Good post, TL. I think we're too far down the road to national dissolution to go back now, there is no compromise possible. I'm sorry to see it, especially when I look back on how free things were when I was a child. It really irks me that the destruction of America is not through stupidity or neglect, it is a result of deliberate evil and the joy of wrecking something that was once noble and free. A lot of people on the right seem to think these unclean things are acting through ignorance, but they are not, they know exactly what they are doing and what they hope the result will be.
Thank you. I've long advocated for a logical split, if for no other reason than to salvage something of the spirit of freedom still widely practiced in certain states and almost unknown in others. Now, it's almost necessary to separate ourselves from the UN, WEF, WHO, especially since 25 governors have said they refuse to accept WHO dictates completely. Half the nation is going one way and the rest are fighting back, but they won't be able to hold on forever, they must separate or freedom and liberty will die here.
Great article. The sheriff here in Sonoma County would side with the Feds. The Sonoma County government is the largest single employer in the county. The sheriff's department here does not support the people of Sonoma County. Deputy Sheriff Erick Gelhaus emptied his gun into 13-year-old Andy Lopez on a sunny afternoon in Santa Rosa. Andy was carrying a toy gun similar to an AK-47. Gelhaus was never prosecuted by the District Attorney. The Sheriff promoted Gelhaus to sergeant. After several years, the county finally settled the parents' wrongful death lawsuit for $3 million tax payer dollars. The Sheriff did not run for re-election (the Hispanic community hated him.) Gelhaus is still a sergeant in the county sheriff's department.
When the cops are bad, there is no recourse in the court system.
With due respect Timmy, I probably would have shot Andy Lopez as well in that situation. How would the deputies have known that the “gun” was an airsoft gun? The replica guns are supposed to have markings on them so people will know that they are not real firearms.
Renee, It's 3:30 PM on a sunny warm day in Santa Rosa. A 13-year-old walking alone doesn't carry a real AK-47 around. And why did Gelhaus shout and shoot in 1 second with all 8 shots? 7 hit the kid. One bullet hit a fence. Oh, and the kid was wearing headphones listening to music. He'd been smoking pot and was on his way to a friend's house to play with the toy guns. Gelhaus was a gung-ho military guy just returned from Iraq. Gelhaus made training videos telling people, "Never hesitate. Shoot!"
If there are no markings on the firearm, I wouldn’t know if it is a real firearm or not. Personally, I will assume it is a real firearm. I know Santa Rosa has a big gang problem (from what I remember).
Hindsight is always 20/20. The deputies are human, and they process the variables of the situation within split seconds. I can understand how this happened, unfortunately. That’s why charges weren’t filed.
As an experiment, I would like to put YOU 😉 in a “Shoot, Don’t Shoot” scenario…a FATS (Fire Arms Training Simulator). I’ve been through one a few times.
How do you know what is going through a deputy’s mind through this situation?
Unfortunately, all of the information that is apparent NOW, the deputies didn’t have at that time.
I would like to interject here, that in the drilling business (oil and gas) there has come a practice whereby any accident is pulled apart by groups in offices, investigations, interviews, (even when no harm came to anyone) then they arrive at what should have been done instead. This sometimes takes weeks, at the end of which I have responded okay, now make all of those determination in 2-3 seconds and see how you come out. Because, that's all the time I had to make my choices.
Renee, I was a bird hunter for decades. I never shot at anything until I was sure of what it was. Gelhaus did not have to make a snap decision. The kid had his back turned to Gelhaus when the deputy yelled at Andy Lopez. Also, Gelhaus was behind cover, the cop car door. I doubt if such a situation is shown in the FATS (Fire Arms Training Simulator.)
As a civilian, I would have been prosecuted and sent to San Quentin for what Deputy Gelhaus did in shooting Andy Lopez 7 times. Gelhaus should have been fired, not promoted. It was a terrible message that the DA and County Sheriff sent to the citizens, especially the Hispanics (40% of population) in our county.
PS: Just out of curiosity, what happens to a cop in FATS if he shoots the "good guy"?
Renee: PS: I don't necessarily think Gelhaus should have been prosecuted for killing Andy Lopez, but he should have been fired. Gelhaus showed poor judgement and a trigger-happy attitude. Also, if I or another citizen had done what Gelhaus did, I would be in San Quentin.
Fired for what? Doing his job as he was trained to do? I suggest you join your local law enforcement department and do better. You show ‘em how it’s done!😉
As a retired deputy of 23 years, I approve of this message 😂!
Renee, Gelhaus should be fired for killing a 13h-year-old kid and costing Sonoma County taxpayers $3 million in a court settlement with the parents of the dead kid. Why do we taxpayers have to pay for the deadly mistake of Deputy Erick Gelhaus?
Our local law enforcement here in Healdsburg is excellent. So are the police in Santa Rosa. No cop in either Healdsburg or Santa Rosa would have shot Andy Lopez. The Sonoma County Sheriff's Dept. has a long history of being trigger-happy and abusive toward citizens.
A landslide election of Trump in November will not be enough. Criminals have operated our government for too long. There must be a penalty paid for their activities. Call it retribution or whatever you like but it's an outstanding debt that's not going away just so they can have another bite of the apple in four years.
T. L., Since you, Renee, and I have been discussing poor decisions by people in authority and the consequences of their mistakes, I was wondering if you, as a person who was in the oil drilling business, have seen the movie "Deepwater Horizon" and what you think of what happened to that oil drilling platform. It might make an interesting article.
Yes, I have seen it. Those were decisions made deliberately by arrogant company men, who had never suffered the consequences before. They get accustomed to making stupid decisions and lucking out, then consider themselves smarter than everyone else.
I might publish a post on it as you suggest, but those are different sorts of decisions. I'm not sure what we're talking about when discussing decisions and mistakes. I made lots of mistakes in the oil business, some of them cost people, including myself, injuries. Some of those mistakes ruined equipment. The level of machinery operating in close proximity to tender flesh is a different environment than any I know of. The amount of equipment moving at rapid speeds in close tolerances to other pieces of machinery and the speed at which they must be operated is another consideration. I've also worked, as you know, as a jet mechanic and it was a much different environment.
T.L., We seaplane mechanics had whirling propellers to deal with. They were dangerous. I saw a man almost get chopped in half once. The poor guy was afraid of getting AIDS so he refused a blood transfusion. The kid bled out and died.
In the Amazon, I'd have to crawl out onto the float as the Beaver taxied up to the floating moor buoy. My job, was to snag the buoy between the floats with the propeller whirling less than a foot in front of my head. I also had to avoid falling into the Amazon River.
I'm just saying that tripping in, or fast-holing every minute a mistake, throwing a lever or a hand slipping off of one at the wrong time, could cost someone a finger or worse. Occasionally it happens. The question most asked by people when they know I worked the rigs is how many fingers I have left. If we got fired for one mistake, there'd be no one left to do the job.
T.L., I only saw mechanics fired when money was involved. If a mechanic made a mistake that caused a lawsuit against the company, he was gone. The company didn't care if we lost fingers, toes, or anything else.
Seems like events are reaching a crescendo. Unfortunately discovery of a mostly blocked "widow maker" has resulted in a double by-pass three weeks ago and I will (hopefully) be on the mend for some time to come. Too long. I pray for Trump and a new Republic of America.
Good post, TL. I think we're too far down the road to national dissolution to go back now, there is no compromise possible. I'm sorry to see it, especially when I look back on how free things were when I was a child. It really irks me that the destruction of America is not through stupidity or neglect, it is a result of deliberate evil and the joy of wrecking something that was once noble and free. A lot of people on the right seem to think these unclean things are acting through ignorance, but they are not, they know exactly what they are doing and what they hope the result will be.
Thank you. I've long advocated for a logical split, if for no other reason than to salvage something of the spirit of freedom still widely practiced in certain states and almost unknown in others. Now, it's almost necessary to separate ourselves from the UN, WEF, WHO, especially since 25 governors have said they refuse to accept WHO dictates completely. Half the nation is going one way and the rest are fighting back, but they won't be able to hold on forever, they must separate or freedom and liberty will die here.
Thanks TL. You continue to strike at the heart of the problem. Thanks.
Thank you.
Great article. The sheriff here in Sonoma County would side with the Feds. The Sonoma County government is the largest single employer in the county. The sheriff's department here does not support the people of Sonoma County. Deputy Sheriff Erick Gelhaus emptied his gun into 13-year-old Andy Lopez on a sunny afternoon in Santa Rosa. Andy was carrying a toy gun similar to an AK-47. Gelhaus was never prosecuted by the District Attorney. The Sheriff promoted Gelhaus to sergeant. After several years, the county finally settled the parents' wrongful death lawsuit for $3 million tax payer dollars. The Sheriff did not run for re-election (the Hispanic community hated him.) Gelhaus is still a sergeant in the county sheriff's department.
When the cops are bad, there is no recourse in the court system.
There's value in knowing they're bad.
With due respect Timmy, I probably would have shot Andy Lopez as well in that situation. How would the deputies have known that the “gun” was an airsoft gun? The replica guns are supposed to have markings on them so people will know that they are not real firearms.
I disagree, if I was the cop I would have called out to the child and warned him.
Next step, take the child home to parents and warn them the toy is too realistic
looking etc. That is the cop's job.
suzanna, Exactly. See my comment above to Renee. Or, look up Andy Lopez on Wikipedia. There is also a video out there about the shooting.
Timmy...what got me was he "emptied his gun" into the child.
Unreal. Thank you very much.
suzanna: Here is a link to the Press Democrat (Santa Rosa) article about the shooting and the documentary: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/lifestyle/new-documentary-film-challenges-law-enforcement-in-shooting-death-of-andy-l/
Are you living in reality Suzanna? This isn’t a television show.
suzanna, Here is the link to the documentary about the shooting of Andy Lopez:
https://www.pbs.org/video/3-seconds-in-october-the-killing-of-andy-lopez-slmrcr/
Renee, It's 3:30 PM on a sunny warm day in Santa Rosa. A 13-year-old walking alone doesn't carry a real AK-47 around. And why did Gelhaus shout and shoot in 1 second with all 8 shots? 7 hit the kid. One bullet hit a fence. Oh, and the kid was wearing headphones listening to music. He'd been smoking pot and was on his way to a friend's house to play with the toy guns. Gelhaus was a gung-ho military guy just returned from Iraq. Gelhaus made training videos telling people, "Never hesitate. Shoot!"
Just the kind of guy you want as a cop.
If there are no markings on the firearm, I wouldn’t know if it is a real firearm or not. Personally, I will assume it is a real firearm. I know Santa Rosa has a big gang problem (from what I remember).
Hindsight is always 20/20. The deputies are human, and they process the variables of the situation within split seconds. I can understand how this happened, unfortunately. That’s why charges weren’t filed.
Renee, Here is the link to the documentary about the shooting of Andy Lopez:
https://www.pbs.org/video/3-seconds-in-october-the-killing-of-andy-lopez-slmrcr/
For me, the pertinent facts are:
A: Gelhaus was crouched behind the driver's door of his cruiser. He was in little danger.
B: Gelhaus yelled at Andy and then shot Andy 7 times (one bullet missed and hit a fence) all in three seconds.
C: The trainee deputy with Gelhaus did not shoot.
D: Gang members in Santa Rosa don't walk down the street, alone, in broad daylight carrying an AK-47.
As an experiment, I would like to put YOU 😉 in a “Shoot, Don’t Shoot” scenario…a FATS (Fire Arms Training Simulator). I’ve been through one a few times.
How do you know what is going through a deputy’s mind through this situation?
Unfortunately, all of the information that is apparent NOW, the deputies didn’t have at that time.
And, there’s a first time for everything.
I would like to interject here, that in the drilling business (oil and gas) there has come a practice whereby any accident is pulled apart by groups in offices, investigations, interviews, (even when no harm came to anyone) then they arrive at what should have been done instead. This sometimes takes weeks, at the end of which I have responded okay, now make all of those determination in 2-3 seconds and see how you come out. Because, that's all the time I had to make my choices.
Renee, I was a bird hunter for decades. I never shot at anything until I was sure of what it was. Gelhaus did not have to make a snap decision. The kid had his back turned to Gelhaus when the deputy yelled at Andy Lopez. Also, Gelhaus was behind cover, the cop car door. I doubt if such a situation is shown in the FATS (Fire Arms Training Simulator.)
As a civilian, I would have been prosecuted and sent to San Quentin for what Deputy Gelhaus did in shooting Andy Lopez 7 times. Gelhaus should have been fired, not promoted. It was a terrible message that the DA and County Sheriff sent to the citizens, especially the Hispanics (40% of population) in our county.
PS: Just out of curiosity, what happens to a cop in FATS if he shoots the "good guy"?
Renee: PS: I don't necessarily think Gelhaus should have been prosecuted for killing Andy Lopez, but he should have been fired. Gelhaus showed poor judgement and a trigger-happy attitude. Also, if I or another citizen had done what Gelhaus did, I would be in San Quentin.
Fired for what? Doing his job as he was trained to do? I suggest you join your local law enforcement department and do better. You show ‘em how it’s done!😉
As a retired deputy of 23 years, I approve of this message 😂!
Renee, Gelhaus should be fired for killing a 13h-year-old kid and costing Sonoma County taxpayers $3 million in a court settlement with the parents of the dead kid. Why do we taxpayers have to pay for the deadly mistake of Deputy Erick Gelhaus?
Our local law enforcement here in Healdsburg is excellent. So are the police in Santa Rosa. No cop in either Healdsburg or Santa Rosa would have shot Andy Lopez. The Sonoma County Sheriff's Dept. has a long history of being trigger-happy and abusive toward citizens.
The Feds have a death grip on the people. I would love to live in a free state.
trouble is in the sorting...every state has their big-bigger cities and perps can
hide in the many mazes and among the masses. Fraudsters are freer to roam
unencumbered, and drugs are available to anyone.
I would rather have bears roaming about at my place than strange people. Bears
do come and go but I am careful not to have bird-feeders hanging here and there.
I pray for a peaceful society.
Robert Gore...wonderful and diverse author. I have read every one.
My favorite is "Prime Deceit"...a satirical novel. It was cathartic fun.
I see your articles are being picked up by my favorite web sites! Great,
because your attitude and comments are inspirational.
"Three Seconds in October" is the name of the documentary about the shooting of Andy Lopez. The link below is to an article in the local Santa Rosa Press Democrat about the shooting and documentary: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/lifestyle/new-documentary-film-challenges-law-enforcement-in-shooting-death-of-andy-l/
A landslide election of Trump in November will not be enough. Criminals have operated our government for too long. There must be a penalty paid for their activities. Call it retribution or whatever you like but it's an outstanding debt that's not going away just so they can have another bite of the apple in four years.
T. L., Since you, Renee, and I have been discussing poor decisions by people in authority and the consequences of their mistakes, I was wondering if you, as a person who was in the oil drilling business, have seen the movie "Deepwater Horizon" and what you think of what happened to that oil drilling platform. It might make an interesting article.
Yes, I have seen it. Those were decisions made deliberately by arrogant company men, who had never suffered the consequences before. They get accustomed to making stupid decisions and lucking out, then consider themselves smarter than everyone else.
I might publish a post on it as you suggest, but those are different sorts of decisions. I'm not sure what we're talking about when discussing decisions and mistakes. I made lots of mistakes in the oil business, some of them cost people, including myself, injuries. Some of those mistakes ruined equipment. The level of machinery operating in close proximity to tender flesh is a different environment than any I know of. The amount of equipment moving at rapid speeds in close tolerances to other pieces of machinery and the speed at which they must be operated is another consideration. I've also worked, as you know, as a jet mechanic and it was a much different environment.
T.L., We seaplane mechanics had whirling propellers to deal with. They were dangerous. I saw a man almost get chopped in half once. The poor guy was afraid of getting AIDS so he refused a blood transfusion. The kid bled out and died.
In the Amazon, I'd have to crawl out onto the float as the Beaver taxied up to the floating moor buoy. My job, was to snag the buoy between the floats with the propeller whirling less than a foot in front of my head. I also had to avoid falling into the Amazon River.
That was a thrill.
I'm just saying that tripping in, or fast-holing every minute a mistake, throwing a lever or a hand slipping off of one at the wrong time, could cost someone a finger or worse. Occasionally it happens. The question most asked by people when they know I worked the rigs is how many fingers I have left. If we got fired for one mistake, there'd be no one left to do the job.
T.L., I only saw mechanics fired when money was involved. If a mechanic made a mistake that caused a lawsuit against the company, he was gone. The company didn't care if we lost fingers, toes, or anything else.
Seems like events are reaching a crescendo. Unfortunately discovery of a mostly blocked "widow maker" has resulted in a double by-pass three weeks ago and I will (hopefully) be on the mend for some time to come. Too long. I pray for Trump and a new Republic of America.
Thank you for all of your contributions to this site, I hope you get well soon.
TL