The
first openly gay Minneapolis Police Chief, Janee Harteau, said that,
"Justine [Damond] did not have to die."
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| Minneapolis Police Chief Janee Harteau | | | |
Now we know why Harteau is the PD Chief. It's because what is obvious; she has a far higher IQ than the rest of us (and the other candidates for police chief who didn't get the job), and because of her deep degree of compassion for people. And dogs, and I'll get to that in a moment.
From
U.S. News and World Reports:
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — An Australian woman should not have been shot to death by a Minneapolis police officer responding to her 911 call and the officer's actions "go against who we are in the department," the city's police chief said.
In her first public remarks on the killing, Chief Janee Harteau on Thursday defended Officer Mohamed Noor's training but lamented the death of 40-year-old bride-to-be Justine Damond, who was shot in the stomach as she approached a squad car near her home.
"This did not have to happen. Justine did not have to die," Harteau said.
Damond had called 911 twice late Saturday to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her house on Minneapolis' southwest side. Noor, who was in the passenger seat of a squad car, shot at Damond through the driver's side window.
"The actions in question go against who we are in the department, how we train and the expectations we have for our officers," Harteau said. "These were the actions and judgment of one individual."
Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hitler Hodges said exactly the same:
"...the fatal shooting of Justine Damond should not have happened."
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Mayor Hitler Hodges. That's Harteau behind her on the left. |
The shooting and killing of
Jamar Clark should not have happened.
The shooting and killing of
Philando Castile should not have happened.
The shooting of
two services dogs should not have happened.
Video below (no audio as footage taken by a security camera):
Boy, those two dogs, with their wagging tails, sure appear to pose a violent threat to the officer, huh? And then this LOSER Cop climbs the fence, acting - and hoping - that he wouldn't get caught. Thank God for that security camera footage.
Harteau calls the above video, "
difficult to watch." Another, breathtakingly brilliant observation by the police chief.
Back to Officer Noor, claiming he was
startled by Damond, (
The Daily Mail), and he reacted by shooting her through the open window of the driver's side of the squad car.
Yes, I can see how a rather petite blonde woman dressed in pajamas would "startle" an officer and appear to pose a violent threat, causing the officer to react by firing a gun at the person before that person can be identified as friend or foe. In a different setting but same scenario, Noor could have killed his own child considering his quick trigger-finger.
Hodges praised the hiring of Noor last year
on her Facebook page:
More from
The Daily Mail:
...the [police] vehicle did not have its lights on and this may have been so as not to give any suspect notice that police had arrived and buy precious time to apprehend the target. That the car was unlit was disclosed by [fellow officer] Harrity to the BCA.
Both Noor and the BCA's version of events agree on the car's lights being off.According to Noor's version when they reached the end of the alley, they came across a waiting, panicking figure.
It was dark, and the figure was moving around and approached their vehicle.
Noor said he did not know whether the figure who rushed towards their vehicle was the 911 caller or even if it was a man or woman.
The police officer is SUPPOSED TO MAKE A POSITIVE IDENTIFICATION BEFORE USING THEIR WEAPON.
And how does someone who the officer describes as " waiting, panicking" be viewed as a threat who is shot without being identified? How many "waiting, panicking" criminals stand around until the police arrive?
And the
BCA (Bureau of Criminal Apprehension) agrees with Noor. What a coincidence. Can anyone actually believe that the BCA is, and can be, objective and independent? Please...
Noor, a law enforcement officer - To Protect and Serve - could not identify who was approaching the car, and he reacts by firing his gun? Had it been one of his colleagues, I guess Noor would have blindly shot a fellow officer.
Noor's reputation
isn't exactly absent of controversy and complaints. Heavy.com:
A year ago, the arrival of Noor on the Minnesota police force was celebrated by the mayor and Somali community he hails from. There is a pending federal complaint against him, though, by a former social worker from Minneapolis who says Noor and other officers violated her constitutional rights[.]
[.]
“Body cameras were not turned on until after the shooting incident. The squad camera was not turned on."
[.]
[An] open federal case in the United States District Court, District of Minnesota was filed against Noor, two other police officers, and the City of Minneapolis, by a woman named Teresa M. Graham [the retired social worker].
...court documents say the complaint is an action for money damages arising out of a May 25, 2017 incident. The complaint accuses Noor and the other officers “without any reasonable or legal cause” of forcing “their way into Plaintiff’s house,” where they’re accused of having “violently and forcibly detained her, and transported her to a hospital against her will.”
[.]
According to KARE11, “Noor has two open complaints against him from 2017 and one from 2016,” although the station does not detail what they are about.
Harteau should be fired. Period. No discussion or debating it.
Hodges should resign. If not, she should be removed from office via an election recall.
Every time a tragedy occurs like any of those above, the Minneapolis Mayor and City Council and the Police Department tell us how this never should have happened, that they will work hard -
oh, so very hard - to prevent anything like this ever happening again and, the next thing you know, it happens again.
If the citizens of Minneapolis fail in changing what is happening with the above incidents, and others like them, and if they fail to do it now - then it will never happen. Then, get used to stories like the above as daily events.
Harteau and Hodges have to go. Minneapolis...will you do what it takes to make that happen?
