The U.S. Department of Justice has been asked to investigate the shooting death of Terence Crutcher, an unarmed black man whose car had broken down, by Tulsa Police.
In response to two videos that depict the murder of Terence Crutcher, the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma (ACLU) is calling for the launch of investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice and the state. Crutcher’s sister has demanded that charges be pressed against the officers responsible.
Tulsa Police Commit Cold Blooded Murder
In a released statement, Ryan Kiesel, executive director of ACLU of Oklahoma, said:
“A Tulsa police officer murdered Terence Crutcher in cold blood. Each of the officers present were complicit in the unconscionable, reprehensible, and disgusting killing of this unarmed, defenseless man, by allowing him to bleed to death on the street, rather than attempting any immediate medical aid or attention. These Tulsa Police Department officers have made it abundantly clear how little regard they have for Tulsa’s communities of color. By shooting a defenseless black man and then shirking their legal and moral obligation to render aid as he lay dying in the street, these TPD officers clearly could not care less about whether the black citizens they are sworn to protect live or die.”
[…]
“In a world where our government continues to prove how little regard it has for the lives and the dignity of Black Americans, to remain silent is to be complicit. It is well past time for the good men and women who serve their communities faithfully to speak out, and condemn this murder of a defenseless black man.â€
A Bold-Faced Lie
“The videos prove that the Tulsa Police Department’s initial claim that Terence Crutcher was refusing to put his hands in the air was a “bold-faced lie,” added Brady Henderson, legal director of ACLU of Oklahoma.
“The videos are clear–Terence had his hands in the air, and posed no threat to those present–right up until one of the officers gunned him down and then her four companions watched him bleed to death in the street, making no attempt to render aid,†Henderson said.
Crutcher’s family and community leaders have made a plea for peaceful protests and level heads.
“Today’s promise of an independent federal investigation perhaps will bring some hope for peaceful resolution to a community that has been brutally betrayed by the people sworn to protect it. If this killing is investigated competently and fairly, I believe we will see murder or manslaughter charges against the shooter, and hopefully accessory charges against the officers who treated Terence Crutcher like a piece of meat rather than a human being. Their actions were immoral, reprehensible, and outright criminal,â€Â Henderson noted.
