Who Is Killing Young Black Men?
Heather Mac Donald has the stats at City Journal:
Police killings of blacks are an extremely rare feature of black life and are a minute fraction of black homicide deaths. The police could end all killings of civilians tomorrow and it would have no effect on the black homicide risk, which comes overwhelmingly from other blacks. In 2013, there were 6,261 black homicide victims in the U.S.--almost all killed by black civilians--resulting in a death risk in inner cities that is ten times higher for blacks than for whites. None of those killings triggered mass protests; they are deemed normal and beneath notice. The police, by contrast, according to published reports, kill roughly 200 blacks a year, most of them armed and dangerous, out of about 40 million police-civilian contacts a year. Blacks are in fact killed by police at a lower rate than their threat to officers would predict. In 2013, blacks made up 42 percent of all cop killers whose race was known, even though blacks are only 13 percent of the nation's population. The percentage of black suspects killed by the police nationally is 29 percent lower than the percentage of blacks mortally threatening them.
Police officer deaths are an extremely rare feature of a police officer's life. According to Officer Down Memorial Page, 114 cops have died in the line of duty this year, with 46 by gunfire. About as many were killed by vehicles, mostly accidents. Fifteen had heart attacks. Being a cop isn't even in the top-10 deadliest jobs. None of this has stopped police from behaving as though they are constantly walking the line between life and death.
Also: People aren't protesting the deaths themselves. They are protesting the fact that police can kill unarmed people without consequence. They are protesting the fact that there is no recourse to the justice system we have in place. Even if he doesn't kill you, a police officer can ruin your life because you were rude to him, and the court will take his word over yours. If you kill a cop, you will spend the rest of your life in prison or fry. If a cop kills you, whether you were a legitimate risk or not, he probably won't even be indicted.
When a cop is killed, he is instantly branded a fallen hero. When someone is killed by a cop, we launch into all the ways he probably deserved it.
MonicaP at December 24, 2014 11:09 PM
Some very high percentage of white murder victims are killed by other white people. It's a very similar number to the percentage of black people killed by other black people.
I'm white. I spend most of my time with other white people. If I'm murdered, it's most likely going to be a white person who does it.
Why aren't such murders termed "white on white"?
whistleDick at December 24, 2014 11:23 PM
☑ MonicaP at December 24, 2014 11:09 PM
> Why aren't such murders termed
> "white on white"?
They almost certainly are so termed, in the contexts where people speak conversationally about such things. But here on Christmas Morning, I'll bet $1,000 that you've never, ever investigated any of those sources. Why on Earth would you? What would doing so teach you about human nature?
Crid [CridComment at Gmail] at December 25, 2014 1:43 AM
"But here on Christmas Morning, I'll bet $1,000 that you've never, ever investigated any of those sources. Why on Earth would you? What would doing so teach you about human nature?"
It teaches that after decades of frantic efforts to pretend that there is no demographic contour to be found in crime statistics, there are in fact several; that a desire to pretend that "everyone is equal" approaches the pathological in its steadfast rejection of actual study.
Denial is one of the two shoes the timid use to get out of the house in the morning without challenging any of the many assumptions they hold dear to make life more bearable. The other is the hope that nothing bad will happen.
Radwaste at December 25, 2014 2:42 AM
MonicaP,
Nothing you said is true. If it was there wouldn't be any controversy over white people saying 'I can't breath'. This is entirely about ginning up white-black tensions so a few people (***cough Sharpton cough***) can make a buck.
WhistleDick,
White on white, asian on asian, hispanic on hispanic, and all the permutations there of are used in crime reports broken down by demographics. In race based crime statistics two groups really stand out, blacks and hispanics. The level of black on black, hispanic on hispanic, black on hispanic, and hispanic on black crime is substantially higher than any other demographic mix. If you drill down for a real cause most of this can be attributed to the drug trade.
Ben at December 25, 2014 7:36 AM
Briefly trying to track down some numbers for drug-war associated mortality rates didn't find much. Discussing the measurement issues and guestimating some numbers -- Drug War-Related Homicides In The US Average At Least 1,100 a Year: http://narcosphere.narconews.com/notebook/bill-conroy/2012/03/drug-war-related-homicides-us-average-least-1100-year .. (But can't vouch for the site at all.)
Richard Harper at December 25, 2014 11:38 AM
> It teaches that after...
Oh, so you've done this study? Couldja site some numbers without looking them up?
Crid [CridComment at Gmail] at December 25, 2014 12:43 PM
The odds are, if you die in a nefarious murder:
a) you will know your assailant
b) your assailant will be of the same race as you are
c) be a man
They are protesting the fact that police can kill unarmed people without consequence. They are protesting the fact that there is no recourse to the justice system we have in place.
And they would have also been protesting and otherwise pissed off if a jury had returned a not guilty verdict as well, claiming the system is prejudiced and inherently unjust.
The axiom is that a grand jury would indict a ham sandwich. They declined in both cases. Also, in both cases the prosecutor could have gone ahead and brought charges.
If you couldn't sway a grand jury under intense public pressure to return an indictment, what makes you think an actual conviction with a much higher standard of proof is likely?
I R A Darth Aggie at December 25, 2014 4:52 PM
But here on Christmas Morning, I'll bet $1,000 that you've never, ever investigated any of those sources.
It's called the Uniform Crime Reporting Program. The FBI publishes it.
I R A Darth Aggie at December 25, 2014 4:58 PM
The grand jury in Both cases failed to
Indict because the prosecutor did not seek to
Indict. Not because they lacked ham and bread, 'twas discretion and if you believe otherwise you are wrong
Redongulous at December 25, 2014 5:03 PM
She severely underestimates the number of people killed by cops. She's the official number of 400 per year. It's closer to a thousand. And call me crazy but I think a thousand less people being shot every year is something we'd notice.
Mike at December 25, 2014 6:44 PM
> It's called the Uniform Crime
> Reporting Program.
The answer to a different question.
Crid [CridComment at Gmail] at December 25, 2014 6:54 PM
So, Crid, you don't read - probably because that's the work of other people...
I don't cite things off the top of my head because I know I can be wrong. You've apparently never considering such a thing for yourself.
Anyway, the Bureau of Justice Crime Statistics includes a number of inconvenient facts, including crime rates for different races, in both the intramural and conference sports arenas.
You know you haven't seen a Jew or Asian in the local jail report in ages. You just can't admit it. I bet the college quotas denying Asian kids scholarships give you fits.
Radwaste at December 26, 2014 4:59 PM
Mike,
Do you notice many people getting shot? You are talking about 1000 people in a nation of 300 million. If you only notice these deaths because of the news you would notice 500/year more than 10,000/year. The news reports what is rare or novel and ignores what is common or normal.
Ben at December 27, 2014 1:36 PM
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