Los Angeles, CA– As pro cop media descend into Skid Row following the fatal shooting of a mentally ill homeless man last week, the residents seem to be growing weary and tired of their presence. Rightfully so, as the LA Times has been being annihilated on twitter for post posthumously character assassinating and dehumanizing the department’s latest victim.
2:30 AM - 4 Mar 2015 Manhattan, NY, United States
On Wednesday, a camera crew from Fox 11 got exactly what they wanted as their invasion got a reaction from one resident, which lead to the police attacking the man in front of the stations camera crew.
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“In the aftermath of Sunday’s fatal shooting of a homeless man by the LAPD during a robbery call, I wanted to try to give our viewers a sense of the challenges that everyone, especially the police, deal with every day in that area.” the reporter who captured the incident wrote. “Totally, by coincidence, we bumped into LAPD Chief Charlie Beck, who was walking with a beat officer there to get his own sense of the conditions.” he mentioned.
He continues on to explain that him and his crew were in front of the Midnight Mission shelter when Skid Row resident came up and broke the view finder off of their camera. Other residents have confirmed this was because the man had felt violated by the presence of this crew. This does not justify attacking another person’s property, but may provide some insight on why this event took place.
The camera crew then called 9-11, and they state that at least four cop cars showed up, when a flock of officers descended on the man and began assaulting him. He was tased several times as you can see in the video.
Phil Shuman, the LAPD lap-dog journalist then wrote- “Fortunately, it had a different, safer ending, but it was a vivid example of the volatile nature of some people here and how quickly the routine can turn dangerous.”
I’m sorry Mr. Shuman, but how does it feel to be a lackey?
What this video really shows is how poorly trained these officers are in handling people who may have mental illness or disabilities. Many of the people on Skid Row have various challenges and struggles that they are coping with that have landed them there in the first place. Responding to a call on Skid Row like cow boys out with a vengeance is a sure fire way to escalate a situation. Does one even need Crisis Intervention Training to understand that? Shouldn’t this be common sense?
Last year it was reported that many cops in California are not completing a state-certified program that focuses on the training in dealing with mental illness, suicide behavior, and drug use. Perhaps this could explain the rash of headlines we read about involving police officers and the mentally ill, being wrongfully treated or beaten.
Estimates range from there being 3,668 to 5,131 homeless occupants in the area of Skid Row. The high concentration of people with no permanent housing began in the 1970s, when the city of Los Angeles began a policy called “containment,” to concentrate services for homeless people in this one area.
It is a common estimate that over 40,000 people without permanent housing live throughout the sprawling city, with a high percentage of those coping with addiction problems or various mental illnesses. With such a large portion of the people these officers have sworn to “serve and protect” likely to benefit from officers being trained to deescalate situations, is it really too much to ask that all officers complete the 40 hour course?
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