by RICK MORAN
A “mostly peaceful” riot broke out in Philadelphia on Monday night after police officers shot and killed a black man threatening them with a knife. Protesters gathered in front of the police precinct and began throwing rocks and bottles at the cops lined up behind barricades.
Cops cars and dumpsters were set on fire as police struggled to contain the crowds. More than a dozen officers, many with batons in hand, formed a line as they ran down 52nd Street chasing protesters away from the main thoroughfare. The crowd largely dispersed then.
Lauren Dawn Johnson, a reporter for FOX 29, took to Twitter to update her followers on the condition of the officers who suffered injuries.
Thirty officers were injured, most of them from being struck by projectiles such as bricks and rocks, according to preliminary information from police. A 56-year-old sergeant was hospitalized in stable condition with a broken leg and other injuries after she was struck by a pickup truck, while the other injured officers were treated and released, according to police and FOX 29.
https://twitter.com/SVNewsAlerts/status/1320936141776953344?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1320936141776953344%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpjmedia.com%2Fnews-and-politics%2Frick-moran%2F2020%2F10%2F27%2F30-police-officers-injured-in-philadelphia-riot-after-officers-shoot-armed-black-man-n1096193
https://twitter.com/SVNewsAlerts/status/1320938377022197761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1320938377022197761%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpjmedia.com%2Fnews-and-politics%2Frick-moran%2F2020%2F10%2F27%2F30-police-officers-injured-in-philadelphia-riot-after-officers-shoot-armed-black-man-n1096193
Thirty officers were injured in the riot, including a sergeant who was hit by a car and suffered a broken leg and other injuries. All the others were treated and released. Officers can be seen retreating in this video:
#Philly not playing pic.twitter.com/xakwa5vGr4
— CARTER 3x (@Iamking_Kha) October 27, 2020
One young father took his young son to the front of the protest.
West Philly Chase Jones brought his 3-year-old son, Chase, to the front of the police line at 55 and Pine to confront police with riot shields. “This is what racism looks like,” he told his son, eye to eye with a white officer. “Take a look.” pic.twitter.com/KpW1P1bWun
— Samantha Melamed (@samanthamelamed) October 27, 2020
Presumably, he walked his son directly past burning cop cars and dumpsters. Did he say anything about how to “respond” to racism?
As shown in this video, the man was shot as he approached officers holding a knife in plain view. (WARNING: Strong language)
https://twitter.com/AttorneyCrump/status/1320918523070337026?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1320918523070337026%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpjmedia.com%2Fnews-and-politics%2Frick-moran%2F2020%2F10%2F27%2F30-police-officers-injured-in-philadelphia-riot-after-officers-shoot-armed-black-man-n1096193
It’s hard to “de-escalate a situation” when someone is rapidly approaching, threatening you with a knife. Could they have talked him down? He didn’t appear willing to listen to reason or logic.
Why is it acceptable behavior to approach armed officers with a knife? Or a gun? And if it isn’t, what are officers to do?