The case I decided to look into when it comes to law enforcement and abuse of power is the case that fills my timeline of opinions on Facebook. I’m talking about the death of Antwon Rose II. Last summer on June 19th, 2018 in East Pittsburgh, PA. The shooting occurred during a traffic stop. There was a video of the shooting that flooded the internet. Antwon was an unarmed 17-year-old African American. According to the officer the vehicle that Antwon was a passenger of, matched the description of a vehicle that was involved in a drive-by shooting 10 minutes prior. The officer stated it all happened very quickly and he wasn’t really sure if he saw a gun or the teenagers as a threat.

A case like this can be looked at as very racist and hateful. Unfortunately, it’s not the first white police officer shooting an African American. I do believe steps could have been taken before resorting to shooting. That should be the absolute last resort. The use of force guidelines should be followed as no force, limited force, less lethal force and then deadly force. Questing the teenagers in the car about the shooting or where they were 10 minutes prior should have been the first step. If they didn’t corporate, a more direct approach could be taken. Such as search of the vehicle, and proceed from there. The officer should have also remembered to not have any emotions involved if that were the case. Personally, I feel If the officer thought before reacting it could have saved the life of an innocent teenager. As that may not always be the easiest thing to do, it can help to avoid any abuse of power. People aren’t always sure with what they may see, unfortunately, this can lead to just reacting in situations if someone isn’t 100% positive with what an object or reflection is. I understand with law enforcement reacting in a timely manner is extremely important. When it comes not being 100% positive, thinking of all possibilities needs to be done before reacting without thinking.

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