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Loading...NYPD Officer Pleads Not Guilty In Murder Of Unarmed 18-Year-Old
In yet another tale of police brutality, a police officer who fatally shot an unarmed teenager who was trying to flush a bag of marijuana down the toilet in his Bronx apartment has today pleaded not guilty to manslaughter charges.
Officer Richard Haste, 30 years old, the first member of the New York Police Department to face manslaughter charges since the 2006 shooting of Sean Bell, turned himself in and was arraigned at a Bronx criminal court on charges of first and second degree manslaughter over the killing of 18-year-old Ramarley Graham four months ago.
Haste, a four-year veteran of the force, was released on $50,000 bail. He faces a maximum of 25 years in prison if convicted.
On February 2, 2012, a team of officers assigned to the Street Narcotics Enforcement Unit, a precinct-level plainclothes squad, was watching a bodega suspected of being a drug market when Mr. Graham entered the store. The officers observed Mr. Graham fidgeting with his waistband and spotted what looked like the butt of a gun. This prompted one officer to warn his partners that the teen was armed, according to an account from New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly shortly after the incident.
Police Officer Haste Shot Unarmed Ramarley Graham
The Wall Street Journal describes what happened next:
When the officers identified themselves and ordered Mr. Graham not to move, the commissioner said the teen ran into his family’s nearby home on East 229th Street. The officers pursued, gaining entry to the three-family building after a neighbor let them in.
Guns out, the officers ran to the second floor and broke down the door. They spotted Mr. Graham down a hallway near the back of the apartment and saw the teen duck into the bathroom.
Officer Haste was so convinced Mr. Graham was armed that he yelled “gun, gun” before firing, according to Mr. Kelly’s account.
But Mr. Graham had no weapon. Police found a small bag of marijuana in the toilet. Officer Haste fired once at close range, striking Mr. Graham in the chest. The teen was pronounced dead at Montefiore Medical Center.
Yet Another Senseless Police Murder
Yet another senseless murder, as if police officers have learned nothing from the death of Oscar Grant, or of Kelly Thomas, to name just two recent deaths at the hands of the police.
Haste stood in court flanked by his attorneys and only spoke once to enter his not guilty plea. He left the courthouse to a mix of cheering police officers and angry protesters riled by the killing.
“NYPD, KKK, how many kids did you kill today?” the demonstrators chanted at Haste, who climbed into a waiting black sedan and drove off, reported The New York Daily News, which also wrote that the dead youth’s father, Frank Graham, wept in the courtroom with his wife Constance Malcolm and later broke down outside the courthouse.
Read more: bronx, gun violence, kelly thomas, marijuana, NYPD, oscar grant, police brutality, ramarley graham, richard haste, stop and frisk policy
Photo Credit: Vanissa W. Chan
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@ Will
You are absolutely right. White people usually do not protest when a white person gets shot by the police. I believe that there are 2 reasons for that. Most white people are not racist and will do nothing to appear racist so of course we are not going to protest a white guy getting shot even if he was our next door neighbor. White people don't really have the same rights of cultural and community pride as the minority people in this country. We do not do anything that could exclude any person of any race because we are the bad ones in the equation. Of course white people get shot by police too. I see news reports about police standoffs or a guy got shot by police for doing this or that but honestly if the guy didn't want to get shot then he probably shouldn't have been breaking the law. Would you want to have to explain to the minority community why you were angry over a white person getting shot in your town if you weren't out there protesting when something happened in their town or to any minority anywhere? It is not ok for a white person to protest the unfair treatment of other white people or even mention it to anyone because if you do then everyone will see you as a racist and you would be hated by everyone of every color. Plus usually if someone who was white was in the same situation I would have probably just mentioned that if the criminal had any brains in his head then when he heard the cops yelling that he had a gun he probably should have raised h
Over a petty drug like pot! Sadness for his family & loved ones, no reason for such a tragedy to have taken place. Obviously these cops need to relearn ask questions first, shoot as a last result not the other way around.
Over a petty drug like pot! Sadness for his family & loved ones, no reason for such a tragedy to have taken place. Obviously these cops need to relearn ask questions first, shoot as a last result not the other way around.
Another trigger-happy cop!
He needs to be found guilty and punished!!!
Why is it always a black man? Or don't white people go out on the streets to pursue the unjustified killing of their own? Is it only black people protesting against murder? Cops in America don't seem to like them very much, and white people in general don't seem to mind. I'm truly deeply deeply sorry for the blacks over there, ...even if they try to smoke some grass to take the pressure off, they can be killed. I think if I was them, I'd be depressed in prison or dead. They seem to have very little joy in America. I'm surprised that they're not going berserk on the streets protesting every day!
Why is it always a black man? Or don't white people go out on the streets to pursue the unjustified killing of their own? Is it only black people protesting against murder? Cops in America don't seem to like them very much, and white people in general don't seem to mind. I'm truly deeply deeply sorry for the blacks over there, ...even if they try to smoke some grass to take the pressure off, they can be killed. I think if I was them, I'd be depressed in prison or dead. They seem to have very little joy in America. I'm surprised that they're not going berserk on the streets protesting every day!
He can plead not guilty all he wants, doesn't change the fact that he shot and killed an unarmed person.
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