(ThyBlackMan.com) The evidence is still being analyzed, but more time also means more time for the police to structure a cover up in the death of Terrence Crutcher. Sell out cops and slanted news media are saying wait and let’s not rush to judgment, but we are tired of waiting only to find the officer walks away legally unscathed, the grand jury won’t indict, the district attorney will not prosecute or a well planned cover up skews the real facts. Why wait patiently with the presumption of innocence when such a presumption is for the courts, not for the public?
Why wait while the officer is coached by her department on what to say and what to write? We know this happens every day. Why presume the officer’s innocence while they have already began to smear the reputation of Terrence Crutcher? The police and the media are not waiting. Why wait when we have video footage? Why wait when preliminary evidence already seems to contradict some of what the officer is saying, for example, about the window of the 
SUV?
As a former detective, I can say that Tulsa Police Officer Betty Shelby is lying. First, if she is scared being out there, the job is not for her. We all have been scared and that is natural, but not in daytime circumstances where we do not even see a weapon. She panicked and freaked out or she was poorly trained or both. You can hear it in here account of what happened. A scared cop is often a dangerous cop because he or she is prone to make more mistakes and rush to action without thinking clearly.
Here is Officer Betty Shelby’s story: https://www.yahoo.com/gma/tulsa-police-officer-shares-her-side-story-terence-225515468–abc-news-topstories.html
Next there is the issue of non-compliance. Shelby could have used a taser if she did NOT see a weapon. She says she thought he had a weapon but she does not say she saw one. You can think anything but that does not make it true. But you can only act with deadly force on what you KNOW. Then there is the issue of the cop saying the man reached in the window. Preliminary evidence shows something different, as the family’s attorney has stated.
Even if the man had a gun, having a firearm is not automatically illegal. And if it poses no threat to an officer or a citizen, there are no grounds for an officer to shoot the citizen. This officer got stuck in an encounter, freaked out and didn’t know how to handle it. An examination of her pre-hire psychological exam, her training records and her performance history, where she lives and her affiliation with African Americans as friends or not will show more of the big picture.
Officers should be required to take annual psychological exams or assessments. It can be done quickly and inexpensively by computer and scored in a matter of minutes.
Finally, by all accounts so far, the behavior of Terrence Crutcher could indicate mental illness, in which case I want to know if the officer was specifically trained to distinguish mental illness from willful non-compliance. As for her training regarding drugs, that is neither here nor there because drugs were in the vehicle, not on the victim and certainly a drug test was not performed before she shot and killed him. This officer does not need to be an officer ever again. To get a free copy of our National Strategic Plan to End Police Brutality, send an email request to atlantacrimecommission@yahoo.com
What should African Americans do now? Protest, rally, ask questions, demand answers, call the Tulsa Police Department, lean on the FBI to take over the investigation, push for the firing of Officer Betty Shelby, demand all the video footage to be released, write to the local city county, commissioners and state representatives of Tulsa Oklahoma, boycott, write about the incident, watch to see the witnesses are not strong armed by the police, blast this on social media, SHARE THIS ARTICLE WITH EVERYONE YOU KNOW and every other lawful thing you can think of which does not place you in harm’s way. Enough is enough. Wake up, stand up, speak up, step up.
Staff Writer; Trevo Craw
