Who really killed Michael Brown?

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Ok, I know that I’m about to be called a racist by most of you.  But nothing could be further from the truth because what I know is based upon my personal experiences during the 33 years I’ve served in a big-city police department.  My career began with 9 months of vigorous academy training, then another six months of assignments with a veteran training officer.  Then it was time as a patrol officer and times as a training officer, detective and vice assignments before spending the last six years investigating fellow officers of all ranks accused of misconduct.

So, you can conclude I've seen it all.  The good, the bad and the ugly.  Traffic accidents, homicides, robberies, rapes, child, spousal, and elder abuse, riots, bombings, natural disasters, dignitary protection, gambling, narcotics, and police corruption.  I’ve Been There – Done That.  I’ve testified as an expert witness in crime scene reconstruction, and introduced evidence that both exonerated and convicted the accused, including police officers accused of crimes.

Why all this??  It’s because it shows that I base things of facts.  I offer few opinions that are not fact based and when I do, I’ll preface my response with stating, “I think, but I’m really not sure.”

But this is what I’m sure of. . . . The killing of Michael Brown was not motivated by race.  Rather that Michael Brown was a product of failing American culture.  Michel Brown and millions before him were given many opportunities to succeed.  Through the likes of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action, our government has given minorities education and job opportunity, financial assistance, welfare, healthcare, and other incentives not available to the rest of Americans.  Yet these programs have led to a decline in the building of successful minority citizens.

The traditional American families, especially in the inner cities, no longer have two parents in the home, and in most cases the child had no idea who his father is.  The child is raised on handouts, and has no interest in becoming a productive working person (outside of sports, music or drug dealing), and no will to remove himself from that environment.  He, without any family structure survive merely on thievery, intimidation, or violence to fill his needs.  He blames everyone but himself and screams cries of racism, blaming everyone but himself for his woes.  And the cycle continues.

Michael Brown’s killing was a tragedy.  A tragedy felt by everyone.  But the real tragedy was the lack of any apparent morality that should have been taught to him by his parents.  The tragedy was not race based, but caused by Brown’s own sense that he could do anything he wants without remorse.  He used his size and appearance to his advantage when he walked into that liquor store to rob the owner of a box of cigars.  He believed that it was his given right and that he would challenge anyone’s authority to stop him.  

That led to his assault on the cop that was merely doing his job.  The cop merely pulled the trigger that saved his life, but  Michael Brown caused his own death. 

Michael Brown fell victim to the teachings, tolerances and attitudes, which have been building since the days of Rosa Parks and Caesar Chavez.  And Michael Brown died because of it.  And so will many more.