The death of Daniel Shaver- Melanie Escalante

Summary: After a year, the video of Daniel Shaver’s controversial death, has been released. He was shot by Philip Brailsforth, a police officer who was responding to a concern sent in by locals of the La Quinta Inn, in 2016. Daniel Shaver was with a woman who he apparently he had just met, when he was showing his work gun (pellet gun) off and drinking. Because people couldn’t have known that this was just a pellet gun, they called in upon seeing his “weapon” pointed out the window. The officer arrived to the scene and gave Shaver and his company, strange commands which they did obey. However, when Daniel reached his hand towards his pants, the officer assumed he was pulling out a gun so he repeatedly shot him. It was later revealed that he in fact, did not have a gun but Bailsforth didn’t pay the consequences because he “couldn’t have known”.
Synthesis/Analysis:: This relates to every other unfair death in which the cops were the blame. Cops don’t know how to do their jobs and they shoot out of fear rather be than procedure. Just because someone looks guilty doesn’t make them innocent just as someone who looks innocent can easily be proven guilty. I can understand that he didn’t know what was going to happen when this man pulled his hand out but I think that a procedure should be put in place, in which whoever being accused, gets checked before questioned or fired upon. I also understand that this can be proven ineffective in many situations but for the ones similar to these, it could work. This man was seen begging for his life; if he was guilty then I would think his attitude would’ve been much different. Of course, you can never be sure but the video is clear, this man shouldn’t have died that night. Because of the unjust circumstances, his family can’t move on or heal. They have to keep fighting to prove that Brailsforth is guilty when they should be spending time remembering and celebrating his life. I hope this mans death is still seen as relevant and his family can move on.Graphic video shows Daniel Shaver sobbing and begging officer for his life before 2016 shooting - The Washington Post