The Death of Daniel Shaver

The trial is over, so we can talk about this.  The Wiki article is here and I'll excerpt from it to save a lot of typing.  It is important to remember that the Vegas shooting happened after this incident, while this incident was percolating through the courts.    Bit, the background goes something like this:

According to a police report, Daniel Leetin Shaver (December 29, 1989 – January 18, 2016), a pest-control worker and resident of Granbury, Texas, had been staying at a Mesa La Quinta Inn & Suites on business. He invited two acquaintances to his room for drinks. There he showed them a scoped air rifle he was using to exterminate birds inside grocery stores. At one point the gun was pointed outside his hotel window, prompting a witness to notify the front desk; the police were immediately called. Upon arrival, police gave Shaver and his acquaintances detailed orders for several minutes, with frequent admonitions that failing to comply with them would get them shot. Eventually, Shaver was ordered to crawl on the floor towards them. While complying with their request, Shaver, who was intoxicated and could be heard sobbing, begging officers, "Please don't shoot," brought his hands toward his waist. Brailsford yelled at Shaver that if Shaver did anything whatsoever that deviated from his instructions he would shoot him and he probably wouldn't survive. The officer told Shaver to put his hands up in the air and not to bring them down for any reason. A few seconds later, the officer ordered Shaver to crawl towards him, to which Shaver complied. Shaver then reached his right hand back towards his waistband, at which point Brailsford can be heard yelling "Don't!" while simultaneously opening fire with his AR-15 rifle, striking Shaver five times and killing him almost instantly. Shaver was unarmed.

The body camera footage is disturbing.  Watch it if you must but be forewarned.  It's graphic and a main dies.  At trail, Officer Brailsford was acquitted of all charges, but has to live with the fact that the took a man's life. 

I've been a police officer for over 35 years, and it has long been my practice to refrain from second-guessing other police officers.  If you weren't there, you don't understand the dynamic of what might happen at any given time.  Lots of people are second-guessing the scenario and that is dangerous.    But, we can learn from other people's misfortune, and while Shaver's death is regrettable, it may in the end, save lives.  You can bet that police academies all over the country are watching the video, trying to learn lessons that can be applied.

I often tell people that my main job is to be the adult in the room.  When folks call the police, they're either scared, or hurt, or in some sort of emotional distress.  It's our job to provide a calming influence, to defuse a crisis, to take control of the situation.  Our job is sometimes dangerous, but we have to be in control of ourselves before we can hope to control anyone else, much less to control what might be a lethal encounter. 

As I watched the video, it seemed to me that everyone was scared.  And, it's okay to be scared in a lethal force encounter.  But, we have to overcome the fear, take a breath and become heroic, which is simply doing your job when you are scared spitless.  In my career, I've been involved in two lethal force encounters.  Luckily, my partner and I had each other's backs and we got through it with no one being harmed.  And, in my career, I've buried two good friends and a small number of acquaintances who did not survive lethal force encounters.    I know how quickly these things can go wrong, horribly, irretrievably wrong.  Yet, we studied these encounters and learned from them.  In the end, they saved lives.

So, in the end, the death of Daniel Shaver, as regrettable as it is, will save lives.    This may be small comfort, but it is the best we can do.

Small Town Christmas

Belle and I took a couple of the grandids to the Buckeye Christmas parade this afternoon.  A small-town parade, we had the high school marching band, we had horses and old cars and floats and a fire truck.

I have a grandson, Zach, in that band somewhere.  He plays the trombone.  I never did get a clear shot at him.

But, the floats were nice, the Shiners had their little go-cart trucks, and the candy thrown to the kids was excessive.  Our youngest, Lucas, managed to score the bigger portion of a Wal-Mart bag full of candy and gee-dunk.  After the parade, we took him to his momma, who was amazed at the amount of tooth-rot he was bringing in the house.  He'll be on a sugar high for a week.

Small town Christmas parades.  I love 'em..

Army-Navy Game

Today, the Black Knights of the USMA will face off against the Midshipmen of USNA.

GO ARMY!

That is all.

Rye? Why Not?

Casting about on the liquor aisle, I wanted something different, unlike my usual bottom-shelf gut-rot bourbon.  I'm a bourbon drinker and consider even the gut-rot to be better than most Canadian whiskeys.  I'm not a snob, but I know what I like.  I was looking for Buffalo Trace, which I've heard good things about, but the store didn't carry it.  Then, I spotted this.

Why the hell not?  Knob Creek makes good bourbon, so why not rye?  I bought the bottle and tok it home, and I'll get into it this weekend.  Maybe when the boys are over on Sunday. 

I divide my whiskey's into two major groups.  Those that get mixed with cola, and those that don't.  Knob Creek doesn't get mixed with anything.  It's just fine neat, and over ice.  I looked for reviews on this rye whiskey, and Men's Journal gives it high marks.  We'll see.

The Weather

Mark D says in comments:

Those of us from the Northern states get quite a kick out of it when Southerners shut down over an amount of snow which wouldn't be a valid excuse to be late to work up here.
Then again, we freak out over 60 mph winds......

Heh!  I recall when I was a shavetail Lieutenant at Fort Knox.  Middle of January, 1977.  My platoon sergeant mentioned one afternoon that it looked like it might snow.  I had grown up in the Deep South and had only seen snow infrequently.  Sure enough, the next morning there was snow on the ground.  I called the company to see what's up?

The First Sergeant answered the phone.  "Get your ass in here, Lieutenant.   The Army is working today."

And, we worked every day that it snowed.  Shortly thereafter I bought a used Volkswagen Beetle off the PX parking lot for $500.00.  That thing was great in the snow and ice.  And, it was so cheap that I wasn't worried if I slid into something.  Two years later I sold it for the same $500.

So, yeah, Mark, we have different weather traumas in different areas of the country.  If it snows in the Deep South, almost everything shuts down until folks can catch their breath and take stock of the situation.

Snow

UPDATE:  At 6:00 a.m., the superintendent finally decided that schools should be closed today.  Good call.  Folks in Louisiana simply are not prepared to deal with snow.  It's not a skill set that we have ever adopted.  When it snows, we shut down.

The weather channel is reporting thunder snow in Baton Rouge and I know that my daughter-in-law, a Florida native, is thrilled.  The weather channel is reporting that this is the first year they can remember, where Corpus Christi got show before Boston.

It's snowing in central Louisiana on the morning of December 8th.

Yeah, really.

No word yet on whether school will be closed today.  In another half-hour, I'll pull on my boots.

More on Comey's Disgrace

Remember the post from yesterday?  I'm not the only one who has noticed.

From Townhall.

Add this infamy to all the other crimes of the liberal establishment – its poisonous influence has converted the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in the eyes of the American people, from a proud institution dedicated to upholding the law into just another suppurating bureaucratic pustule. Where once we saw FBI agents as heroes – many of us ancients grew up watching Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., every Sunday night – now we see careerist hacks looking to suck-up to the Democrat elite while bending the law and subverting justice to do it. Truly, everything liberals touch dies.

It's a hellluva note, but I have a topic label entitled Comey's Disgrace.

So.... If....

Big Al Franken says that he is going to resign in a couple of weeks.  Yeah, okay.

So, if Roy Moore wins the Alabama race, is Franken going to walk-back his resignation?

This whole thing is getting curiouser and curiouser. 

I know that folks I'm talking to are mildly amused by this whole shenanigan, and that the #MeToo movement has claimed some high-profile victims, but lots of folks are getting tired of all the 10, 20, 30 year old claims.  As amusing as it is, it's starting to get tedious.

Thursday's Thoughts

If I'm reading the weather map correctly, it's snowing in Dallas.  Locally, we're expecting a wintry mix tonight,whatever that means.

In the early morning, the bets are running about even as to whether or not Fanken will resign or hang on.  It'll be interesting to watch, whatever the outcome.

In CFDA news, an early morning email from the commish, talks about holster angle and how we are going to interpret the rules on that.  Last year, at Louisiana State, we had a very experienced holster maker at the equipment-check table looking at holster angle.  From what I'm reading in the email attachment, I'll probably have to buy an angle gauge to have on-hand this year for the competition.

Louisiana is the second titled championship of the competition season.  I'll have to watch closely how Texas State handles the new rule changes.

The motto of the CFDA is Safety, Fun, Competition.  We list competition third in the motto for a specific reason.    I understand that we have to have rules.  But, if we're not having fun, then what's the point?  Still, there are enough people concerned about holster angle that the Commish feels a need to address it.

Proto-KGB

Wow!  From Instapundit

“People are finally tumbling to the realization that this [FBI] has become a proto-KGB,” said a former senior intelligence official with extensive experience in counterintelligence. “We’re in a constitutional crisis. These guys are playing out a silent coup against an elected official.”

There was a time during my early career (mid '80s) when I worked closely with a local FBI agent on a couple of cases where we shared an interest.   He was a great cop, highly principled, and as far as I could tell, totally un-political.  He was able to get things done on the federal side and I was able to get things done on the local side, and our relationship was a relentless pursuit of Truth, Justice, and the American Way.

Nowadays, not so much.  I would like to believe that there are still good agents in the FBI who relentlessly pursue justice, but the revelations of Comey, Muelller, et al, don't give me much confidence.  I have just about reached the conclusion that if an FBI agent ever approaches me for anything, I am simply going to invoke my right to remain silent.

Wednesday Just Wow!

This:

“It’s time for him to step aside." -- Sen. Patty Murray on Franken.
"Sexual harassment and misconduct should not be allowed by anyone and should not occur anywhere. I believe the best thing for Senator Franken to do is step down". — Kamala Harris (@SenKamalaHarris) December 6, 2017
"Al Franken should resign".— Claire McCaskill (@clairecmc) December 6, 2017

First time is bad luck.  Second time is coincidence.  Third time is enemy action.

More here:  It looks like the dice are rolling.

BREAKING: 6 Democratic senators have called on Sen. Franken to step aside:
• Sen. Gillibrand
• Sen. Hirono
• Sen. McCaskill
• Sen. Hassan
• Sen. Harris
• Sen. Murray

It's starting to get real for Franken.  I wonder how long he'll hold on?

Tuesday Scribblings

If you don't like the weather in Louisiana, just stick around.  This morning dawned overcast and muggy, at about 72F.  Around 10:00 the wind changed out of the south, to the west, and the the rain started.  Now, at near dusk, it's 50, and headed toward the 40s.  I'm glad I had a jacket in the truck.

Planning for Louisiana State continues apace.  The ladies want to do a banquet, which is an option at this sort of gathering.  I'm a rookie at planning this sort of thing, and I was doing it the hard way, trying to figure it out myself.  However, a co-worker acquaintance heard me bemoaning my fate and gave me some cogent advise.  "Go see Southern Creations."  So I did.

I got the literature and talked to a manager, and  then talked to some other folks who have used them for catering.  The personal reviews are very promising, so I guess that decision is made.  I'll hand the literature (menu choices) to Belle, because she's better at that sort of thing than I am.

I'll be back at work before long, the protracted day of the school-house cop.  Lots of pre-holiday events going on, and there's soccer.  There is always soccer.  And basketball.

On the political side, I see that Conyers resigned today.  The Dems want him out before Alabama votes next week.  I haven't checked the line in Vegas as to whether or not Franken will be pushed out. I figure that it's an even-money bet, because it's hard for the Dems to bitch about Moore, when Franken is still serving, and groping everyone in sight.

UPDATE**  In the paragraph above, I originally said that Cornyn had resigned.  A commenter caught the error and it has been corrected.  Representative John Conyers of Michigan has resigned.  I regret the error.

A Review?

It seems that the FBI did a review of background checks last year and found that 4000 people bought guns who should have been caught in the NICS background checks.

A USA TODAY review found that the FBI issued more than 4,000 requests last year for agents from the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives to retrieve guns from prohibited buyers.

Which leads to a number of troubling questions.  Not the least of those is the question; What review, and what records.  As I understand the statute, NICS background checks can only be kept for 24 hours.  So, how could USA TODAY possibly review records that are not supposed to exist?

I'm going to have to talk to my Congressman about this.

Monday Musings

Stopped by my breakfast restaurant to get a bite this morning.  A sausage biscuit is a buck.  A bacon biscuit costs $2.20.  Why the hell is that?

I haven't driven my truck much in the last five years.  I'm driving it today and on my lunch break, got a light sprinkle.  Windshield wipers just smeared the water.   Auto Zone was two blocks away, so I swing in to get new wiper blades.   I grabbed two Rain-X blades and headed toward the register.  Over $50.00 for two wiper blades??  I almost had a stroke.  But, it's supposed to rain tomorrow, so I'll be able to see, coming in to work.

When I was a tanker, we had this thing called the tanker's bar.  It was six feet long, with a pinch  point, and we used it to pry all manner of things.  It was listed on the tool receipt as a Bar, Pinch Point. Over the years I've had one thing or another that I could have applied a tanker's bar to, but just didn't have one.  Wandering through Harbor Freight today, I saw a big bar, labeled 17 lb Posthole Digging Bar with Tamper.  It ain't a tanker's bar, but it should serve as a nice expedient.  I have to pull the forms off the slab, and with a chunk of firewood as a fulcrum, this thing should serve admirably.

Well, Of Course

As a taxpayer, I'm amazed that it was ever a question.

Several members of the House want to change the rules on Capitol Hill to force elected officials to pay for settlements for sexual harassment from their own pockets.

That is just common sense, and I am simply confounded that the question even needs to be asked.  There is no legitimate reason for any taxpayer to foot the bill for any congressional misconduct, sexual or otherwise.  Congressional members and their staffers should be held to the same standard that the rest of us are held to. 

Bread

Surfing aimlessly, we come to this bread recipe that looks pretty good, so I'm just going to leave it here so that I can find it later.



I like a good bread recipe.

Classic Cold Front

The weather map shows a classic cold front coming in on Tuesday here.  From south Texas to the Great Lakes, this thing is just what duck hunters dream about.

This is the kind of front that my  Dad used to look for in the paper.  Lots of ducks and geese moving along the front of the storm, riding the air that's pushing south. 

The Steinle Verdict

You've all heard by now of the verdict in the case of Kate Steinle, a young woman murdered in San Francisco by an illegal alien, who just happened to have a gun and shoot her on a pier.

I'm as outraged as everyone else about the verdict, but honestly I"m not surprised.  to think that a jury in SanFran could find an illegal alien guilty of murdering a young white women simply stretches credulity.  What is not in doubt is that the defense was able to plant seeds of doubt in the jury. 

As I understand the case, the gun was found to be stolen from a federal agent's car and somehow Zarate came into possession of it.  He was playing with it on the pier and the gun discharged, striking Steinle, killing her.  Zarate was, of course, a prohibited person and in posession of stolen property.  In many jurisdictions, those two offenses predicate to the death of a person would lead to convictions for manslaughter or murder.  Evidently that's no so in California.

All the more reason for me to never go to California.

However, I do take this away from the verdict, however despicable it might be.

It is going to take them a while to live this down, but Democrats and nutjobs and liberals (but I repeat myself) have no sense of shame.

Brakes

I don't normally drive the F150, but last week I was driving it and heard an ominous grinding sound coming from the back  It sounded like the brakes were gone, and this week I stopped at the auto parts store and bought brake pads.  I don't remember the last time I changed the brakes on that truck, but I haven't driven it much in the last three years.

I put new back brakes on it today.  Luckily, the rotors were okay, so I dodged that bullet.  I"ll put fronts on it tomorrow morning after I drink my coffee. 

You know, a goodly part of this blog is about maintenance I do around the house, simply so that I can search later and find out when I did one thing or another.  This is one of those posts, so that in three or four years, I can search and find out when I put brakes on the truck.

Now, it's Happy Hour.  Y'all enjoy your Friday night.

Poser

First thing I thought when I saw this picture; "He ain't in the Cav."

Two reasons he ain't in the Cav.  Too much water below the helicopter, and the cap is still on the bottle.  Probably a naval aviator.

Hat tip, Wirecutter.