Family plans vigil for man killed by NYPD on day of his wedding

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

I say yes.

Family plans vigil for man killed by NYPD on day of his wedding
 
By Adam Rountree, AP
Rev. Al Sharpton speaks to the media as family members of the victims of a police shooting, Denise Ford, second left, the mother of Trent Benefeld, and Ebony Guzman, right, the wife of Joseph Guzman, look on during a press conference outside of Mary Immaculate Hospital in New York on Saturday.

New York Police Depatment crime scene investigators inspect a vehicle involved in the police shooting that took place near the Kalua Cabaret, in the Jamaica section of Queens, N.Y., on Saturday.


NEW YORK (AP) — Sean Bell and his fiancee had already shared a high school romance, then two children. In the early hours of what was to be their wedding day, the reception hall lay waiting, covered in satin and adorned with balloons. But the ceremony never occurred Saturday. Police shot 50 rounds at the groom's car as he drove away from his bachelor party, killing the 23-year-old hours before he was to walk down the aisle.
The hail of gunfire at a car full of unarmed men drew an outcry from family members and community leaders, including the Rev. Al Sharpton. Two passengers, who had been celebrating with the groom at a strip club, were also injured; one was struck by at least 11 bullets.

The officers' shots struck the men's car 21 times after it rammed into an undercover officer and hit an unmarked NYPD minivan, police said. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said it was too early to say whether the shooting was justified.

The gunfire also sprayed nearby homes and a train station, though no residents were injured.

Police thought one of the men in the car might have had a gun, but investigators found no weapons. It was unclear what prompted police to open fire, Kelly said.

He said the incident stemmed from an undercover operation inside the strip club in Queens. Seven officers in plain clothes were investigating the Kalua Cabaret; five of them were involved in the shooting.

On Sunday morning, a few hours before a planned noon vigil for the victims, Sharpton told ABC's Good Morning America that the volume of shots fired alone raised questions about the police's actions.

"How does one justify 50 shots at unarmed men?" Sharpton asked.

According to Kelly, the groom was involved in a verbal dispute outside the club after 4 a.m. One of his friends made a reference to a gun.

An undercover officer walked closely behind Bell and his friends as they headed for their car. As he walked toward the front of the vehicle, they drove forward — striking him and a nearby undercover police vehicle.

The officer who had followed the group on foot was apparently the first to open fire, Kelly said. That officer had served on the force for five years. One 12-year veteran fired his weapon 31 times, emptying two full magazines, Kelly said.

It was the first time any of the officers, all of whom carried 9 mm handguns, had been involved in a shooting, he said.

At some point, Bell backed his car up onto the sidewalk, hitting a building gate. He then drove forward, striking the police vehicle a second time, Kelly said.

It was unclear whether the shooters had identified themselves as police, said Kelly, whose account was based on statements made by witnesses and the two officers who did not shoot their weapons. Police could not question the other officers because the district attorney must first complete an investigation, he said.

The groom was driving. Joseph Guzman, 31, was in the front passenger's seat and was shot at least 11 times. Trent Benefield, 23, who was in the back seat, was hit three times. Both men were taken to Mary Immaculate Hospital, where Guzman was listed in critical condition and Benefield was in stable condition.

Kelly said there may have been a fourth person in the car who fled the scene.

Three officers, including the officer hit by the car, were treated and released. Another detective remained hospitalized for hypertension, Kelly said.

Abraham Kamara, 38, who lives a few blocks from where the shooting occurred, said he was getting ready for work around 4 a.m. when he heard bursts of gunfire.

"First it was like four shots," he said. "And then it was like pop-pop-pop like 12 times."

Kelly said undercover officers were inside the club to document illicit activity. With one more violation the club would be shut down, he said.

He said the establishment has a "chronic history of narcotics, prostitution and weapons complaints."

Saturday, Sharpton went to Jamaica Hospital, where Bell was pronounced dead, and Mary Immaculate Hospital on Saturday and held news conferences afterward. Later, the civil rights advocate stood with about two dozen members of the families of Bell and his fiancee.

"I will stand with this family," he said. "This stinks. Something about the story being told did not seem right."

Sharpton said Bell and his fiancee had two children, a 3-year-old and a 5-month-old.

After meeting with the two wounded men at Mary Immaculate, Sharpton said he was outraged to find the pair handcuffed to their hospital beds. The two were unshackled later Saturday and have not been charged with a crime.

"We're not anti-police ... we're anti-police brutality," Sharpton said.

Robert Porter, who identified himself as Bell's first cousin, said he was supposed to be a DJ at the wedding. He said about 250 people were invited to the ceremony and were flying in from all over the country. He said his cousin wasn't the type to confront police and that he was "on the straight-and-narrow."

"I can't really express myself. It's a numb feeling," Porter said. "I still don't want to believe it, a beautiful day like this, and he was going to have a beautiful wedding, he was going to live forever with his wife and children. And this happened."

[Gabu]

I say yes.

Uh:

Police shot 50 rounds at the groom's car as he drove away from his bachelor party, killing the 23-year-old hours before he was to walk down the aisle.

....

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said it was too early to say whether the shooting was justified.

....

Police thought one of the men in the car might have had a gun, but investigators found no weapons. It was unclear what prompted police to open fire, Kelly said.

You think it was justified, even though the police aren't sure whether or not it was justified?  On what do you base your decision?

[Citizen James]

A hail of bullets over a fender bender?  Yikes.

A  dui check perhaps, but to make a judgement this poor those cops had to either be drinking on the job, or truely inept .

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

A hail of bullets over a fender bender?  Yikes.

A  dui check perhaps, but to make a judgement this poor those cops had to either be drinking on the job, or truely inept .

a fender bender.  They heard him say he had a gun.  And it sounds like he hit the cops on purpose.

[KEmperor]

Al Sharpton is such a freaking attention whore, trying to make political capital out of this.

[Alcon]

A hail of bullets over a fender bender?  Yikes.

A  dui check perhaps, but to make a judgement this poor those cops had to either be drinking on the job, or truely inept .

a fender bender.  They heard him say he had a gun.  And it sounds like he hit the cops on purpose.

As far as I know, I don't think that the police consider claiming to have a gun justification for shooting for the kill.  Someone else can correct me if I'm wrong (James, are you a former police officer or am I misremembering?)

[bgwah]

I say yes.

Uh:

Police shot 50 rounds at the groom's car as he drove away from his bachelor party, killing the 23-year-old hours before he was to walk down the aisle.

....

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said it was too early to say whether the shooting was justified.

....

Police thought one of the men in the car might have had a gun, but investigators found no weapons. It was unclear what prompted police to open fire, Kelly said.

You think it was justified, even though the police aren't sure whether or not it was justified?  On what do you base your decision?

He is a suburban Detroiter and a Republican, Gabu. You act as if you are surprised to his apparent pleasure with the ruthless police murder of a black man!

[Ebowed]

I say yes.

^^^

The police are justified in doing anything they want.  When you question the men and women who protect us on the streets, anarchy and chaos break out.  That's not acceptable.

[Gabu]

A hail of bullets over a fender bender?  Yikes.

A  dui check perhaps, but to make a judgement this poor those cops had to either be drinking on the job, or truely inept .

a fender bender.  They heard him say he had a gun.  And it sounds like he hit the cops on purpose.

Did he even know they were cops?  It said they were undercover.  I don't see any evidence in the text of the article itself saying that he was purposely attacking cops, or that he even knew that they were cops.

He did hit the car twice, but from what I read, the gunfire had already started before he hit the car again.  If I was a guy in a car with a bunch of police officers emptying multiple clips in my general direction, I somehow don't think I'd drive very well.

Regarding the bit about a gun, here's the clip from the article:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

I... can't exactly see where you got "they heard him say he had a gun".

No offense, but you seem to be reading an awful lot into this that is not present in the text, and I can't help but wonder why.

[KEmperor]

I say yes.

^^^

The police are justified in doing anything they want.  When you question the men and women who protect us on the streets, anarchy and chaos break out.  That's not acceptable.

I can't tell if you are being sarcastic or not.  I hope you are, because otherwise that is a very scary way of thinking.

[Alcon]

I say yes.

^^^

The police are justified in doing anything they want.  When you question the men and women who protect us on the streets, anarchy and chaos break out.  That's not acceptable.

I can't tell if you are being sarcastic or not.  I hope you are, because otherwise that is a very scary way of thinking.

Ebowed has been posting for how many years?

[Smash255]

We will see for sure when all the facts come out, but how it looks now, no way.

[© tweed]

police = horrible people

[Boris]

We will see for sure when all the facts come out, but how it looks now, no way.

^^^^^

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

today on the news, he rammed the car while being shot at.  And several of the cops were black as well.

Completely justified--no questions.

[Gabu]

today on the news, he rammed the car while being shot at.  And several of the cops were black as well.

Completely justified--no questions.

Again, did he know that they were cops, or did he think they were a black gang shooting at him or something?  It said in the original article that the cops were undercover.

[Alcon]

Completely justified--no questions.

I still have questions.  As Gabu said, did they identify as police, as required by protocol?

[Storebought]

Completely justified--no questions.

I still have questions.  As Gabu said, did they identify as police, as required by protocol?

Didn't you know? A very recent Supreme Court (I forget which, I will look it up) ruling stated that police no longer have to identify themselves before they take (lethal) action. But that may be only when entering a house.

EDIT: I was mistaken. The police are allowed to take evidence seized from homes without prior announcement, according to this badly-written Boston Globe article.

[Alcon]

Completely justified--no questions.

I still have questions.  As Gabu said, did they identify as police, as required by protocol?

Didn't you know? A very recent Supreme Court (I forget which, I will look it up) ruling stated that police no longer have to identify themselves before they take (lethal) action.

I had no idea.  Frankly, I should probably research the matter before I say that it ever was protocol...but it does seem odd that they would shoot him before they identified.

[Citizen James]

A hail of bullets over a fender bender?  Yikes.

A  dui check perhaps, but to make a judgement this poor those cops had to either be drinking on the job, or truely inept .

a fender bender.  They heard him say he had a gun.  And it sounds like he hit the cops on purpose.

As far as I know, I don't think that the police consider claiming to have a gun justification for shooting for the kill.  Someone else can correct me if I'm wrong (James, are you a former police officer or am I misremembering?)

You are misremembering.  I'm a math teacher.

[J. J.]

The article indicated that the car hit a police officer on foot.  My question is if the van was being used as a weapon?  If someone is trying to run me down, I'd be justified in shooting at them.

We need more information.

[7,052,770]

Freedomburns is the cop, I believe.






Anyhow, this was clearly a gross injustice.  I feel really bad for the fiancee and kids.  How awful.

[Ebowed]

today on the news, he rammed the car while being shot at.  And several of the cops were black as well.

Completely justified--no questions.

Please join the Nazi party.

[Nym90]

I say yes.

^^^

The police are justified in doing anything they want.  When you question the men and women who protect us on the streets, anarchy and chaos break out.  That's not acceptable.

Anything?

I realize you probably don't literally mean that, but if you do, that's just downright scary. We would truly be a fascist state if the police were allowed to do anything to anyone at any time.

Edit--I do have to assume you are joking, based on your response to Inks in the last post.

[Nym90]

Freedomburns is the cop, I believe.






Anyhow, this was clearly a gross injustice.  I feel really bad for the fiancee and kids.  How awful.

Actually it was Raggage who was the cop with a red CA avatar.