall back on the defense that they are trained to handle a mental case but that is utter BS.  They know how to apply safe restraints and they ARE trained to say “I was afraid for my life” –  BS that same crazy guy will be managed by nursing staff if they get him to the hospital.  It used to be that you could call the guys in white coats to pick someone up.  I’d like to see that option available again.
     

    • charlieprimero

       Paragraphs me bru.  I would read it if.

      • Calypso_1

        tis done

    • http://www.ContraControl.com/ Zenc

      I constantly read stories where some concerned mother calls the police because her adult son is “off his meds” and acting up. The cases that make it to the Paper don’t generally end well.

      I recall a case where the cops shot and killed such a man in Tampa because he was brandishing a BBQ fork at them.

      It almost seems better to let them run amok in the hope that they won’t attract the attention of the police than to call the police proactively with the desire to avoid an “incident”.

      • Calypso_1

         BBQ fork… Pig.   Maybe he really was scared for his life.

        • Calypso_1

          On a serious note, I must say that I have plenty of personal experience with LE that handle mental cases in a responsible manner and just bring them to the hospital. 

          • Jin The Ninja

            i’ve seen both instances. although here, where the aboriginal population is large, treatment of mental health patients by the police is largely dependant on race (namely if they are aboriginal or not). not to say that a homeless or mentally ill non-aboriginal person is treated fairly by the police (i can almost say that generally it isn’t the case), but that aboriginal people experience grossly inhumane treatment. we can look to the legacy case in saskatoon where mentally ill aboriginal people (i am broadly using mentally ill to also refer to addiction and substance abuse issues, although i know they are not the same thing) were abandoned many kilometers outside of town during the winter. this has been an issue since the 1950s right until contemporary times. i’ve a rather interesting personal anecdote about this, but i can’t really share it on a public forum…needless to say the rcmp has some serious issues when it comes to both aboriginal people and mental health.

          • Calypso_1

            There are many in my line of work who would argue that addiction/substance abuse do indeed fall within the realm of mental illness or at the very least are intimately entertwined with it.  Withholding any opinion at this time, I will say without a doubt, there is a great deal of self-medicating that goes on with many forms of mental illness.
            If you would like to share a personal story you may contact me at moreaux004gmail
            The Native psych situation is tragic (along w/ so many other areas).  I am hoping to get involved soon in some reservation work here in the states as the suicide rates are appalling. 

        • http://www.ContraControl.com/ Zenc

          I never looked at it that way…

  • Anniejrs

    Everyone keeps saying the police are out of control. I don’t think they are, I think they’re doing exactly what the gov’t. wants them to do. Now if they can just get the military on board.

  • Pigglywiggly123

    This Blog link needs to be posted EVERYWHERE! I live in Chicago where so many people get shot by these over aggressive cops all the time. I was thrown in the back of a CPD car a few weeks back because when we got pulled over I stuck both my hands out the window. When they approached they asked “Why are your hands out the window, you got a gun or something?” I replied “No sir, I just don’t want you guys shooting me like you do everyone else”. They proceeded to pull me through the passenger side window slam me on the hood of their car, cuff me, and put me in the back of their car for 45 minutes. Granted, I was released without any charges but, that because I did nothing wrong (other than maybe be a slight smart-ass). I do believe it important that everyone start realizing that the cops are not your, mine, or anybody else’s friend. All they will continue to do is cower behind their badge and power of their political forces. Good luck to everyone I hope your local law enforcement doesn’t kill you!

    Fact: You’re eight times more likely to be killed by a police officer than a terrorist. 

    • charlieprimero

      I don’t begrudge cops for being crazy careful.  I would.

      I fault them for shooting people who present no threat.

      Fascism breeds calousness and inhumanity.  That’s why we should oppose it at every opportunity.

  • charlieprimero

    Interesting blog.  Added to my http://newsblur.com Thanks.

  • FRIEND OF TED

    He was a great guy but a know heroin and meth user. This was not the first time his parents had to deal with him. He was one of my close friends and I was devastated to find out what happened but not surprised. This is the affects of drugs. LOVE YOU TED I CANT BELIEV YOU ARE GONE WISH YOU WOULD HAVE LISTENED AND TAKEN OUR HELP.