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| Chad Erik Roberts |
Video Article Narration.
Mr. Roberts is the first victim of police killings for the
year 2017.
Details of this incident were provided by the Georgia Bureau of
Investigation and by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Shortly after the incident, the GBI published a press
release which established, among other things, that three police agencies
chased Mr. Roberts. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution regurgitated this report
as follows:
First, notice the title chosen for this incident, “Cherokee
police chase ends with driver fatally shot, officer wounded.”
By inserting “officer wounded,” the reader is swayed to
believe that this was a case of violence against police officers and prepares
the reader to believe that killing Mr. Roberts was justified.
Now, look at the picture.
Does this sight give the
impression that something horrific happened? That police worked so hard during
the holiday that they had to block a major road to protect the public from a dangerous
person? Someone so dangerous he would wound an officer?
Next, look at the AJC's “story highlights."
A man struck a police officer as he sped away from a traffic
stop in Canton.
How was the officer “struck?” A glimpse of the truth was
revealed in an AJC follow-up interview of
Mr. Roberts’ fiancé as follows: "After
briefly speaking to an officer, Roberts decided to flee and he ran over the
officer’s foot in the process."
Wouldn’t a more truthful story highlight been: “Man ran over
officer’s foot as he fled?”
Next highlight:
Police chased the car into Kennesaw, where
the tires were deflated.
That implies that police attempted to disable a runaway
suspect peacefully.
Then,
Chad Erik Roberts, 35, of Canton, got out with a gun
and was fatally shot by officers.
This statement is perhaps the most important of all. If it’s
true that Mr. Roberts had a gun, where is that evidence? Take a look at this
picture again.
Are we expected to believe that out of three police agencies
that chased Mr. Roberts, there is no video or picture to corroborate the
police’s story? Are we supposed to take it on blind faith that the police are
telling the truth? Or should the public suspect any future claim of a gun to be
a plant? It certainly wouldn’t be the first time.
If it’s true that Mr. Roberts came out with a gun, then a
case might be made that the police shot Mr. Roberts in self-defense. But then
again, maybe not. I’ll explain later.
Now let’s review the GBI’s press release which appears to
have been the primary source used by the AJC to report.
On New Year’s Eve, at approximately 10:09 p.m., Mr. Roberts
was parked outside of a closed business. Not illegally parked, but
“suspiciously” parked.
The AJC only reported that police found him in a parking lot
and that he struck an officer as he sped off. And by the way, the AJC reported
the killing took place at “about 2 a.m.” Why was there no mention in this
report of a time of death or a FOUR HOUR chase?
Three agencies chased Mr. Robert’s car.
A tire deflation device was used to stop the car.
The driver exited the car and presented a gun during contact
with police. Does that mean Mr. Roberts POINTED a gun at the police?
Two officers shot and killed Mr. Roberts.
And that an autopsy report will be conducted. Notice in
every case where a police kills a victim, it is the victim that gets tested to check
for substance abuse to justify the cop. How often do the killer police get
tested? Not often, if ever.
Then the report concludes by acknowledging an injured police
and states that no other officers were injured. No mention of any other
civilians being harmed. Does this mean that the lives of police officers matter
more to the GBI? And is it that unreasonable that innocent bystanders could
have been harmed during a four-hour police chase in the middle of a busy
holiday night?
Here are some questions not answered in this report:
1.
What was Mr. Roberts suspected of?
2.
What did the officer say to Mr. Roberts that
caused him to flee from that parking lot?
3.
Why was it not mentioned that the chase took
four hours? And,
4.
What evidence is there that Mr. Roberts really had
a gun?
And finally, let’s review the AJC’s interview of Mr.
Robert’s finance, Ms. Victoria Tallent.
Check out the story highlights:
Chad Erik Roberts, 35, of Canton, exited his car with a gun
and was fatally shot by officers.
His fiancee says Roberts should have been stunned instead of
shot.
The first highlight wrongly establishes that Mr. Roberts was
shot by cops in self-defense.
Then the second highlight makes the fiancé look ridiculous for
suggesting that an man armed with a firearm should be disabled by a stun gun. Anything
this fiancé has to say has already been monumentally discredited even before
this article begins.
Perhaps the most important question for Ms. Tallent would be
to ask about Mr. Robert’s alleged gun. Instead, the article simply states: “Among
Tallent’s many questions is whether officers saw Roberts with a gun.”
Assessment:
Cop killings happen too often, typically without
accountability and with public approval. But if you or I had approached a man
in a parked car – and we carried a gun and made demands to that man, we would
be guilty of kidnap, coercion, armed robbery, and more. But with the magic of a
badge – these acts and far worse are considered acceptable and even desirable. Let’s
not forget how dangerous to the public a four-hour car chase can be. Had there been
any casualties to the public, would that price been worth catching a man who
was merely “suspicious?” And was it immoral for Mr. Roberts to defend himself
by fleeing known tyrants whose sole purpose it is to obey the commands of their
bosses?
My condolences to Ms. Tallent and to Mr. Roberts’ family. It
appears that the real reason Mr. Roberts was killed was because he had the audacity
to sit in his parked car.
If you know more about this police killing, please provide
details in the comments. Useless, baseless, or irrelevant rants against the
victim or his family will be deleted.
What other media biases, discrepancies, or tactics did you
notice about how this incident was reported to the public? Please let me know
your thoughts, criticisms, comments, and questions to help me improve future
videos. Thanks for listeneing.
This is TigerLily talking about just a few bad apples.
Sources:
http://gbi.georgia.gov/press-releases/2017-01-02/gbi-investigates-officer-involved-shooting-cobb-county
http://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/cherokee-county-police-chase-ends-with-driver-fatally-shot-officer-wounded/ccnNLcAXEfvvkIicNUslYL/
http://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/fiancee-man-shot-says-wasn-threat-that-police-gunned-him-down/efYdhBby5mvGXVY7iVQxdL/
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