Texas police chief fires officer who shot and killed unarmed teen

[Danny Kirk Jr]

Officer Brad Miller was fired for "exercising poor judgement" while shooting an unarmed college football player. There was an incident on August the 7th where Christian Taylor showed up at a car dealership and started vandalizing cars on the lot. The officer was in the last stages of his field training when he shot Christian Taylor multiple times at a car dealership. Police Chief Will Johnson who fired Brad Miller stressed that a separate criminal investigation is ongoing. When all the work is complete all reports will be submitted to the district attorney and submitted to the grand jury. The grand jury will decide if the use of force in this incident rises to the level of criminal prosecution.
I chose this article because this is a reacurring problem in our nation. People don't really understand the case then jump to conclusions very quickly. This young man was vandalizing vehicles and was not cooperating with officers. He should have been detained but not shot as many times as he was. The urban community is quick to criticize the officer because they don't know the details. If I could change these reoccurring issues I would give all the facts and not hide anything so that our communities will be safe from violence.

[Allison Finley]

I really appreciate that you value knowing the details of the situation before making a rash judgment.  Many people forget he did something wrong and get offended because of racial matters. I don't think he deserved to be shot at all, however, he does deserve punishment.  It's upsetting to hear a police officer immediately shooting the teen before taking other measures.  I really hope the court views the details of the crime carefully and makes a wise choice.  This has been a common topic in the news the last few years.  It's not fair for minorities to be labeled or judged in certain ways just because of the color of their skin.  I have seen racial tension escalate in our nation recently and I hope we can find the solution for the issue.  I have to agree with Andrew's statement about rebuilding families and serving God. Great post! 

[Regina Dixon]

Police officer shootings are definitely a hot topic, especially within the past couple of years.  It makes me wonder why they are so quick to fire their weapon.  Yes, the young man deserved to be apprehended for the vandalism, but not shot.  I would like to think that our society has evolved from prejudice and pre-judgments, but I've seen that we have not.  I think that it is much more obvious when it comes to African-American men.  A couple of weeks ago I went to Wal-mart with a friend and my son.  He was attempting to exchange a dvd player for a blue ray player.  While I looked in my purse for the receipt, the guy who had helped him in electronics had now come from his department and whispered something to the girl at the service desk. To make a long story short my friend realized that the guy was making an assumption that he had stolen the dvd player simply because he looked and talked a certain way.  When my friend questioned the guy, he just began to smile and try to deny it.  Needless to say the stereotype and the fact that he thought it was a joking matter angered my friend. 

In the midst of the heated discussion, I handed my friend the receipt (proving it had in fact been purchased), a manager intervened, and he was able to make the exchange. There was an African-American officer on duty, and he talked to my friend after everything had calmed down.  I found it very interesting that he said "Negative assumptions are made often about our young men, but when you know you are right just remain calm because all the officer will see is another black man causing a scene."  Had the officer been quick to react without finding out all the facts, my friend probably would have been arrested, even though he was the one who had been treated unfairly.

[Steven Mark Schick]

It's definitely strange that we are seeing such a substantial amount of these cases in the last handful of years.  I think some great points have been made here, both in the post and the comments.  I don't mean to downplay the severity of the issue, or look pass how terrible this was for these individuals' friends and families.  However, I do believe this all plays into the left-winged gun control agenda--all with the help of the media.  Every time something like this occurs, the media goes ballistic for gun control laws.  Unfortunately, many people do not educate themselves, or at least very well, on a situation before making a sound decision about what they "think" or "believe."  A very liberal writer for Huffington Post, Shawn VanDiver, wrote this after the recent shootings in Lafayette, Louisiana: "...without fresh blood on the ground, no one is listening."

[Jennifer Orocio]

Danny, there are defining moments in time where law enforcement have to make a quick decision on what is needed to be done considering all that has happened within the last few months. It's sad to even look at the way everyone is reacting. I can agree that the facts should be laid out so that people can make the judgement for themselves. However, that's not the case anymore. People are making quick judgements without  even looking at the true crime. I would love to see this country step up and become people who follow moral understanding.

[Kristina Kenney]

It seems like more and more situations like these are happening every week. "Racial tensions" do run high, however, not everything is a race issue as people make it out to be. In many cases, race has nothing to do with the situations or how they turn out. People take one look at an event and form a quick, uneducated opinion without bothering to learn the facts. I absolutely think that cops should be held to a high standard and use force only when necessary or as a last resort. In addition, however, I think they should be given respect and not grouped together as a single entity rather than individuals. I also think citizens should behave in an orderly and appropriate manner and be respected. People should follow laws, and cops should grant people their rights.

From a faith perspective, I feel we should just all be acting appropriately and in a loving/respectful manner towards others, and so many of these situations would be avoided. As the Word says, we should be slow to anger and judge. I think mercy (on both sides) should be granted and tensions would probably be decreased. 

[Joshua Robert Powers]

I agree that the man shouldn't have been shot. The police are there to protect the community, and the lives of the citizens do come first. The police officers do also have non-lethal options and should use those unless their life is in direct danger.