The welfare-state was just a stepping stone to the police-state.
From: Emma Saylor via Change.org <mail@...>
To: javlin@...
Sent: Tuesday, August 20, 2013 8:52 AM
Subject: Killed by police over a movie ticketChange.org Responsive Template Baseline
Three police officers killed my big brother Ethan, who had Down syndrome, over a $12 movie ticket. I want a criminal investigation into the officers who killed my brother.
Sign Emma's PetitionJohn -
My big brother Ethan, who had Down syndrome, was
killed by three police officers earlier this year. His crime? Not buying a $12
movie ticket. And now the police officers who killed my brother are getting
off with no consequences.
On January 12, 2013, my brother Ethan went to
the movies. When the movie was over, he returned to his seat to see it again.
Three police officers told Ethan he had to leave, but Ethan didn't understand
why. He got frustrated and afraid when the officers told him he was going to jail.
His aide came into the theater and told the officers that they should not touch
Ethan because it would only make him more upset. He needed time to process
their request.
But the officers didn't listen. Witnesses say
they threw Ethan to the ground and piled on top of him. Seconds later,
Ethan couldn't breathe, and eventually died. The coroner ruled that his death
was homicide by asphyxiation.
My family waited six months
for the truth about what happened that night, but the officers' own department
investigated and decided they deserve no punishment at all.
I started a petition on Change.org calling on the governor and attorney general of Maryland to launch a criminal investigation into the officers who killed my brother. Will you click here to sign?
Part of the problem is that police officers in
Maryland aren't trained in how to deal with developmentally disabled people
like my brother. I think training is an important next step in making sure that
what happens to my brother never happens to anyone else. But I also want the
officers who killed Ethan to be investigated for his death.
I am still in shock about what happened to my
brother. I am shocked that when I go home, he isn't there. I am shocked that
these police officers let a dispute over a stupid movie ticket escalate to a
point where my brother died, rather than choosing a passive approach. I am
shocked that the investigation was blatantly biased and the police department
continues to claim the officers did nothing wrong... like my brother's life
didn't matter.
I am sick of being shocked. I want to do
something. I want my governor and attorney general to get justice for my
brother, to find out what really happened and to implement training protocols
so that no other family will ever have to experience the pain my family feels.
We miss Ethan every day. He didn't deserve this. And no one else does, either.
Please sign my petition calling on Maryland's governor and attorney general to launch a criminal investigation into the officers who killed my brother.
Thank you,
Emma Saylor
Mount Airy, MDSign Emma's Petition
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