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    TheDrDonna, Paid Shillary Killinton SupporterBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:14pm

    This is perhaps not the best place or time for it, but can I say how much I dislike the idea of “preferred” names or pronouns? My name is my name. My pronouns are my pronouns. I demand them, I don't prefer them, and if you use the wrong ones, we will have a problem.

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      Pikku MyyTheDrDonna, Paid Shillary Killinton Supporter
      2/05/16 6:33pm

      Yeah, and why use the dead name? Why not just mention that the death was filed under his birth name without mentioning the name?

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      GuestTheDrDonna, Paid Shillary Killinton Supporter
      2/05/16 6:40pm

      Biology and a dictionary would beg to differ.

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    MotherOfUnicorns will only call Trump Cheeto JesusBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:31pm

    This is just fucking horrible. It leaves a huge knot in my stomach. Since Kayden had Aspergers it is likely that in the midst of a meltdown he wouldn’t have been able to fully understand the ramifications of his actions. It is also possible that he could have just completely shut out anything the officers were saying & not even noticed they were there. He shouldn’t have been shot, this is why officers NEED to carry tasers. It would have incapacitated him without killing him. My hearts breaks for his mom, what a horrible loss. He sounds like he had a wonderful heart & was going to turn a corner in the ability to be his authentic self.

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      Pikku MyyMotherOfUnicorns will only call Trump Cheeto Jesus
      2/05/16 6:34pm

      It makes me so sad to see people like me, who have these bright shiny futures and interesting neurodivergent brains, just get shut down in one way or another before we have time to shine.

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      Bobby FingerMotherOfUnicorns will only call Trump Cheeto Jesus
      2/05/16 6:36pm

      The five videos in his new YouTube account are so hopeful. He’s so damned excited in them. This is an imperfect storm or tragic situations.

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    BekabyBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:13pm

    Fearing for your safety isn’t a good enough reason to end a life, to me. It’s way too vague; it could mean the cops were afraid they’d get cut, maybe even need some stitches, or break a bone. But that’s part of police work, you might get cut or break a bone. The only time it should be acceptable to end a life is when you legitimately fear they will kill you or someone else.

    I’m sorry Kayden. This shouldn’t have been the end of your story.

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      RockYouLikeAHermanCainBekaby
      2/05/16 6:27pm

      But that’s the thing - everyone is about to kill them, all the time, at least based on what they say every time they kill someone.

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      thewiredknightBekaby
      2/05/16 6:31pm

      What about maim or cause serious bodily harm? Say the police find someone about to rape another person or trying to hack off an arm or leg. They aren’t trying to kill but according to your definition they aren’t allowed to shoot to kill in eithe rof these situations.

      Mind you the question is rhetorical - I’m more illustrating that there are more possibilities and options than your rule addresses.

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    Pikku MyyBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:31pm

    Was this a wellness check gone wrong? The police don’t know how to deal with autistic people especially not suicidal or mentally ill ones, especially not if they’re having a meltdown (even if they’re already calm, the police will usually make them anxious again). I know this first-hand. I had an anxiety attack and made a vaguely suicidal tweet and when a friend called them to do a wellness check, even though I had already calmed down, they insisted they had to take me to the hospital. My dad was home and he said I would be okay, but they refused. I didn’t cooperate but I wasn’t violent. They dragged me out of the house. I had huge bruises and I think some mild nerve damage (still can’t feel some of my left arm, nothing too serious, but).

    I’m afraid to go out now. It had this huge, terrifying impact on me. I don’t know who to talk to about it really, and I don’t have money. But I read things like this (I’m cis but yeah) and it gets worse. How could this have been prevented? How do we save autistic people in the future? How do we survive in a world that refuses to understand us and tries to force us to be what we aren’t? How do we survive?

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      Marzipan in your Pie PlatePikku Myy
      2/05/16 6:44pm

      Jeez. I’m really sorry that happened to you, and I wish I had an answer. I’ve read stories of a very few police departments doing specialized training for people who are suicidal or who may have a mental illness. There needs to be much, much more of this kind of training. And awareness. I don’t think anything else will help.

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      MayotonillaPikku Myy
      2/05/16 6:47pm

      We should send trained professionals to do the wellness checks.

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    THERANTGUYBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:07pm

    Are police not like trained to shoot people in the leg? Like, I know cops are awful douchebags who run amok on power and don’t think there are ever any consequences to them murdering people (which there never seem to be) but are these idiots not trained in high stress situations to actually think for two seconds before shooting? Sure you might get a big artery in a leg, but you’re telling me a cop in a bulletproof vest was so afraid of a tiny person with a knife they needed to kill? Are cops just wussies with guns?

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      YoSupTHERANTGUY
      2/05/16 6:11pm

      If your goal is to incapacitate nonlethally, you really shouldn’t be shooting the person at all. There’s pretty much no situation where it makes sense to aim for the legs (which are also much more difficult targets).

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      MoosMomTHERANTGUY
      2/05/16 6:11pm

      Similar thing happened with a suicidal young woman in Half Moon Bay, CA last year. Her family called in her suicidality for a wellness check, she pointed her knife at officers (as in forcefully asking them to stand back) and they shot her.

      No fucking training in de-escalation at all.

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    doyouevenliftbrahBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:10pm

    Two cops. One suicidal person with a knife. Forget being of some kind of help, if you can’t extricate yourself from that situation without shooting the person, it’s time for a different line of work.

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      Marzipan in your Pie Platedoyouevenliftbrah
      2/05/16 6:18pm

      Cops are so not equipped to deal with mental illness. And that is in no way a defense of what they did. Cities need to start training them better. I would be afraid to call the police to help with a mentally ill loved one who was out of control.

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      Maj. Malfunctiondoyouevenliftbrah
      2/05/16 6:20pm

      Yeah, if the whole reason you’re there is to prevent a death, and you instead cause it, that’s almost beyond failure.

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    BlessedAreTheHedas. Our fight is not over.Bobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:04pm

    On another site the headline was, Cops Kill Woman While Responding to Suicide Call. Tragic and terrible. My heart goes out to his mother.

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      Marzipan in your Pie PlateBlessedAreTheHedas. Our fight is not over.
      2/05/16 6:20pm

      Um...

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      TooManyKillazBlessedAreTheHedas. Our fight is not over.
      2/05/16 7:08pm

      My heart hurts for them too. We need to retrain our police into non lethal deescalation techniques. Failing that, I guess we’re learning not to call the police.

      I wonder is calling a paramedic a better solution for a suicidal person? At the bare minimum, we need so many more mental health professionals available to everyone before a crisis hits the boiling point.

      Kayden seemed like such a caring person who didn’t have a lot materially or much in the way of a health support network.

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    BadgirlbeautyBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:47pm

    Genuine question here and I don’t want it to come across wrong but do most police officers in the US believe that their lives matter so much more than the people they are trained to protect?

    Isn’t the motto “to serve and protect”?

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      snugglefuckBadgirlbeauty
      2/05/16 7:10pm

      Seems to me like many police officers divide the public between those who deserve to be protected and those who deserve to be killed.

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      gparsöpBadgirlbeauty
      2/05/16 7:23pm

      There isn't a cop (or firefighter, for that matter) in the world who values the life of a civilian over their own life. They will always save or protect themselves first over virtually any other person. And they'd save a fellow cop/FF before they'd save a civilian. We are a few lines down on their priority list.

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    benjaminalloverBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:13pm

    After Clark’s death, his mother told reporters that, despite a “limited income,” he “bought two Christmas trees and ornaments on sale to give to low income families for this upcoming December.”

    This is just too sad for me to comprehend right now.

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      PackYouUpbenjaminallover
      2/05/16 9:27pm

      The entire event is just devastating. This poor woman shouldn’t have lost her son. My heart is breaking for this family.

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      Classicblanca Filmbenjaminallover
      2/06/16 1:55am

      I’m a TG man and have Asperger’s as well. Given those extremely rare dual shared experiences this is hitting me hard. It feels very personal to me.

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    ZabellaBobby Finger
    2/05/16 6:40pm

    Is it a sign of progress that this man was a victim of poor police training, rather than killed for being transgender?

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      DarigaazZabella
      2/05/16 8:24pm

      Um...yay? [Sobs internally]

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