the anti street crime unit fired 41 shots at Diallo hitting him 19 times. The officers contended that they they fired in self defense. On Feb 4, 199, after Diallo,22, reached for an object they though was a gun while he was standing in the vestibule of his apartment. The object turned out to be his wallet. All four officers were charged with second degree murder as suspended from there jobs. The officers said that Diallo darted into the entrance of his building and took a combat stance. He pulled out what they perceived as a weapon and opened fire on him. The officers contended that Diallo’s death was a tragic case of self defense. Charges against them said that they violated department policies could still result in there firing. They jury of four blacks and eight whites deliberated for more than 20 hours over three days before returning the verdict. Not guilty on all counts, 24 in all, from murder to reckless endangerment.(associated press 1) This case, when I heard about it and heard the facts I thought for sure that justice would be served. They shot an unarmed man 19 times and it just seemed to me like that was way too many times. He didn’t fire back and didn’t charge at them. It seems that they could have shot him once or twice to wound him and take him in. They found bullet wounds at the bottom of his feet so he must have been lying down. This whole case really disturbs me because the officers could have taken a different action and this man would still be alive today. The punishment I think should have been would be for them to be fired and spend some time in jail. Diallo was just another black man that fit the profile of a drug dealer simply because he was black. There was also another case that caught my eye. In Pennsylvania Johnny Gammage was pulled over while driving his cousins Jaguar. As Gammage pulled over five police cars arrived on the scene. One of the officers said that Gammage ran three red lights ...
