Protesters seek answers, change

==========
Sommerville did have a problem with the statement made last week by Police Chief Michael Matulavich, who called the shooting ''100 percent justified.''

''That disturbs me. That was a wrong statement,'' said Sommerville
==========

It's time for Marco Sommerville to go!

He's a divider!
He's a hater!
He's a race baiter!

Marco hasn't done any investigation, so his claim that Matulavich's assertion "was a wrong statement" is nothing except for a politician who is inducing panic for his own, personal gain.

I call on Akron voters to join me in a move to have a recall election for Marco Sommerville's seat on City Council.

The man went for his gun... It was a good shoot. Why is this being politicized? It is a scary time to be a cop when you are under the microscope and face possible termination because of doing the right thing. Officers cannot be forced to take the polygraph. They have the same rights as other citizens in that regard. It takes a few days because investigations are not overnight wonders. If you want the truth, you need a thorough investigation. Sommerville is a tool. Chief Matulavich is sticking by his men and should be commended for it. Based on the facts in hand, they were 100 percent justified. Is it a tragedy? Yes. There is no refuting that. But there was no wrong doing and the officers did as they were trained. How can an officer be expected to tell the difference between a person with a gun that will shoot you and a person with a gun that will not? Be realistic.

Marco Sommerville is a big fat jacque a55.

I suppose these people would believe that the murder of Joshua T. Miktarian was self defense also. Marco S. show some backbone when confronted with these people, they're so far off the mark on this one, either that or make a policy that cops have to be fired at before shooting an armed individual who has pulled his weapon on police. Pick a side.

Marco Sommerville is a professional politician. He just wrote an article for the city's newsletter about supporting the police department. I knew immediately it was not written by him and thought about screaming plagarism. This is proof positive that he didn't write that article. He is a criminal in office and should be removed. What a loser.

It is very likely the shooting was justified. What I simply don't understand is why aren't these guys trained to mame or otherwise disable the suspect? We have tasers, other weapons that shoot a similar object from a distance, rubber bullets are used to incapacitate crowds that get unruly.

Why does it always end in 22 or so bullets while the suspect never seems to get off a shot. The officers are supposed to be trained in shooting. They have time to aim because we always hear about how many times they tell a suspect to drop the gun. They have bullet-proof vests and time to take cover.

Yet the untrained suspect always gets all the bullets and dies. I really don't get it.

I fully support the recall of Marco Sommerville.

Wait a minute..........they want us to honor a man who went for his gun while drunk and disobeying police orders. I don't think so.

Can we honor the police that went home with their families that night? The ones that risk their lives for us every day. Of course we can, and we should.

How do we get rid of Marco????? Sign me up!

When people act honorable, they are honored. Period.

Summit Dem for Justice wrote:

It is very likely the shooting was justified. What I simply don't understand is why aren't these guys trained to mame or otherwise disable the suspect? We have tasers, other weapons that shoot a similar object from a distance, rubber bullets are used to incapacitate crowds that get unruly.
Why does it always end in 22 or so bullets while the suspect never seems to get off a shot. The officers are supposed to be trained in shooting. They have time to aim because we always hear about how many times they tell a suspect to drop the gun. They have bullet-proof vests and time to take cover.
Yet the untrained suspect always gets all the bullets and dies. I really don't get it.

You are correct. You really don't get it.

Sommerville wants to know what commands were given? Let's see, you are facing two officers with guns drawn and you want to know what commands were given? I don't know about you but if it were me that might be enough for me to hit the ground and drop my weapon.

And one more thing regarding the title about needing answers. Here is your answer ( I could have saved you a lot of time and energy)The man who was shot, was drunk, illegally carrying a weapon on the public streets,and failed to put the weapon down.
(I won't even go into what commands they gave), therefore he was shot. My advice, don't be stupid.

Summit Dem for Justice wrote:

It is very likely the shooting was justified. What I simply don't understand is why aren't these guys trained to mame or otherwise disable the suspect? We have tasers, other weapons that shoot a similar object from a distance, rubber bullets are used to incapacitate crowds that get unruly.
Why does it always end in 22 or so bullets while the suspect never seems to get off a shot. The officers are supposed to be trained in shooting. They have time to aim because we always hear about how many times they tell a suspect to drop the gun. They have bullet-proof vests and time to take cover.
Yet the untrained suspect always gets all the bullets and dies. I really don't get it.

Clueless. The bullet proof vest does not cover the head. Criminals who want to take out a police officer know this. An officer is trained to completely take out the threat. A maimed man on the ground is still a threat if he wants to shot an officer. I swear you people that blog must never leave your house you need a reality check and stop printing such ignorant posts.

Summit Dem for Justice wrote:

It is very likely the shooting was justified. What I simply don't understand is why aren't these guys trained to mame or otherwise disable the suspect? We have tasers, other weapons that shoot a similar object from a distance, rubber bullets are used to incapacitate crowds that get unruly.
Why does it always end in 22 or so bullets while the suspect never seems to get off a shot. The officers are supposed to be trained in shooting. They have time to aim because we always hear about how many times they tell a suspect to drop the gun. They have bullet-proof vests and time to take cover.
Yet the untrained suspect always gets all the bullets and dies. I really don't get it.

Would you have been happier is the subject got off a shot?? Are you dumb?

"We need police who will not pull the trigger, but honor us.... We want police to know us and be able to tell us apart,'' said Beaty, who is white."

This guy's statement makes him sound like an idiot. He wants the police to HONOR someone who is drunk with a gun?

And what exactly does he mean that he wants police to be able to tell "us" apart? Is he implying that he wants the police to be able to determine that SOME people with guns are okay even if they're pointing at an officer and others are not??

I feel bad for the man's family, but I feel Marco is using this tragedy to further his position to remove the police chief....it seems Marco wants a thug as police chief....does he want the job?

It's quite obvious that we as a society has failed these folks. Iff'n we had done a better job of educatin' them, they wouldn't have allowed themselves to be led by the nose by these petty racist drum beaters.

Let's face it. When we have a group of folks that continues to promote the idea that the Vincent kid didn't commit suicide, or that his suicide was the police's fault, they're never goin' to be convinced that any of their loved ones or friends, drunk, high or sober, can die as a result of their own actions and decisions.

Simply put:

Sommerville bad.

Police good.

Drunk in street with gun bad.

Shooting good.

Folks are calling for the recall of Marco ... when the polls open again ... go out and vote for his replacement instead of grumbling about it. Let your voice be heard and let your vote count!

I feel bad for the family. Mr. Stevens was a good man, father, and husband who wanted nothing but peace. Yes, he may have been drinking but police do that everyday so don’t act like it was crack. His wife is the one who called police they weren’t trying to hurt anyone. I understand that it is bad out their with the youth but the police are using that as an excuse to kill on sight and getting away with it as long as they have their stories straight.

cranky wrote:

<quoted text>Clueless. The bullet proof vest does not cover the head. Criminals who want to take out a police officer know this. An officer is trained to completely take out the threat. A maimed man on the ground is still a threat if he wants to shot an officer. I swear you people that blog must never leave your house you need a reality check and stop printing such ignorant posts.

In their defense, they are watching WAY too much TV. These people have never fired a weapon themselves. They think that if it can be done on TV or the movies it can be done in real life.