A shooting in Arizona, and "trainspotting" in Philadelphia.

 Tonight, once again, I have to do a blog post about someone in authority taking the life of a fellow citizen.

Let's go to what is becoming one of the most regressive states in the union: Arizona.

"PHOENIX — A Texas man fatally shot by a Mesa police officer in January was heard begging for his life moments before his death, according to a police report released Tuesday morning.

A witness and a transcription of officer video footage describe ****** saying “Please don’t shoot me” and “Please don’t shoot,” just before an officer later identified as Philip "Mitch" Brailsford unloaded his service weapon.

Brailsford has been charged with second-degree murder and was terminated from the Police Department.

On Tuesday, the Mesa Police Department released the police report, 911 calls and other material from its investigation of Brailsford's shooting of ******, who was unarmed, at a hotel in January.

Just wow. I redacted the name of the victim because to make a point.

Raise your hands if you thought that the victim was black.

Well he wasn't, and honestly, it really shouldn't matter.  His rights as a human being and as a citizen were violated, and he lost his life as a result.

"Shaver, 26, died after being shot in a hallway outside his room at a Mesa La Quinta Inn & Suites on Jan. 18. Brailsford was charged with one count of second-degree murder in a direct complaint by the County Attorney's Office on March 4.

Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said body-camera footage obtained from the officer was used in his office's review of the case. The fatal shooting was the result of unjustified deadly force, Montgomery said.

The county attorney's complaint stated Brailsford was "manifesting an extreme indifference to human life recklessly causing the death of another."

Shaver's widow, Laney Sweet, said earlier this month that she had grown more and more frustrated by the lack of details made available to the public, including the circumstances surrounding her husband's death, two months after it occurred. They are the parents of two young girls."

This might be a good time to quote that famous poem written by Pastor Martin Niemöller. "First They Came."

Finally, two train related incidents happened recently here in Philadelphia that has me seeing both the good and the bad in humanity.

The bad had to do with these out of control kids and their abhorrent and despicable behavior on the elevated train. Their behavior was sad on so many levels. Obviously they are living in an environment tat is not healthy.

I saw their mother and step-father tonight on the evening news, and they were actually blaming the behavior of their little hooligans on the guy filming them.

Look, Philly is a tough town with a lot of tough people. But these little guys are starting way too young.

Now the good:

"Two subway riders on Wednesday prevented an apparently suicidal man from jumping in front of a train on SEPTA's Broad Street Line.

Heather Redfern, a SEPTA spokeswoman, said the incident, which unfolded about 9:30 a.m. at the Race-Vine Station, delayed southbound service for 15 minutes until police could respond.
Police went to the station after they received a call that a person was threatening to jump in front of a train.

When they arrived, they found two people restraining the man on the platform, Redfern said.
Police took the man to a hospital for evaluation."

Nice. And, to be fair, here in Philly we tend to do stuff like this. It just never gets noticed cause we have such a bad rep. You know, booing Santa and all.  When you do stuff like that the rest of the country tends to view you in a bad light.

But hey, that was a long time ago. We are working on making ourselves better. I guess we can start by having a long talk with the parents of those children from the elevated train. 

*Pic from pinterest.