MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A lawyer for a suburban Minnesota police officer who killed a black driver says his client pulled the man over in part because he believed he resembled a suspect in a robbery.
Philando Castile had no felony record and authorities have not said he was a suspect in any crime.
But attorney Thomas Kelly tells the Star Tribune newspaper that Officer Jeronimo Yanez thought the 32-year-old Castile looked like someone police had been seeking in a recent robbery.
Castile’s girlfriend was in the vehicle. She has said Castile was reaching for his wallet when he was shot, after telling officers he had a gun and a permit for it.
Kelly told The Associated Press that Yanez was reacting to the seeing that gun when he drew his own weapon.
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i.e. 1. He wasn’t white. 2. He had a nose, mouth, eyes, and ears.
The officer also vaguely remembered something on the bulletin board about how driving a '98 Buick was a capital offense.
That is a complete load of crap. Just as was the premise for pulling him over.
Funny how the story is slowly changing now. This is a man that had been pulled over something like over 50 times, and for what other than DWB?? I thought the reason the car was pulled over this time was for a broken taillight or some such shit. I guess they can’t justify that seeing how it was broad daylight and a taillight wouldn’t be seen as a problem using that excuse, unless it was a broken brake light. But that’s not what they said initially.
I heard this argument (i.e. his car resembled that of a robbery suspect) start to circulate late yesterday. Even if Castile were found guilty of robbery, it’s not a crime that carries the death penalty. Every one of us could be driving a vehicle that resembles one involved in a traffic accident or could resemble a possible suspect or . . . . . I guess we should all justifiably expect to be shot by police at any time.