Killer Of Michael Brown Claims He 'Feared For His Life,' A Common Defense in Deadly Cop Shootings

Oct. 21, 2014

Killer Of Michael Brown Claims He 'Feared For His Life,' A Common Defense in Deadly Cop Shootings

michael brown

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from BlackManStreet.Today

(TriceEdneywire.com) - Ferguson, Mo., cop Darren Wilson, who shot to death 18-year-old Michael Brown (pictured) on August 9, has told investigators that he 'feared for his life,' a common defense used by police officers in deadly shootings involving African-American men. Pro Publica, the Pulitzer-prize winning online newspaper, reported that wording was ruled legitimate in a 1985 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Tennessee vs. Garner.

The 6-3 ruling in the case said cops could justify the use of deadly force if they feared for their lives. However, several eyewitnesses have said that the unarmed Brown was fleeing from Wilson with his hands up when he was shot, which would have negated the use of deadly force.
There were 1,217 deadly shootings by police from 2010 to 2012 and blacks, 15 to 19, were killed at the rate of 31.17 per million while just 1.47 per million white males in that age range died at the hands of police, according to Pro Publica.
From 2005 to 2009, the "officer under attack" defense was cited in 62 percent of police killings, compared to 33 percent of police deadly shootings from 1980 to 1984, Pro Publica reported.