Anderson was the 37-year-old schizophrenic woman who died after police attempted to transport her from her home on Ansel Road to their car Nov. 13.
The police’s and Anderon’s family’s versions of events vary considerably. Anderson’s brother and daughter both say they witnessed police use a violent “takedown move,” shoving Anderson facefirst into the pavement after she grew nervous in the backseat of the police cruiser.
Here’s the official police version: “A short time later, the woman stopped struggling and appeared to go limp.”
Cory Shaffer at the NEOMG reports that Cleveland Police will not say whether or not the officers involved had received special training to deal with the mentally ill.
Tamir Rice was the 12-year-old boy who died Sunday after being shot in the abdomen when two officers responded to a call at the Cudell Recreation Center on the city’s west side. Rice had been playing with a toy gun.
A 9-1-1 caller indicated that the gun in question, a BB gun with the orange safety cap removed, was “probably fake,” but those doubts were never conveyed to responding officers.
“Today’s demonstration is part of growing outrage around police killings, part of a growing movement to stop mass incarceration, police terror and the criminalization of generations,” said Carol Steiner, spokesperson for ‘Puncture the Silence-Stop Mass Incarceration Cleveland,’ the group hosting the protest.
“The police killings must stop now. To be silent is to be complicit. We do not intend to accept business as usual while people’s lives are being stolen,” Steiner said.
This article appears in Nov 19-25, 2014.
If Tanesha Anderson had a history of mental illness with violent behavior, why was she not in an institution where she could have been cared for properly? too many people want to get that SSI check for $700 bucks each month, but they don’t want to ensure the person they are paid to take care of is taking their medications properly, or to ensure they are not a danger to others. They get the check, it is their responsibility. Why do the police have to step in when they do not do what they are suppose to? and if they cannot handle that person, that person should be placed where they will not be a danger to themselves or others. Furthermore, why is it is always someone else’s fault when things go wrong? and where were the parents of this 12 year old boy, while he was taking the safety cap off a toy gun and roaming around the city waving it and pointing it at people? It is their responsibility to safe guard their children, to teach them right from wrong, and to education them on the dangers of doing things like that. Sorry but stop passing the buck and using peoples poor judgments and poor parenting skills as a catch all excuse to be angry at the world, if your life is that bad that you have to be angry at the world, change your life, stop trying to blame the whole world.
The caller reported it was probably fake the 911 operator failed to release that info. Secondly although not wise in today’s times a .toy gun is not illegal and the incident took place at the recreation center not while roaming the streets. Bottom line not every police shooting is the fault of the alleged criminal the police need to overhaul their practices this guns a blazing tactics isn’t working.