On August 5 2014 22 year old John Crawford was shot dead by police at Walmart in Beavercreek, Ohio, near Dayton. They had received a 911 call that he had been carrying a firearm and waving it at people. In fact he had just picked up a toy assault riffle gun in store and videos showed him casually walking around chatting on his cell phone.

To make matters worse, after the fatal shooting police then took his girlfriend into custardy and aggressively questioned her for more than 90 minutes. They only informed her of her boyfriend’s death after the interrogation.

Here is an excerpt from a Guardian article (http://bit.ly/1qOE2Ay) on the matter:

Police aggressively questioned the tearful girlfriend of a young black man they had just shot dead as he held a BB gun in an Ohio supermarket – accusing her of lying, threatening her with jail, and suggesting that she was high on drugs.

“As a result of his actions, he is gone,” said the detective, as she slumped in her chair and cried.

The death of John Crawford and the harassment of his girlfriend were shameful and it’s important to remember these incidents because often they pass and we never hear of them again.

Too many young black men die at the hands of police for no valid reason. Crawford was not a danger and the actions of police seem to be an overreaction. He could have been dealt with in a way that he likely would have dropped the weapon immediately!

The case was handed to a special prosecutor and in september 2014 grand jury decided thatthe officers involved should not face criminal charges.

RIP John Crawford.