[lit-ideas] Re: Guns and the older woman, continued

An interesting story!  
http://www.cnn.com/2007/LAW/04/26/atlanta.indictments.ap/index.html , 
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/nation/4751018.html

But notice that these guys often falsify their reports: 
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2007/04/26/0426feds.html 
 

So what can we say about this 92 year old lady and the cops who killed her?  I 
can imagine Mike saying that if she never had a gun, the cops would have broken 
in unhindered, torn up her place, knocked her around a bit, put her 
spread-eagled on the floor with her hands behind her back -- if her arthritis 
allowed them to go back there, and hauled her carcass down to the pokey -- and 
everything would have been hunky dory.   But how much abuse could this old lady 
take before it killed her.  She might have died even if they hadn't pumped her 
full of lead.  

But maybe if she knew what was going to happen she would have chosen to resist 
anyway.  I know Leftist-Pacifists feel that groveling before superior force is 
prudent and life-saving, but lots of people here in the U.S. would rather not 
live that way.

Another observation has to do with the police.  In Mike's mythical future, all 
civilians have had their guns taken away and melted down into pruning hooks.  
Only the police have guns.  It seems a Leftist-Pacifist thing to place a lot of 
confidence in Big Government and its minions who wear badges.  Conservatives in 
closer touch with our constitution, declaration of independence and bill of 
rights, would rather place confidence in civilians.  We would say restrict the 
authority of government and the police, not the civilians from whom they derive 
(or ought to derive) their power.  

Lawrence

------------Original Message------------
From: Robert Paul <rpaul@xxxxxxxx>
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Thu, Apr-26-2007 7:03 PM
Subject: [lit-ideas] Guns and the older woman, continued
ATLANTA, Georgia (AP) -- A police officer and a former officer pleaded
guilty Thursday to manslaughter in the shooting death of a 92-year-old
woman during a botched drug raid last fall. Another officer still
faces charges in the woman's death.

Officer J.R. Smith told the judge Thursday that he regretted what had
happened.

"I'm sorry," the 35-year-old said, his voice barely audible. He
pleaded guilty to manslaughter, violation of oath, criminal
solicitation, making false statements and perjury, which was based on
untrue claims in a warrant.

Former Officer Gregg Junnier, 40, who retired from the Atlanta police
force in January, pleaded guilty to manslaughter, violation of oath,
criminal solicitation and making false statements. Both men are
expected to face more than 10 years in prison.

The charges followed a November 21 "no-knock" drug raid on the home of
Kathryn Johnston, 92. An informant had described buying drugs from a
dealer there, police said. When the officers burst in without warning,
Johnston fired at them, and they fired back, killing her.

Fulton County prosecutor Peter Johnson disclosed Thursday that the
officers involved in Johnston's death fired 39 shots, striking her
five or six times, including a fatal blow to the chest.

He said Johnston only fired once through her door and didn't hit any
of the officers. That means the officers who were wounded likely were
hit by their own colleagues, he said.

Complete story at

 http://www.cnn.com/2007/LAW/04/26/atlanta.indictments.ap/index.html

Robert Paul

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