Finally someone is doing the right thing where 19 year old Ashley Smith is concerned. The next step is to bring to justice the management officials who ordered front line guards not to intervene until Ashley was no longer breathing! The only people who have so far faced any kind of accountability (however limited) have been those front line guards. Charges against the management were laid and almost immediately dropped.
Ashley Smiths Death Ruled a Homocide
Resisting the Oppressive Arm of the Canadian State and Seeking Out Human Rights Based Alternatives
Showing posts with label Murder. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Murder. Show all posts
Friday, December 20, 2013
Friday, February 10, 2012
Torontonian Shot and Killed by Police
Yet another police shooting fatality! A dozen or more police officers were not able to subdue, arrest, restrain one man with scissors? What about talking calmly with the man? Calling in an experienced crisis worker? Yes these solutions may have taken longer but in the end isn't a life saved worth the extra time and trouble? I know what the cops will say. There wasn't time, the man presented a danger, etc, etc. Then why not use other police "tools" which we know police are well trained and experienced in using, as evidenced by the high incidence of their over use...tasers and pepper spray. Police are trained in the take town of high risk persons. The public are led to believe that non lethal tactics will be employed first, with tactics likely to kill employed only as a final, last ditch, emergency effort.
The Toronto Star had this report;
Neighbours who watched police shoot dead a 29-year-old man wearing a hospital gown in Toronto’s east end Friday are questioning whether excessive force was used.
Douglas Pritchard, who was 10 metres away, said there were enough police around to subdue the victim on Milverton Blvd., a few blocks south of Toronto East General Hospital.
But another neighbour, also close, believes police had no other choice.
The shooting occurred about 20 minutes after paramedics were called to a stabbing inside a nearby convenience store, at the corner of Sammon and Woodington Aves., across from the hospital.
An EMS official said those injuries were minor.
Witnesses reported that the man arrived on Milverton just after 10 a.m. and began banging on the back door of a house and trying to get in.
The man — who witnesses described as wearing no shoes and wielding two pairs of scissors — was fatally shot on the quiet residential street at around 10:15 a.m.
He was taken to St. Michael’s Hospital where he was pronounced dead. The victim has not yet been identified.
Toronto police would not provide details of the shooting because it is now being probed by the province’s Special Investigations Unit.
In previous cases of police shootings where the use of deadly force has been questioned, officer have said they are trained to shoot at the centre of the body, not arms or legs.
However, the incident has raised alarming concerns for Pritchard, 63, who was out running with his dog.
Pritchard said he saw a middle-aged man, about 5-foot-8 with dark hair and wearing a blue shirt that looked like a hospital gown. About five or six officers were behind the man trying to grab or restrain him and another two or three were in front, Pritchard said.
“And then I saw one officer raise his arm and fire at him point blank three shots,” said Pritchard, adding the shots were fired from about half a metre away.
Pritchard said that, as far as he could see, the man was not brandishing any weapons.
He fell to the pavement and police jumped on top of him, still trying to restrain him while his body was writhing, said Pritchard, adding the officers continued to restrain the man until his body stopped moving.
“My concern is, is this a man with mental health issues? From the time I came on the scene they had him surrounded with 11 police cars in total. I counted. There must have been 15 officers around this man in total,” said Pritchard.
“Was this an appropriate use of force in this situation? Was there a mental health team on site?”
People need to know the answers to these questions, he said.
“It gives me a real concern to see that level of force applied and someone shot on our streets,” Pritchard said.
Another neighbour, Chad, who would only give his first name, said the shooting occurred in front of his house.
He said the victim was walking toward police with his arms outstretched and a pair of scissors in each hand.
“Stop, stop, stop,” police said to the man, according to Chad, who believes the officers were justified in their actions. “They did their job. They had no choice.”
A police officer also suffered minor injuries in the incident.
The victim is believed to have come from Toronto East General Hospital, although it’s unclear why the man was at the hospital.
Toronto East spokeswoman Angela Pappaianni said the hospital could not answer any questions because of the ongoing investigation.
“We are cooperating with the SIU,” she said.
The Toronto Star had this report;
Neighbours who watched police shoot dead a 29-year-old man wearing a hospital gown in Toronto’s east end Friday are questioning whether excessive force was used.
Douglas Pritchard, who was 10 metres away, said there were enough police around to subdue the victim on Milverton Blvd., a few blocks south of Toronto East General Hospital.
But another neighbour, also close, believes police had no other choice.
The shooting occurred about 20 minutes after paramedics were called to a stabbing inside a nearby convenience store, at the corner of Sammon and Woodington Aves., across from the hospital.
An EMS official said those injuries were minor.
Witnesses reported that the man arrived on Milverton just after 10 a.m. and began banging on the back door of a house and trying to get in.
The man — who witnesses described as wearing no shoes and wielding two pairs of scissors — was fatally shot on the quiet residential street at around 10:15 a.m.
He was taken to St. Michael’s Hospital where he was pronounced dead. The victim has not yet been identified.
Toronto police would not provide details of the shooting because it is now being probed by the province’s Special Investigations Unit.
In previous cases of police shootings where the use of deadly force has been questioned, officer have said they are trained to shoot at the centre of the body, not arms or legs.
However, the incident has raised alarming concerns for Pritchard, 63, who was out running with his dog.
Pritchard said he saw a middle-aged man, about 5-foot-8 with dark hair and wearing a blue shirt that looked like a hospital gown. About five or six officers were behind the man trying to grab or restrain him and another two or three were in front, Pritchard said.
“And then I saw one officer raise his arm and fire at him point blank three shots,” said Pritchard, adding the shots were fired from about half a metre away.
Pritchard said that, as far as he could see, the man was not brandishing any weapons.
He fell to the pavement and police jumped on top of him, still trying to restrain him while his body was writhing, said Pritchard, adding the officers continued to restrain the man until his body stopped moving.
“My concern is, is this a man with mental health issues? From the time I came on the scene they had him surrounded with 11 police cars in total. I counted. There must have been 15 officers around this man in total,” said Pritchard.
“Was this an appropriate use of force in this situation? Was there a mental health team on site?”
People need to know the answers to these questions, he said.
“It gives me a real concern to see that level of force applied and someone shot on our streets,” Pritchard said.
Another neighbour, Chad, who would only give his first name, said the shooting occurred in front of his house.
He said the victim was walking toward police with his arms outstretched and a pair of scissors in each hand.
“Stop, stop, stop,” police said to the man, according to Chad, who believes the officers were justified in their actions. “They did their job. They had no choice.”
A police officer also suffered minor injuries in the incident.
The victim is believed to have come from Toronto East General Hospital, although it’s unclear why the man was at the hospital.
Toronto East spokeswoman Angela Pappaianni said the hospital could not answer any questions because of the ongoing investigation.
“We are cooperating with the SIU,” she said.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Update and Petition on Ron Smith Getting Death Penalty
Once again I am stunned by the penchant of the political right for cruelty and a total lack of empathy. I simply cannot understand how being a human being oneself, it can be so impossible to feel empathy for another human being, even one who has made the enormous mistakes Ron has. Ronald has admitted to killing 2 men 30+ years ago. And if true, it is the most serious of damage one person can do to another and to their respective families. I'm not sure what the answer is when these circumstances occur, what is an appropriate manner for those responsible to accept responsibility and to make whatever amends possible. But I feel quite certain about this, 30 years in the hole and then being put to death by the state which writes laws against killing - is wrong. It just is.
Sign the Petition to support Ronald and stop his execution.
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/save-ronald-allen-smith/sign.html#se
Are there any people in Canada working on this issue from a community level? Please leave a comment or send me an email - j-sheryl@hotmail.com
Baird slammed for 'cynical' clemency plea
Double-murderer Ronald Smith asks to be spared death penalty
By RANDY BOSWELL, Postmedia News
January 21, 2012
Opposition critics and one of Canada's leading opponents of the death
penalty are denouncing Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird for sending a
brief letter to the Montana parole board in which he appears to only
half-heartedly request clemency for convicted killer Ronald Smith, the
only Canadian on death row in the United States.
Alex Neve, secretary general of Amnesty International-Canada, described the letter as "deeply disappointing."
The federal NDP's justice critic, Jack Harris, called it a "deplorable" indication of the Conservative government's stance on capital punishment, and Liberal MP Dominic LeBlanc said the "weak" and "cynical" letter could effectively sink Smith's bid to avoid death by lethal injection.
In the letter, Baird prefaces his request by noting that the government was ordered to lend its support to Smith by the Federal Court of Canada. He then states that the government "does not sympathize with violent crime" and that Canada's formal request for clemency "should not be construed as reflecting a judgment on Smith's conduct."
The letter from Baird was included this week in Smith's formal application to have his death sentence for killing two Montana men in 1982 commuted to life imprisonment.
The request is expected to prompt an investigation by parole board officials, a formal hearing within the next four months and eventually a non-binding recommendation from the board to Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer on whether Smith deserves to avoid execution.
The 19-page application for clemency - accompanied by two other lengthy and impassioned letters of support for the 54-year-old Smith from a Catholic priest and prison educator - detailed Smith's record as a model inmate at the Montana State Prison, the failure of his first lawyer to accept a 1983 plea bargain that would have spared Smith's life, the abusive childhood Smith suffered growing up in Alberta and his "heartfelt remorse" over the crimes he committed nearly 30 years ago.
"Clearly, a more robust letter conveying detailed and forceful support would be constructive, including laying out the reasons why (in addition to a court order) the government believes Mr. Smith deserves clemency," Neve said.
"There are many such reasons."
Neve acknowledged that having Canada officially "on the record" as backing the clemency bid is "obviously welcome" - even if the Conservative government's support is, at best, lukewarm.
"It's very, very cynical to begin a letter to the Montana parole board by saying 'Look, I don't really want to do this, but I've been forced to,'" said LeBlanc. "If we think it's wrong to impose the death penalty on Canadians in Canada, we should have a consistent application of that principle when foreign jurisdictions are subjecting Canadians to that potential sentence."
Alex Neve, secretary general of Amnesty International-Canada, described the letter as "deeply disappointing."
The federal NDP's justice critic, Jack Harris, called it a "deplorable" indication of the Conservative government's stance on capital punishment, and Liberal MP Dominic LeBlanc said the "weak" and "cynical" letter could effectively sink Smith's bid to avoid death by lethal injection.
In the letter, Baird prefaces his request by noting that the government was ordered to lend its support to Smith by the Federal Court of Canada. He then states that the government "does not sympathize with violent crime" and that Canada's formal request for clemency "should not be construed as reflecting a judgment on Smith's conduct."
The letter from Baird was included this week in Smith's formal application to have his death sentence for killing two Montana men in 1982 commuted to life imprisonment.
The request is expected to prompt an investigation by parole board officials, a formal hearing within the next four months and eventually a non-binding recommendation from the board to Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer on whether Smith deserves to avoid execution.
The 19-page application for clemency - accompanied by two other lengthy and impassioned letters of support for the 54-year-old Smith from a Catholic priest and prison educator - detailed Smith's record as a model inmate at the Montana State Prison, the failure of his first lawyer to accept a 1983 plea bargain that would have spared Smith's life, the abusive childhood Smith suffered growing up in Alberta and his "heartfelt remorse" over the crimes he committed nearly 30 years ago.
"Clearly, a more robust letter conveying detailed and forceful support would be constructive, including laying out the reasons why (in addition to a court order) the government believes Mr. Smith deserves clemency," Neve said.
"There are many such reasons."
Neve acknowledged that having Canada officially "on the record" as backing the clemency bid is "obviously welcome" - even if the Conservative government's support is, at best, lukewarm.
"It's very, very cynical to begin a letter to the Montana parole board by saying 'Look, I don't really want to do this, but I've been forced to,'" said LeBlanc. "If we think it's wrong to impose the death penalty on Canadians in Canada, we should have a consistent application of that principle when foreign jurisdictions are subjecting Canadians to that potential sentence."
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