The NYPD Is Using Mobile X-Ray Vans to Spy on Unknown Targets

Re:The NYPD Is Using Mobile X-Ray Vans to Spy on Unknown Tar... by blacksmith_tb on Tuesday October 20, 2015 @05:51PM (#10422057)

I doubt people critical of frequent, excessive use of force by police "don't care about officers killed in the line of duty." But that total is 100 so far 2015 [1], while the number of citizens killed by police in the US is at 953 [2]. Obviously some of those people had weapons, but it doesn't seem plausible they all did, in light of the very well-reported cases of unarmed people being shot. And it also seems odd to me that anyone would be surprised that officers might be injured - it is a dangerous job, and pays accordingly.

1: http://www.odmp.org/search/year 2: http://killedbypolice.net/

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Re:The NYPD Is Using Mobile X-Ray Vans to Spy on Unknown Tar... by Nadya on Tuesday October 20, 2015 @06:12PM (#10422187)

Thank you for citing the number differences - and I do agree that it is extremely unlikely each of those 953 cases required lethal force or even called for it. Believe me - I'm equally critical of officers and the increasing militarization of police departments that purchase surplus military supplies.

Though I will ask that you do not make the dangerous assumption that "unarmed = not dangerous" or that being found to be unarmed post-facto made them not dangerous to begin with.

If someone threatens to have a gun and threatens to shoot but is actually unarmed at a distance of 30' and they reach behind them - what do you do? Waiting for visual confirmation of a weapon could leave you dead. The potential of them not bluffing is there.

That scenario is a little contrived but there are many variations and they don't involve the suspect having a weapon or bluffing to have a weapon. What if they don't say anything at all but reach behind them? Does that change the situation?

>And it also seems odd to me that anyone would be surprised that officers might be injured

I'm not surprised at all, it is expected to have risk after all. I am surprised that people are asking officers to take additional and unnecessary risks.

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