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Public D
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Seems the FPD & Prosecutors office have found a sure-fire way to reduce prison overcrowding. What a sad, sad disgrace.
http://www.mlive.com/flintjournal/index.ssf/2008/04/neighbors_decry_prosecutor_dav.html#comments
Neighbors decry Prosecutor David Leyton's decision not to charge Flint police officers in shooting of Jo Ann Burgett
by RoNeisha Mullen | The Flint Journal
Thursday April 03, 2008, 1:16 PM
FLINT, Michigan -- Neighbors of a Flint woman who was gunned down by police on April 20, 2007, say they are outraged that charges will not be brought against the officers who killed her.
"That's not right," Lisa Willingham, 38, said referring to the decision not to charge the officers. "Why didn't they shoot her in the leg? Something she could've lived through."
At a news conference today, county Prosecutor David Leyton announced that he would not seek charges against the officers who shot the woman, stating that their actions were lawful.
"It's not my role as prosecutor to be super cop," Leyton said. "All I can do is look at the facts and determine if the actions of the officers were lawful.
"In this case, the shooting was clearly lawful."
Jo Ann Burgett, 46, died after being shot five times by two Flint Police officers who said Burgett refused orders to put down a knife she was carrying.
The officers were called to Shady Acres mobile home park on Western Road for "neighbor trouble," where they found Burgett in the middle of the street outside Lot 32 with an open buck knife in her hand and a broken beer bottle at her feet.
Officers opened fire on her when she got within five feet of them and reared back with the knife, a folding lock-back model with a 2.5-inch-long blade. She died at the scene.
Willingham doesn't live in the mobile home park, but was there visiting family when it happened.
"She was an itty bitty thing," Willingham said. "They could've done all types of things to get the knife from her."
Lot 32 where Burgett's mobile home once sat is now empty. Three cements steps that led to the door of her home are still in place.
Amanda Kaake, 33, lives directly behind the lot where the shooting took place. Her 12-year-old daughter Dee stood 20 feet away, she said.
"It emotionally messed her up." Kaake said. "She started counseling last year and she just finished up."
Dee Stuck described the scene as "creepy."
"I had nightmares every night," the young girl said. "Besides the cops I was the last one to talk to her."
Candy Brabbs' daughter was with Dee when the shooting happened. Brabbs said "it's not right" that the police officers won't face charges.
"She was an innocent woman," Brabbs said. "That was hard for all those kids to see. It was only a little bitty knife."
Willingham said she hopes the family sues.
"That family should be getting some justification," Willingham said. "I hope her family sues the crap out of the city." |
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Thu Apr 03, 2008 3:08 pm |
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Bossman
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| Whatever! The neighbors are idiots. The police reacted exactly as they are trained. She died because of the decisions she made, not the fault of the police. I hope the family gets diddly squat. |
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Fri Apr 04, 2008 2:15 pm |
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Demeralda
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| Yeah, a 5 foot 1 tiny crazy woman with a paring knife is an imminent threat! Shoot them all! |
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Fri Apr 04, 2008 2:59 pm |
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Public D
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| I thought the police were trained to evaluate threats, use basic common sense, act in accordance with those assessments, use karate, patience, "their words," whatever, before two grown men blindly unload seven slugs into a intoxicated senior citizen with a fruit knife. Bossman, that may be what they're trained to do when confronted by drunk, male in the prime of his life (I doubt it), but to use that same by-the-book logic when facing an old lady who had too much to drink just doesn't pass the lethal force, or BS, test. Rationalize and justify all you want, but a boy scout would have done a more professional job. Pathetic. |
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Fri Apr 04, 2008 5:34 pm |
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twotap
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| Hey Bossman I see a couple of options here. The first and most logical would be to make sure all officers have available to them the latest in taser technology. If that is too costly for Flint how about a citizens volunteer squad made up of the Public D types who will while the officers back off go in and defuse any knife wielding calls before they get out of hand. Go get her PD shes just a little bitty gal and its just a bitty little knife. PROBLEM SOLVED. Also Pd did you up the no. of shots on your own from 5 to 7 just to make it seem more heartless? |
_________________
"If you like your current healthcare you can keep it, Period"!!
Barack Hussein Obama--- multiple times. |
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Fri Apr 04, 2008 6:45 pm |
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scrwedinflint
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| Wow!! I am absolutely amazed at the ignorance of Public D. Am I to believe that a knife wielded by a 46 year old 5'1" woman won't kill me??? Normal people (drunk or not) do not come at police officers (or anybody for that matter) with knives. I beg you to in the future keep your moronic opinions locked up in that tiny little head of yours. |
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Fri Apr 04, 2008 9:27 pm |
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Public D
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quote:
twotap schreef:
Go get her PD shes just a little bitty gal and its just a bitty little knife. PROBLEM SOLVED. Also Pd did you up the no. of shots on your own from 5 to 7 just to make it seem more heartless?
FTP can call me any time they're too scared of the big bad public, Twotap. 810-239-3008. All I know is it would've taken 1 shot (or 5 or 7)
in the air
to resolve the situation. Why you macho-men poster posers are defending this brazen act of deadly pig hissy-fitting is offending my he-balls. Grrrrr. Screwflint, what is the difference between 'normal people' and 'disposable people' anyway? Amaze us with your humanity, please. |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 1:34 am |
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terrybankert
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A loss of a life. How sad. The officers properly defended themselves. Different officers may have reached a different conclusion.But we are responsible for our own actions.The community should discuss with the police its poicies and what could assist them i.e. new equipment. But the following pictures shock and do not add to the discussion. That discussion will take place elsewhere.
Last edited by terrybankert on Sat Apr 05, 2008 9:11 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 4:49 am |
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Smakutus
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quote:
scrwedinflint schreef:
Wow!! I am absolutely amazed at the ignorance of Public D. Am I to believe that a knife wielded by a 46 year old 5'1" woman won't kill me??? Normal people (drunk or not) do not come at police officers (or anybody for that matter) with knives. I beg you to in the future keep your moronic opinions locked up in that tiny little head of yours.
I'd grab a billy club, a 2x4, a rake, or a broom etc. and take out most woman holding a knife. I certainly wouldn't have had to shoot her 5 times. I hear Flint police don't have tazers which would have taken care of this pretty easy too. I've also heard that there were others around with weapons in hand but they all dropped them when the cops told them to.
These cops are very lucky a kid didn't get shot during all this.
Jeff |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 3:35 pm |
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Dave Starr
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| They don't have tasers, night sticks or large flashlights. Nightsticks and 3 cell maglights were banned a while back because they supposedly remind people of cops beating black people in other cities. |
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I used to care, but I take a pill for that now.
Pushing buttons sure can be fun.
When a lion wants to go somewhere, he doesn’t worry about how many hyenas are in the way.
Paddle faster, I hear banjos. |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 5:33 pm |
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twotap
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I myself believe that tasers are the answer to situations like this. Just a quick reminder to all what happens when an officer decides to go hand to hand with a knife wielder.
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"If you like your current healthcare you can keep it, Period"!!
Barack Hussein Obama--- multiple times. |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 5:34 pm |
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andi03
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| Egads......can you say: Pass me the morphine drip, please? |
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Build a bridge and get over it! |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 5:36 pm |
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twotap
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I refrained from showing the frontal view since you are able to see the officers teeth though his mouth is closed. The knife in question was a 3 inch folder which is just 1/2 longer blade than the lady in question was threatening the officers with. Can you say carotid artery.  |
_________________
"If you like your current healthcare you can keep it, Period"!!
Barack Hussein Obama--- multiple times. |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 5:47 pm |
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squash
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| Sheesh Tap. When you make a point.... |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 7:28 pm |
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Smakutus
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quote:
twotap schreef:
I myself believe that tasers are the answer to situations like this. Just a quick reminder to all what happens when an officer decides to go hand to hand with a knife wielder.
Who was the knife wielder there? I doubt it was a small drunk woman in her mid 40's..
Jeff |
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Sat Apr 05, 2008 7:30 pm |
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