美国国家公共电台 NPR New Policy In LA Cracks Down On Problem Of Police Shooting At Moving Cars

New Policy In LA Cracks Down On Problem Of Police Shooting At Moving Cars 

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Some police in Southern California face questions about the way they use deadly force. They are sheriff's deputies in Los Angeles County. Our member station KPCC investigated the LA County Sheriff's Department. Deputies have sometimes opened fire on drivers in vehicles, and the investigation² found that almost every driver shot by deputies was unarmed. As we'll hear, one was being treated for mental illness. Some people will find this story, which lasts about four minutes, disturbing. Here's reporter Annie Gilbertson.

ANNIE GILBERTSON, BYLINE³: All around John Berry are sheriffs' patrol cars, blocking him from driving away. He sits in his BMW on his home street in Lakewood, a city south of Los Angeles. Seven deputies are out swarming⁴ the vehicle. A neighbor recorded the scene on her smartphone.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Come on, Johnny. Come on out, Johnny.

GILBERTSON: John's in the middle of a schizophrenic episode. His brother Chris Berry says he was not armed, he wasn't dangerous. In fact, Chris called deputies for help, maybe get his brother to a psychiatric hospital. So Chris was shocked when officers pulled out a baton⁵ then taser.

CHRIS BERRY: They were way too aggressive with somebody who doesn't necessarily understand what's going on.

GILBERTSON: Suddenly, John's car lurches forward then back. The deputies declined to comment for this story, but told investigators⁶ they were scared they'd be run over. That's why they shoot.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Johnny.

(SOUNDBITE OF GUNSHOTS)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

GILBERTSON: Chris Berry says there was no reason to shoot and kill John. His brother suffered from a severe mental illness.

BERRY: I've known my brother long enough. He didn't mean to hurt anybody. He was terrified.

GILBERTSON: John Berry's case from 2015 raises a lot of issues. Among them is a tactical one we don't often hear about. Should officers shoot a person if they're afraid of being run over or should they just get out of the way? The Los Angeles Police Department has cracked down on the practice and virtually eliminated shooting at moving cars. But an investigation by KPCC found in at least eight instances over a five-year period, Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies shot an unarmed driver or passenger. The deputies said they feared being run over.

TODD ROGERS: In most cases, it really doesn't make a lot of sense.

GILBERTSON: Todd Rogers is assistant LA sheriff. He says the shootings in KPCC's investigation are justified⁸. But he also agrees with a growing number of law enforcement leaders, who say injuring someone behind the wheel can make the situation more dangerous.

ROGERS: Chances are, you're not going to kill the vehicle. You're not going to stop the vehicle. And it's still going to be moving forward, and whatever's in its path is going to get hit.

GILBERTSON: Say you hit your target, the driver. Suddenly, you've got an unmanned, 3,000-pound vehicle tearing down the streets of Los Angeles County, and you could hit a bystander. In 2005, LA sheriff's deputies unloaded 120 rounds on an unarmed man in a Chevy Tahoe in Compton. Bullets reportedly sprayed five neighborhood homes. One bullet was found two blocks away, lodged⁹ into the wall of an elementary school. That's when the LA Sheriff's Department wrote a new policy discouraging firing at moving vehicles, but the shootings continued. Again, Assistant Sheriff Todd Rogers.

ROGERS: We're probably shooting at moving vehicles too much because it's not an effective tactic⁷, not because the deputies aren't legally justified to do so.

ROGERS: Legally justified, Rogers says, because deputies are allowed to shoot when they fear for their life. Among the cases KPCC examined, two suspects had guns. But in all other cases, the weapon was the car itself. Sean Van Leeuwen is vice¹⁰ president of the deputy's union. He has a solution.

SEAN VAN LEEUWEN: Training, training, training.

GILBERTSON: In fact, it's Van Leeuwen's job as a field training officer to teach deputies how to handle threats.

VAN LEEUWEN: When was the last time you trained us on how to shoot at a moving vehicle or how to avoid shooting in a moving vehicle? The answer will be probably never.

GILBERTSON: The sheriff's department has since made a change. After KPCC's original investigation, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department released a training video. It teaches deputies that shooting at cars is dangerous. The department also updated its policy to frankly¹¹ state, don't shoot at drivers, don't shoot at tires. Unless another weapon is present, stop shooting into cars. For NPR News, I'm Annie Gilbertson in Los Angeles.

1 browser   

n.浏览者

参考例句：

• View edits in a web browser.在浏览器中看编辑的效果。
• I think my browser has a list of shareware links.我想在浏览器中会有一系列的共享软件链接。

2 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 swarming   

密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去

参考例句：

• The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。
• The beach is swarming with bathers. 海滩满是海水浴的人。

5 baton   

n.乐队用指挥杖

参考例句：

• With the baton the conductor was beating time.乐队指挥用指挥棒打拍子。
• The conductor waved his baton,and the band started up.指挥挥动指挥棒，乐队开始演奏起来。

6 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 tactic   

n.战略，策略；adj.战术的，有策略的

参考例句：

• Reducing prices is a common sales tactic.降价是常用的销售策略。
• She had often used the tactic of threatening to resign.她惯用以辞职相威胁的手法。

8 justified   

a.正当的，有理的

参考例句：

• She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
• The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

9 lodged   

v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属

参考例句：

• The certificate will have to be lodged at the registry. 证书必须存放在登记处。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Our neighbours lodged a complaint against us with the police. 我们的邻居向警方控告我们。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

11 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。