A “mostly peaceful” riot broke out in Philadelphia on Monday night after police officers shot and killed a black man threatening them with a knife. Protesters gathered in front of the police precinct and began throwing rocks and bottles at the cops lined up behind barricades.
Cops cars and dumpsters were set on fire as police struggled to contain the crowds. More than a dozen officers, many with batons in hand, formed a line as they ran down 52nd Street chasing protesters away from the main thoroughfare. The crowd largely dispersed then.
Lauren Dawn Johnson, a reporter for FOX 29, took to Twitter to update her followers on the condition of the officers who suffered injuries.
Thirty officers were injured, most of them from being struck by projectiles such as bricks and rocks, according to preliminary information from police. A 56-year-old sergeant was hospitalized in stable condition with a broken leg and other injuries after she was struck by a pickup truck, while the other injured officers were treated and released, according to police and FOX 29.
BREAKING: Rioters set fire to a police cruiser on 52nd street in #Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. pic.twitter.com/9DCdnShGJH
— SV News 🚨 (@SVNewsAlerts) October 27, 2020
#Philadelphia pic.twitter.com/T6fWH30Pft
— SV News 🚨 (@SVNewsAlerts) October 27, 2020
Thirty officers were injured in the riot, including a sergeant who was hit by a car and suffered a broken leg and other injuries. All the others were treated and released. Officers can be seen retreating in this video:
#Philly not playing pic.twitter.com/xakwa5vGr4
— CARTER 3X (@Iamking_Kha) October 27, 2020
One young father took his young son to the front of the protest.
West Philly Chase Jones brought his 3-year-old son, Chase, to the front of the police line at 55 and Pine to confront police with riot shields. “This is what racism looks like,” he told his son, eye to eye with a white officer. “Take a look.” pic.twitter.com/KpW1P1bWun
— Samantha Melamed (@samanthamelamed) October 27, 2020
Presumably, he walked his son directly past burning cop cars and dumpsters. Did he say anything about how to “respond” to racism?
As shown in this video, the man was shot as he approached officers holding a knife in plain view. (WARNING: Strong language)
Philadelphia cops fatally shot Walter Wallace Jr. today, firing 10+ times at him while he stood at least 10ft away. He allegedly had a knife but cops made NO attempts at de-escalating the situation in this video. They went straight to killing Wallace in front of his loved ones! pic.twitter.com/U2zYGqK7Ag
— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) October 27, 2020
It’s hard to “de-escalate a situation” when someone is rapidly approaching, threatening you with a knife. Could they have talked him down? He didn’t appear willing to listen to reason or logic.
Why is it acceptable behavior to approach armed officers with a knife? Or a gun? And if it isn’t, what are officers to do?
The officers involved did not have the luxury of breaking down a video frame by frame to determine what they “should” have done. They obviously believed their lives — and perhaps others’ — were at risk. You can argue they may have fired “too many times” and I’m sure the prosecutor will look at that aspect of the incident. But police guidelines about when to shoot to kill are fairly straightforward and if the officer’s actions were within those guidelines, they shouldn’t even be charged.
But in these times, the officers will likely be charged with something, if for no other reason than to appease the mob. It’s a helluva way to run a police department and a helluva way to run a city.
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