You may have watched the second video and failed to notice that there are several extremely noteworthy pieces of evidence. While the names of the involved officers have been released, we will avoid using their names for a short time out of respect for them.
One of the first items of note in the video is that Alton Sterling?s left hand was clearly restrained and under the control of Officer One. However, Sterling?s right hand is clearly not under control of the officers. In fact, Officer Two?s position would have made it all but impossible for him to effectively control Sterling?s hand. You can see moments where Sterling is moving his elbow, making a pulling motion. Officer Two can be seen fighting Sterling for control of his hand. Then, just before the shots were fired, you can see Officer Two?s hand is empty and clearly not holding Sterling?s hand.
Second Alton Sterling can freely move his right elbow
Alton Sterling can freely move his right elbow
Officer Two fights Alton Sterling for control of his hand
Officer Two fights Alton Sterling for control of his hand
Officer Two's hand lost hold of Alton Sterling's hand moments before shooting
Officer Two?s hand lost hold of Alton Sterling?s hand moments before shooting
Officer Two?s hand then follows Sterling?s hand towards his right pocket, and that?s when you hear shots being fired. Later in the video you can see Officer One remove a gun from Sterling?s right pocket. The only logical conclusion is that Sterling was reaching for his gun. If somebody has two police officers pointing guns at them, while telling them not to move after discovering their gun, and the person then reaches towards their gun, then it?s really obvious that they are trying to get to their gun. We have clear evidence here that Sterling was going for a gun at the time he was shot.
You may have also noticed in this video that the first shots didn?t appear to be fired by Officer One, as many had assumed. You can see Officer One?s pistol when the first shots are heard, and there is no visible muzzle flash. This means that the first shots fired likely came from either Officer Two?s gun, or Sterling?s gun.
We still don?t have many details on this case, but every day the new details all seem to support the case that Sterling was justifiably shot as a result of his decision to reach for his gun. We?ll keep you updated as more details come in.
