George Floyd, Walter Scott, and Eric Garner were all murdered by police after being stopped for a counterfeit $20 bill, a broken brake light, and selling “loose” cigarettes – in that order.

On July 17, 2014 in New York City, Eric Garner was allegedly selling single, loose cigarettes from cigarette packs without tax stamps.  Garner was approached by NYPD officers.  He denied that he was selling loose cigarettes.  The officers attempted to arrest Garner.  Garner resisted arrest.  Officer Daniel Pantateo placed his arm around Garner’s neck and wrestled him to the ground.  Officer Pantateo maintained his chokehold on Garner until Garner lost consciousness.  Prior to losing consciousness, Garner said, “I can’t breathe” 11 times.  An ambulance arrived and transported Eric Garner to the hospital where he was pronounced dead one hour later.  Pantateo faced no criminal charges. 

On April 4, 2015 North Charleston police officer Michael Slager pulled over Walter Scott allegedly for a non-functioning brake light.  Slager’s dashcam recorded Slager approaching the vehicle driven by Scott, speaking briefly with Scott, and then returning to his police cruiser.  Once Slager was back in his police car, Walter Scott got out of the vehicle he was driving and began running away from the scene.  Slager gave chase and shot Walter Scott five times.  Three bullets struck Scott in the back. One round struck one of Scott’s ears and the other hit him in the buttocks.  Slager fired a total of eight rounds.  Three shots missed Scott.  The shooting death of Walter Scott was recorded by eyewitness Feidin Santana.  Slager was charged.  He pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of using excessive force to deprive Walter Scott of his civil rights. 

On May 25, 2020 a store clerk called the police because a customer attempted to use a counterfeit $20 bill to make a purchase.  The customer was George Floyd.  It has yet to be determined where Floyd obtained the counterfeit $20 bill or if he was aware that he had a counterfeit $20 in his possession.  The police arrived on the scene and Floyd was handcuffed.  For reasons that are unknown at this time, Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin came in contact with Floyd when Floyd was laying on the street next to a police vehicle.  Officer Chauvin placed his right knee onto Floyd’s neck and held his knee there for over eight minutes.  Recordings capture Floyd saying that he could not breathe.  Chauvin ignored Floyd’s pleas as well as the pleas from bystanders telling him to get off Floyd’s neck.  After Floyd became unresponsive, Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s neck for nearly three more minutes.  Officers Thomas Lane, Tou Thao, and J. Alexander Kueng did nothing to save Floyd’s life.  George Floyd died with his face on a Minneapolis street with Chauvin’s knee on his neck.  Chauvin is now in custody.  He has been charged with manslaughter and murder. 

Is this the society we want?  Do we want men, fathers, grandfathers, our co-workers and friends – do we want these men killed for selling loose cigarettes?  Do we want our neighbors shot five times over a brake light being out?  Do we want our friends to end up dead for passing a counterfeit $20 bill?  What if they resist arrest?  Do they deserve to die for resisting arrest?  Eric Garner was no stranger to the NYPD.  He had been arrested 30 times since 1980.  He knew the drill.  If Garner had simply complied with Officer Pantateo’s commands, he would not have been choked to death on July 17, 2014.  Yet that does not excuse the excessive force Pantateo used to subdue Garner. 

And if Walter Scott had not run from Officer Slager he wouldn’t have been shot five times.  Likewise, if George Floyd had passively complied with the MPD, he’d probably still be alive today.  Scott had been in jail three times since 2008.  All three times he was incarcerated, the charge was failure to pay child support.  Scott was $18,000 behind on his child support payments when Slager pulled him over.  It is suspected that Scott ran because he didn’t want to go back to jail over being behind on his child support payments again.  According to Scott’s brother, Walter struggled to catch up and keep up with his child support obligations. 

In 2007, George Floyd was charged with armed robbery in a home invasion that took place in Houston, TX.  In 2009, Floyd reached a plea deal and was sentenced to five years in prison.  After serving his time, Floyd was looking for a fresh start.  He moved to Minnesota.  Like millions of other Americans, he was out of work due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  He attempted to make a purchase at the Cup Foods grocery store.  The $20 bill George used was flagged as counterfeit.  George did not know that he had less than one hour to live.  Officer Chauvin did not know that, within 72 hours, he would be fired from the police department, his wife would file for divorce, and he’d be charged with manslaughter and murder. 

Eric Garner, Walter Scott, and George Floyd – cigarettes, brake lights, and a counterfeit $20 bill.  The voices of honest protest will not be heard because of the criminals that are now looting businesses, setting fires, and beating bloody any person that might fit the description of ‘them’.  If you are damaging property or injuring a person, you are not a protester.  You are a common criminal.  You are a thief for stealing this time from the honest protesters that could have achieved another step towards reform in our police departments and criminal justice system. 

There are already laws against police using excessive force.  What is now needed is laws against unnecessary roughness just like in the NFL.  We need something that causes a police officer to pause and ask – how important is it that I arrest this person right now.  In the case of Eric Garner, there was absolutely no urgent need to arrest that man.  He wasn’t suspected of selling dirty bombs.  He was suspected of selling cigarettes.  There was no need for Officer Daniel Pantateo to choke out Mr. Eric Garner. 

I’m sure there isn’t a day that goes by that Michael Slager doesn’t imagine what his life would be like now had he just let Walter Scott run away.  A brake light that wasn’t working – now Scott is dead and Slager is in prison.  Why did he chase him?  Nobody can outrun the radio.  Why didn’t he simply radio in that the suspect was on the run?  Scott would have been found eventually.  He did not need to be taken into custody at that moment.  So why was Slager compelled to chase and shoot Mr. Walter Scott in the back?

What Derek Chauvin did to George Floyd is beyond outrageous.  His absolute disregard for human life, the blank expression on his face as his victim, and the community around him, pleaded with him to get off the man’s neck is incomprehensible.  Assuming that Floyd actually did knowingly try to pass a counterfeit $20 bill at the Cup Foods grocery store, why couldn’t four police officers safely and professionally restrain Floyd and place him in the back of a squad car?  Floyd was handcuffed when Chauvin had his knee on his neck – further evidence that this was about abuse and power, and not about service and protection. 

It is a tragedy that the headlines today are about curfews and violence, looting and fires, and not about what really needs to be changed in our police departments across the United States.  Law enforcement needs improved pre-hire assessment tools to ensure only the best candidates become police officers.  Police officers need the temperament, patience, and empathy required to deal with the full spectrum of society.  The goal should be pleasant policing wherever and whenever possible. 

Note:  The race of the police officers and victims was purposefully omitted from this commentary.  Does this change how you feel about the people involved?