Cops shoot woman wielding a crochet hook

[jimpeel]

I'm just not gonna comment on this yet. I'll sit back and see what others have to say.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,381783,00.html

Cops Kill Woman Who Lunged at Officers With Crochet Hook
Monday, July 14, 2008

SALINAS, Calif. — A disoriented woman holed up in a minivan and repeatedly stabbing herself in the neck was shot to death by local police officers who thought the distraught woman was lunging at them with a knife or pick ax.

But the 45-year-old Maria Irma De La Torre had only a metal crochet hook in her hand, the Salinas Californian reported Monday.

Officers responding to a "woman acting strangely call" at 3:45 a.m. Sunday saw the woman "stabbing herself in the neck with a small implement."

As officers tried to get her out of the minivan, she allegedly lunged at them with what was thought to be a knife or a pick ax and the officers fired. Cmdr. Kelly McMillin says the officers thought their lives were in danger. She was shot twice in the torso, and died later at a local hospital.

"It's a wrongful death," Diana Hernandez, De La Torre's niece, told the Californian. She added that De La Torre suffered from epileptic seizures but had no history of violence or hurting herself during seizures. She was taking medication to control the seizures, Hernandez said.

Click here for more on this story from the Salinas Californian.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

 

[Socrates]

I wrote this for another paper sensationalized story, but, it applies here:

Often the 'facts' are selectively reported to get an emotional rise out of the newspaper readers, and, to sell more papers. I have NEVER won an argument in law school over a newspaper fact pattern. It has ALWAYS been that the facts are reported in a sensationalized way,
and the truth comes out later in either deposition, or trial.

I'll give you an example. The LA Times reported that criminal children had been trying to break into a school, and, had fallen through the roof. Their parents sued the school. Think of the outrage!! Burglars having the audacity to sue the people they were breaking into, and, it's a poor public school. I went off the deep end, and, my law professor bet me something like lunch that the story was completely wrong. He was a famous tort lawyer, Richard Blumberg.

Truth came out two weeks later, on the back pages of the LA Times. This public school has a roof that children could easily hop up onto, with little or no effort. Rather then fix the roof, or, post signs, put up a fence, station a person there, anything to protect the children that the court holds the school district responsible for, and the law, they just let the kids, and, these were 4-5 grade kids, real criminals, play on the roof after school, with no supervision.

The kids weren't breaking into the school. The darn roof gave out, and they fell into the classroom, while they played, after school, waiting for the bus. That's REAL close to criminal negligence on the part of the school district, and, the children and their parents had every right and justification to sue, and, it was settled very quickly by the school district's lawyers, and, insurance company.

 

[Musketeer]

We don't know enough of anything.

I know this, someone lunging at me with a foot long metal spike is getting shot.

 

[Erik]

"It's a wrongful death"

Nah-uh. At least, not per information cited in the article; and extremely unlikely in any event.

Officers responding to instances involving the mentally ill are challenging at best. The intent is to render aid andplace them where they can be hekoed if possible by metal health professionals and social workers. But... that does not preclude them from protecting themselves as in other instances. The actions of the deceaced lead to her shooting. A shame, but not a "wrongful death."

 

[LanceOregon]

Yes, but this does again raise the question of police having adequate training to properly recognize a situation and thus be able to handle it better.

If the woman was having an epileptic attack, then that certainly does not warrant a shooting. Do the officers know how to properly recognized if a person is having a seizure?

And even if she was trying to commit suicide, how is shooting a suicidal person making the situation any better??

The local newspaper has much more detailed and complete information about this incident in their report, which you can read here:

http://thecalifornian.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080714/NEWS01/807140302/1002

Two officers attempted to take the woman under custody. When they saw her drawing what they thought was a weapon, one of the officers shot her with a Taser. However, the other officer fired his service pistol at her at the same time, hitting her twice in her torso.

This should definitely bring a lawsuit, in my book. Police need to be less confrontational and aggressive in situations like this. The woman was alone in her minivan, and did not pose any threat to anyone.

.

 

[Al Norris]

I'm just not gonna comment on this yet. I'll sit back and see what others have to say.

OK... How about this: By not commenting and directing the subsequent conversation, you have made a drive-by post, as per the new rules of the L&P forum, listed here.

Closed.