Crime

Miami Police Shoot Mentally Handicapped Man Carrying Toy Gun

An investigation is underway after a North Miami Police officer shot and killed a mentally handicapped man who was carrying a toy rifle.

Police were called on Wednesday when neighbors saw the man, identified as 56-year-old Ernest Vasell, wandering a neighborhood with what appeared to be a rifle, according to CBS Miami. When officers arrived on the scene after frantic 911 calls, there was a confrontation, shots were fired and Vasell was killed.

Subsequently police have stated the rifle was in fact a toy and at least one officer is on paid administrative leave.

Vassell’s family has said he was mentally disabled after a childhood brain injury, and had no history of violence. His family is now demanding answers. Claire Harding, Vassell’s older sister, said to CBS Miami:

“They should train these police officers better, this is ridiculous, they just go around killing people for nothing.”

Watch the full story from CBS Miami, during which one newscaster explained “Police say they were forced to fire because a man was terrorizing the neighborhood.”

Comments (149)

1 2 3
  • thegreatcarnac
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:49am

    The police did not know his gun was a toy. They did what was right. They did what they were trained to do. Too bad…so sad.

    Report Post »  
    • jlong522
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:05pm

      As a Police officer, I came very close to shooting a teen with a BB gun in a car one night. In the split second we have to make that life or death decision if we hesitate to “make sure” it is in fact a real gun we could die! I dont know all the circustances of this incident but would not be suprised if this man turned or pointed this “toy” toward the officers. We are trained to assume that all “guns” are real and in fact could take our life. We have hours to make judgements now but the officer only had a fraction of a second.

      Report Post » jlong522  
    • Liberalismsamentaldisorder
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:08pm

      I understand the idea that “in the heat of the moment” a split-second decision needs to be made about whether it’s a real gun or not. I generally will side with the cops, sadly if it were a real gun and he shot someone with it while the cops were figuring out the guns authenticity, there’d be hell to pay. Unfortunately our “gotcha” society has made this type of situation all to common. A true tragedy.

      Report Post »  
    • Mapache
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:26pm

      depends. Did the toy gun have an orange barrel? Did the suspect point what might have appeared to be a real weapon at the officers? A lot of questions to be answered before ANY judgement is made. …and SHAME on the family for letting a mentally handicapped individual wander in the street with a toy that appeared to be a gun.

      Report Post » Mapache  
    • gramma b
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 1:30pm

      Good Lord. Where do idiots like DTom come from?

      Report Post »  
    • paying-for-freedom
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 1:32pm

      @JUSTJP your the idiot, as a police officer for most of my adult life, and one who has never shot anyone but have come close many times. You are making a split second choice when confronted with a possible gun situation. The adrenaline is going, nerves are on edge. Do you shoot or wait to see if they do. Will you live if they shot or will you be able to return fire. The criminal doesn’t deserve to fire the first shot and an officer wants to go home to his family just like anyone else. This was an older adult. Logic would dictate that an older man would not be running around with a toy gun. Common sense! Unfortunately common sense didn’t work out in right in this case. But this was a very unusual case!!!!!!!!!!!!

      Report Post »  
    • Roberto G. Vasquez
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 1:45pm

      Being an eccop let me explain. When someone points a gun at you you have to take immediate action to save your own life and the lives of other innocents. If it turns out to be a fake gun, so what? Anybody stupid enough to point a fake gun at the cops deserves what ever happens. Or, to put it another way, “he who hesitates is lost” when it comes to self defense . And….apparently the neighbors that it was a real gun too.

      Report Post »  
    • SgtB
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 2:43pm

      Here’s my 2 cents. Maybe the family of the man should be sued by the city for neglect. They neglected to make sure that their family member was properly cared for and they let him walk around the neighborhood with a rifle (real or fake doesn’t really matter) knowing full well that he is not of sound mind and would not know how to react when a cop approached him.

      Disclaimer… I have nothing against people carrying a firearm or any other weapon for self defense and defense in general. I believe that we have a natural right to protect ourselves and a responsibility. What I am against is letting your mentally retarded family member freely roam the neighborhood with a rifle pointing it only God knows where.

      Also, whether or not the barell was painted orange makes no difference. I could easily paint the tip of my m-14 orange with some fluorescent marking paint and it wouldn’t make it any less deadly. It also goes the other way. If I paint over the orange on my airsoft pistol it doesn’t turn it into a 9mm.

      Report Post » SgtB  
    • hauschild
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 2:43pm

      “Miami Police Shoot Mentally Handicapped Man Carrying Toy Gun”

      Whether or not one is mentally-handicapped has no bearing on whether the fuzz can drop you in your tracks if you have, what appears to be, a weapon.

      Until more is known, them’s the facts.

      Report Post »  
    • SgtB
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 2:49pm

      They censored the word r e t a r-de-d from my previous post. I can‘t believe that this PC bs has gone so far that I can’t even use the correct terms to describe people. Retardation is the slowing down of the natural progress of something. People who have under developed or malformed brains are called re-ta rd -ed because their mental faculties have not developed at the speed of a normal human being. Why do you have to censor that?

      Report Post » SgtB  
    • SgtB
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 2:51pm

      Another great point. Is there a single serial killer in the world who cannot be called mentally deranged or ill? Why does it matter that the man was mentally handicapped?

      Report Post » SgtB  
    • TSUNAMI-22
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 3:25pm

      @ Mapache

      Did the toy gun have an orange barrel?
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      What’s preventing anyone from painting the flash suppressor on a real weapon, orange? Which is more dangerous to the split second decision making ability of any individual cop or otherwise, a toy gun that looks real, or a real gun that looks like a toy?

      Report Post »  
    • OUTRIDER WRITER
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 3:27pm

      @Hausechild
      You nailed it.

      Report Post »  
    • woodyb
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 3:43pm

      If his family was so concerned about him, and presumably his safety, why did they allow him to wander around with a toy gun??????

      Report Post »  
    • Islesfordian
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 4:17pm

      So, gathering from many of the responces, having a gun is a potential lethal threat to a policeman and he is justified in shooting first before assertaining whether it is real or whether the person carrying it is actually a threat. I guess the police can’t afford that kind of decision making time.

      It seems to me that we have a situation where our officers feel they need to shoot reactively and pumped up of adrenaline, rather than calmly assess situations. Are these the kinds of people whom we should arm and have patroling our streets? They sound like dangerous hotheads ready to shoot every potential threat to their safety. Funny, I thought their job was to protect US first.

      Maybe we would be better off protecting ourselves. What a concept.

      Report Post » Islesfordian  
    • David286 - FL
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 4:41pm

      A lot of armchair quarterbacking going on! Does any of you criticizing the police know if they knew the guy was mentally handicapped…or what the gun looked like….airsoft guns look pretty damn real. You all are showing a serious lack of intelligence jumping to so many conclusions without knowing ALL the facts or ever being in a life or death situation.

      Report Post » David286 - FL  
    • richard the lion-hearted
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 5:24pm

      @thegreatcarnac ~ Just love how you callously write off a INNOCENT human life, just like so many cops these days. A sign of the times, 2 Timothy3: 1-5 KJV:

      1) This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

      2) For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

      3) Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

      4)Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;

      )Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

      Report Post » richard the lion-hearted  
    • American Soldier (Separated)
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 5:25pm

      @MAPACHE

      Orange barrels or not, can you really tell if it’s a toy? Do you know how easy it is to paint the muzzle flash of an AR15 orange?

      I use to be being into Airsofting back in the day, before I joined the military. I had a buddy of mine who was an LAPD officer show me pictures of actual weapons gang members had on them. One had painted the ENTIRE pistol bright orange. A real pistol, painted orange so it looked like a toy gun. You simply cannot base your life on a “oh well, it has an orange tip, must be a toy gun” because real criminals have painted those orange tips on REAL guns before!

      I’ll wait to see if the handicapped guy pointed at them. If he was mentality handicapped and didn’t know what he was doing, seeing other people pointing a gun at him he probably thought it was a game or movie and pointed his gun back at them.

      Report Post » American Soldier (Separated)  
    • richard the lion-hearted
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 5:35pm

      One more thing, if you think someone is armed and you have advance warning why would you put yourself in harm’s way? I for one (even as a glorious police officer) would take cover, shout the typical “Put the weapon down!” And if he didn‘t listen but ALSO didn’t fire, or if he did fire, you would be behind cover, you’d HEAR the bullets (or not) and guess what?! Then you’d know if his gun was real! Amazingly difficult to figure out for the safety of all concerned huh?

      Report Post » richard the lion-hearted  
    • Secret Squirrel
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 5:39pm

      .
      “His family is now demanding answers. ”
      Here’s your answer:
      Don’t point anything looking like a gun at police.

      There was a recent case in California.
      A drunk was in an apartment tennis court with a garden nozzle.
      Two police showed up and shot him without saying a word to him.
      One cop emptied his handgun and the other shot him with a shotgun.
      Garden nozzle.
      Cops are frightened, it’s not the “old days” where Barney Fife was safe.
      They shoot first.

      Report Post » Secret Squirrel  
    • richard the lion-hearted
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 5:46pm

      @secret squirrel~ You said, “There was a recent case in California.
      A drunk was in an apartment tennis court with a garden nozzle.
      Two police showed up and shot him without saying a word to him.
      One cop emptied his handgun and the other shot him with a shotgun.
      Garden nozzle.
      Cops are frightened, it’s not the “old days” where Barney Fife was safe.
      They shoot first.”

      And I say, what’s your point? Accept the brutality and law breaking by police because that’s what they do?! You’re attitude got america to this point along with all the other citizens of this country who want to reap the benefits of a christian, representitive republic, capitalist society but do little to nothing to protect the constitutional rights we have that ACTUALLY made this country great to begin with…pinhead.

      Report Post » richard the lion-hearted  
    • Old Truckers
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 5:51pm

      None of us were there, none of us know the facts and dynamics of the situation confronting the officers.

      All we can do is comment, but judging the matter is really not our place. That is what courtrooms are for.

      This is another situation coming out of…..Florida

      Report Post » Old Truckers  
    • Wyoming
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 6:02pm

      Did the police know he was handicapped – NO! Was he carrying a gun – YES! Why did the parents let him have a gun – not their fault. He was an adult with a gun – dead and it is a tragedy. But the police did the right thing.

      Report Post » Wyoming  
    • thegreatcarnac
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 6:09pm

      to OLD WHITE GUY…

      Mentally handicapped people can kill you too…very easily. What..were the cops supposed to give him a quick IQ test before they shot him while he pointed his weapon at them? Did he have that ‘mentally handicapped ’ look? His parents/handlers should not have let him out of their site with a toy rifle. Now…there is more room on the short bus.

      Report Post »  
    • loriann12
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 8:12pm

      I waited to see the gun in the video, but they didn’t show it. I have children. All toy guns have an orange tip, so you can tell they’re toys. I don’t know when they started this, or if he had one bought from before they started this, but you’d think they could tell it was a toy gun.

      Report Post »  
    • loriann12
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 8:14pm

      @Roberto G. Vasquez

      Any cop who can’t see that man is mentally hanicapped needs to go back to school. It’s obvious even from the still photograph, let alone seeing him actually alive and moving.

      Report Post »  
    • loriann12
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 8:21pm

      None of you have a handicapped adult child, do you? The man was 56 years old, that would make his parents at least 76 years old. Mentally disabled adults can be sneaky when they want out of the house. I have to watch my son like a hawk, and can only leave him alone for a couple hours. Luckily he’s Down Syndrome, so it‘s obvious he’s mentally re tard ed….and that word is the correct word, and doesn’t bother me a bit. He has all kinds of flashy guns, but I don’t buy the guns that look real. If he was in a home, there’s less supervision than with family members. And why confront him? If they talked to him, it probably was obvious he had a brain injury. I don’t know many brain injury survivors, but the ones I do know you say one word to them and know all the oars aren’t in the water.

      Report Post »  
    • TSUNAMI-22
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:40pm

      @ loriann12

      Any cop who can’t see that man is mentally hanicapped needs to go back to school. It’s obvious even from the still photograph, let alone seeing him actually alive and moving.
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      How could you look at that picture of the guy and DISPROVE that he wasn’t just a normal person on some sort of drug?

      You’re very narrow minded in your visual analysis.

      I’m not trying to defend the end result of this encounter with the gun-wielding person. It’s unfortunate. I’m trying to show some compassion for the cops and / or any other person who’s confronted with a similar situation and how one might react.

      Think of more than one possible scenario, add them all up, and then interject the information that has to be absorbed and assimilated by the responding officer as to what’s going through their head upon the active engagement. Include the fact that more than two or three officers died last year in apparently less threatening situations.

      Open your mind, people. Try to think past the obvious.

      Report Post »  
    • runchel_
      Posted on September 2, 2011 at 12:44am

      wow that’s some hateful crap man. if your brother was taken because of something like this you’d flip out most likely. its a shame anytime someones life or liberty is taken. police officers sign up to protect. there job is dangerous. they know this, they should always make sure.

      Report Post » runchel_  
    • FlashRiver
      Posted on September 2, 2011 at 2:43am

      I am not blaming anyone for this unfortunate incident; but, it boils down to lack of training… Police, Firefighters, Paramedics, Rescue, and many other state and federal agencies along with the each us need to address the fact that we do not know enough about the behavior of folks with metal issues… Take the case where a autistic child is handcuffed because he runs out of school and is sitting in the woods trying to get away from all the noise happening inside his head.
      Harmless to himself or any other at this point, school officials react by calling the police department asking for assistance and when a police officer not understanding fully what is happening will took appropriate steps and action to subdue the subject.
      If the staff and the police officer knew more about the actions of children with autism and how to deal with it, they and he would not have to take such drastic actions. Problems can be solved with education.

      Report Post » FlashRiver  
    • txbigfoot
      Posted on September 2, 2011 at 7:10am

      that looked like execution holes in the wall. IE more than one, two and three shots.
      More facts are needed. lets see the “toy”. If its the size of a mans forearm and orange tipped. then.. cya in the courtroom. Where was the all famous tazer?

      Report Post » txbigfoot  
    • RepubliCorp
      Posted on September 2, 2011 at 10:36am

      I just painted the tip of my real gun Orange>>>Get my point. Sad but the cops did nothing wrong

      Report Post » RepubliCorp  
    • Favored93
      Posted on September 3, 2011 at 10:30am

      My faith and trust in our Officers has been shaken lately however on this one I have to agree with the police at this point. Unless more comes out in this case they SAVED the lives of EVERY family in that neighborhood! The man was mentally disturbed and had a gun the cops tried to talk him down he pointed the gun at officers and they responded as they were trained to respond. Thank God this was just a toy gun and those men who put themselves in harms way get to go home and play with their children!
      It is a sad thing no question but unless something new comes out I say… GOOD JOB OFFICERS AND THANK YOU FOR KEEPING THAT AREA SAFE!

      Report Post » Favored93  
  • subsailor
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:46am

    Any death is tragic, and we should pray for this man and his family. The rush to judge the police right or wrong should stop now!!!! A lot depends on whether the police knew this man was retarded, and what the “Toy” gun looked like, what the lighting was at the time, did the subject point the gun at the police officers? Stop armchair quarterbacking! You weren’t there, and neither were this man’s relatives. This officer will have to live with the fact that he took someones life. Just shutup and let the system work.

    Those of you who automatically want to condemn the officer, are the first to holler for more protection.
    Remember that opinions are like buttholes. Everyone’s got one, and they all stink.

    Report Post »  
    • Islesfordian
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:00pm

      “Those of you who automatically want to condemn the officer, are the first to holler for more protection.”

      A flatly ignorant statement. We conservatives are not hollering for more protection from the police. We are hollering for the right to protect ourselves, because we know the police are incompetent to do it.

      Report Post » Islesfordian  
    • Liberalismsamentaldisorder
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:18pm

      “opinions are like buttholes and they all stink” Really? The constitution is an opinion. The bible is too. So is your post.

      Report Post »  
  • johnj1952
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:46am

    Gun fire was used, was any bullits shot at the police? The police over reactted as they have been doing over the last year or more. Come on they didnt get more info before opening fire? Trigger happy cops, shoot first ASK questions latter.

    Report Post » johnj1952  
    • subsailor
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:56am

      You don’t know what happened. You have no right to judge. Should I call you an illiterate inbred moron for your comment? No! So why would you automatically assume the police are wrong?

      Report Post »  
    • jeffile
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:03pm

      It seems the neighbors who called 911 thought he was dangerous. And you have to mentally unbalanced, liberal or a hippie if you actually believe the police should wait until shots are fired before reacting. Police don’t want to shoot anyone but if someone points an object which appears to be a gun in their direction then they are rightfully justified in shooting. What do you think? Police officers go to a bar after a shooting and celebrate?

      Report Post »  
    • Boblabla
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 2:58pm

      JohnJ1952, I bet you would be the first to run and hide if you came face to face with a gun. That is, after you wet down your leg. You punks are all the same. You can judge the officer but would never make it if you were put in the same situation.

      Report Post » Boblabla  
    • richard the lion-hearted
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 5:50pm

      if you think someone is armed and you have advance warning why would you put yourself in harm’s way? I for one (even as a glorious police officer) would take cover, shout the typical “Put the weapon down!” And if he didn‘t listen but ALSO didn’t fire, or if he did fire, you would be behind cover, you’d HEAR the bullets (or not) and guess what?! Then you’d know if his gun was real! Amazingly difficult to figure out for the safety of all concerned huh?

      Report Post » richard the lion-hearted  
    • richard the lion-hearted
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 6:04pm

      Clarification, I believe police who SAVE lives are heroes, not police that take lives first and ask questions later. It’s not that difficult to figure out. God’s words are just as clear, simple, and easy to understand, that’s why so many despise scripture and practicing christians because they live with the absolute truth from God and not the excuses of man to guide their lives, and in turn draw attention to the wicked acts of man which in turn infuriates those who would live without God. And I did say draw attention, not condemn or persecute.

      Report Post » richard the lion-hearted  
  • Anonymous T. Irrelevant
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:46am

    #1. If he was mentally handicapped, then he should be watched as a child should be watched.
    #2. Frantic calls? The man was never known to be violent?
    #3. She doesn’t look very upset that her brother was just killed.
    #4. We don’t know what transpired between the police and him, just conjecture from the sister that they killed him in cold blood.
    Sounds like a set-up, maybe? Don’t mean to sound cold-hearted, but the sister doesn’t appear to be upset at all, just indignant that they would kill her brother for carrying around a toy gun. they make it known, over and over, that he was just carrying around a toy gun and that the police killed him for nothing and that the police need training.
    The police came upon a black man, carrying what appeared to be a rifle. Since we don’t know what happened between the man and police, we can‘t say they didn’t try to get him to put it down or not.
    We don’t know if he pointed at police (the sister speculates that he was just probably trying to hand it to them) or not.
    It would be easier to not have to have a mentally-handicapped person around to watch constantly and by having him walk around with a toy gun and getting your neighbors to “frantically” call about a man walking around the neighborhood with a toy gun, sounds like a way to get the police to shoot him. Lawsuit time, jackpot.
    I hope I am wrong. I would like to think the police would do everything they could before shooting.
    Nobody asks why he was out walking around wit

    Report Post » Anonymous T. Irrelevant  
    • Islesfordian
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 4:05pm

      “#3. She doesn’t look very upset that her brother was just killed.”

      Really? You could tell that form the very brief clips that they showed? You must be a mind reader I suppose. She seemed pretty agitated to me, and shock often delays full emotional reactions.

      Report Post » Islesfordian  
  • Gypsy123
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:35am

    We had guns on the back of our windows when we went to high school the world has gone mad

    Report Post » Gypsy123  
    • Mutex
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 3:42pm

      Wasn’t that long ago. Even the classic Red Dawn movie had a truck with a gun rack in the window.

      Report Post » Mutex  
  • MrKnowItAll
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:35am

    Blame the police and then when one of these nut’s hurts, rapes or kills someone in your family or someone you know, you’d be going around blaming the police for letting this guy roam the streets. I knew actually crazy people and let me tell you some must be put out of OUR misery.

    Report Post » MrKnowItAll  
  • NO YOU CANT
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:35am

    What a sad story. Unfortunately, everyone was a victim.
    The poor man is dead, the family is mourning; and the police officer…
    Can you imagine thinking you might be dead one moment, then realizing you took the life of a mentally ill person. The guilt he must be feeling.
    God help them all.

    Report Post » NO YOU CANT  
  • Tiberius
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:32am

    In Texas we protect ourselves. That man wouldn’t have even got down the street. I own a air-soft gun that looks identical to a M-16. The only way to tell is the orange tip. It is obvious that the guy covered the orange tip. If this is true then the police had no choice.

    Report Post »  
  • PApeacemaker
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:26am

    What the hell?! When I didnt have a drivers license I used to always walk to my local gun store in town & I sometimes would buy a rifle & I carried it home. I slung it over my shoulder & would walk the 10 blocks back home through the middle of town. Theres NO law stating you can not walk down the road with a rifle. These people who called “frantically” need to chill the heck out. As long as your not firing the rifle theres no crime. An that lady needs to put her denchers in when she talks & stop hitting the crack pipe cuz as you can see it rotted her teeth out. I bet her breath smells just rosey lol

    Report Post » PApeacemaker  
    • Gonzo
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:32am

      If the cops had confronted you and told you to drop it, you would have. This poor soul probably didn’t. Cops aren’t clairvoyant. It’s tragic but, I can see how it could happen.

      Report Post » Gonzo  
    • krenshau
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:03pm

      Probably what happened was five or so cops rushed up on him with their lights and sirens going, pulled out their guns and started shouting at him. Mentally retarded people can’t process information when it comes like that. Since he didn’t drop the gun in .01 seconds they shot him. Back when cops were actually brave and didn’t think everyone was a criminal they would have walked up to him and talked to him calmly. Police aren‘t smart enough to realize that some people don’t process yelling and actually shut down when yelled at.

      Report Post »  
    • Anonymous T. Irrelevant
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 1:05pm

      Apparently KRENSHAU is clairvoyant or has a time-viewer and watched the whole thing, because he knows what went on between the man and police, when nobody else does.
      Either that, or he just plain hates police.

      Report Post » Anonymous T. Irrelevant  
    • wildbill_b
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 5:40pm

      What is frightening about this kind of thing happening is the fact that ALL OF US HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE ARMED. PERIOD.

      ALL LEO’s should ASSUME that EVERYONE is armed. Yet when someone actually exercises that right, cops just shoot them because they are
      1. Ignorant of the Law
      2. Poorly trained
      3. Scared of their own shadows ( the ones who shoot first then gather facts later)
      4. Lack Constitutional authority to exist as they are “corporation security” at best. The Sheriff is the ONLY Constitutional Law enforcement
      5. Are not enforcing “Law” at all, as they merely enforce corporation rules
      6. Have no authority over private citizens

      Peace.

      Report Post »  
  • olddog
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:23am

    Listen to the rhetoric from the congressional black caucus and other black law makers of how violent the Tea Party is. Our government officials are causing a divide between races making people afraid and because of this fear when people see Anything slightly unusual it frightens them and the police..
    We can blame this and flash mobs and black hate crimes against white on our black leaders and the liberal media..

    Report Post » olddog  
    • Steelhead
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:33am

      of course blaming the victim is always used by the tea-party to justify race-relations

      Report Post » Steelhead  
    • starman70
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:38am

      RIGHT ON TARGET!!!! Of course that’s what Odummer and his lobotmy survivor, liberal henchmen want. A population devided is easier to conquor.

      Report Post »  
    • jeffile
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:16pm

      Steelhead: of course blaming the victim is always used by the tea-party to justify race-relations.

      Can you name one instance of race baiting coming from a Tea Party supporter? I can sure as hell give you a dozen examples right off the top of my head of liberals blatant racist remarks and conduct starting with the Occuppier of the Oval Office, the head of the DOJ and members of the Black Caucus. Yours is standard liberal rheteric which I, as a conservative, will no more sit back and allow you to cast unfounded and erroneous allegations.

      Report Post »  
    • Steelhead
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:42pm

      Glenn Beck said on T.V. that Obama hates white people, does that count

      Report Post » Steelhead  
    • 13th Imam
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 3:03pm

      He does hate whitey, he said it on TV

      Report Post » 13th Imam  
  • drago
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:14am

    Wtf did this guys mother say, couldnt understand a word she said, my guess, an illegal maybe? As for this guys death, dont blame the cops for protecting themselves or the public, blame yourself lady, but thats typical of obummers people, never take responsibility upon themselves.

    Report Post »  
  • starman70
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:12am

    This is a sad story. A mentally handicapped man with a gun (Which turnedout to be a toy) awalking around a neighborhood threatening law abiding citizens is a bad deal for everyone. Where did he get the toy gun? Did his family know he had it and is so why did they let him keep it, knowing his mental status? How real did it look? If a toy, and marked with the required orange trim, did he paint over the orange to make it look more realistic?

    A police officer, responding to a “Man with a Gun” call is already on high alert and concerned with his safety and the safety of his fellow officers. If this mentally deranged man pointed this “Weapon” at the officers and made any threatening moves, the officer hasn’t got the time to ask if the gun is real or not. He is trained to react.

    My sympathy lies with the officer involved. I can feel the pain he felt when he found out that the gun was a toy. He will undergo hellish and grueling interrogation. He will have to testify at the Coroners Inquest. He will probably be villified in the liberal media. But most of all, he will question himself the rest of his life.He will ask himself over and over again: Could I have done anything differently? He may even lose his family.

    That’s a tough price to pay to be a guardian of law and order. Truly thank GOD that we have courageous people to fill that calling. If not, America would be like the old west with every one toting a six gun. Maybe that’s not a bad idea after all.

    Report Post »  
    • Highland
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:55am

      What are the cops supposed to do, conduct an on-the-spot psychological review of the guy? There’s a mentally handicapped person in my family who, although he doesn‘t always understand what he’s doing, still can be dangerous to others – and has been. How are the police supposed to discern, within a matter of seconds, whether someone with what appears to be a lethal weapon can form the requisite intent to use it?

      Report Post » Highland  
    • krenshau
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:05pm

      Simply having a gun does not constitute a threat.

      Report Post »  
    • richard the lion-hearted
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 6:20pm

      @starman70 ~ Ummm, you get a toy gun at a ‘toy store’, why did they let him keep it? Because it was a TOY GUN!! People should stop defending the police’s actions, it’s the policy under which they operate, they are somewhat relieved of responsibility (if they are totally ignorant of what a ‘peace’ officer means or that the CITIZENS pay their salaries) for following orders but when the existing policies are unjust and unconstitutional I give little to no credit to those who don’t know the rights they are violating, it’s the duty of ALL citizens to be well-armed and know their rights under the Constitution.

      Report Post » richard the lion-hearted  
  • UlyssesP
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:08am

    Hey tourists, stay out of Miami because your ignorance of police attitudes here will get you shot by a power drunk MDPD officer.

    Report Post » UlyssesP  
    • afishfarted
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:15am

      I dunno. He was mentallyhadicapped. carrying a toy rifle. Sounds bad. But did this handicap think it was ok to play cops and robbers? gotta ask the relavant questions here

      Report Post »  
    • starman70
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:21am

      Can you imagine what Miami would be like WITHOUT any police? I go to Miami very often, have met up with and talked to police officers (I’m not one by the way) and have found them all to be couretous, helpful and friendly. Of course, I’m nor accosting them with a gun or toy lookalike.

      Report Post »  
  • Kara_ite
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:04am

    What language is that woman speaking?
    It is very hard to understand her. There is more to this story. Why was he roaming the streets alone?

    Report Post » Kara_ite  
  • ridgerunner316
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:01am

    Well, here we go again. 911 calls of a man with a gun. He is found by police, with a gun. He gets shot. In nearly 30 years of law enforcement, I never learned to tell a realistic toy gun from a real one. If he was such a peaceful soul, then the neighborhood should have know he was harmless and not called the police. His conduct prompted the calls, the police respond with the information they have at hand and make a response. They had no way to know that it was a toy gun, that he was mentally challanged or that he was “harmless”. The officers have to react to the situation when they come upon it. It is always the case in a police shooting, the family comes out of the woodwork wanting “answers”. The answer is, if the family knew of his condition, why wasn’t he under their supervision and care. Apparently, he had been mentally challanged for a long time….Where was the family?!?!? Like sharks, they smell blood in the water and hope to collect from the gubment again….

    Report Post »  
    • Nepenthe
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:12am

      “I never learned to tell a realistic toy gun from a real one. ”

      Toy guns don’t shoot bullets. But law enforcement are allowed to open fire even though they have not been fired upon, or even when their lives are not in danger. The amount of power given to these people, who may or may not have sufficient training or education, is incredibly frightening.

      Report Post » Nepenthe  
    • starman70
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:15am

      AMEN! AMEN! AMEN!
      reqired lower casew.

      Report Post »  
    • wes71
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:22am

      Really!? Are you gonna wait to be fired on before you protect yourself or are you going to see a threat towards your live and react?

      Report Post »  
    • starman70
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:33am

      @NEPENTHE:

      If a police officer stops to ask if the gun is real or not, There will be 2 funerals: one for the person with the gun, the other for the policeman he shot.

      If you are looking down the barrel of a gun real of not – - – well? Put yourself in that situation.

      Report Post »  
    • richard the lion-hearted
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:44am

      Obviously he was NO threat if he had a toy gun and was mentally disabled without being violent, which is why he was allowed to walk the streets in the first place, and YES law enforcement should error on the side of caution just like the rest of us should in a any similiar situation. He wasn’t threatening anyone specifically nor was he breaking down doors.

      Report Post » richard the lion-hearted  
    • scjeff
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:24pm

      My best friend is a police officer and he was working the overnight shift where a mentally ill fellow was running around the hood with an axe. Yelling at the top of his lungs and threatening everyone. The entire neighborhood knew the man and his family but no one was able to settle him down. After the third call and drive through, my friend saw the man hiding in the bushes. The man then charged holding the axe in the air like he was going to chop. My friend drew his .45 at the last moment and said “Drop the axe or I will shoot you!” The scream and charge stopped immediately and the guy dropped the axe but he was within 4 feet. Of course the neighborhood complained and the family sued over “excessive show of force” but the mentally ill guy lived on.

      Report Post » scjeff  
    • TH30PH1LUS
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 1:24pm

      @ Nepenthe:

      Obviously you have never been flashed by the muzzle of a gun or rifle.

      I’ll give the officer the benefit of the doubt here.

      Report Post » TH30PH1LUS  
  • lel2007
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:01am

    Obviously the toy gun looked authentic enough to cause the officer to fear not seeing his family that evening.
    There are cigarette lighters that look like hand guns. If you have one you’re more likely to die of lead poisoning than of lung cancer.

    Report Post » lel2007  
  • TSUNAMI-22
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:00am

    - It’s the guns fault, right?
    - Why (as his relative stated) was he afraid of the police?
    - It‘s the TEA party’s evil doing, right?
    - It’s police brutality, right?
    - The frantic 911 calls of a man with a gun were from racists, right?

    ….have I left anything out?

    Report Post »  
    • biohazard23
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:29am

      Yeah, you forgot to mention that it‘s Bush’s and Palin’s fault. They like to use those excuses, too.

      Report Post » biohazard23  
    • mankind7375
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:37am

      It‘s Bush’s Fault, don’t forget that one.

      Report Post »  
    • Pastor Ray
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:57am

      I really feel for the officer or officers that messed up and shot him but as one said before where was his family at? This situation is like someone coming through my door in the middle of the night…They WILL get shot! Its dark its hard to see and you and I both know that he was told to drop the gun and he didn’t…So again where was his family?

      Report Post » Pastor Ray  
  • BrotherWill
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 10:59am

    Hello? Its not illegal to OPEN CARRY A FIREARM. These cops should all be fired and jailed for murder.

    Report Post » BrotherWill  
    • DanWesson455
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:04am

      Ya carry, ya don’t point it at the Cops. Big difference.

      Report Post » DanWesson455  
    • ridgerunner316
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:09am

      At least here in Virginia, it is unlawful to brandish a firearm in such a manner as to reasonably induce fear in the mind of another. Point an object that looks like a firearm at a dog and other acts I believe would induce fear in the mind of the “reasonable man” so looked to as a standard in legal proceedings. I suppose the officers should have know from his looks that he was harmless and just driven away rather than confront someone that prompted 911 calls. With firearms ownership comes responsibility and that does not include marching up and down a street brandishing a gun or replica thereof. Some were calling for the shooting of an unarmed man in South Carolina punching at a police officer which I do not feel was justifed under the information presented here. In this case, the threat of a gun is more important than the gun’s authenticity. His behavior caused people to call the police. They responded. What the hell would you have done in their place if confronted by this situation????

      Report Post »  
  • Steelhead
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 10:55am

    good luck prosecuting the cops-they always walk

    Report Post » Steelhead  
    • lel2007
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:11am

      Anybody can tell a real gun from a toy. The real ones make a hole in you; the toy ones don’t.

      Report Post » lel2007  
    • Anonymous T. Irrelevant
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 12:03pm

      @LEL2007
      Some guns are harder to tell than other, especially in the dark. Would you wait until they put a hole in you, to find out? I’m sure they told him to put the gun down, to get on the ground. “Frantic calls” were made about a man, walking around the neighborhood, with a gun and pointing it at a dog.
      It’s too bad they he got killed, instead of just wounded.
      The sister and family are not without responsibility here, either.

      Report Post » Anonymous T. Irrelevant  
  • DanWesson455
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 10:55am

    Cops can’t tell if a gun is a gun is a toy if everything is black or silver on it. Glocks look plastic and now many other guns are built like Glocks. The toy industry makes these things look so real. Some nervous kid with a badge, hell a veteran close to retirement, isn’t waiting to see the flash and hear the boom when someone starts to raise a gun up. They are going to pull the trigger and go home at the end of the shift. Too bad for this guy. Mental or not, too bad.

    Report Post » DanWesson455  
  • mossbrain
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 10:55am

    Good riddance.

    Report Post » mossbrain  
    • Vechorik
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:15am

      Mossbrain, your troll-ism is quite funny — Your name is quite appropriate.

      Report Post »  
  • The_Almighty_Creestof
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 10:55am

    Whole facts are not in…so hold onto your conclusions and keep them from jumping.

    Report Post »  
  • ColoradoMaverick
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 10:55am

    I don’t know of any police officer that would want to just kill a man for carrying around a toy gun. Why was this man carrying a gun? What was his mental capacity? Has he done this before? Was someone in charge of this man if he was not capable of doing so for himself? People should not jump to conclusions (Obama) and end up having to have a Beer Summit. Let’s let the professionals investigate and see what we learn.

    Report Post » ColoradoMaverick  
  • DimmuBorgir
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 10:51am

    Here’s a tip for anyone that is the caretaker of a mentally disabled person.

    Don’t let them walk around the neighborhood with a toy rifle, just a tip.

    Report Post » DimmuBorgir  
    • lel2007
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:08am

      And don’t walk in the woods donning an antlers headband, unless your intent is suicide by Hunter.

      Report Post » lel2007  
  • Freedom Keeper
    Posted on September 1, 2011 at 10:51am

    So sad but from a distance how do you know he’s handicapped? If I saw a man with a ‘rifle’ I’d be careful too. I feel sorry for him getting killed, but how come no one was watching him?

    Report Post »  
    • DanWesson455
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:06am

      Did you see and hear his Sister. I saw her but didn’t understand a sentence she was saying.
      Maybe that is a contributing factor why this guy is in the morgue now.

      Report Post » DanWesson455  
    • ridgerunner316
      Posted on September 1, 2011 at 11:11am

      Sounds Jamacian to me….

      Report Post »  
1 2 3

Sign In To Post Comments! Sign In

Sign Up For Our Newsletter!

Glenn Beck Radio

Listen to Glenn Beck 24/7 Listen Now
Restoring Love