Dartmouth police shoot, kill man
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Police Shoot, Kill Man
Dartmouth police shot and killed a man.
Family Photo
Joseph Ramos Jr.
Published: August 12, 2009
Updated: August 12, 2009
DARTMOUTH, Mass.—Authorities said Wednesday that a Dartmouth police officer shot and killed a man who ignored several orders to drop a screwdriver he had used to attack another officer.
A spokesman for the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office said police responded to reports of a man acting suspiciously on Milton Street at about 9:15 p.m. Tuesday. They found 42-year-old Joseph Ramos Jr., who was armed with a nail-studded pole.
A neighbor said Ramos came to her house first and she noticed that he was acting strangely.
“He came over here. He was banging on the door with a big weapon and was insisting that I was someone that I wasn’t. So we called the cops and they ended up catching him in the street,“ the woman said.
Police said Ramos later used a screwdriver to attack Officer Scott Brooks, and both men fell to the ground. The district attorney’s spokesman said Officer Jared White fired one shot when a police dog failed to subdue Ramos and he ignored orders drop the weapon.
Ramos was pronounced dead at St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford. Both officers were taken to Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River for observation.
Family members were at the scene Wednesday with their attorney, Paul Andrews.
Andrews said the family is grieving their loved one and trying to understand what happened.
“Folks in the neighborhood knew him,“ he said. “(Ramos) was well-regarded by the people here. He was kind of a fixture, riding his bike up and down the street. He was nice, harmless young man.“
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Reader Reactions
Tank I am not saying you don’t have a point, I say this and I have never used a gun b4 so I am sure it is much harder then it looks, with the training they have maybe shot them in the leg, anything but a death wound. I don’t want to seem like I am on this guys side because I am not he needed to be stopped at the rate he was ging who could have killed someone himself.
Right on tank. May I add that if that officer did NOT shoot and he killed an innocent bystander, the cop would be at fault. Another situation that is a catch 22 for the police.
soxgrl09 - with all due respect have you ever fired a gun? It is very difficult to be accurate under normal circumstances, now factor in someone charging you with a lethal weapon and you simply would not be able to shoot a limb. This belief is unfortunately the result of too many people watching too many movies, it looks good in the movies but it does not transfer to the real world.
It has been proven that a person armed with a knife/screwdriver can kill an officer standing 21 feet away before they can unholster their weapon and fire a shot. This is called the 21 foot rule.
Now no doubt this man had some mental difficulties, but when it gets to the point where he is trying to kill someone on the street the options have really run out and its unfortunate it got to that point but not everything in life works out all the time.
they could have at least aimed for a limb instead of shooting to kill
katt - unfortunately a screwdriver is just as dangerous as a gun. Getting stabbed with a screwdriver will be just as lethal as getting shot, therefore the officer made the only logical choice and confronted a lethal threat (screwdriver) with lethal force. Any police offcer will tell you the last thing they ever want to do is use their firearm, but sometimes it is the only option. Its not the best outcome but these officers have families and children that they need to go home to at the end of the night.
Ok yeah I am gonna let them come at me..wake up! Just saying being a cop they are and should be better trained to handle things like this w/ out having to kill someone. Ever heard of a tazer gun??
So if someone comes at you with a screwdriver and threatens to stab you are you going to let him?
I am sure they could have done something besides shoot this man. Not saying this man should not been any trouble, but to shoot him thats crazy!!!
HA HA HA HA HA Screwed Himself HA HA HA HA HA Good one.
Dansad
Where and at what point did I state he deserved to die?
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