Yet another police killing has sent shockwaves across the nation because this time there is a video that accompanies it. A University of Cincinnati police officer was conducting a normal traffic stop. His body cam video clearly shows him approaching the vehicle in question calmly and having a two minute discussion with the driver. In the video, the driver pulls out a bottle labeled “Gin” and hands it to the officer. The liquid inside wasn’t actually gin though, rather it was a perfume or car freshener. Either way, the officer doesn’t seem too distracted by it. Only when the officer asks the driver to step out of the car do things quickly escalate. The driver calmly responds no and attempts to shut the door. The officer then leans in to apparently remove him, when seconds later, he draws his firearm and shoots the driver. “I was being dragged,” shouted the officer in the video. But it seems as if the car only accelerated after the gunshot was fired.
The officer has since been arrested and indicted on murder charges, though he has also posted a $1 million dollar bond. (It should be noted, that same $1 million dollar bond was cheered on in the courtroom, much to the presiding judge’s displeasure.) What really strikes an emotional cord in this story is the video itself, which you can watch here: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/30/us/university-of-cincinnati-officer-indicted-in-shooting-death-of-motorist.html?_r=0
By releasing the video, a combined sense of logos and pathos is created for a national audience to absorb. Not only was this driver gunned down for apparently no reason (why would you shoot someone over a traffic stop?), but the evidence is almost indisputable. Rather than write a lengthy article on the subject, news stations have correctly chosen the video itself for its immense story telling ability.
Megan Conrad says
Great post! I like the way you included the video for everyone to watch. It’s crazy how often we hear stories like this.
Nick Rutkowski says
Great post. It’s sad that this seems to keep popping up in the news. In addition to improving citizen-law enforcement relations, I believe that better police training is required to decrease this problem.
Jenna Costello says
This post is very relevant because most people know of at least one shooting incident happening in the news. I thought it was a great post!
cpe5047 says
Very interesting story. This type of story is becoming more and more common and I think it’s important for law enforcement to try to create a better plan for citizen and law enforcement relations to prevent this in the future. Good job explaining how the article used rhetoric to its favor.