Cop Shoots Teen In the Back SEVEN TIMES Because He ‘Thought He Had Marijuana’

A Navasota police officer has completely gotten away with shooting a teenage boy who he “thought” had marijuana.

Police Chief Shawn Myatt told local media that off-duty patrol officer, Rey Garza, encountered 17-year-old driver, Jonathen Santellana of Houston, Texas. He was driving with a 17-year-old female inside the vehicle. The officer said he “suspected” one or both of them had “illegal drugs.”

Later, it was clarified that Officer Garza thought the youth had marijuana.

It all happened at approximately 5:03 p.m., when the off-duty officer was working as private security at the Villages of Copperfield Apartments.

Harris County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Thomas Gilliland said that according to the off-duty officer’s statement, he identified himself as a police officer. The officer then asked Santellana for identification and told the driver to step outside the vehicle.

Santellana saw no reason to comply with the off-duty cop, since he was not acting as a police officer, and because there was no legitimate probable cause that he had committed any crime.

When Santellana tried to get away, the officer opened fire.

“Because the door was still open, there was nowhere for the officer to go,” Gilliland tried to rationalize.

“He discharged his weapon into the sedan four to five times. Then the vehicle accelerated through the parking lot, and he (Santellana) hit a curb and the vehicle became airborne,” Gilliland claimed.

The Free Thought Project clarifies that the youth was actually shot in the back, seven times.

That’s because when “the 17-year-old tried to exit, and came around to the back of his vehicle and collapsed,” Gilliland admitted. “He was hit in the upper left shoulder and lower, middle left side.”

The officer was fine. Remarkably, he has not faced any charges for this cold-blooded killing.

Gilliland said that small amount of marijuana was found inside the Taurus Santellana was driving, as though this somehow justified the shooting.

“The officer, as standard procedure, has been placed on administrative paid leave, pending the outcome of the investigation,” Myatt stated.

But that leave came and went, as Garza was allowed to walk free.

Does this sound like justice to you?

The question has been asked “Does this sound like justice to you?”and I have an answer. It sounds like a cop with too much Testosterone wanted to be a big shot. This officer should be charged with murder. First, he thought they might have marijuana. Second, only the young man had marijuana. Third, he shot the teen seven…SEVEN times with his gun. And finally, he was off-duty.

I must now breathe, slow and deep. The cop has there was a small amount of marijuana in the car, but that does not justify a shooting. The cop was working as a security guard from what I can tell. Was he clean and sober? Why would a sober off-duty cop overreact in such a manner that he shot a teen seven times? Is it legal for an off-duty cop to stop and accuse a citizen of a crime and ask him to exit his car?

Back in the day, I was stopped once because I was leaving a laundromat and the cop asked me for my license. The friend who was with me, whispered to “shut up” because I was about to go off about stopping me because I left a well lit parking lot and forgot to turn on my lights. As I pulled into traffic, I realized they were off and turned them on. I still got stopped. He threatened to give me a ticket and I thought of all the lawyers I worked with and said OK. He didn’t give me the ticket.

I digress, and I apologize. As I have mentioned before, color is not permission to shoot a young person to death. Even if he had a joint, it was not a reason to shoot him seven times, seven times in the back. I realize that Texas is a shoot ’em up state. You can’t mess with Texas cops. I have family there and I have been there very often. Never were we stopped, ticketed or asked to exit the car. Why? I think because we were Caucasian and not people of color.

The parents of the dead youth must be totally heart broken. The young girl and her parents must be besides themselves with worry and grief. Officers of the law are an important part of our society. In Nazi Germany, the police became all powerful and corrupt and committed outrageous acts of thievery, rape, murder and other acts I can not go into here.

Police are supposed to protect the good citizens from those who would run amok and destroy people’s lives and our society.

Many officers are not doing that today. There seem to be a certain type of officer that is racist and bigoted and uses fear as an excuse to shoot first, glean information later.

Now let me say here, that I know that there are many good, ethical and moral cops in America. It is the bad ones that get the attention and make all officers suspect in people’s eyes.

The only remedy I see is for all officers who push the line, react in a racist manner, shoot a child or a young person in the back, to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. The law needs to be color blind. Shooting someone who is not Caucasian — shooting anyone — is not allowed unless the officer has done all that is legally required, to warn the person that they will now shoot them if they do not cease and desist immediately. A shot in the leg or knee or hip would be understandable. Seven rounds in the back is not.

I know some people are offended by the slogan, Black Lives Matter. Being a Caucasian woman who is aging gives me some perspective. My perspective is that Stop and Frisk is being aimed at people of color. Being a person of color does not make you bad or a gang member. Yes, there are many kids of color in gangs. There are many Caucasians in gangs also. Gangs provide the acceptance and sense of family, many people who come to America or who are born here can not find. I think gangs are bad and hurt our American society but I must emphasize that Lives of Color Matter, Black Lives Matter, and in fact, All Lives Matter. Rich or poor, straight or not, Lives Matter.

Having studied abnormal psychology, I know that there are many people out there who can kill without feeling anything. They often start as serial rapists and move on to being serial murderers. They are still human beings and they do have human rights even though they do not give them to other people.

In Cleveland, last year two officers killed Tamir Rice; a child playing in a park with a play gun. Someone called in a suspicious person. Tamir was dead within seconds of the officers arriving. I cried and ranted and then I prayed. The officers did not do time but the city of Cleveland now must pay the Rice family $6 million dollars. It won’t bring their child back or close the black hole left inside them. It won’t let them ever hear Tamir’s laugh, or watch him open his birthday presents again, but I hope it will make the city train their officers better and to punish them whenever they commit a crime such as taking the life of a child.

May Johnathan Santellanna rest in peace.

(Article by M. David and Reagan Ali; image by #Op309 Media; h/t to The Navasota Examiner, and our friends at The Free Thought Project) My opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinions of the original authors.

2 thoughts on “Off-duty cop shoots teen for suspicion of pot”

Cynthia Reyes says:

April 29, 2016 at 3:17 PM

This hurts to read.

IdealisticRebel says:

April 29, 2016 at 3:23 PM

I am sorry Cynthia. America is at a crossroads and we must speak up and loudly. But every time we speak up, I believe we save a life. I believe a cop will thing twice before shooting someone in the head or core of the body. I am willing to try to save lives. Harmony and peace to you, Barbara

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