March 10, 2020
Today a young man was shot by a cop at about 7pm on Tuesday night by the Raleigh Police Department. As soon as we heard the news Riot mobilized with the people in front of the court house on Fayetteville St. downtown Raleigh, NC. The crowd was comprised of residents from various racial backgrounds with one united goal – the end to police brutality in our neighborhoods.
There were chants of “No Justice! No Peace!” “No Bacon! No Grease! No Racist Police!” “Black Lives Matter!” and “Dirty Nasty Filthy Pigs! We all Know What You Just Did!” These chants were directed at RPD who ascended on the frustrated crowd meninicinly in an effort to intimidate the crowd.
Luckily the crowd was not deterred and voiced their frustrations with the police loudly and clearly in an effort for them to feel the pain and hurt of the repeated incidents that causes us pain and trauma due to the feelings of ‘it could be me or someone I know next’ to get shot, unduly arrested, harassed and brutalized by police violence.
There were about 400 plus people in the crowds marching and taking over the streets of Raleigh at one point the crowd made it to the Governors House. The American flag that hung in front of the Governors home was burned – racism and violence is inherently American and the people oppose the fascism inherent to American society.
March 11, 2020
I wanted to go to the scene of the shooting to get a sense of how the community was coping with the newest case of police terror. As I walked onto the scene to give my prayers to the spirit of Javier Torres who is stable in ICU at Wake Med in Raleigh, NC, the young man chased and gunned down by Raleigh police on March 10, 2020.
I saw a young man and young woman standing somberly nearby. When I approached they asked me if I knew the homeless person who was shot there. My response was no but we are family nonetheless; I then asked them if some one else was shot there before Javier and he said yes.
I asked him if he was there about Javier Torres he said “yes, I was here last night with him before he got shot and I was arrested last night along with 5 other people.” I did research to pull up other arrests made that night and found no evidence to the abduction of these young people by the police as they were reeling from the trauma of witnessing and experience police brutality upfront and personal. “They roughed me up grabbing me by my collar and had my cuffs tightened so my hands went numb I had to beg them to loosen the cuffs.” “They also roughed up my girlfriend and she has a knot on her head.” I looked at her head and there was a raised bump bigger than a the size of a quarter on her forehead.
Javier had the police called on him by the Italians at Sopranos Grill.
Below is the audio of two 911 calls that resulted in Javier Torres being shot in the stomach by RPD. You will hear as the caller stalks Javier as he goes about his business in the shopping center. On the third call to the police the same caller from Sopranos Grill feigns fright as he alleges that he was threatened by a Black man and needed help.
The young man went on to tell me. “The caller said that he had a gun that they could see. When the police arrived on scene he was carrying his pizza box with both hands. He started walking fast down the hill with his pizza when the police shot him.”
I then went on to explain to him that having a gun is not a crime in an open carry state and that while at the gas station across the street shortly before I ran into him, I had just witness a white man with a gun on his hip.
He then told me that the police were going to call him back to interview him about what happened to him concerning the shooting and subsequent arrest, as well as, discuss the way he was manhandled by the police.
My advice to him was the same as I would give to my son… do not talk to the police because if you do, you are only aiding them in coming up with a story to match their narrative so that they could further lie to the public.
While the young man finished recounting his story three young men and a young woman walked over and were discussing the aggressive behavior by whites at the shopping center who are now emboldened by the shooting that took place the night before.
One of the young men said he was also arrested but did not want to talk about it because of the grief he is still going through.
I gave the teens my condolences because I know police violence is traumatic. They were very receptive to the information that police can and will lie to you.
The makeup of the neighborhood for zip code 27610 is predominantly Black 64.76%. The Raleigh, NC police department has made this area into a war zone with its repeated use of force on the community.
Ostrom, Elinor, and Gordon Whitaker. “Does Local Community Control of Police Make a Difference? Some Preliminary Findings.” American Journal of Political Science, vol. 17, no. 1, 1973, pp. 48–76. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2110474. Accessed 12 Mar. 2020.
Soheil Mojarrad was murdered by Raleigh PD in April of 2019 in the same shopping center where the call came in for Javier Torres less than a year later.
Soheil Mojarrad was confronted by the Raleigh PD after a customer of Sheetz gas station said that Soheil stole their phone. Soheil Mojarrad had a history of mental issues and was not handled in a manner that respected him or his life. The officer who took Soheil’s life claims that he pulled a knife. Though the officer was wearing a bodycam at the time, RPD claims it was not turned on. Mojarrad was shot 8 times and was later pronounced dead on the scene.
The continued RPD presence in our communities is a hazard to our mental and physical condition. In 2019 I went to two meeting that were publicized as a community event to discuss police accountability in Wake County.
As an occupant of Wake county and a resident that has experienced police violence on my property I see a need for police accountably and so I attended.
Upon entering I saw the set up by Raleigh Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown. Brown had many police in attendance more police showed up than community members. At each table there were about two residents and 5 police giving input as to what police accountability should look like.
This made me feel angry and betrayed that police had the opportunity to dictate what police accountability should look like.
I voiced my concern at the ‘community event’ and notes were taken. I let it be known I didn’t agree with the police presence and the meeting went on as planned. I know the role of police – which is to propagate the systemic oppression of white supremacy in the name of the ‘law’ by any means necessary.
In my opinion this is not the time to have a chat with the oppressors to ask for less oppression. The community has grievances with the police and the brute force that is used against us at will. It is the community that has to formulate the demands that we expect the RPD to adhere to and the first one is to stop occupying our neighborhoods.
Community Control of Police is valuable once put in place and this is also a demand – until police are abolished.
Feel free to contact Riot at riotrevolt@yahoo.com to share your thoughts and concerns surrounding RPD Javier Torres or to tell share your story of police violence with Riot.
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