Woman live-streams aftermath of fatal officer-involved shooting

[smilesammich 10,727]

go quick, my little vj detectives..go find a way to discredit philandro castile's right to life. right to carry, maybe? he's black so i'm sure ya'll will dig up something - is it hunting season?

'A busted tail light'

"Stay with me," are the first words heard in her video. "We got pulled over for a busted tail light in the back."

The camera shows the woman speaking, then turns to a man in a white shirt, covered in blood. Out the window appears to be a police officer with his gun drawn.

The footage was streamed on a Facebook account under the name Lavish Reynolds. WCCO spoke to Castile's family who identified the woman as Diamond Reynolds.

In the video's first minute, Reynolds says that Castile is licensed to carry a firearm. She claims that before the shooting, her boyfriend was trying to get his ID from his wallet in his back pocket.

The video appears to be shot with the phone's front-facing camera, so the perspective is flipped, as letters would be in a mirror. Because of this, the steering wheel appears to be on the wrong side of the car.

'Devastated'

Clarence Castile, Philando Castile's uncle, told CNN that the family is devastated.

"We all know my nephew was a good kid and we want justice as well as relief," he said.

The images of his nephew dying were the "most horrific thing I've ever seen in my life," Castile said Thursday morning on CNN's "New Day."

He and Valerie Castile, Philando's mother, stressed on "New Day" that Philando was law-abiding and a good person, and they expressed bitterness over the actions of the police.

"He's not an officer," Clarence Castille said. "He's just a man. An officer is supposed to protect and serve. That was a man who did that. That man is a destroyer and he came into our lives and done something and took something from us."

Castile said that Philando worked as a kitchen supervisor for the St. Paul School District. The last time the two of them spoke was in May. They talked about setting up a nest egg for Philando's eventual retirement.

"My nephew has a (concealed carry) permit, and still got killed for carrying a gun ... this needs to stop. This happens so often."

Valerie Castile said "they took a very good person" and wondered whether he was simply "black in the wrong place."

"Everybody that knows my son knows that he is a laid back, quiet individual that works hard every day, pays taxes and comes home and plays video games. That's it," she said. "He's not a gang banger. He's not a thug. He's very respectable. And I know he didn't antagonize that officer in any way to make him feel like his life was threatened."

She said she stressed to her son that if he ever had an encounter with police, he should "comply, comply, comply."

She said that when he got to a hospital to see her son, he was already dead and "they didn't let me see my son's body."

The mother said she hears people saying that police no longer racially profile people. She disagrees.

"We're ... hunted every day. It's a sign of war against African-American people as a whole," she said.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/07/us/falcon-heights-shooting-minnesota/

[Voice of Reason 10,298]

As always, it's easy to make snap judgments sitting behind a computer. But the expletives being shouted by the cop who shot him sound to me like someone who knows they made a mistake. Doesn't look good for the cop.

[smilesammich 10,727]

As always, it's easy to make snap judgments sitting behind a computer. But the expletives being shouted by the cop who shot him sound to me like someone who knows they made a mistake. Doesn't look good for the cop.

look on the bright side, he's still breathing.

[John Miller 761]

Just another day in America. We need more guns to make it stop. Believe me.

[Jacque67 7,328]

Just another day in America. We need more guns to make it stop. Believe me.

I belieeeeeeeve!

[Expat1 971]

As always, it's easy to make snap judgments sitting behind a computer. But the expletives being shouted by the cop who shot him sound to me like someone who knows they made a mistake. Doesn't look good for the cop.

This one looks and sounds bad. I believe this cop might be headed for jail time.

[Voice of Reason 10,298]

I can hear it now... Driver started to tell the cop he had a gun, as he reached for his wallet, and BOOM, shot(s) fired. Again, easy to sit back and speculate. Seems a tad strange to me how calm the woman was after her BF got shot. No way I could have been that calm. Could it have been staged? Video plan gone wrong? IDK. Hopefully not. Hopefully there will be police video that will clarify the situation for us. But my gut on this one is that the cop messed up. And an innocent man died. Tragedy.

[smilesammich 10,727]

might as well drop this here before ya'll get this one locked up too.

Valerie Castile, the mother of Philando Castile — who was shot to death during a police traffic stop in suburban Minneapolis, Minn., Wednesday — says her son's death is part of a pattern of police killing black people, and that there need to be consequences.

In a lengthy interview with CNN this morning, Castile said that both her son and her daughter have concealed-carry gun permits — and that when she saw them at her house yesterday, the topic came up. Castile says that her daughter said she might stop carrying her gun, out of a fear that "they'll shoot me first and then ask questions later."

Philando Castile's final moments were captured in a streaming video that his girlfriend posted to Facebook during the police encounter, in footage that sparked protests in Falcon Heights, Minn. In it, he's seen slumped to one side with a blood-stained shirt, as a police officer points a gun in the car.

Speaking about the footage, Philando's uncle, Clarence Castile, called the video "the most horrific thing I've ever seen in my life."

Today, Rep. Betty McCollum, who represents Falcon Heights and Minnesota's Fourth District, called for the U.S. Justice Department to investigate Castile's death, citing the need to gain "a clear understanding of the facts surrounding this incident and ensure accountability appropriate to those facts."

"My deepest sympathies are with Mr. Castile's family, loved ones, and friends," McCollum said. "I have watched the video of this incident circulating online. It is profoundly disturbing."

In her appearance on CNN, Valerie Castile said that killings of black people by police were now common, and that there is no accountability for police in such cases.

"It's becoming more and more repetitive," Castile said. "Every day you hear of another black person being shot down — gunned down — by the people who are supposed to protect us."

Discussing her son, she added that he was "trying to do the right things, and live accordingly by the law, he was killed by the law" — before stating flatly, "I'm outraged."

Valerie Castile also said that she hasn't spoken to her son's girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds — who uses the name Lavish Reynolds online — despite coming to the scene of yesterday's traffic stop after being alerted to the situation by a stream of phone calls. She says that she and her daughter rushed to the site.

"The last time I saw her is when my daughter and I came up on the scene and she was in the back seat of the Falcon Heights Police Department's police car. And they wouldn't even let us get close enough to her to even talk with her."

She added that when she reached the scene, she immediately tried to learn where her son was.

"I didn't want to talk with anyone," Valerie Castile said. "I just wanted to know where my son was, because I didn't want my son to die alone."

She learned that her son was at the Hennepin County Medical Center — and by the time she got there, he was dead.

"They didn't let me see my son's body," she said, adding that she still hasn't identified him.

Valerie Castile said she hadn't watched the video that's now been seen millions of times in the U.S. and beyond.

"I want to remember him the way I last saw him, leaving my home earlier that evening," she said.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/07/07/485089276/im-outraged-mother-of-philando-castile-slain-by-police-speaks-out?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=news

[John Miller 761]

In a lengthy interview with CNN this morning, Castile said that both her son and her daughter have concealed-carry gun permits — and that when she saw them at her house yesterday, the topic came up. Castile says that her daughter said she might stop carrying her gun, out of a fear that "they'll shoot me first and then ask questions later."http://www.npr.org/s...m_campaign=news

Wrong conclusion. She should carry two guns. We know that more guns make us more safe. Believe me.

[smilesammich 10,727]

Wrong conclusion. She should carry two guns. We know that more guns make us more safe. Believe me.

i sure hope the nra gets out to defend this dead man's right to cc.

[John Miller 761]

i sure hope the nra gets out to defend this dead man's right to cc.

They will. They always do the right thing. Believe me.

[Boiler 46,951]

Sad

Obama's America

[Expat1 971]

might as well drop this here before ya'll get this one locked up too.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/07/07/485089276/im-outraged-mother-of-philando-castile-slain-by-police-speaks-out?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=news

In before thread lock

[Voice of Reason 10,298]

You were already in before the lock, ya goofball.

In before thread lock

Not sure why the other thread got locked, unless it's due to Val's hysterics?

[Jacque67 7,328]

You were already in before the lock, ya goofball.

Not sure why the other thread got locked, unless it's due to Val's hysterics?

My betting is on someone's pride;)