Friday, February 17, 2012

Americans angry after police kill two black men

From Press TV

Family and residents hold signs in honor of Ramarley Graham, who was shot and killed by police after he was chased into his grandmother’s Bronx home.

The killing of two African-American men, one of them a Marine, at the hands of US police forces has sparked a public outcry in the United States with police refusing accountability over the deaths.

The Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs defended the killing of Sergeant Manuel Loggins in front of his daughters, saying Marine was shot because he was acting “oddly.”

The association claimed Loggins’ actions were a threat to his daughters who were inside a parked car.

“His daughters, ages 9 and 14, could be heard screaming in the SUV, and when approached by sheriff's personnel reported their father had been acting oddly,” the association said in a statement, adding the officer involved is still under investigation.

Loggins, who was enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1998, received multiple medals and commendations from the military.

Meanwhile, New York police are still probing the fatal police shooting of 18-year-old Ramarley Graham.

Graham died on February 2 after a police officer chased him to his grandmother’s apartment and shot him in the chest.

He was unarmed at the time and police did not have a warrant to enter the house.

Graham's death sparked angry protests as African-American community leaders say police used unnecessary force against both men because of their skin color.

Last week, people also held protest rallies in Wakefield, a low-income neighborhood with a large African-American and Caribbean immigrant population, over renewed concerns about the prospect of application of aggressive tactics by the New York Police Department (NYPD).

Experts say the shooting can be linked to the NYPD’s aggressive street policing program called “Stop-and-Frisk.” Critics say the program predominately targets low-income minority neighborhoods.

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