Black couple held at gun point by neighbors arrested by PD

[philip964]

After they bought a house.

http://www.ajc.com/news/couple-held-at- ... 23138.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So is profiling a lot worse in the US than we think.

I brought it up on the first post that I thought the Black couple was profiled. So I introduced race from day one. And I didn't even know till today that Batman and Robin were really Caucasian. I also didn't realize until later that the couple was biracial.

Guess the father and son also didn't know that the Black guy's brother taught soccer to one of the high profile attorneys in Atlanta.

But what made you feel they were profiled?

I am Caucasian and I can't in a million years imagine this happening to me and my wife.

[MasterOfNone]

After they bought a house.

http://www.ajc.com/news/couple-held-at- ... 23138.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So is profiling a lot worse in the US than we think.

I brought it up on the first post that I thought the Black couple was profiled. So I introduced race from day one. And I didn't even know till today that Batman and Robin were really Caucasian. I also didn't realize until later that the couple was biracial.

Guess the father and son also didn't know that the Black guy's brother taught soccer to one of the high profile attorneys in Atlanta.

But what made you feel they were profiled?

I am Caucasian and I can't in a million years imagine this happening to me and my wife.

Most people can't imagine horrible things happening to them until they do.
I don't want you to take this as a personal attack; I just want to understand why race is so commonly assumed to be a factor. Do you really believe that this could not have happened to a white couple? Do you believe the neighbor, who would confront these people at gun point to protect the vacant house, would not have done the same if he saw two white people at the house?

[Purplehood]

I have confronted people in the past that I thought were not where they belonged. Sometimes I was right, sometimes I was wrong. It never became a hostile situation and I never based my assumption on race. After having been in the Military for 24 years you generally look past color when assessing a situation.

[Keith B]

I have confronted people in the past that I thought were not where they belonged. Sometimes I was right, sometimes I was wrong. It never became a hostile situation and I never based my assumption on race. After having been in the Military for 24 years you generally look past color when assessing a situation.

I will say straight up I have made those assumptions. There are places that at times are just not right for another race to be. I would make the same assumption if I saw a black person at a KKK rally; they are NOT where they belong.

And, other races can make the same assumptions. Like the time I got lost with three other white guys in the south side of Chicago after a White Sox game. Luckily a nice black gentleman confronted our vehicle at a stop light because he knew it was not where 4 white guys in a rental car belonged late on a Saturday night, and directed me how to get us back to I-94.

[philip964]

After they bought a house.

http://www.ajc.com/news/couple-held-at- ... 23138.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So is profiling a lot worse in the US than we think.

I brought it up on the first post that I thought the Black couple was profiled. So I introduced race from day one. And I didn't even know till today that Batman and Robin were really Caucasian. I also didn't realize until later that the couple was biracial.

Guess the father and son also didn't know that the Black guy's brother taught soccer to one of the high profile attorneys in Atlanta.

But what made you feel they were profiled?

I am Caucasian and I can't in a million years imagine this happening to me and my wife.

Most people can't imagine horrible things happening to them until they do.
I don't want you to take this as a personal attack; I just want to understand why race is so commonly assumed to be a factor. Do you really believe that this could not have happened to a white couple? Do you believe the neighbor, who would confront these people at gun point to protect the vacant house, would not have done the same if he saw two white people at the house?

Yes I really believe that this would not have happened to an all white couple. From your words "protect the vacant house" from a middle aged husband and wife, neatly dressed, not in hoodies with pants on the ground. What is really surprising is the actions of the police.

[philip964]

Here is the couple's attorney.

http://www.gsllaw.com/Attorneys/Donald-F-Samuel.shtml" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Working as a favor to the son of the couple as he taught Don's kid soccer.

The neighbors have now been arrested and more things are coming out. The AR-15's were supposedly unloaded. (is that wise?) Five deputies were involved with the arrest at the scene. The father is a vet. Happened at 9:30 at night.

Neighbors released on bail.
http://www.ajc.com/news/father-son-who- ... 25343.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[matriculated]

Imagine if the neighbors felt threatened and got a round or two off. We might have another case of a friendly, overzealous neighbor shooting a "suspicious" black guy... D'oh! I need to quit.

matriculated, twice in this thread you have made the color of the victims an issue. Did you find something in the news reports that indicates the neighbors' action was racially motivated?

I find it highly interesting that you chose me to single out on bringing up the racial aspect, although at least 2-3 other people have already brought it up. I see your questions are being answered in my absence, so I feel no need to respond.

[matriculated]

Here is the couple's attorney.

http://www.gsllaw.com/Attorneys/Donald-F-Samuel.shtml" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Working as a favor to the son of the couple as he taught Don's kid soccer.

The neighbors have now been arrested and more things are coming out. The AR-15's were supposedly unloaded. (is that wise?) Five deputies were involved with the arrest at the scene. The father is a vet. Happened at 9:30 at night.

Neighbors released on bail.
http://www.ajc.com/news/father-son-who- ... 25343.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I find it ridiculous that the deputies "lauded" the 2 superhero geniuses for their actions. Heads need to roll.

[philip964]

There is an AR-15 forum. They are not pleased with these two guys.

[matriculated]

I have confronted people in the past that I thought were not where they belonged. Sometimes I was right, sometimes I was wrong. It never became a hostile situation and I never based my assumption on race. After having been in the Military for 24 years you generally look past color when assessing a situation.

I will say straight up I have made those assumptions. There are places that at times are just not right for another race to be.

You know Keith, I've thought long and hard about this. There are those who would reflexively call you racist for the statement that you just made there. Not me. I get it. To begin with, we're all prejudiced to one degree or another, against one group or another. Secondly, life experiences shape our views and prejudices in a way that defies our most idealistic notions about harmony and equality. I understand why cops start profiling after they've been on the job awhile. They notice that black people commit crimes at a higher rate than white people, so they start paying black people more attention. I get that. But there's a sea of difference between paying black people more attention and, say, doing what our friendly neighborhood Batman and Robin did here. There's a sea of difference between paying black people more attention and just simply assuming outright that a black guy you see walking down a street is a criminal (something that George Zimmerman did, as evidenced by his claim that these "[anatomical expletives] always get away." Profiling is a fact of life, and we all do it in different contexts. But common sense has to enter into the equation at some point. That a guy "looks like he's up to no good" is not enough to run out and point a gun in his face. There are plenty of good kids out there who dress and act like gangsters because that's what's prevalent in their peer group and they would be ostracized and thought of as a "loser" if they didn't conform. There are plenty of good kids out there who know perfectly well how to speak proper English but choose to speak the broken, ugly English because that's "cool," and girls are more likely to hang out with you if you talk like that (and if you speak proper, you're said to be "talking white" in a pejorative way). It's a rotten culture to a degree, but none of that gives anyone a right to go out and hold somebody at gunpoint or put a bullet in somebody. I don't know what my exact point is. I guess I'm just spilling a little stream-of-consciousness ink here. I welcome all replies.

[MasterOfNone]

Imagine if the neighbors felt threatened and got a round or two off. We might have another case of a friendly, overzealous neighbor shooting a "suspicious" black guy... D'oh! I need to quit.

matriculated, twice in this thread you have made the color of the victims an issue. Did you find something in the news reports that indicates the neighbors' action was racially motivated?

I find it highly interesting that you chose me to single out on bringing up the racial aspect, although at least 2-3 other people have already brought it up. I see your questions are being answered in my absence, so I feel no need to respond.

Yes, the OP asked if profiling is worse than we think, and one other poster said he feels this was profiling. I guess your posts stood out because they seemed a little more accusatory. Your first used the cliched "<doing something> while black" language which implies that the only reason the neighbors came over is because the new homeowners are black.
Perhaps I overreacted to seeing that same type of statement applied to yet another situation. But I still have seen nothing that indicates race was a factor unless assumptions about the Dynamic Duo are made.

[Keith B]

I have confronted people in the past that I thought were not where they belonged. Sometimes I was right, sometimes I was wrong. It never became a hostile situation and I never based my assumption on race. After having been in the Military for 24 years you generally look past color when assessing a situation.

I will say straight up I have made those assumptions. There are places that at times are just not right for another race to be.

You know Keith, I've thought long and hard about this. There are those who would reflexively call you racist for the statement that you just made there. Not me. I get it. To begin with, we're all prejudiced to one degree or another, against one group or another. Secondly, life experiences shape our views and prejudices in a way that defies our most idealistic notions about harmony and equality. I understand why cops start profiling after they've been on the job awhile. They notice that black people commit crimes at a higher rate than white people, so they start paying black people more attention. I get that. But there's a sea of difference between paying black people more attention and, say, doing what our friendly neighborhood Batman and Robin did here. There's a sea of difference between paying black people more attention and just simply assuming outright that a black guy you see walking down a street is a criminal (something that George Zimmerman did, as evidenced by his claim that these "[anatomical expletives] always get away." Profiling is a fact of life, and we all do it in different contexts. But common sense has to enter into the equation at some point. That a guy "looks like he's up to no good" is not enough to run out and point a gun in his face. There are plenty of good kids out there who dress and act like gangsters because that's what's prevalent in their peer group and they would be ostracized and thought of as a "loser" if they didn't conform. There are plenty of good kids out there who know perfectly well how to speak proper English but choose to speak the broken, ugly English because that's "cool," and girls are more likely to hang out with you if you talk like that (and if you speak proper, you're said to be "talking white" in a pejorative way). It's a rotten culture to a degree, but none of that gives anyone a right to go out and hold somebody at gunpoint or put a bullet in somebody. I don't know what my exact point is. I guess I'm just spilling a little stream-of-consciousness ink here. I welcome all replies.

Looking at the race of a person in a situation is not nessscarily profiling; it is a factor in the whole picture. A guy in a girls dorm in the middle of the night doesn't belong there. A Jewish person walking in the middle of a Neo-Nazi rally doesn't belong there. An middle-aged white guy like me in the middle of a mosh pit at a punk rock concert doesn't belong there.

Bottom line, discrimination is wrong, period, but race, religion, sex, etc can all play into whether a situation is appropriate or out of bounds.

[Beiruty]

I have confronted people in the past that I thought were not where they belonged. Sometimes I was right, sometimes I was wrong. It never became a hostile situation and I never based my assumption on race. After having been in the Military for 24 years you generally look past color when assessing a situation.

I will say straight up I have made those assumptions. There are places that at times are just not right for another race to be.

You know Keith, I've thought long and hard about this. There are those who would reflexively call you racist for the statement that you just made there. Not me. I get it. To begin with, we're all prejudiced to one degree or another, against one group or another. Secondly, life experiences shape our views and prejudices in a way that defies our most idealistic notions about harmony and equality. I understand why cops start profiling after they've been on the job awhile. They notice that black people commit crimes at a higher rate than white people, so they start paying black people more attention. I get that. But there's a sea of difference between paying black people more attention and, say, doing what our friendly neighborhood Batman and Robin did here. There's a sea of difference between paying black people more attention and just simply assuming outright that a black guy you see walking down a street is a criminal (something that George Zimmerman did, as evidenced by his claim that these "[anatomical expletives] always get away." Profiling is a fact of life, and we all do it in different contexts. But common sense has to enter into the equation at some point. That a guy "looks like he's up to no good" is not enough to run out and point a gun in his face. There are plenty of good kids out there who dress and act like gangsters because that's what's prevalent in their peer group and they would be ostracized and thought of as a "loser" if they didn't conform. There are plenty of good kids out there who know perfectly well how to speak proper English but choose to speak the broken, ugly English because that's "cool," and girls are more likely to hang out with you if you talk like that (and if you speak proper, you're said to be "talking white" in a pejorative way). It's a rotten culture to a degree, but none of that gives anyone a right to go out and hold somebody at gunpoint or put a bullet in somebody. I don't know what my exact point is. I guess I'm just spilling a little stream-of-consciousness ink here. I welcome all replies.

Looking at the race of a person in a situation is not nessscarily profiling; it is a factor in the whole picture. A guy in a girls dorm in the middle of the night doesn't belong there. A Jewish person walking in the middle of a Neo-Nazi rally doesn't belong there. An middle-aged white guy like me in the middle of a mosh pit at a punk rock concert doesn't belong there.

Bottom line, discrimination is wrong, period, but race, religion, sex, etc can all play into whether a situation is appropriate or out of bounds.

A conservative Muslim born in the Middle-East, and NRA member with active CHL, looks like I do not belong "there" too. However, I am proud of being a member of both NRA and CHL and this board.

[57Coastie]

A racist neighborhood with both congenital racism and racist LEOs. Everything else amounts to self-serving excuses and preaching to the choir. I accuse nobody here on the forum, but I cannot understand how one can defend this without in turn being accused of racism.

In all honesty I am compelled to admit that I was tempted to engage in profiling myself after viewing the photos of the two Canoles, but I have resisted the temptation.

Jim

[Keith B]

A racist neighborhood with both congenital racism and racist LEOs. Everything else amounts to self-serving excuses and preaching to the choir. I accuse nobody here on the forum, but I cannot understand how one can defend this without in turn being accused of racism.

In all honesty I am compelled to admit that I was tempted to engage in profiling myself after viewing the photos of the two Canoles, but I have resisted the temptation.

Jim

Jim,

I don't defend them at all. However, not knowing if they were looking at the race of the individuals, i can't say that was a factor. I gut says they were probably a couple of good ol' boys that jumped the gun when they saw a black person fiddling with the locks on a vacant house, and were stupid in trying to take matters into their own hands. However, I don't know that, so can't be 100% on what they were or weren't thinking.

Back to the rule of unless someone's life is in immediate danger, call 911 and be a good witness.