Brickbat: The Scene of the Crime

Carl Simpson, executive director of Denver 911, has apologized after instructions given by a 911 operator led to the death of one man. Jimma Reat called 911 to report that the occupants of a red Jeep had thrown bottles at his vehicle and threatened him and family members traveling with him. The operator told Reat to return to the scene of the incident. Reat at first refused and argued with the operator but relented after the operator threatened to not send police if he didn't go back. Reat went back to the scene to wait on police, where he was shot and killed by the occupants of the Jeep.

Brickbat Archive

Comments

[Appalachian Australian]

"Sir, we don't need you to do that."

People put way too much faith in 911 dispatchers. I once called in an obviously-drunk driver who was presenting a danger to myself and others, and speeding around 20 MPH over. The dispatcher asked me to follow him so I could read his number plate.

I politely declined.

[AlmightyJB]

Yeah, I don't get why he didn't just tell her to go fuck herself.

[WTF]

Maybe because he was from Sudan and didn't know any better?

[T]

Immigrants have a far, far different reaction to dealing with cops than natives do. One of my wife's ex-coworkers was a Bengali guy who was damn near in a pants-shitting panic over a traffic ticket.

[Brandybuck]

My friend got a new roommate who was a newly arrived Indonesian student. We decided to take him out to a restaurant on his first day in. While walking to the restaurant he suddenly dove over a hedge and hid when a cop car drove by.

[Copernicus]

i'd like to know the student's explanation for this behavior.

I live in Indonesia, and one of the striking things here is how little regard/respect people here have re the Police. For the most part, the police are just ignored, even when they are trying to control some "situation". It is hilarious to watch these clown on the news whenever there is something going down.

[Auric Demonocles]

What the fuck

[Ice Nine]

Witness the Zimmerman-Trayvon case - people for some reason ascribe some sort of authority to freakin' 911 operators.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

Hang up and call back rather than do something obviously retarded.

[o3]

or drive to the nearest police station

[DengFing]

OK so who comes up with all this stuff? Cant help but wonder. Wow.

http://www.Get-Anon.tk

[sarcasmic]

Since there is no mention of the race of the shooters, I must assume they were black.

Move along. Nothing to see here.

Had they been white...

[WTF]

Come on, they must have been a bunch of red neck white guys, because that's who commits most of the violence against blacks. I see it on the news all the time!

[Sabotage2u]

Ahh yes because the media would never use a "white" girl (Cough Natalie Holloway Cough Jonbenet Ramsey Cough Chandra Levy) to drive ratings either. This faux race bias outrage that people accuse the media of is ridiculous. There is no agenda outside of ratings/money. If your story can't be sensationalized or hyped you don't get airplay it's not white or black, it's green. Stop this race baiting BS.

[WTF]

Of course you're right. There would still be no media outrage over this if the races were reversed.

[deified]

I feel as if this incident would get the exactly the same coverage if the victim were a black dude.

[Zeb]

The fact that the media stupidly makes everything about race does not make it less stupid for anyone else to make everything about race. The vast majority of cases of white people shooting black people never makes the national news either.

[Sabotage2u]

Thank you for actually using logic Zeb. The media is about sensationalism & ratings that is it. If a one legged albino alien was on a mass murdering spree it makes the news only if they think it will catch more eyeballs. This "media is bias against white people" nonsense is just dumb as Al Sharpton/Rev Jackson showing up to get their camera time.

[Loki]

Close. "Hispanic" apparently. I can only assume that means he was more brown than Zimmerman.

"An unidentified Hispanic male exited the Jeep Cherokee armed with a handgun. The victim and other family members attempted to flee on foot. The unidentified suspect shot and killed Jimma Reat as he attempted to flee,"

http://denver.cbslocal.com/201.....anese-man/

[sarcasmic]

That area is drowning in Mexicans.
And it is no secret that Mexicans hate black people.
So yeah. A brown person killed a black person.
Nothing to see here. Move along.

[WTF]

I bet he was a 'white hispanic'.

[sarcasmic]

I bet he was a 'white hispanic'.
Obviously you've never been to Denver.

[WTF]

No, but I know what the media tells me about who victimizes who in this country.

[Loki]

Plus the victim was a Sudanese immigrant, presumably here to make a better life for himself and his family than he could hope for in his shithole home country. OTOH, had he been an "innocent" black American teenager...

[sarcasmic]

Stealing American jobs. Good riddance.

[Auric Demonocles]

Of the dispatcher, Simpson said, "I do know he didn't follow procedures."

Oh, of course. Procedures. That's what matters.

[tallyho]

^^ This. Procedures are what keep civilization intact. From this point forward, it shall be a proper noun and require capitalization i.e. Procedures - as in "Procedures were followed". Corollary: it becomes obvious Gamboling (also a proper noun) cannot co-exist with Procedure.

[tallyho]

... and don't get me started on "policies"...

[bostonaod]

from the article: "Some policies were not followed. There were a number of policies that were followed."

I think I've just stared into the abyss..

[Loki]

At this point 911 in the Denver metro area is pretty clearly a bunch of useless dipshits.

http://denver.cbslocal.com/201.....e-emerges/

[Fluffy]

What's the law on leaving the scene of an accident?

If I'm in a fender bender, and I conclude that the occupants of the other car might be dangerous, can I leave the scene?

I honestly don't know.

[EDG reppin' LBC]

Your safety will trump any law, any time.

[protefeed]

You leave the scene of the crime, and as soon as possible call a lawyer and discuss whether to call the police and explain the circumstances of why you left.

Self-defense justifies purt near any act that would otherwise be a crime.

[B.P.]

This shooting happened a couple of blocks from my house. The line between Denver and Jefferson counties runs right down the middle of Sheridan Blvd. I think the dispatcher told them to leave Jeffco and go back to Denver for jurisdictional reasons. I once called 911 because there was a guy staggering drunk down the middle of Sheridan Blvd (where traffic hums along at about 45 mph). The dispatcher wanted me to identify which side of the street the guy was on, so she could alert the proper police force. "He's staggering back and forth across the line. Just send a cop!"

[stupac]

Yep, plenty of jurisdictional fun on Sheridan...I'm at 36th and Sheridan, and get to watch Mountain View police pulling over every other car going South bound, but having to sit on their hands when the North bound lanes are going 10-15 mph over.