Details on the shooting are unclear -- as in, the cops aren't sure who was responsible for the fatal shot -- but one fact is indisputable: The offending officers fired a "flash-bang grenade" into Jones's residence, a no-no since it was known to house children. The entire scene sounds like something out of a horror movie. From the Times:
"Soon as they hit the window, I hit the floor and went to reach for my granddaughter," said a distraught Mertilla Jones at a news conference after Aiyana's death. "I seen the light leave out her eyes. I knew she was dead. She had blood coming out of her mouth. Lord Jesus, I ain't never seen nothing like that in my life."
The Detroit police department has contradicted the family's details of the shooting, but no one seems to deny that the flash-bang grenade was used. And therein lies the problem: "Those cameras can influence the behavior of what's already a very dangerous and unpredictable job," said Brian Willingham, a former Flint, Michigan, police officer. Adds defense attorney Thomas Loeb: "I think they're showboating for the camera."
So did the mere presence of the camera crew cause the police officers to act a tad more reckless than usual? And did that recklessness and resulting chaos cause the death of 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones? That those questions even need to be asked is probably as indicting as their answers.
ยท Tragedy in Detroit, With Reality TV Crew in Tow [New York Times]