Some video from today's Vigil for Awareness for Zachary Champommier
Beep beep for Zac!
Family and friends line the streets of Studio City to raise awareness for Zac Champommier.
At the end of the vigil, a friend of Zac's takes to the bagpipes for a touching rendition of Amazing Grace.
8 comments:
I don't pretend to understand the minds of the officers on that evening. A cursory inspection of the reports and information, however, suggests some troubling things:
1. The "casing suspect", although only listed at 165 lbs., required two officers and an additional deputy with a hand gun drawn to get him to comply- seems more than a little over the top. In fact, the act of pulling a service revolver of a suspect who had only been looking into the windows of unoccupied cars is, frankly, way over the top and probably set into motion the many of the subsequent events;
2. If the officers' response to a threat from another is to move in 'lockstep' with the threat presented, how was Zac's conduct or car an imminent threat to the officers if they stood facing the driver's side door and from the rear?
3. There are clearly skid marks from braking on the ground. Those marks were just behind the shattered glass. That indicates that Zac must have slammed on his brakes to avoid the officer who came into his path. His actions appear to be consistent with one who is interested in preserving life, not taking life. Hearing screeching from braking would have also given the officers audible notice that Zac was attempting to avoid injury to another. Why were Zac's last actions, clearly demostrating his humanity, ignored?
The officers' conduct is simply disturbing. I mean, the fact that the deputy who Zac allegedly struck still had time to get to his feet and shoot facing the driver's side door? There's something wrong here.
Is the department that perpetrated this still investigating itself? If it is isn't that at the very least inappropriate?
Were the officers in street clothes or in their uniforms?
Zac's friends and family have been vigiling regularly, peacefully, at the corner or Ventura and Laurel Cyn. just about every week. Their movement is growing by the day and I think Zac will eventually get the justice he deserves and the officers will have been found to have acted recklessly, at a minimum.
I saw you guys marching down the sidewalk yesterday. You had a different guy on the bagpipes. Is that where Zac was killed behind the Chipotle place? Why wouldn't the officers just go to the North Hollywood station to do their debriefing or whatever they said they were doing? Sounds like that would be safer for everybody.
Anonymous(9/18 2:10pm) asked: "Why wouldn't the officers just go to the North Hollywood station to do their debriefing....?"
We are not in a position to second-guess the task force about the best place to conduct their debriefing.
They don't try to tell us how to do our job. So lets not jump to naive assumptions that we can tell them how to properly do their job.
Now here is a question for you to answer:
Where would you rather go for nachos and margaritas at 9:30pm -
the mexican-style cantina restaurant on Ventura a couple doors east of the Chipotle OR the LAPD North Hollywood station?
It is standard procedure for blood and urine samples to be collected on people who have been arrested. I think it should be standard procedure for all officers involved in shootings, especially when it's in the parking lot of a cantina.
Anonymous at 1:31 PM,that's exactly what the other guy is saying. If i would rather get Nachos and at a Mexican cantina, why wouldn't cops want to debrief at a station? It almost sounds like you're suggesting the cops would rather get some nachos and margartias then do their job.
Post a Comment