"Our bad, he was armed though." This isn't a direct quote from the Brownsville Police Department, but it's pretty much their stance on the shooting at Cummings Middle School.
The eighth grade boy killed by Brownsville, Texas police yesterday morning was armed, alright-with a pellet gun. Police said the weapon resembled the real deal (which it does) after they fired multiple shots at 15-year-old Jaime Gonzalez (last photo), one of which struck him it the head.
Of course the Brownsville PD is defending their actions, saying that they repeatedly told Gonzalez to drop the gun, but did they really need to put one in the head of a minor? Couldn't they have just fired shots to take him down, as his father suggested?
Imagine having to explain fatally shooting a kid, then imagine having to explain fatally shooting a kid who wasn't armed with a real weapon. Should he have had the gun? Of course not, but regardless of how you explain it, this situation looks terrible.
As an officer of the law, how do you deal with knowing you killed a kid who wasn't even really armed?
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Chris January 5th, 2012 at 01:45 PM
Dear Julian Kimble, Ever heard the phrase hindsight is 20/20? Who is going to know that's a pellet gun from 20 yards away? Easy with the accusatory tone.
Felipe Gallego January 5th, 2012 at 02:21 PM
yo complex, you know i been reading your stuff for a while... but this type of article and point of view seems outside the realm of complex. please dont publish articles like this anymore, coming from a subscriber since 2001, and an Ecko wearer... i kinda know what im saying.
LivingSincity January 5th, 2012 at 02:28 PM
This story could have easily read "Eight grader shoots student at school" or "15 year old kills cops in shootout". Mr. Kimble your article is irresponsible. There's no such thing as a "take down" shot. Police are trained to shoot center mass (torso). Once you fire a bullet it has lethal intnetions. The head shot could be the result of his body moving from being hit by other bullets. There's a 100 other questions to ask. Why did he have a pellet gun at school. Why didn't obey the commends to drop it. And why is he 15 in the 8th grade! We ask the police to protect us from the criminal element. A 15 yo with a pellet gun looks like criminal element. Sometimes we need to support the police even when a mistake was made.
NarciLove January 5th, 2012 at 03:12 PM
I enjoy Complex articles and I respect your first amendment rights but this was a little bias. I grew up in the inner city and I understand that police officers don't always honor their rights and do corrupt things but this right here is something that a police officer is trained to do. Minor or not, a threat is a threat. That child was holding an object that resembled a real gun. Looking at that picture you can't tell really tell it's not real. How is one supposed to know it's pellets and bullets? Police officers are trained to protect even if that means to kill. They did their job and did it correct. They followed protocol by asking him to drop the weapon. What if it were a real gun and they shot to disarm and the kid chose to shoot back? If I were that child's parent, I woulda hoped he survived so I could beat his ass for being an ignoramus. WHY DID HE HAVE A GUN AT SCHOOL and was nervy to point it at the police.