“Obviously, he has no heart,” one man said of Siale Angilau after witnessing the incident. (Photo credit: Department of Corrections)
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A suspect facing several charges was shot by U.S. Marshals during his own trial in a Salt Lake City courtroom Monday morning after he tried to attack a witness on the stand.
Vaiola Mataele Tenifa was on the witness stand describing the inner workings of the Tongan Crip Gang or TCG. Then, according to The Salt Lake Tribune, at about 9:25 a.m. Siale Maveni Angilau, the defendant who is also known as “C-Down,” violently lunged at Tenifa with a pen in his hand.
U.S. Marshals immediately took action and shot Angilau several times in the chest as a courtroom full of people, including the jury who was to decide Angilau’s fate, looked on. Witnesses recalled that even after Angilau fell to the floor, authorities continued to fire at him.
I don't care how bad a guy is, shooting him eight times, even after he's down, because he attacked with a pen is a bit much.
Handgun rounds aren't reliable stoppers with one round. Much depends on bullet placement and the person being shot. You shoot to stop the attack, and in such close quarters, you don't have the luxury of stand off distance that would allow possibly giving the initial rounds a chance to stop him.
ReplyDeleteWrong. What happened is inadequately trained officers over-reacted. They didn't have the training and experience to handle the tremendous rush of adrenalin they experienced in those critical moments. They couldn't handle the suddenness and surprise of the moment - so they over-reacted.
DeleteMikeB, You dont seem to have a very good handle on the way these types of events unfold. For one, even if it was eight shots, its not that unusual to fire multiple shots as in that kind of close proximity, an attacker, even if only with a stabbing instrument can still be lethal despite being shot, hence what is called the 21 ft rule. Additionally as SSG, said bullets are not one hit wonders and as such most departments train to perform controlled pairs or failure drills. The reality is that unless the brain stem is severed with a single round multiple shots will likely be necessary. As far as the claimed number of rounds, I find it suspect only because of the acoustics of being inside a building as well as other involved factors, it is very rare that an exact round count is remembered by a witness. Also your bias is on clear display as, per usual, it doesn't occur to you how dynamic and fast these situations are and that quite possibly the marshal may have responded correctly, you still have to claim poor training and say they werent prepared.
DeleteMikeZ
MikeZ
Mike Z., shots were fired AFTER he was down. Is that the controlled response of well-trained officers?
DeleteYou are correct, according to the report and statements, the marshal evidently fired after the suspect was down, unfortunately that doesn't really mean what you want it to mean. Whether by drug use, mental illness, or just plain wanting to kill someone, a suspect can be just as dangerous while on the ground. There are a huge number of factors, that have to be filter through and sized up in a split second that lead to a shooting and just as many factors that have to be sized up just as quickly that dictate what happens afterwards. Believe it or not, there are and have been many occasions, in which firing again is completely justified.
DeleteMikeZ
Yeah, maybe there are, but isn't it also possible that these officers over-reacted.
Deleteisnt it a possibility that they responded correctly given the circumstances and their traing and experience?
DeleteMikeZ
That's a really big benefit of the doubt, don't you think? Shooting a guy after he's down is more likely to be unjustified than justified. Of course, your bias may prevent you from admitting that obvious fact.
DeleteHe obviously needed to be shot why else would he lunge at a prosecution witness, it is clear he had something to hide..... good riddance, and the officer should have reloaded and kept shooting, and then curb stomped his dead corpse.....
ReplyDeleteThat's really heart-breaking to learn that there is a Tongan Crips gang. What next?
ReplyDeleteInteresting background to this incident. The Tongans were evangelized by just two brands of missionaries. The Methodists and the Mormons.
This thug was attacking a witness in court. Contrary to what Hollywood wants us to believe, a handgun is not a magical death ray, and people are trained to shoot until the threat has ended.
ReplyDelete"Witnesses recalled that even after Angilau fell to the floor, authorities continued to fire at him."
DeleteSeems the threat had ended way before they stopped shooting.