Last Wednesday Another Another Young, BLACK Man Was Killed Via Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officers Wielding Taser Guns.
21 Year-Old Lareko Williams Was Pronounced DEAD At A Charlotte Hospital After Being Tasered By A CMPD Officer Who Responded To A Scene Involving Williams Allegedly Abusing A Woman Presumed To Be His Girlfriend.
The Incident Occurred At A Charlotte Light Rail Station.
i.e., Lynx Blue Line Trains Operated By CATS.
Earlier This Week The Family Of Another Young, BLACK Also Killed By Charlotte Police Officer Via A Taser Gun, Was Awarded $10 Million In A Lawsuit Against The Manufacturer Of Taser Guns Used By CMPD.
Since This Incident Occurred At A Charlotte Light Rail Station Its Imperative I Touch On Several Related Key Elements.
BLACK Citizens Who Ride Charlotte Light Rail Trains Are Treated Very Poorly By Both Charlotte Police Officers & CATS Employees.
Were It Not For BLACK Citizens Using Charlotte's Mass Public Transportation System, CATS Would Make Hardly Any Money To Operate The System Because Most Of Its Passengers Are In Fact BLACK.
Yet.....
Those Same BLACK Passengers Which Keeps CATS Functioning Are Treated Very Poorly i.e., Obvious, Blatant RACISM!
Yes RACISM!!
Whether Charlotte's Scared BLACK Mayor & Scared BLACK City Council Officials Wish To Ever Admit It, And Even Though Charlotte Won The 2012 DNC Bid, Charlotte, North Carolina Is STILL A City Largely Troubled & Divided By Centuries Old KKK Institutionalized RACISM!!
When BLACK Passengers Ride The Charlotte Light Rail If A BLACK Passenger Is Found To Be Riding The Light Rail Without A Ticket, They Are Immediately Given A $50.00 Citation Ticket By Either A CMPD Officer Or A CATS Light Rail Employee.
However....
If A WHITE Passenger Is Found To Be Riding Charlotte's Light Rail System Without A Ticket That WHITE Light Rail Passenger Is NEVER Given A Ticket!
Instead They Are Simply Allowed To Exit The Train At The Next Stop & All Is Well.
If That Isn't A Blatant Example Of Racism Then Please Explain To Me What Is??
If BLACK Passengers Are Loud & Rowdy On Charlotte's Light Rail Trains They Are Either Arrested By CMPD Officers Or Made To Exit At The Nearest Stop.
However....
If WHITE Passengers Are Loud & Rowdy On Charlotte's Light Rail Trains They Are Allowed To Continue Riding Without ANY Interference From CMPD Officers Or CATS Light Rail Employees.
If That Isn't Another Blatant Example Of Racism Then Please Explain To Me What Is??
In Charlotte's WHITE Or Predominantly Communities The Buses Are ALWAYS ON TIME.
However....
In Charlotte's BLACK Or Predominantly BLACK Communities (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) The Buses Are NEVER On Time!!
If That Isn't Another Blatant Example Of Racism Then Please Explain To Me What Is??
In Charlotte's WHITE Or Predominantly Communities The Buses Are ALWAYS Clean, NEW Or Well Maintained.
However.....
In Charlotte's BLACK Or Predominantly BLACK Communities (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) The Buses Are ALWAYS OLD, Raggedy, Roach-Infested & Poorly Maintained.
Despite The Fact That Both Charlotte's BLACK & WHITE Citizens Pay The SAME Fares To Use CATS Services, Its Quite Obvious Charlotte's WHITE Citizens Are Clearly Getting A Better Bang For Their Buck!
However....
If Charlotte's WHITE Citizens Choose To Complain About Charlotte's CATS Already GREAT Services In Their Communities, Charlotte Officials Including Mayor Anthony Foxx Immediately Sees To It Their Concerns Are Heard & Corrected.
However....
If Charlotte's BLACK Citizens Choose To Complain About Charlotte's CATS Blatantly POOR Services In Their Communities (East, Northwest, Southwest, West Charlotte), Charlotte Officials Including Mayor Anthony Foxx Immediately Sees To It Their Concerns Are NOT Heard & The Already POOR CATS Services In Charlotte's BLACK Communities (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) Gets WORSE!!
i.e., RETALIATION FOR SPEAKING UP!!!
Again I Ask If That Isn't Another Blatant Example Of Racism Then Please Explain To Me What Is??
In Addition Charlotte's Light Rail System Was Built On Charlotte's South Side, An Area Of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Predominantly Occupied By Charlotte's Wealthy, WHITE Citizens.
But Where Did The Money Come From To Construct Charlotte's Light Rail System?
Charlotte's BLACK Citizens (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) Because Charlotte's Public Mass Transportation System (CATS) Is Utilized By More BLACK Citizens Than WHITE Citizens At Least 10:1!
However.....
Despite This Fact Charlotte's BLACK Communities (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) Have ONLY Been Given An Old Trolley & Raggedy, OLD, Roach-Infested Buses Which NEVER Run On Time!
Charlotte's 2nd BLACK Mayor In The City's History Anthony Foxx & Other BLACK City Council Officials Are Well Aware Of How POORLY Charlotte's BLACK Citizens (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) Are Treated By CATS (Charlotte's Mass Public Transportation System) But Don't Seem To Care Or Give A Darn.
NO They Don't Seem To Give A Darn!
Even Though Were It NOT For Charlotte's BLACK Voters (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) Neither Anthony Foxx, Nor Patrick Cannon, Warren Turner, James Mitchell, David Howard (All BLACK) Would Currently Be Serving In Public Office.
All Of That Brings Us Back To The Recent Situation At Hand About Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officers Using Unnecessary Force On Charlotte's BLACK Residents ((East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte)) Whenever They Are Called To Respond To An Incident.
Especially If It Involves An Incident Which May Adversely Impact Charlotte's WHITE Citizens Who Ride The Light Rail Line. i.e., Lynx Blue Line.
As Mentioned Above Young, BLACK Male Citizen Mr. Lareko Williams (Now Deceased) Was Apparently Allegedgly Hitting His Presumed Girlfriend At A Charlotte Light Rail Station When CMPD Officers Were Called To The Scene By A Witness.
Notice I Said This Incident Occurred At A Charlotte Light Rail Station.
You Know The SAME Light Rail System Built Primarily To Service Charlotte's WHITE Citizens, At The Expense Of Charlotte's BLACK CATS Passengers Who Use Charlotte's CATS Services 10:1.
Now Since I Was NOT At The Scene Of The Crime, I Don't Know What Actually Happened.
But It Is Clear That Mr. Williams Did NOT Have A Gun Of Any Type On His Person, Nor Did He Pull A Weapon Of Any Type At The CMPD Officer Called To The Scene.
So Why Was He Tasered To DEATH??
Notice I Said To DEATH!!
As In The Officer Continued To Taser Mr. Williams Until He Died From Cardiac Arrest!
For The Record I Do NOT Advocate Or Endorse Domestic Violence Period?
NO I Don't!! Of Course Not!
Except The Way I See It Is Violence Is Violence Whether Its Perpetrated By A Regular Citizen Or An CMPD Officer.
Excuse Me But.....
Didn't The City Of Charlotte Just Pay Out A HUGE Settlement To The Family Of Another Young, BLACK Male Citizen, Darryl Turner Who Died After Being Tasered TO DEATH By Another CMPD Officer?
As In The Officer Continued To Taser Mr. Turner Until He Too Died From Cardiac Arrest?
YES!!
Excuse Me But.....
Didn't Darryl Turner's Family Recently Win A $10 Million Settlement From The Manufacturer Of Taser Guns Used By CMPD Officers?
YES!!
Neither Young, BLACK Male Citizen Killed By CMPD Officers Via Taser Guns, Were Carrying Weapons Or Threatened CMPD Officers With Weapons.
Unless....
Weapons Were Planted On Mr. Williams' & Mr. Turner's Person By CMPD Officers.
Or....
Unless CMPD Investigators Lied In Their Reports That Both Men DID Have Weapons In Their Possession When CMPD Officers Responded To The Calls Involving Both Men.
So Why Were Those Two Young, BLACK Male Citizens Killed By CMPD Officers??
Why Were Darryl Turner & Lareko Williams Tasered Until DEATH Occurred??
i.e., INTENTIONAL ACT; MURDER; MANSLAUGHTER!
Does Legally Wearing A Police Uniform & Police Badge Give CMPD Officers A License To Just Randomly KILL Young, BLACK Male Citizens Or Young, BLACK Female Citizens At Will???
NO!! At Least It Shouldn't!
Well Then Why Is It That Charlotte's Chief Of Police & Charlotte's Mayor (Both BLACK Men) Have Continued To Allow CMPD Officers To Use & KILL Charlotte's Young, BLACK Citizens With Taser Guns??
Is It Just To Make Charlotte's WHITE Citizens Feel Safe & To Prevent WHITE Flight From The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Region ?
(i.e., Charlotte's New 2020 Vision Plan)
What About Making Charlotte's BLACK Citizens (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) Feel SAFE Too?
Why Is It CMPD Officers REFUSE To Protect Charlotte's BLACK Citizens From Crime & Refuse To Help Solve Murders Against Charlotte's BLACK Citizens (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) In A Timely Manner Vs. How Quickly They Diligently Work To Solve Murders & Crime Committed Against Charlotte's WHITE Citizens?
But Yet.....
CMPD Officers Appear To Have NO Problem Working Diligently To Protect, Investigate & Solve Crimes/ Murders Against Charlotte's WHITE Citizens?
Such Injustices & Disparities Against BLACK Citizens Should NOT Be Happening In A Major, So-Called Metropolitan City, Run By A BLACK Mayor In The Year 2011!
After All Since Charlotte's BLACK Mayor Anthony Foxx & His BLACK City Council Colleagues (Patrick Cannon, Warren Turner, James Mitchell, David Howard) Frequently Boasts About "Charlotte Being A Diverse City", Why Have Charlotte's BLACK Citizens Been Treated More Poorly, More Unfairly & Been Offered Fewer Opportunities For Success Only AFTER Anthony Foxx Was Elected??
Inquiring Minds Would Like To Know! Like Yesterday!
Meanwhile Perhaps It Will Take More HUGE Lawsuit Settlements Against The City Of Charlotte & More HUGE Lawsuit Settlements Against The Manufacturer Of Taser Guns Used By CMPD Officers, Until The City Of Charlotte Is BROKE!!! Before Civil Rights & Equal Rights Is Truly Demonstrated To Charlotte's BLACK Citizens.
To The Family Of Mr. Lareko Williams, I'm So Sorry For Your Loss.
I Suggest You Hire An EXCELLENT Attorney Like The One Hired By Darryl Turner's Family, NOW!!!
Or Just Hire The SAME Attorney If Need Be Since He's Already Familiar With CMPD Officers Use Of Excessive Force Against Charlotte's Young, BLACK Citizens.
I Repeat: Such Injustices & Disparities Against BLACK Citizens (East, Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, West Charlotte) Should NOT Be Happening In A Major, So-Called Metropolitan City, Run By A BLACK Mayor In The Year 2011!
As A BLACK Woman I Do Believe In Supporting BLACK Leaders.
But Only If Those Same BLACK Leaders Also Support Their BLACK Constituents AFTER Being Elected By BLACK Voters.
I Somehow Feel Obligated To Help Re-Elect Pres. Obama Because Whether I Agree With ALL Of His Policies Or Not, Barack Obama Is PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES!
To The Contrary Mayor Anthony Foxx Is Just Leader of ONE City.
Its Not Hard For Anthony Foxx To Demonstrate Equality & Fairness On His Level As A Mayor.
Anthony Foxx Is Managing a City NOT An Entire Nation!
i.e., FOXX Is NOT U.S. President Barack Obama, Thus He Has NO Excuse For NOT Demonstrating Equality & Fairness To ALL Of Charlotte's Citizens Versus Just Charlotte's WHITE Citizens.
However If Anthony Foxx Is Afraid To Demonstrate Equality & Fairness For ALL Of Charlotte's Citizens, Then Perhaps He Should NOT Be Re-Elected Mayor Of Charlotte.
If On The Other Hand Mayor Anthony Foxx Is NOT Afraid To Demonstrate Equality & Fairness For ALL Of Charlotte's Citizens Versus Just Charlotte's WHITE Citizens, Then Please Begin To Show It To Charlotte's BLACK Voters Prior To This Fall's Local Elections.
Let Us Pray & Vote Responsibly When Returning To The Polls This Fall.
R.I.P. Lareko Williams & Darryl Turner.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police shelve Tasers for now after another suspect dies
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is taking all of its Tasers off the streets for as many as 45 days, after a suspect died when he was shocked by an officer's X26 Taser at a Lynx light rail station.
Police say Lareko Williams, 21, was beating and choking a woman when confronted by Officer Michael Forbes at the station on Woodlawn Road around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday. Williams was pronounced dead about an hour later.
The death came just a day after a federal jury in Charlotte awarded $10 million to the family of 17-year-old Darryl Wayne Turner, who died in 2008 after a CMPD officer shocked him with a Taser.
In response to the jury's award against the company that makes Tasers, Charlotte City Attorney Mac McCarley said police officers would continue to use the weapons.
"It is still a very effective, nonlethal force to control a situation," he told the Observer Wednesday, just hours before the confrontation at the light rail station.
But the $10 million verdict and Wednesday's death are certain to revive debate over the weapons. Tasers can deliver a 50,000-volt shock that temporarily paralyzes suspects, and have been linked to hundreds of deaths across the country.
Earlier this year, the Union County town of Stallings stopped using Tasers because of liability issues.
CMPD on Thursday suspended use of its roughly 1,200 Tasers for 30 to 45 days as the weapons are tested to make sure they're working properly. The Taser used on Williams will be sent to an independent laboratory to be tested, police said.
The department will also review its Taser policies and procedures to ensure they're in line with established national standards.
Foxx supports chief's action
Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx said Thursday that he wants to see the results of the CMPD review before taking any further action.
"I have spoken with Police Chief Rodney Monroe several times in the last 24 hours and he has assured me that all aspects of this incident will be reviewed thoroughly," Foxx said in a statement. "I also support his effort to inspect all Taser devices and protocols related to their use."
Police didn't respond to questions about Officer Forbes' training with the Taser. They also didn't respond to questions about where Williams was struck with the Taser prongs or how long he was shocked.
On Thursday, McCarley stood by his statements about Tasers being effective in helping officers control situations.
"In the vast majority of cases, fewer officers and fewer suspects sustain any sort of physical or permanent injuries," he said, speaking of Tasers. "But the other steps available are usually hard physical contact, something like a baton. And that is much more likely to cause some type of immediate or lasting physical harm."
But Ken Harris, who has represented Turner's family since the teen's death three years ago, said Williams' death may illustrate the Taser's dangers.
"This incident is just another example of why we have been so persistent in arguing that the Taser is a lethal weapon," Harris said.
"We wanted Darryl's legacy to be a reduction in the number of deaths related to the use of Tasers. This is just another tragedy."
At Woodlawn Lynx station
On Wednesday night, Williams and a female friend were riding the Lynx line home after watching a movie at the AMC movie theater on South Boulevard, said Ariel Terry, a friend of Williams who says she dated him for a year. At some point, he got into an argument with the woman, Terry said.
At 10:39 p.m., someone called police reporting that man was beating a woman at the Woodlawn Lynx station, a raised platform along the 4700 block of Old Pineville Road, according to a police statement.
Forbes was the first officer to respond.
Monroe told reporters Forbes fired his department-issued Taser as Williams was about to strike the woman again. Forbes used the Taser "in an attempt to gain compliance," according to a police statement.
Forbes soon realized the suspect was unresponsive and radioed for paramedics.
Terry said Williams treated her well when they dated. But she did acknowledge that Williams had been previously charged with assault on a female and other crimes.
She said Williams has a 1-year-old child and two children on the way. He was attending classes at Central Piedmont Community College, she said, trying to get his graduate equivalent diploma.
Monroe told reporters that investigators are analyzing video that apparently showed what happened during the confrontation.
"A host of cameras (are) in and around the area," Monroe said. "We're going through a very methodical process analyzing the data from those cameras."
Williams' family declined to comment. The Observer's news partner, WCNC-TV, reported that they had hired a lawyer.
Largest award against maker
A day before Williams died, Darryl Turner's family was awarded $10 million after a jury found that Taser International failed to warn that the weapon could cause cardiac arrest. The award was the largest ever against the makers of the Taser. The company said it will appeal.
The city of Charlotte paid $625,000 to Turner's family in 2009, though it denied wrongdoing.
Turner died in March 2008 after Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Jerry Dawson Jr. shocked him at a Food Lion grocery store in northeast Charlotte.
Turner, who worked at the store, died from cardiac arrest. The autopsy showed the teenager's heart was pumping so fast and chaotically from the Taser shot and stress from the confrontation that it stopped pumping blood properly. The autopsy found no pre-existing heart problems.
Dawson was not charged with any crime. Prosecutors said the officer was justified in using the Taser during the confrontation with Turner, who was found with three small bags of marijuana in his socks after the incident. He was also "agitated" and threw something at a manager, police said.
Dawson was suspended for five days without pay and required to undergo additional training. After Turner's death, all officers were required to undergo more training with Tasers.
Police didn't respond to questions about Forbes' training Thursday, but under the department's training regimen, he would have completed the additional training at least twice.
17-year-old's family wins $10 million in Taser verdict
Taser International must pay $10 million to the family of a Charlotte teenager who died in 2008 after being shocked by a police officer - the biggest jury award ever against the company.
The lawyers for Darryl Turner's parents said Wednesday the federal jury found that Taser International failed to warn that discharging its Taser into the chest of a suspect near the heart poses a substantial risk of cardiac arrest. The company's animal studies, they said, demonstrated the risk.
John Burton, lead counsel for Turner's parents, Devoid Turner and Tammy Lou Fontenot, said Taser International has been irresponsible in representing its product's safety.
"Hopefully, this verdict will sound the alarm to police officers around the world that firing these weapons into the chests of people should be avoided," said Burton, whose law offices are in Pasadena, Calif. "No other family should have to endure the tragedy that the Turner and Fontenot families have experienced."
Taser International sought to persuade the jury that Turner, 17, had a medical condition that can lead to sudden cardiac arrest in young adults. The company's lawyers also presented evidence about a U.S. Justice Department study, released in May, which said current research does not support a substantially increased risk of cardiac arrhythmia even if the Taser darts strike the front of the chest.
The company's lawyers intend to appeal the verdict.
Darryl Turner died in March 2008 after being shocked with a Taser by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Jerry Dawson Jr. at a Food Lion grocery store in north Charlotte.
Turner, who worked at the store, died from cardiac arrest. The autopsy showed the teenager's heart was pumping so fast and chaotically from the Taser shot and stress from the confrontation that it stopped pumping blood properly. The autopsy found no pre-existing heart problems.
Dawson was not charged with any crime. Prosecutors said the officer was justified in using the Taser during the confrontation with Turner, who was found with three small bags of marijuana in his socks after the incident. He was also "agitated" and threw something at a manager, police said.
Dawson was suspended for five days without pay and required to undergo additional training. Police said Dawson had violated policy when he shocked Turner with the Taser gun for about 37 seconds. Dawson held the trigger until Turner fell to the floor, according to police.
The city of Charlotte paid $625,000 to Turner's family in 2009, though the city denied wrongdoing. It was the largest police-related claim the city had paid out in nearly a decade.
City Attorney Mac McCarley told the Observer Wednesday that the city will continue to use Tasers.
"It is still a very effective, nonlethal force to control a situation," McCarley said.
After Turner's death, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police mandated additional training for all officers on the proper use of Tasers and other electronic control devices, said spokesman Rob Tufano.
The training "emphasized that repeated and prolonged deployment and exposure of the device is a strict violation of department policy," Tufano said. Police also trained personnel to look for other areas of the body to target with Tasers, like the lower abdomen and upper leg.
The use of Tasers by Charlotte-Mecklenburg police has decreased since 2007, when police shocked people with the devices nearly 140 times. In 2008, that number had dropped to about 120 and in 2009, the latest year for which figures are available, police deployed Tasers fewer than 80 times.
The Stallings Police Department in January abandoned the use of Tasers to reduce its liability risk.
Taser International, in a statement on its website about Tuesday's verdict, said there's been only one other adverse jury verdict against the company. That was for more than $7 million in 2008. Taser International appealed, and the verdict was reduced to about $200,000, the statement said.
"This was a sad and tragic incident, and our hearts go out to Mr. Turner's family," Doug Klint, Taser International's president and general counsel, said in a statement.
"We can certainly understand how the jury felt deep compassion for Mr. Turner's family, and how this compassion may have overwhelmed the scientific evidence presented in this case. However, given the important nature of this case and the exclusion of key evidence that occurred, Taser International intends to appeal this verdict."
Taser International said U.S. District Judge Bob Conrad didn't allow the jury to hear evidence that Darryl Turner had three baggies of marijuana in his sock during the incident. The company said a screen for marijuana and other drugs was not performed at the autopsy or before the lab destroyed the teenager's blood evidence.
Taser International said the judge also did not instruct the jury on contributory negligence. Under N.C. law, the company said, if plaintiffs act in a negligent manner that contributes to their damages, they are barred from recovering damages from a third party.
The statement said the company's lawyers believe Turner's behavior at the grocery store was negligent and "necessitated the use of force by police."
Police were called to the store where Turner worked after the store manager had asked him to leave and he refused, according to court documents.
Store surveillance video showed Turner at the customer service desk, knocking over a display and throwing an umbrella. He then moved closer to a store manager and employee, at one point raising his arm and pointing at the manager.
Later, the soundless video shows Officer Dawson entering the store with a Taser in his hand. Turner took a step toward the officer, and police say that's when Dawson fired the Taser. Turner continued to walk past the officer with the Taser probes in his chest.
Taser International said its insurance will pay about $6 million of the award if the company is not successful on its appeal.
Charlotte attorney Ken Harris, who represents Turner's parents, said: "This has been a long and difficult journey for the family. We have consistently stated that no judgment would be sufficient to compensate the family relative to Darryl's loss.
"We are very happy with this benchmark result and the impact that it may have ... concerning the use of the Taser."
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Sources: CATS, Charmeck.org, McClatchy Newspapers, WBTV, WCNC, Youtube, Google Maps
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