International Concern Over Killing of Arab Law Student By Police

I had no plans on writing any posts involving police use of excessive force for the rest of this year.   We are currently following the trial of Dylann Roof, who murdered 9 people in their church.  That came on the heels of following the trial of Michael Slager, who shot an unarmed running Walter Scott in the back.  The jury hung.  Slager’s trial came on the heel of the trial of Ray Tensing, who shot unarmed Sam Dubose in the head while he was sitting in his car.  That jury hung.

It’s not only the subject matter, but the judicial results that can be a burden on the heart and mind.  This afternoon, I threw off the burden when learning about another unarmed person killed by the police.   He was a human being.  He has a family. There are people who love him.  He will be missed.

The reason for this post is because I did not hear of the incident through major news sources when it happened.  There was no ticker across the bottom of the screen on CNN nor MSNBC.  (I don’t watch Fox News.)

Because I look for professional views regarding cases in court, I subscribe to Law.com in Practice.  Their Newsletters generally focus on what is happening in cases in courts and case decisions.  So, it was interesting when reading in their Newsletter about a dash cam video and a law student being shot dead by a police officer in Ohio.

Saif Nasser Mubarak Alameri

This incident is one to watch because it involves another country that is interested in how the State of Ohio is conducting its investigation into the death of Saif Nasser Mubarak Alameri.

Saif Nasser Mubarak Alameri was 26-years old.  He was a student at Case Western Reserve University School of Law .  Saif obtained a bachelor’s in law at the United Arab Emirates University. He was in the United States on a student visa and academic scholarship.

There are scant details.  According to the National Law Journal and Arab news sources, the Ohio State Highway Patrol received a call about an erratic driver on Sunday, December 4, 2016.  Alameri was driving on the Ohio Turnpike about 2:46 p.m. when he sideswiped another vehicle and flipped his vehicle, according to Hudson police.  He then climbed out of his car and fled the scene before the Ohio State Highway Patrol arrived.

Nearly one hour later, Officer Ryan Doran, a Hudson, Ohio police officer, found Alameri in a nearby wooded area off of Hudson-Aurora Road.

Congress Passed a Bill Addressing Police Killings While No One Was Looking

Let Our Voices Echo

After watching nationwide protests unfold against police brutality, members of Congress did what they have seemed incapable of doing for years: something.

A bill passed by both chambers of Congress and headed to President Barack Obama’s desk will requirelocal law enforcement agencies to report every police shooting and other death at their hands. That data will include each victim’s age, gender and race as well as details about what happened.

“You can’t begin to improve the situation unless you know what the situation is,” bill sponsor Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.) told the Washington Post. “We will now have the data.”

It’s not the first time Congress has tried: The same law was actually passed back in 2000, but was allowed to lapse in 2006 and was never reauthorized (despite repeated attempts by Scott). Because it takes years for enough local departments to start submitting all that data, the original law…

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Law Enforcement-Above The Law

This week has been exhausting. Thankfully, I subscribe to other blogs that give me a sigh of relief with gorgeous photos and quotes of wisdom. However, it’s not long before I return to thinking about seeing law enforcement on the streets of America with equipment that was manufactured and intended for use by military troops.

Some of you might remember when I wrote “Upsetting the Apple Cart.” It is about my first experience hearing about cops killing and a cover-up.  Entire cities lose trust in law enforcement. In the 1960’s and until about the mid 1970’s, it was common to hear cops referred to as “pigs.” Knowing some cops personally, I never wanted to include them in the pot with stupid, cowardly cops. Still, I can look back in history and consider now that in some cities, such as Chicago, vigilante justice runs rampant because citizens do not trust cops.

Since the 1970’s, cops have acquired more tools for protection, and more tools to force the submission of “suspects.” The problem however, as we saw with Sean Bell, is that when there is no resistance, cops still want to use their tools to control, as tools to punish and torture. The cop who killed Sean Bell said he thought he was pulling his taser, but Sean Bell was not resisting where a taser was necessary.

Also, as we saw with Kelly Thomas, when a “suspect” has a mental disease, there are cops who take pleasure in experimenting to see just how much pain they can inflict, even pain that results in death.

Resisting is now defined as moving any part of your body; asking any question; being deaf; having physical conditions where you can’t move fast.