A woman in Florida says her 55-year-old “medically fragile” father was falsely accused of theft at a Florida grocery store last week and then seriously injured in a violent encounter with police. Now, she says, he is hospitalized and has lost the ability to speak.

  • NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social
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    10 months ago

    Did anybody read the article and see the part where she were threatening the employees with a bat and admitted to it?

    I think they’re sort of burying the lede on this one.

    I would completely expect the police to show up, armed and ready for someone who did just receive a call about threatening people with a metal bat.

    Fuck the police and what they did to him, but let’s not pretend like this isn’t a whole other thing than the headline.

    That being said, can anyone tell me what the cops did to this dude other than make him sit in the back of a police car I very well might’ve missed it.

    The latter part of that article go wild

    • jettrscga@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      To answer your question on what the cops did:

      Anjelica Lee said. “My dad said to me: ‘Don’t get out of the car until they can fully see you, because they’re going to shoot.’ And after he said that, nine or 10 of them jumped on him, and then they slammed him on the car.”

      She said she could hear her father screaming: “You’re hurting me. I can’t breathe.”

      This is all from the woman’s perspective. But it sure seems suspicious that he had chest pains that the police’s story can’t explain.

    • girlfreddy@lemmy.ca
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      10 months ago

      She said she feared for her father’s safety, so she got a bat from her car, approached the woman and told her to “pick on someone her own size, someone able-bodied.” She said she did not threaten the woman with the bat. Still, she said, the woman called police.

      • NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social
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        10 months ago

        If you walk up to someone with a bat in your hand and tell them to pick on someone your own size, you are threatening them with the bat.

        If not to be a threat there is no purpose to bring the bat

          • Rivalarrival@lemmy.today
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            10 months ago

            Then you don’t understand the concept of self defense.

            A bat is a deadly weapon. To justify the use of a deadly weapon in self defense or defense of others, a reasonable person must believe there is a credible, criminal, imminent, threat of death or grievous bodily harm, and that the deadly weapon was necessary to end that threat.

            “Laying hands” does not describe anything remotely close to such a threat.

            • sizzler@lemmy.world
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              10 months ago

              Oh dear, a classic case of downvoted for uncomfortable truth. The fickle nature of forums strike again.

            • TimLovesTech (AuDHD)(he/him)@badatbeing.social
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              10 months ago

              I think if the person is white you can use “stand your ground” and shoot people of color without issue. This isn’t about her having a bat, it’s that she doesn’t look “white enough” to use the same defense several white folks have used now. And those white folks went looking for trouble and still got to shoot people with impunity. She only had a bat and was basically telling the Karen if she wants a problem to keep it up.

              I just don’t see how that isn’t self defense. She also feared for her father’s life from some racist shithead that instead of calling police if she really thought there was an issue, decided to put her hands on this gentleman and then continue to harass him. And I don’t know that stores particularly policy, but most chains strongly discourage harassing and chasing down customers because you have a hunch they may have taken something. So she also likely broke store policy in pursuit of her racist vendetta.

        • girlfreddy@lemmy.ca
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          10 months ago

          How do you know she walked right up to Karen? How do you know she didn’t just go and stand by her father while leaning on the bat?

          And why didn’t the woman just ask to see the receipt instead of going all Karen?

          You assume too much.

          • NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social
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            10 months ago

            Based just on the facts, she picked up a bat and then issued a threatening statement. Whether you are 2 feet away or 50, that is still threatening someone with a weapon.

            Why are you arguing against this?

            I assumed nothing.

            I used only the things that the lady herself stated.

            If you disagree please point me to the information that you think proves your point.

            I will look at it and reevaluate, I might not change my mind but I will at least listen to your opinion.

            Please, feel free.

            • girlfreddy@lemmy.ca
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              10 months ago

              Based on what media is reporting, which is rarely ALL the facts.

              And you do assume you know how far away she was standing, what her tone of voice was, etc. If you weren’t there = you don’t know for sure.

              You also didn’t respond to my question why Karen just didn’t ask to see the receipt … like a non-racist likely would.

              • NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social
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                10 months ago

                Because I am not trying to defend her actions.

                I agree that that is what should have happened.

                Can you give me an example of how holding a metal bat in your hand and telling that to someone in this situation would not be a threat?

                • circuscritic@lemmy.ca
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                  10 months ago

                  Look, my personal mantra is “pick on someone your own size”, which I chant every morning when I’m roaming the streets with my walking bat.

                  Only a bigot would find that threatening.

                  • NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social
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                    10 months ago

                    Ok, I can’t help but give an exception for that.

                    You are making sure to bang it creepily while talking in a sing-song voice right?

              • Rivalarrival@lemmy.today
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                10 months ago

                Based on what she has said. Her description of her own actions with the bat constitute a threat. Unless you’re arguing she was misquoted, she issued a threat with a deadly weapon.

      • ripcord@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        If you read the rest of the story, they claim she was waiting outside with the bat telling the lady to come out, went inside and knocked a bunch of shit off of shelves, etc.

        Which may not be true, but pretty sure a bunch of people were being stupid and escalating things here.

        • AA5B@lemmy.world
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          10 months ago

          everyone was escalating here, except perhaps the victim. Even then, it seems like you get the manager and make sure they have the cashiers statements instead of trying to leave

    • Cyborganism@lemmy.ca
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      10 months ago

      Yeah. You’re right.

      The daughter totally escalated the situation by bringing a baseball bat and threatening the clerk. No wonder they called the police.

      And the old man, according to affidavits, was simply taken into the back of a police car without any violence to himself. Then he complained of chest pains while in the car so they called an ambulance. He was alert when the ambulance arrived.

      The man had a heart condition that was aggravated due to his daughter escalating the situation and getting the police involved. And now he’s in the hospital because of her behaviour.

      However this could’ve all not happened had the store employee not been a dick. So this is really all that person’s fault.

      • NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social
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        10 months ago

        I don’t agree with that logic.

        You are stripping away everyone’s free will except the employee.

        At any point during this, anyone could have made different decisions and just stopped this whole thing

          • NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social
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            10 months ago

            Friend, I already agreed to that.

            My statement is that everyone here was an adult and they all made poor choices.

            Granted that the dudes action was small, but now that I think about it that was actually what started it.

            It should have stopped with just asking the cashier how many bananas he paid for.

            They did not even need to bother asking him and risking someone just thinking they were being called a thief.

            I know that is how I feel every time I get asked for a receipt, and I am a middle aged white guy in redneck country, god only knows how often he probably has to deal with it.

            • die444die@lemmy.world
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              10 months ago

              Do y’all’s grocery stores charge by number of bananas? Mine does if by weight. Not that I think that makes a difference, if I keep seeing people taking about paying for an extra banana so im curious.

              • AA5B@lemmy.world
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                10 months ago

                People do it with grapes too, also sold by weight. But here we only have a few. Surely she could have typed in 1/3 extra weight and been pretty damn close

                • dan1101@lemm.ee
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                  10 months ago

                  Many cashiers can’t do math tho, and if you ask them to they think you’re trying to scam them.

                  I think the fact that this guy had a medical flareup that the potassium in the bananas would help will help him in court, if he would even be able to go to court.