Perception is NOT Reality

Many people will claim that video never lies. With the plethora of video cameras moving about our cities, more and more police shooting incidents are being caught on video. But do videos always tell the whole story? Does the video show what the officer saw?

This video from an actual police shooting in Shreveport, LA, appears to show the police shooting a man in the back as he tries to walk away. This video is from one of two in-car cameras that recorded the incident.

 

Video never lies...or does it?

 

The second video shows more clearly what really happened. The suspect can be clearly seen resisting police and using a two-handed grip to point an object that looks like a gun at an officer.

 

In the second video, the suspect can be seen using a two-handed shooting grip to point an object that looks like a gun at one of the officers. As the suspect walks away, he can also be seen again turing quickly to point the object at the officer again. Although the object turned out to be a cell phone, it is clear from the video that the suspect intended it to appear to be a gun. As quickly as this incident happens, it is easy to understand why the officers perceived that the object was handgun.

 

In this frame, the suspect can clearly be seen using a two-handed grip to point his cell phone in an apparent effort to make it look like a gun. The second police officer is off to the left of the camera (out of view) and is in the direction in which the suspect's "gun" is pointed.

 

The suspect is facing the officer and can clearly see that the officer is pointing his gun at the suspect's head. The suspect should have recognized that action as a warning that deadly force was imminent.

 

The suspect turned toward the second officer and is pointing the cell phone at him again apparently trying to make it look like a gun.

 

The officer on the left ducks because he apparently perceives that the suspect is pointing a gun at him. At this point, the officers begin shooting at the suspect.