Police Shooting Case Review: Officer Caesar R. Goodson Jr.

According to a 2016 database from The Washington Post, 875 individuals have been killed by the police in the United States. This database gathered that number from news reports, public records, social media and other sources (“Police Shooting 2016 database,” 2016). While this number is not by any means enormous, deaths at the hands of police officers were higher during the first six months of this year than compared to 2015 (Kindy, Lower, Rich, Tate, & Jenkins, 2016). Additionally, Kindy, Lower, Rich, Tate, & Jenkins stated that 465 individuals in 2015 died at the hands of police while 491 individuals died within the first six months of 2016. Despite African-Americans making up 13.3% of the United States population, African-Americans have accounted for 24.2% of the deaths from police officers this year (“Population estimates”, 2015). The death of African-Americans at the hands of police officers seems so habitual that I have become desensitized to it in order to not let my feelings of resentment and frustration drain me of the valuable energy needed for my studies. However, I cannot ignore the grim reality that people like me face when encountered by police officers. I cannot ignore the tightness in my stomach and limbs I feel everytime passing a police officer or car in any forum. My lived experience is why I decided to read articles that focused on the killing of African-Americans at the hands of police. The article Video Released in Terence Crutcher’s Killing by Tulsa Police declared that Police Officer Betty Jo Shelby fatally shot Crutcher in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This online article featured an aerial video of Crutcher’s death. During the video, Crutcher is referred to as a “bad dude” despite that same dispatcher saying he was “following commands” (Stack, 2016). However, Crutcher’s death did not go announced. The article, Manslaughter Charge for Tulsa Officer Who Killed Black Driver revealed two important concepts. First, charges were actually brought against an officer in the death of an unarmed Black male. Second, a different perspective on Crutcher’s death. Office Shelby responded to a domestic violence call when she noticed Crutcher’s vehicle blocking traffic. Shelby asked Crutcher repeatedly if the vehicle belonged to him. She did not receive an answer from Crutcher beyond mumbles. In addition, Crutcher kept putting his hands in his pockets even after Officer Shelby told Crutcher to show his hands. Crutcher walked to his vehicle with his hands up and refused to comply with Officer Shelby’s instructions to stop. Officer Shelby drew her weapon as Crutcher reached into his car window. Fellow Officer Tyler Turnbough tased Crutcher as a result. Afterwards, Officer Shelby delivered the fatal shot that killed Crutcher. As a result, Office Shelby was charged with manslaughter. According to prosecutors she was “emotionally involved to the point that she overreacted” (Fernandez, 2016). The fact that Officer Shelby was charged …show more content…
Officer Caesar R. Goodson Jr. was charged with second-degree depraved-heart murder. According to the text, this type of murder occurs when willful disregard for human life is initiated. In addition, Sergeant Alicia D. White, Lieutenant Brian Rice and Officer William G. Porter were charged with manslaughter. Officers Edward M. Nero and Garrett Miller faced charges of second-degree assault. However, almost a year after Stolberg’s article was published, the article All Charges Dropped Against Baltimore Officers in Freddie Gray Case by Stolberg and Bidgood, stated that all charges against the six police officers were dropped. While this news article was concise, it lacked two factors. First, the article lacked the “why” question. Stolberg and Bidgood never explained why the particular charges were brought against the officers involved in this case. Second, the first paragraph of the article stated that three officers would not face charges for the death of Freddie Gray. As a result, I was confused because Stolberg and Bidgood never specified what happened to these three officers. These two limitations led me to conduct more research until I came across the article, Freddie Gray Case Ends With No Convictions of Any Police Officers by Almukhtar et. al (2016) gave a step by step description of what happened in regards to the Freddie Gray arrest before he was taken to the University of Maryland’s Shock Trauma Center, where he died a week