"Don't be misled, dangerous people walk the streets of Scottsdale", says the Scottsdale Fraternal Order of Police. I completely agree, they carry badges and shoot to kill.

The Scottsdale Police Department is on the warpath against its own citizens, and the latest victim of the Scottsdale war machine is a 50 year old grandfather, John Loxas ("Cop Shoots Man Holding Baby: James Loxas Killed In Phoenix" by Bob Christie): 

Several officers called for him to come outside, but Loxas refused, Rodbell said.[James] Peters shot Loxas in the head with a scope-equipped rifle from about 15 yards away when he leaned over and reached inside the house. Loxas died instantly, and fell with the baby in his arms, police spokesman Sgt. Mark Clark said. The baby was unhurt.

According to witnesses, Scottsdale Police officers were celebrating and loudly cheering after the kill shot. When Ofc. Peters shot Mr. Loxas, Mr. Loxas had no weapon, was turning away from officers to walk back into the home, and probably was setting his grandson down as the reports say he was lowering the child from around his head to the lower right side of his body. In other words, when Ofc. Peters shot and killed Mr. Loxas, Mr. Loxas was not an imminent physical threat to anyone, not police, not his grandson, not anyone. 

Police have no more right to use physical or deadly force than anyone else, and if this had been an ordinary citizen, I am almost certain he would be facing first degree murder charges. Anyone who encouraged him or assisted him, like other police officers at the scene or in command perhaps, should be charged as well with murder as accomplices, maybe even conspiracy to commit murder. 

Intentionally killing without justification and with premeditation is first degree murder. Motive is irrelevant. The fact these officers will claim they were only killed Mr. Loxas to save the life of his grandson is irrelevant. In the eyes of more than a thousand years of common law, that motive is no different from killing to steal someone's car. 

The officer who shot Mr. Loxas has quite a history; he has killed 6 people in his illustrious career. Of course, the Scottsdale Police department and County Attorney has justified all of them. But does anyone really believe that means all 6 of those victims should be dead and there might not have been a better, less lethal resolution? 

At the very least, I would like Scottsdale Police answer the following questions:

1) Why no taser used? Was it too windy? Why no dog? And please Sgt. Mark Clark, no "holier than thou" how dare you even ask that question. Not a single officer said Mr. Loxas had a weapon when Ofc. Peters killed him. Why is Scottsdale PD throwing around the fact Ofc. Peters was a "veteran" like they did in the Sgt. Prostrollo shooting? Why should that matter? 

2) Why did Scottsdale PD say at the first press conference at 11 am, some 12 hours after the shooting and after the search warrant had already been executed, that "no gun was recovered", but only a couple of hours later claim Mr. Loxas had a gun within "lunge distance" and his home was loaded like an armory?

3) Why is Scottsdale PD smearing Mr. Loxas with cheap shots like about how dirty his house was, that CPS had been called, that he has mental problems, and why are they telling the world that on the 911 call a neighbor advised Mr. Loxas might need to be shot? What does that have to do with anything other than slurs to defend Scottsdale PD's action by the lowest means available?  

4) This one really stinks: why did they say at the first press conference only one officer out of 6 saw something in Mr. Loxas' hands, but now that number is 2, including Ofc. Peters standing 18 feet away while looking through a scope centered on Mr. Loxas' head? And what did they claim they saw? Does anyone actually think any  officer really believes he saw something in Mr. Loxas' hands? That is rotten. 

5) Finally, did Scottsdale PD command bring in Ofc. Peters to take a kill shot? Was that why he was on the scene? A reporter essentially asked Sgt. Mark Clark that question yesterday at the afternoon press conference, and Sgt. Clark refused to answer the question in front of cameras.  If Mr. Loxas was an imminent threat, why did only Ofc. Peters, one among 6 officers, shoot and kill? Wouldn't all the officers have seen the same exact thing and reacted the same? 

I am not optimistic. Scottsdale Police is acting as if they are untouchable, and so far they are right. Their behavior reminds of the helicopter gunner from Full Metal Jacket: 

GET SOME..Yeah, Yeah, GET SOME, Baby. Anyone who runs is a VC; anyone who stands still is a well-disciplined VC. 

Do you ever shoot women and children?

Sometimes.

How can you shoot women and children?

Easy, you just don't lead them so much, Hah, ain't war hell!

To see Officer James Peters Internal Affairs file, go here: James Peters personnel file.pdf