Plus, Michael Moore writes his own declaration of independence and it's epic
On April 4, a police officer shot Patrick Lyoya at point-blank range in the back of the head during a traffic stop in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Two months later, Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker announced he was charging the officer, Christopher Schurr, with second-degree murder — making Schurr the first officer from the Grand Rapids Police Department to be charged with felony murder in the shooting of a civilian. The shooting, filmed by a witness, ignited outrage on social media. Lyoya’s death didn’t spark the same nationwide outrage as the killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, but it raised tensions in Grand Rapids and underlined the often-dangerous role police can play in minor traffic stops. Schurr said he pulled over Lyoya, a 26-year-old Black man, because his license plates were expired. Lyoya attempted to get away, and after a brief struggle, Schurr pulled out his gun and shot Lyoya in the back of the head while kneeling on top of him. Jack Glaser, a professor focusing on racial bias and law enforcement at the University of California, Berkeley, said body camera footage of the traffic stop shows Schurr approaching Lyoya aggressively. “You can go back and say the stop itself started on a bad note and was probably unnecessary,” Glaser told HuffPost. “The officer is very aggressive and moved in quickly and really contributes to a fraught situation where he is trying to get compliance and Mr. Lyoya is confused.” |
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A doctor who treated victims at the site of the deadly shooting in Highland Park, Illinois, described their wounds as “wartime injuries.” Dr. David Baum, an obstetrician and local resident who attended the parade with his family, told CNN’s “New Day” he ran in to help, adding that some of those shot were killed instantly. “The people who were gone were blown up by that gunfire,” Baum said, speaking to the power of the rifle used in the shooting. Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering said the gunman bought the weapon — which police described as a “high-powered rifle” — legally, according to CBS. Robert E. Crimo III, 21, shot at the parade from a nearby rooftop, killing at least six people, including a man in his 70s and a local synagogue member, and injuring 26 others. |
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The wife of Brittney Griner said the White House has not yet responded to a letter from the WNBA star asking for President Joe Biden’s help in getting her released from Russian detention. Griner, a 31-year-old two-time Olympic gold medalist and center for the Phoenix Mercury, was arrested in February when she traveled to Russia and authorities claimed they found cannabis oil in her luggage. On July 4, she wrote an impassioned letter to Biden asking him not to “forget about me,” and expressing fears that she “might be here forever.” |
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