The coroner's inquest into the police shooting death of a Henderson woman will happen as scheduled. Attorneys for the victim asked for a delay in order to get access to more evidence. But a judge denied that request Wednesday afternoon.
What do you think?
Rocksan
Member
This is gonna suck. We are gonna watch metro explain away the killing of the ice cream lady, plain and simple. I am positive I could have taken her down by myself, knife and all, so why couldn't a BUNCH of cops do that???? Or a shot in the leg or foot??? This stinks, all of it, and worse to have to watch the disgusting excuse for doing it. No sense in posting BS remarks from you cop lovers, "oh we don't know the whole story", we do, we saw it. Sad.
darthbry
Member
I love the rush to judgement folks. If you have never walked in our shoes, don't judge. As for all you movie lovers that think cops should shoot in the leg or arm, it doesn't work that way. The metro officer who shot the guy in the leg a couple of weeks ago didn't do it on purpose, he was a bad shot. Ask him and he will tell you he was aiming center mass, he flinched when he pulled the trigger. Let the facts come out, do not rush to judgement. If you don't like the coroners inquest procedure, get it changed.
Rocksan
Member
Yep, there it is, didn't take long.
ChrisC
Member
I watched the inquest today.....and what I heard was enough to convince me that the police acted with necessary force. I can sympathize with the bereaved husband, and understand his need to deny the truth, and rewrite the scene to make her death someone else's fault. Her own innocent child described the knife, and how she held it. Her own innocent child described the police demands to drop the knife. In a TV drama, clever writers would have had the police use magical martial arts moves to disarm a knife wielding threat. In reality, the woman posed a deadly threat to the police. A knife slashed artery or punctured organ is as deadly as a bullet wound. They tried reason, they tried a taser weapon, and finally, justifiably, resorted to deadly force.
JoseDL
Member
Hmmm who posted on this board is a police officer and who isn't??? No offense but anyone who says a 23 yr old man has no option but to shoot an "alleged" knife wielding middle aged woman is obviously not logical, rational or not keeping an open mind. Not too mention a 23 yr old man who has had self defense training and is supposedly in good physical condition. I say things would be fair if we citizens had a Citizens Protection Association to protect our rights, so we could be tried before a jury where the prosecutor was a friend of ours and didn't ask us any tough questions, nor allow any really contradictory opinions.
elephant88
Member
I usually would side with enforcement, but this one is an embarrassment to law. Just moved here from los angeles, and already I want to move back, after hearing this one. Los angeles deals with more threat than this, and handle it much better. This man should have just received a ticket, and the officer should have walked away. They still have to send him a citation in the mail, just because he didn't want to sign, or didn't understand, is not a reason to harass him. They drove him to tears, and his wife felt threatened. We invite immigrants to this country, and there is suppose to be some sensitivity on the officers part, what happened to his training or lack of it. His Civil rights have been violated, and no one should be arrested for refusing to sign, they can lose their license in court, but not threatened, or pushed to this. If this law exist in this state, it must be changed, for the better of the people. The city prosecutor needs to step back, and realize that the person on trial should be this officer, for exceeding the necessary force needed to take a person down, and handle a situation like this, with a taser or some defense was appropriate, this man should not be persecuted any further, and an apology, and a settlement is necessary, otherwise I think some advocate group like the naacp, or even a federal probe into the practices of the Henderson police department is necessary. Shame on all who support this as appropriate. I hope the rest of the world hears about this, So we could really show our colors.
butch46
Member
I also usally side with the Police,and I'm not a cop,But this stinks,and if this gets covered up they are not only doing an injustice to the woman and her family but to a lot of hard working men and women that work and risk their lives out there everyday,this jerk belongs in jail,at the least his Badge ripped off his not so manly chest,Mcdonald needs workers,BUT we'll see !!!!
VegasResident
Member
1. The husband threatened suicide. Once a person does that cops cannot let them go. They legally have to take a caretaker role until the person is placed in medical care. This prevents the cop from letting them go, them killing themselves….etc
2. To shoot someone purposely in the leg is hard if not impossible. ALL as in ALL police officers are trained to shoot center mass. The guy that got shot in the leg the other week was lucky the cop pulled off a bad shot.
3. Knifes are lethal. They can kill you with one stab AND THEY GO THROUGH BULLET RESISTANT VESTS. A person with a knife can close 10 feet before a gun can be pulled. She was 2 feet away. Why is it people think getting stabbed with a knife cannot kill you? IT cuts open arteries, etc. In the UK where all cops don't have guns, 8 cops and a police dog were stabbed trying to subdue one person with a knife.
4. Grandmothers, 70 years and other elderly women have killed with knifes and guns. Age does not make a person with a knife any safer.
5. Everything happens in an instant a cop has about 1 second to make a life or death decision where we can take 2 months to review it.
6.
Will everyone agree what happened is the way it should have gone? No.
This is a coroners inquest, not a criminal trial, it only determines if the police officers within policy. A knife is considered a lethal weapon regardless of the age or sex of the holder. A police officer has the right to fire their weapon if they feel that their life or the life of another is in danger.
The shooting was within policy and justified. Sorry
The family can file a civil suit if they want.
I am not a cop.
hello1
Member
Well said VegasResident. I totally agree with you. It is a sad, unfortunate incident. And we are all so quick at pointing fingers, but unless we were there, we can't judge by what we hear on the news. My concern was, were these two ice cream drivers patroling my neighborhood, where my children play? It seems they were a little "unstable" if you will. If a women can threaten her own childs life, what could she do to someone elses? Please don't take this, that I'm glad she died, because I'm far from it. When I hear she has 2 young boys and seeing her grieving husband, it breaks my heart. But people have to obey and respect police officers. I've been pulled over several times before, and as mad as I am about possibly receiving a ticket, I never disrespect or disobey the police officer. If the husband just took his ticket and went on his way, none of this would've happened. People are always so quick to say what the police officer could've done different, but what about the person they are dealing with? Why don't we say, Oh that person should've not done that or this? It's always on the cop. And like I said, until you walk in a police officers shoes, you shouldn't judge. Why don't you do a ride along with the police...to scary for you?
jhm
Member
I worked in a So. Florida Chief's Office for 10+ years, and agree that police officers put their lives on the line daily for a nominal salary. I have all the respect in the world for the Police Community, and still have very close friendships with several Chiefs and lesser sworn positions in South Florida. However, I have NEVER seen so many police involced shootings as I have seen here in Las Vegas! In Boca Raton Florida, where I worked, police officers had to write a report every time they simply took their gun out of their holster. In the 10+ years I spent their, there was NEVER a police involved shooting and only a few reports written by officers for releasing their weapon.
Have the departments here ever heard of training officers or specializing a few officers in the art "negotiating"? From the eye witness reports who said that they did not feel there was a threat, but simply a woman who was terribly frustrated, and would have helped her themselves except for the fear that they would then be shot by the officers.....It sounds like a negotiator would have been a great asset during this situation. Could they not have at least tried??? What does this department do if someone wants to commit suicide? Do they not try to negotiate with the subject....prior to committing "suicide by cop"? Is there no value on human life here in Las Vegas? This was a wife and mother of YOUNG children who will now have to grow up without a mother!!!
And...to help her up and let her sit there rocking, with apparent blood all over her front side after being shot ALL ALONE.......WHAT??? The woman was just shot! Couldn't SOMEONE there have shown some empathy for this woman and these children by at least sitting there with her? No...they were too busy handcuffing the husband and taking him into custody.....for nothing!
My last question is, how could they have "arrested" the husband of the victim after her "murder" for "obstruction"? They did not even let him near her and he did not fight with the officers to get to her. What a terrible injustice to the Police Officers out there who withstand the honor of the position! These officers are hired and take an oath to "Serve and Protect".
This is the most ridiculous story I have ever heard and every officer that was at that scene should be EMBARRASSED at the fact that normal citizens driving by were willing to get out and difuse the situation, but they were unable to. UNBELIEVABLE!!!
james1234
Member
I wonder what police would have done if 5-year-old Arber Selimaj was waving the knife and refused to put it down. Their policy would have required officers to gun him down.
james1234
Member
By the way, what happened to that knife? I'm convinced she didn't have it when she was shot. At some point it had to fall to the ground. I haven't heard anyone say they saw it, or an officer picked it up, even after Deshira was loaded into the ambulance.
This thing is going late. Officer Pecorella is testifying now and there are four more witnesses, including Officer Morrison.
james1234
Member
I'm so tired of hearing officers describe how much danger they were in. They initiated this whole mess.
Rocksan
Member
Yes, it really is pathetic watching these boys (cops) trying so hard to LIE saying "oh I thought she was gonna kill me".
JHM's post is spot on. I am wondering something though, what's with all these 5 foot 3, 5 foot 5 cops??? That's weird. I have watched from the start, I do not know how any jury could find this KILLING justifiable. Totally and completely trigger happy 23 year old WITHOUT any crisis training. And we the people had better do something about it, before we are living in a TOTAL police state, without any rights.
A verdict has been reached.
james1234
Member
Gee, what a surprise. When I heard the jury's instructions I knew they had no other choice. My favorite part was hearing Officer Morrison saying he had to shoot her so she wouldn't harm herself. What a farce.
The officer involved shooting has been ruled justifiable.
Rocksan
Member
I am SO glad to be leaving this horrid state after 14 years of living here.
james1234
Member
Rocksan, my family will be right behind you.
urbansarcasm
Member
There are certainties to life. If you take a step off the top of a very tall building you will fall to your death. There's no argument there, it's a fact. If you stick a piece of metal in a functioning electrical outlet you will get a shock. Once again, no room for discussion. It's a fact. If you don't want to fall to your death, stay away from the edge. If you don't like electricity, don't play with power outlets. It's sismple, not hard to understand.
Here's another fact. If you confront a police officer with a weapon in your hand, and continually refuse to disarm yourself, you will probably get shot. IT'S JUST THAT EASY. DON'T CONFRONT A COP WITH A WEAPON IN YOUR HAND AND YOU WON'T GET SHOT. duh. One officer attempted to give her a chance and use the Taser which is not a perfect tool.
Oh, and lets point out why the woman was upset in the first place... because her husband was about to get a traffic ticket... YEAH, that sounds like a perfectly rational reason to threaten someone with deadly force. I'm sure each and every one of you reading this pulled a knife on the last cop who gave you a traffic ticket, right?? GEE, do I want to pay the $200 fine for running a stop sign or risk getting shot?? Hmmm.... .that's a tough one folks.
Just because I love analogies, let's take the cop-factor out of this one. You're attending the Laughlin River Run. You see a guy standing next to his Harley. The guy is 6'5", 300 pounds, wearing black leather with patches sewn all over it. He's got a beard down to his knees, is wearing shades and night and he's not smiling... are you going to walk up to him and spit on his bike? Probably not because he would beat the *BEEP* out of you. So what do you do? Walk on by and keep your fat mouth shut. If you have half a brain you KNOW how he would react, right? Cause and effect. If I do "A", then "B" is probably going to happen. If you don't think "B" sounds like fun, then DON'T FRIGGIN DO "A"!!!!
Everyone's seen a cop show at some point in their life and we all know what happens. It's not like having cops around is a new thing that people are still getting used to. I'm sorry, but this lady should have known that "A" (arming herself with a deadly weapon and threatening people with it in the presence of police) will quickly lead to "B" (getting shot).
It is NOT the police officer's fault that she wasn't smart enough to make the 1+1=2 connection.
Rocksan
Member
Urbansarcasm you are a new breed of human I am scared of. You have no compassion. You are stating that every situation like this ends the same, with the person being shot and killed, you're wrong. In fact, it happens in Vegas more than anywhere!! These little punk cops have no way of dealing with someone that obviously had a bad day, some emotional trouble, etc. You my friend, have ONE answer, like a frickin robot. Your A B, 1 plus 1 mentality proves it.
2 more months, I'm outa here, The crime alone in Vegas has made my decision, and it's no wonder, the cops are to busy killing the frickin ice cream lady.
AntiLiberal
Member
I have pictures of a Cop who tried to disarm a man who had a 3" pocket knife. This Cop thought that because of his extensive Defensive Tactics training he would be successful in doing this. If you guys were to see this pictures you would probably puke. I am willing to send them to anyone, just put your email down for me.
Suspects actions dictate Cops reactions. If she didn't grab a knife she'd still be alive, plain and simple.
I can't believe anyone still questions that she had a knife, both of her kids said she did. The witnesses who were actually close enough saw it too. The ones who said they didn't see it, were at minimum 150 feet away. Good luck trying to see a knife from that distance.
AntiLiberal
Member
Rocksan, don't ever dial 911 then.
AntiLiberal
Member
If one of those citizens had gotten out to ATTEMPT to difuse the situation then we would have had 2 deaths here.
I have a little game for everyone of you. Have a friend grab a sharpie and you try to take it from them. Every time they mark you that is you getting stabbed. You'll be covered in ink.
jyatsugi
Member
Local police are asking for more advanced equipment .. mini-spy planes, high-power rifles. Maybe they really need common sense & a little less "machismo".
I have felt extremely intimidated & scared when police approached me before, & it was only a traffic ticket. & god forbid you should argue.
I think it is unfortunate that some police officers feel they are omnipotent behind a badge, & whatever they feel is right must be right at all times. "urban cowboys" would be a better title. I am disgusted that a woman lost her life & the "men" who killed her all have the same vocabulary - the catch-phrases of defending their sad judgement. Do they not also carry mace? This is not IRAQ, there is not reason to "shoot to kill" when shooting the arm that held the knife would have sufficed. For Metro, although i am grateful for the many good people they employ, perhaps the trend needs to change where if anyone uses the right catch phrases in their testimony, their actions will always be found "justified"
AntiLiberal
Member
jyatsugi you are an idiot. You talk about Cops having common sense and then make a comment that they should have shot the knife out of her hand. Real life is nothing like movies, if you had ever fired a handgun you would realize that in a stressful situation that would be impossible. Mace takes a little while to kick in, doesn't always work and you would have to get within stabbing distance to use it. Police Officers are the ones out there who have the common sense. Common sense says don't threaten Cops with a knife. If you want to argue your ticket do it in court, the side of the road is not the place for that.
Yet another person bad mouthing Cops for the tough job they do. I wonder who you would call when your life was in danger?
This woman killed herself by her actions. If she didn't grab a knife we wouldn't be having this conversation.
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