This Toyota Corolla was suspected of not paying polls around Houston — but the car belonged to the man’s girlfriend. Not the man driving it. His girlfriend may or may not have paid the tolls in question.
Yet, in under seven seconds, the young man… was dead.
Shot by the officer, twice — even though the officer admitted his head was in a position that he could see… nothing. These are the encounters in which John sees no racial dimension at play (Texas Officer: Whyte — Deceased: Of Color).
Damn.
Here’s the Supremes’ summary. Yes the deceased fourth and eighth amendment rights were plainly violated. It was a suspected toll-road scofflaw encounter, nothing more. And he’s… dead now:
…Parking his own car just behind, [Officer] Felix walked to the Corolla’s driver-side door and asked [Deceased] Barnes for his license and proof of insurance. Barnes replied that he did not have his license with him, and that the car was a rental in his girlfriend’s name. As he spoke, Barnes rummaged through some papers inside the car, causing Felix to tell him several times to stop “digging around.” Felix also commented that he smelled marijuana, and asked if there was anything in the car he should know about. Barnes responded that he might have some identification in the trunk. So Felix told him to open the trunk from his seat. Barnes did so, while also turning off the ignition. All that happened (as a dashcam recording of the incident shows) in less than two minutes.
Then things began moving even faster. With his right hand resting on his holster, Felix told Barnes to get out of the car. Barnes opened the door but did not exit; instead, he turned the ignition back on. Felix unholstered his gun and, as the car began to move forward, jumped onto its doorsill. He twice shouted, “Don’t fucking move.” And with no visibility into the car (because his head was above the roof), he fired two quick shots inside.
Barnes was hit, but managed to stop the car. Felix then radioed for back-up. By the time it arrived, Barnes was dead. All told, about five seconds elapsed between when the car started moving and when it stopped. And within that period, two seconds passed between the moment Felix stepped on the doorsill and the moment he fired his first shot….
We confidently predict Hinderaker will NT rise to defend this lethal encounter, despite the Supremes’ unanimous opinion that it was lawless. What is at play here is whether a “reasonable” standard would consider the nature of the stop. The Supremes said it should.
Damn. Just… damn.
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