- cross-posted to:
- politics@lemmy.world
- cross-posted to:
- politics@lemmy.world
A man who was believed to be part of a peacekeeping team for the “No Kings” protest in Salt Lake City shot at a person who was brandishing a rifle at demonstrators, striking both the rifleman and a bystander who later died at the hospital, authorities said Sunday.
Police took the alleged rifleman, Arturo Gamboa, 24, into custody Saturday evening on a murder charge, Salt Lake City Police Chief Brian Redd said at a Sunday news conference. The bystander was Arthur Folasa Ah Loo, 39, a fashion designer from Samoa.
Detectives don’t yet know why Gamboa pulled out a rifle or ran from the peacekeepers, but they accused him of creating the dangerous situation that led to Ah Loo’s death. The Associated Press did not immediately find an attorney listed for Gamboa or contact information for his family in public records.
Sounds like the cops are in the right here…
Gamboa was the idiot who pulled his rifle on a crowd of peaceful protestors.
The protestors, being smart, had peacekeepers who were defensively carrying.
One of the peacekeepers shot at Gamboa, and ended up hitting Ah Loo, who was (apparently) an innocent bystander.
Gamboa broke the cardinal rule of carrying a gun: don’t point it at anything that you aren’t planning to kill. Defensive peacekeeper took the appropriate action in disarming a very valid threat (especially considering the actions that MAGAts had been taking on protestors lately). Cops arrested Gamboa.
I’ve got sympathy for Ah Loo (and the peacekeeper that shot him)…but that death is on Gamboa. That’s felony homicide right there. FAFO, Gamboa.
Removed by mod
The guy brought a gun, but from what I can see he didn’t break any laws before being attacked. I’m confused on what the protester was protecting himself from. He too brought a gun there.
I’m not ok with someone being shot for thought crimes, assuming what they might do. That’s a very slippery slope.
Also, the person you replied to layed out their opinion in a very respectful way, and you end with fuck you? You sound like a child who can’t process their emotions.
The rifleman allegedly pointed his rifle at the crowd, which is illegal, not a thought crime. The protester was defending the crowd from the rifleman, not protecting themselves directly.
The cops shouldn’t have been protecting the protestors. The cops should have been protecting everybody.
But we know to expect failures of the police. And we know we have a “god-given” right to defend ourselves.
And we know that police have no actual requirement to protect the public from dangerous situations anyway. That is settled case law.
And we know that calling the police when somebody is already marching towards you with an AR-15 pointed at your crowd is a waste of precious time.
The cops did nothing wrong. They also did nothing, but that’s besides the point.