QP!
Verified User
I just watched the video for the first time. Literally just now. I was avoiding it until I gathered things to look for, learned what other folks were saying, then wanting to know if it met up with reality.
- The Agents approached Pretti. First Pretti walks towards them telling them to "leave her alone" and "I am not in traffic, you are" or something very close to that, but he walks to the side and the agents approach him.
- One of agents is just pushing everybody for no reason I can ascertain. I saw him push at least 3, including the woman in the backpack.
- They pull him off the woman he's trying to help and immediately go into trying to arrest him.
- The gun was absolutely concealed until they grabbed him and pulled at his jacket. When an agent spots the gun he shouts "gun" and grabs it and walks to the middle of the street and away.
- Agents hear "gun" and 3 agents grab guns. I hear nobody telling them that it is "clear" once they have disarmed the guy. However I also do not know if they normally would do that as a guy with one gun may have another. He would be treated as "potentially still armed".
- The first shot that goes off is not on camera, but once it goes at least 9 more follow.
My opinion: This was a clusterf*ck. Someone should lose their job for this mess. However I do not think any of them will face charges, they will be able to use "reasonable officer" thought he was "armed" and was a danger to their life or the lives of others.
I still think that de-escalation training needs to be a priority for these agents, if they plan to work in cities where they will meet this kind of protest they will need to maintain their cool.
That dude pushing everyone was definitively not de-escalating, and I cannot see any reason why he was doing this other than being poorly trained and angry.
End all: Someone should lose their job over this, and they need to spend waaaay more time in training if they are going to play in those cities where they are unwanted. All that being said, "reasonable officer" standard would end with a result that is unsatisfying as the agents would definitely assume he was still armed once they removed one gun... You cannot assume that is the only weapon, but you now know he was armed.
Few things.
Do you not think the pepper spray point blank being emptied in to his face, plus the ICE officer bludgeoning him with the now empty can, while he was subdued and on the ground would not have an impact on a jury and the 'so called resistance' they argue he was doing on the ground?
It would be near impossible for a person being held down, and hit repeatedly in the head with a metal object to not fight to move and get away from the blows.
second, since you think there is zero difference in the 'reasonable person' standards for shooting between officers and civilians do you think if this was the same amount of guys jumping on a guy outside a bar and it playing out the exact same, they also would not be convicted?
BTW i am not saying this would end in conviction and said prior when the lady was shot in the face, these cases are always super tough to bring but the State MUST bring them or ICE, even if they lose in court or ICE will feel emboldened and untouchable. They must at least feel the fear they will be prosecuted and will face a jury.