"The right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." – Constitution for the United States of America
Chicago is a city with some of the strictest gun control laws in the US. Besides that, it may be no coincidence it’s considered by some to be the murder capital of the country.
It's easy to see why one would want to own and carry a gun in Chicago as self-defense is paramount if one wishes to preserve their life in dangerous situations.
That said, Harith Augustus was minding his own business one day while traveling on a sidewalk in Chiraq. He walked by some police officers who then approached and questioned him about the bulge around his waistband.
Harith was armed with a hidden pistol in his waistband. Why he was armed is anyone's guess.
If you illegally own a handgun in Chiraq, it's serious business. In fact, one may be put in a cage and treated like an animal for up to three years if convicted of a Class 4 Felony.
If you place yourself in Haraith's shoes; he must be under considerable duress if he knows the consequences for bearing arms in Chicago. Had the police taken him into custody, he would most likely go to jail for years.
Some would say that Harith was defending his liberty, yet, this is only if you view the situation from a Constitutional perspective of law, as opposed to the legal system itself.
The other side of this encounter would be from the police officers point of view. It's possible that they might not care as much about the Constitution, as they do about the codes they enforce.
So from a cop’s point of view, they want to uphold city code whether or not the code is in alignment with the Constitution.
From the point of view of the police and many bystanders, Harith attempted to draw his weapon and therefore when police killed him, it may be considered justifiable, this is because they were defending themselves (from a man who was defending his liberty).
Do you have a unique take on this incident? Do you know the right way in which it should be viewed? If so please sound off in the comments below.
@thoughts-in-time you were flagged by a worthless gang of trolls, so, I gave you an upvote to counteract it! Enjoy!!
Thanks bud!
There are many levels to this, it is not all cut and dried.
There are no limitations placed in the constitution for gun ownership. It is unconstitutional for them to ban anyone, for any reason (felon, restrictive local laws) from owning any firearm they desire.
Having said that, I see something that is commonplace among those getting shot by police. Refusal to cooperate and deciding to run or take a stand. It will never end well as one will always be outnumbered and outgunned. And not all police are bad, but they worry as anyone would when situations escalate.
In this case, it wasn't clear to me that he was pointing the gun at anyone, looked like he was trying to flee. In this case, I have to ask why non lethal means could not have been used on him. Wrong actions all the way around from what I see that unfortunately led to his death.
Something to ponder. Not sure if things changed from when I was much younger, but the south side of Chicago was the most violent years ago. I mean so bad many police did their jobs in fear. The Vice-lords were no joke, and they branched out south to Indianapolis when I was growing up. I saw nothing in your post about this man having an extensive criminal record, so it is logical to assume he carried for protection in that area.
I agree that its stupid to run from or resist the police. However, if you put yourself in his shoes he was already armed illegally and had they caught him he would have been caged like an animal for three years, possibly more depending on the circumstances.
So when they attempted to apprehend him, it triggered his flight or fight responses, he chose to fight. If you look closely at the video you can see where he attempts to draw his weapon.
So the big question is; When lawfully carrying arms in America that have been deemed illegal by a corporate state is it okay to protect your liberty with lethal force when the police are the ones threatening your liberty?
I don't know if the guy has a criminal record. In fact I think the only reason for the cops to question him was because they saw a bulge around his waistband, they saw a visual cue that indicated he was packing.
Point being, criminal or not. He wasn't trying to do anything to those cops, until they attempted to meddle with his right to bear arms. Seeing as how they attempted to catch him carrying arms. They presented themselves as a clear and present danger to his liberty.
It's messed up enough when the Federal and State laws contradict one another, in this instance we're talking about the Constitution and the State.
I totally get what you are saying, but a smart man picks his battles. Given how the politicians and judicial branches have all sold us out, and their soldiers (police) have the authority not only to kill us, but get rewarded for it (paid vacations called time off) the only avenue left barring outright war on them is to go along and demand a trial by jury in an attempt of jury nullification. To many are getting buried in these situations. A lone man can't win this fight that he chose to make his battle on.
Oh I don't disagree with you, in fact, I agree with you 100%!
Problem with this guy is he either wasn't a smart man, or he was in a neighborhood where it was simply too dangerous for him to not make his personal safety paramount.
I don't know if you remember the 'no lacking challenge.' I think that one originated in Chicago.
So for whatever reason he chose to carry, and then found himself in a very unfortunate circumstance where he was screwed either way.
Also, when you consider the fight or flight response, many times we don't have control over those actions in the moment.
So he might not even had known how he would have reacted in this situation.
I wonder if he ever played this potential scenario out in his mind, if so, I wonder if he acted as planned, or fell victim to his own acute stress response.
Thanks for your feedback @practicalthought!
It's always great to get your take on matters.
As far as I can tell he didn't have a permit to carry. If he did then this may not have happened. I understand that it was necessary for protection in the area that he was in but he should have made a better effort to conceal it knowing the consequences of getting caught. The officers were justified in this one.
Most definitely. That is the correct way to look at it, if you are looking at it from the legal perspective. However, if you look at it from a lawful (or Constitutional) perspective, then his right to bear arms shall not be infringed. Had he allowed the police to capture him, it would no doubt have resulted in jail time. This, for the victimless crime of carrying arms in America. I can see both sides of the argument, it is unfortunate I have to engage in doublethink to do so.
Gun control is failing, just like the MPAA/RIAA failed to curb sharing of music and movies. The internet has taken over.
Even now, Defense Distributed is selling CNC machines that can make a fully operational pistol with nearly zero effort.
http://ghostgunner.net/
Laws won't keep up, and the benefit to being armed when there are riots or other calamities is obvious.
Be safe, be armed.
Hell yeah, your damn skippy! Thanks
for your feedback @progressivepanic!
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G’day mate! and I Upvoted you :) !
:
“I have inflammation of the imagination.” ====> Lera Auerbach
G’day mate! and I Upvoted you :) !
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“Not everyone who condemns masturbation can masturbate.” ====> Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Thank you, much obliged!