Watch As Teen Shot To Death For Failing To Comply With Police Officer
Read Time:3 Minute, 47 Second
Every time an incident occurs involving the police, graduates of the Facebook School of Law and YouTube, can’t wait to post nonsense based on nonsense they read on someone else’s Facebook page or YouTube video.
One of the silliest, and most dangerous, is the assertion that police officers don’t have the right to ask you for your driver’s license while you’re driving a car. Well, they do, and if you refuse you are subject to arrest. A 17-year old man in Lansing, Michigan had his whole life ahead of him until he refused to comply with the reasonable request of a police officer.
From Lansing State Journal
CHARLOTTE – An Eaton County Sheriff’s sergeant’s actions in a fatal shooting in February were lawful, a prosecutor said Tuesday.
Eaton County Prosecutor Doug Lloyd said he reviewed the investigation by Michigan State Police, video from Sgt. Jonathan Frost’s body camera and footage from the cell phone of 17-year-old Deven Guilford, who was filming the traffic stop after being pulled over by Frost near Grand Ledge. Frost’s patrol vehicle did not have a dash camera.
Guilford, who was unarmed, was shocked with a stun gun after not complying with Frost’s commands and then was shot seven times following an altercation with the officer.
“No one wins in these particular situations, but it’s the prosecutor’s responsibility to look at the facts, make a determination from the facts — was there a crime or was there not a crime?” Lloyd said.
Guilford’s family said they will seek justice elsewhere following Lloyd’s decision.
The lawyer for the family called Frost’s actions “unreasonable” and said the family is planning a federal civil lawsuit.
Lloyd’s announcement shed light on an incident that had previously only been described by sheriff’s officials as an officer-involved shooting that resulted in Guilford’s death and Frost being injured.
MSP investigators interviewed Guilford’s father and girlfriend, who both said he had been watching YouTube videos of police encounters with citizens. While he didn’t express anti-police views, Lloyd’s release said Guilford described the videos as examples of police violating citizens’ rights.
Frost, an eight-year veteran, initiated the stop after Guilford flashed his bright lights because he thought Frost’s were on, according to the video played during the press conference.
The video clearly shows the traffic stop and lead up to the shooting, yet both were knocked to the ground, leaving only audio of the shots fired.
“No one wins in these particular situations, but it’s the prosecutor’s responsibility to look at the facts, make a determination from the facts — was there a crime or was there not a crime?” Lloyd said.
Guilford was uncooperative from the start of the encounter, refusing to hand over his driver’s license, registration and insurance information despite repeated commands from Sergeant Frost, an 8-year-veteran of the force. When Frost attempted to remove Guilford from the car, the teen resisted again.
Held at taser point, Guilford finally obeyed Frost’s commands to get on the ground but as Frost went to place cuffs on him, the teen fought back. Frost deployed the taser but only one prong found it’s mark, rendering it ineffective.The fight continued in the ditch on the side of the road with Guilford landing on top of and repeatedly punching Frost.
Lloyd said Frost could feel blood in his mouth and felt he was about to lose consciousness before he removed his gun from the holster. Frost’s gun did not fire at first, but he ejected an unfired round, chambered a new round and fired seven shots at close range in four seconds, all of which struck Guilford.
With the judge’s decision Frost will be removed from administrative leave and resume patrol duties. The Guilford family plans to file a federal wrongful death suit.“The family is very unhappy,” said family attorney Hugh Davis. “It’s just very hard to go from dimming lights or not dimming lights to being dead.”
Moral of the story: Don’t rely on Facebook or YouTube to tell you what to do when confronted by the police. Most importantly remember if you don’t resist you won’t get hurt.
Tip of the hat to Pete Lopez.
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“What we have here is a failure to communicate.” As I pointed out in another comment, people need to know what their rights really are and are not. How many times I have told students in my university classes that,”No, an officer in a traffic stop does not have to read you your Miranda rights to give you a ticket.” and “Yes, if an officer tells you to step out of the vehicle you must step out of the vehicle.”
And, as Reese Witherspoon found out when her husband was arrested for DUI in Atlanta, if the officer tells you to stay in the vehicle you must stay in the vehicle and keep your mouth shut.
As I remember telling a guy one time, “you have the right to remain silent and now would be a damn good time to put that right to good use.”
This is a tragedy that should have never happened. Most likely it would have ended with an explanation and both simply going their own way. So sad.
Yep. As in Cool Hand Luke and as you said: what we have here is a failure to communicate.
It’s a tragedy but I can see where the officer was left with little choice.
Absolutely justified. All that kid had to do was show the officer his license and he would probably have been let off with a warning. But no. He had to be a dick about it. He’s a dead dick now.