Ferguson Riot Watch...

[Jarlaxle]

Matt Light, 6'4", 300lbs:



Vince Wilfork, 6'2", 325lbs:

[Gob]

Matt Light, 6'4", 300lbs:

Aptly named!!

[liberty]

I'd like to go on record here that I am not in favour of setting fire to small children. In case anyone wanted to know...

I am glad to hear that, but do you think anyone hear might have been thinking otherwise?

[Econoline]

Wait, I'm not saying that some that some 300-pounders are not strong and fit. (What part of "maybe it's just me" do you not get?) It's just that (not being much of a football fan myself) those guys are absolutely not the first ones I think of when I hear that someone weighs 300 pounds. (I'm an even 6ft. myself, and my weight is approaching 240, and I know that I'm way overweight!) These are more like the image I think of when I think "300 pounds":




P.S. PLEASE don't bother posting any pictures of sumo wrestlers.

ETA: Maybe it's not just me:

[Lord Jim]

I'm guessing none of those fellows approach 6' 4"...

[Gob]

That guy, top right, is approaching it.

When he lies down.

[Gob]

US police officer Darren Wilson - who fatally shot unarmed black teenager Michael Brown, triggering nationwide riots - has resigned, his lawyer says.

Neil Bruntrager says his client had been on administrative leave since the 9 August shooting in Ferguson.

The Missouri town and other US cities saw several days of rioting and looting this week after a jury decided not to bring charges over the killing.

Mr Wilson, who is white, said he had acted in accordance with the law.

[Gob]

He was a very big bloke;

[Guinevere]

US police officer Darren Wilson - who fatally shot unarmed black teenager Michael Brown, triggering nationwide riots - has resigned, his lawyer says.

Neil Bruntrager says his client had been on administrative leave since the 9 August shooting in Ferguson.

The Missouri town and other US cities saw several days of rioting and looting this week after a jury decided not to bring charges over the killing.

Mr Wilson, who is white, said he had acted in accordance with the law.

According to the Department today, he is getting no severance, no retirement, no benefits. I'm curious if this was a negotiated resignation, or if, as his lawyer says, he was planning on resigning all along and is physically afraid for his safety.

He's been on paid administrative leave since the shooting, and certainly faces disciplinary charges which could lead to his termination --- although the failure to indict would have an impact on any subsequent disciplinary proceeding. I have had a couple of similar cases here in Massachusetts, one of which is still pending and won't come to conclusion until after the criminal charges are resolved (in that instance charges were filed and the officer was arraigned). In an excessive force case I wrapped up this year, the investigation concluded quite clearly the officer did not violate the use of force policy, the ADA refused to file criminal charges, and no discipline was ultimately issued -- despite the fact that a prisoner was tazered by a physically large officer who has a reputation for being confrontational and having anger issues (and has been to anger management training). It was a very interesting case and one I mean to write about one of these days, when I get the opportunity.

[Econoline]

Rams players use 'hands up, don't shoot' pose while taking field

Five St. Louis Rams players took the field for Sunday's home game against the Oakland Raiders with a "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" pose that has been used by protestors in Ferguson, Missouri, and across the country recently.

The five players who were shown doing the gesture on CBS were Stedman Bailey, Tavon Austin, Jared Cook, Chris Givens and Kenny Britt.

[Lord Jim]

I think it's extremely unfortunate that these guys are lending their celebrity and visibility to perpetuating what we now know from the evidence is a mythological version of what happened. I doubt that even one of them has actually looked at the DNA or blood trail evidence; (if any of them did, and still decided to participate in this they should be ashamed of themselves) they're just trying to be ingratiating to a portion of their fan base.

[rubato]

"...


According to the Department today, he is getting no severance, no retirement, no benefits. ....

He'll get an offer from Fox news or some right-wing 'think' tank. He can appear with Sara Palin in one of her shows.

yrs,
rubato

[RayThom]

I can hear ol' Sara now, "It's time that normal Joe Six-Shot American is finally represented..."

Where would America be if it weren't for symbolism and hyperbole? Nothing that matters is all that matters.

God bless America.

[oldr_n_wsr]

he is getting no severance, no retirement, no benefits

He was only on hte force for three years. Probably didn't have time to earn these perks.

$5 says in a months time (maybe two weeks) all will be forgotten...... until the next time.

[MajGenl.Meade]

It's catching on...

[liberty]

Awhile back I and my wife were stopped by the police for driving too slow, not really that slow. We where not in a hurry to get home and we cruising along listening to the radio. A car pulled up behind us; I pulled off the road to let him pass. He also pulled off the road; when I pulled back on the road he turned his lights on and stopped us. I told him what we were up to and showed him our papers. After that, he left. I didn’t take the opportunity to show much of a man I was by standing up to the cop, he had no real reason to stop us. I certainly didn’t think about gaining street cred by getting aggressive, that would have been stupid.

Remember, government is dangerous; don’t take them on unless it is important enough to die for, like freedom or perhaps honor.

[BoSoxGal]

I think it's extremely unfortunate that these guys are lending their celebrity and visibility to perpetuating what we now know from the evidence is a mythological version of what happened. I doubt that even one of them has actually looked at the DNA or blood trail evidence; (if any of them did, and still decided to participate in this they should be ashamed of themselves) they're just trying to be ingratiating to a portion of their fan base.

We don't know anything from the evidence, because the evidence wasn't tested by two sides, subject to cross-examination in a court of law with a judge present, a true advocate for the people present, and a defense attorney present for the accused.

I'm stunned that you don't 'get' the difference and don't understand what was wrong about the use of a grand jury in this fashion.

C'est la vie.

[Lord Jim]

Yeah, I guess you're right...

The DNA and blood trail evidence could all have been planted and/or faked...

That's pretty much what you have to believe to think that an indictment would have been appropriate here, given the standards for a justified police officer use of deadly force in Missouri...

I'm stunned that you don't 'get' the difference and don't understand what was wrong about the use of a grand jury in this fashion.

Apparently I'm not the only one...I posted this earlier:

William Fitzpatrick, the longtime district attorney in Syracuse and president-elect of the National District Attorneys Association, said grand juries were usually asked to consider cases after the police had found probable cause to make an arrest, and in such instances, if he agreed an arrest was justified, his office would present a case in support of bringing charges.

In Mr. Brown’s death, in which no arrest of Officer Wilson had been made, “it absolutely should have been a neutral presentation,” Mr. Fitzpatrick said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/26/us/mi ... .html?_r=0

[Guinevere]

I'm no criminal lawyer, but I do know that a grand jury isn't the forum to subject evidence to the scrutiny and standards as in a trial proceeding. Hell, the rules of evidence don't apply to grand juries (hearsay is often allowed, particularly if there is supporting evidence from other witnesses), there is no judge, and there is no defense attorney to object, defend, and perform cross-examination. The question for the grand jury is whether there is probable cause to support an indictment, not whether there is sufficient evidence to convict. Probable cause is "where the facts and circumstances within the [witnesses] knowledge, and of which they have reasonably trustworthy information, are sufficient in themselves to warrant a belief by a man of reasonable caution that a crime is being committed."

I'm sure there are prosecutors who are reluctant to convene grand juries if they don't believe they can go on and get a conviction after an indictment, but we all know that a conviction is never assured, and the decision to indict is left to the jurors, not the prosecutor.

Some states do have "probable cause" or other preliminary hearings -- where the evidence is presented to a judge and subject to some testing through cross-examination and the accused is represented by counsel. I don't know if these hearings are permissible in Missouri, or if the prosecutor could have gone through that kind of proceeding instead of a grand jury process.

[Econoline]

"...In Mr. Brown’s death, in which no arrest of Officer Wilson had been made..."

Also, no arrest of Michael Brown had been made...yet he received a death sentence. C'est la vie mort.