The defense attorney for Jeronimo Yanez, the officer that is being charged for the death of Philandro Castile’s death, has filed a motion for dismissal. What’s interesting is the justification used by the defense because it reeks of desperation:
Gray said that autopsy results indicated Castile has high levels of THC in his blood, the chemical responsible for marijuana’s psychological effects, and was “stoned” while driving that day. The memo said Reynolds confirmed that the two were “smokers,” had marijuana in the car and had smoked marijuana before the stop that day.
St. Anthony police officer Jeronimo Yanez is charged in the fatal shooting of Philando Castile.
“The status of being stoned (in an acute and chronic sense) explains why Mr. Castile, 1) did not follow the repeated directions of Officer Yanez; 2) stared straight ahead and avoided eye-contact; 3) never mentioned that he had a carry permit, but instead said he had a gun; and 4) did not show his hands,” the memo said.
Apparently using cannabis is grounds for summary execution according to Yanez’s lawyer. I say that because the motion doesn’t appear to claim that Castile posed a deadly threat to Yanez. It seems to only state that Castile was unresponsive to commands and chose poor wording for his attempt to inform Yanez about his firearm, not that Castile presented any kind of threat that one could reasonably construe as deadly. Furthermore, the lawyer tries to argue that Castile also violated the State’s bureaucracy:
Additionally, the memo said that Castile had falsely claimed on his application for a permit to carry a gun that he was not a user of an unlawful substance.
We know that Castile received his carry permit on June 4th, 2015. He was killed on July 6th, 2016. So he had his permit for over a year when he was shot. I bring this up because a lot can happen in a year. It’s quite possible that Castile wasn’t lying when he filled out his application but instead only started using cannabis after the fact. Either way, Yanez would have known none of this and even if he did lying on a form is not an execution worthy offense.
For you and me deadly force only becomes a legal option if there is a reasonable belief that great bodily harm or death could come to us. But as we know, the rules are different for those with badges. I only hope that this filing for dismissal is laughed out of the courtroom but it’s possible that the person in the magic muumuu will accept it.
Gray said that autopsy results indicated Castile has high levels of THC in his blood, the chemical responsible for marijuana’s psychological effects, and was “stoned” while driving that day.
I like this logic! But, turnabout is fair play. From now on, if anybody shoots a cop, it should be a complete defense to state, “Blood tests indicate high levels of glucose and fructose, apparently as a result of eating too many doughnuts. These chemicals are proven to contribute to irrational and aggressive behavior. Therefore it’s good, or at least acceptable, that the cop was shot and killed.”