SFPD Cops Forced To Shoot Wheelchair Bound Man Because They Can't Carry Tasers
San Francisco cops were forced to shot a knife-wielding, wheelchair-bound man who had stabbed and injured an officer in the upper left shoulder. At that time, then-Chief Gascón all but demanded that Commissioners take up the issue for another vote. Gascón reportedly said that having TASERs “most likely would have ended this scenario” and he was right.
In midnight proceedings, the San Fr More..ancisco Police Commission voted overwhelmingly (the tally was six in favor, one opposed) last night to allow the Police Department to begin to look into the addition of TASERs to the duty belts of its law enforcers.
A man in a wheelchair accused of stabbing a policeman was shot by officers after they battled to arrest him.
San Francisco police, who have been criticised over claims they were too heavy-handed, first used pepper spray and fired a non-lethal 'beanbag' round in a bid to subdue the suspect.
They then fired a bullet at the man, who had allegedly been seen slashing tyres of parked cars as he wheeled around the city centre, after he appeared to throw his knife to the ground.
Scroll down to watch video
Under fire: A grab from grainy mobile phone video footage shows police in San Francisco aiming their guns at a man in a wheelchair who allegedly stabbed an officer
Under fire: Grainy mobile phone video footage shows police in San Francisco aiming their guns at a man in a wheelchair who allegedly stabbed an officer
He was today recovering from his wound at San Francisco General Hospital after the incident at around 10am on Tuesday.
The suspect, who is accused of getting out of his wheelchair and walking at one point, was captured being shot on a video filmed by a passer-by’s mobile phone.
It shows a group of officers rounding into within a few feet of the man before shooting him as he tried to wheel away.
The recording began after the responding officer was stabbed in the upper left shoulder, according to San Francisco Police Department Chief George Gascón.
His force has been criticised over the way it handled the incident.
Steve Ijames, an expert in non-lethal police tactics and senior member of the National Tactical Officers Association, said: Of the few options they had, the Taser would have been the most effective,’
‘The Taser locks up the body. That's why it's uniquely qualified. You don't want to hurt them, but you also don't want them throwing knives at people.’
He said the stun device would have been better suited than pepper spray or beanbag shots, which are useless against pain-averse suspects.
Suspects who are incapacitated by drugs or enduring a psychotic episode often do not respond to such warnings.
David Klinger, an expert on police use of force and an associate professor of criminology at the University of Missouri at St Louis, also wondered why officers closed in on a man who had already stabbed one of their own and continued to behave erratically.
San Francisco Police Chief George Gascon
Wheelchair
Defence: Police Chief George Gascon tried to explain why police shot the man in the wheelchair, pictured right
‘Given that officers are trained to give distance between themselves with suspects who are armed and dangerous, at first blush I'd want to know why they were getting in that close,’ Professor Klinger said.
At times on the video, it appears officers stand within 5ft of the slow-moving suspect, then about 10ft just before the shooting.
Police are trained to stay at least 20ft away from agitated and dangerous suspects when no barriers exist, said Professor Klinger, a former patrol officer in Los Angeles.
He also said the officers may have experienced perceptional distortion - a momentary loss of time and distance awareness during heightened states of perceived threat.
‘They may look at that video and say, “Oh my gosh, I thought I was much farther away from him.” Or they might say, “I thought I was right on top of him,”’ he told the San Francisco Chronicle.
The sensory alteration may also explain why San Francisco police initially reported the suspect was standing when he was shot, not seated as the video shows.
Chief Gascón asked that the public consider the demands of policing in a life-threatening situation before casting judgement.
During a press conference where the chief gave a moment-by-moment explanation of the video to ‘put it in proper context,’ he admitted it appeared that the suspect had thrown his knife to the ground, not toward officers.
Less than one second after the suspect's throwing motion, the officers opened fire.
‘The problem is that what the officers perceive and what is occurring are two different things,’ Chief Gascón said.
The video shows at least four plainclothes officers with guns drawn and two uniformed officers surrounding the suspect in his wheelchair.
At least two officers involved in the shooting were placed on administrative leave, police said, and there could be more as the investigation continues.
Tuesday's shooting was the second by San Francisco police within a week's time that Gascón said could have been avoided if his department was equipped with Tasers.
On December 29, police fatally shot a knife-wielding man, Vinh Bui, inside his Portola district home.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1344643/San-Francisco-police-shoot-wheelchair-man-stabbed-officer.html#ixzz1FEKlT7jd
In midnight proceedings, the San Fr More..ancisco Police Commission voted overwhelmingly (the tally was six in favor, one opposed) last night to allow the Police Department to begin to look into the addition of TASERs to the duty belts of its law enforcers.
A man in a wheelchair accused of stabbing a policeman was shot by officers after they battled to arrest him.
San Francisco police, who have been criticised over claims they were too heavy-handed, first used pepper spray and fired a non-lethal 'beanbag' round in a bid to subdue the suspect.
They then fired a bullet at the man, who had allegedly been seen slashing tyres of parked cars as he wheeled around the city centre, after he appeared to throw his knife to the ground.
Scroll down to watch video
Under fire: A grab from grainy mobile phone video footage shows police in San Francisco aiming their guns at a man in a wheelchair who allegedly stabbed an officer
Under fire: Grainy mobile phone video footage shows police in San Francisco aiming their guns at a man in a wheelchair who allegedly stabbed an officer
He was today recovering from his wound at San Francisco General Hospital after the incident at around 10am on Tuesday.
The suspect, who is accused of getting out of his wheelchair and walking at one point, was captured being shot on a video filmed by a passer-by’s mobile phone.
It shows a group of officers rounding into within a few feet of the man before shooting him as he tried to wheel away.
The recording began after the responding officer was stabbed in the upper left shoulder, according to San Francisco Police Department Chief George Gascón.
His force has been criticised over the way it handled the incident.
Steve Ijames, an expert in non-lethal police tactics and senior member of the National Tactical Officers Association, said: Of the few options they had, the Taser would have been the most effective,’
‘The Taser locks up the body. That's why it's uniquely qualified. You don't want to hurt them, but you also don't want them throwing knives at people.’
He said the stun device would have been better suited than pepper spray or beanbag shots, which are useless against pain-averse suspects.
Suspects who are incapacitated by drugs or enduring a psychotic episode often do not respond to such warnings.
David Klinger, an expert on police use of force and an associate professor of criminology at the University of Missouri at St Louis, also wondered why officers closed in on a man who had already stabbed one of their own and continued to behave erratically.
San Francisco Police Chief George Gascon
Wheelchair
Defence: Police Chief George Gascon tried to explain why police shot the man in the wheelchair, pictured right
‘Given that officers are trained to give distance between themselves with suspects who are armed and dangerous, at first blush I'd want to know why they were getting in that close,’ Professor Klinger said.
At times on the video, it appears officers stand within 5ft of the slow-moving suspect, then about 10ft just before the shooting.
Police are trained to stay at least 20ft away from agitated and dangerous suspects when no barriers exist, said Professor Klinger, a former patrol officer in Los Angeles.
He also said the officers may have experienced perceptional distortion - a momentary loss of time and distance awareness during heightened states of perceived threat.
‘They may look at that video and say, “Oh my gosh, I thought I was much farther away from him.” Or they might say, “I thought I was right on top of him,”’ he told the San Francisco Chronicle.
The sensory alteration may also explain why San Francisco police initially reported the suspect was standing when he was shot, not seated as the video shows.
Chief Gascón asked that the public consider the demands of policing in a life-threatening situation before casting judgement.
During a press conference where the chief gave a moment-by-moment explanation of the video to ‘put it in proper context,’ he admitted it appeared that the suspect had thrown his knife to the ground, not toward officers.
Less than one second after the suspect's throwing motion, the officers opened fire.
‘The problem is that what the officers perceive and what is occurring are two different things,’ Chief Gascón said.
The video shows at least four plainclothes officers with guns drawn and two uniformed officers surrounding the suspect in his wheelchair.
At least two officers involved in the shooting were placed on administrative leave, police said, and there could be more as the investigation continues.
Tuesday's shooting was the second by San Francisco police within a week's time that Gascón said could have been avoided if his department was equipped with Tasers.
On December 29, police fatally shot a knife-wielding man, Vinh Bui, inside his Portola district home.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1344643/San-Francisco-police-shoot-wheelchair-man-stabbed-officer.html#ixzz1FEKlT7jd
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