On April 11, 2021, a police officer fatally shot a 20-year-old African American man, Daunte Wright. According to Chief Tim Gannon of the Brooklyn Center Police Department, it all began when officers pulled Mr. Wright over for a traffic violation related to expired registration tags. Officers then discovered that he had a warrant for his arrest.
As the police tried to detain Mr. Wright, he stepped back into his car, prompting a brief struggle with officers. Graphic body camera footage revealed one officer was pointing a handgun at Mr. Wright and shouting “Taser.” After the car pulled away, the officer said, “I just shot him.”
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After the car traveled several blocks, it struck another vehicle. The police and medical workers pronounced Mr. Wright dead at the scene.
“It is my belief that the officer had the intention to deploy their Taser but instead shot Mr. Wright with a single bullet,” Chief Gannon said. Later, the Hennepin County medical examiner confirmed that Mr. Wright died of a gunshot wound to the chest.
In the wake of these events, a video reaction went viral on TikTok, showing another police officer demonstrating how it’s impossible for an experienced cop to mistake their gun for their taser.
The officer behind the video identifies himself as Brian B. In the recording, he readies his belt and shows the positioning of his ‘dominant’ and ‘not so dominant’ weapons.
He then stresses the weight difference between the two and shares his thoughts on the deadly shot, saying that anybody who can such a mistake, even in the heat of the moment, doesn’t deserve to be on the force.
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Image credits: QasimRashid
Brian B’s video was recently shared on Twitter by human rights lawyer Qasim Rashid, and that’s when it became really blew up.
But Rashid didn’t find the TikTok. It found him. “Someone sent it to me. I shared it because the officer was correct, and because it’s important for people to see that police officers are working to stop the injustices,” he told Bored Panda. “It is important we elevate those voices against injustice.”
Officer Brian B was really firm in his video, saying “It makes no sense. Ninety-nine percent of our job is communication. You don’t have to be quick to pull out a gun or a taser on somebody and think everybody’s a threat. Not everybody’s a threat. Try talking to them; get to know these people.”
Shortly after, as the recording was getting more and more popular, a heated debate erupted under his post and Brian’s TikTok account disappeared. But just after that, The Independent reported the video had garnered about 6 million views and 1.4 million likes.
“People recognize we must do and demand better, and the responses indicate that,” Rashid said. “We still have a long way to go.” The lawyer said in a Facebook post that every bit of this murder is reckless and inexcusable.
“More than police reform, we need to reimagine our entire understanding of public safety,” Rashid added. You can learn more about what he means by these words here.
So far, it’s still unclear where Brian is from, which police department he serves under, or why he removed his TikTok account.
Following Rashid’s report on Twitter, users expressed the need for more attention to this demonstration made by Brian. “Wait! This is the first time I’ve heard a police officer actually say what we’re saying,” David Bishop said. “We need more of this conversation. A lot more. This is exactly what’s missing in all the police communication: calling out bad behavior and focusing on communication over violence.”
While it is rare for police officers to mistake their sidearms for their stun guns, it is even rarer for charges to be brought against them in such cases. A New York Times review of 15 other cases of the so-called “weapon confusion” over the past 20 years showed that only 5 of the officers were indicted. Only 3, including the only 2 cases in which people were killed, were eventually found guilty.
People praised Brian B and his attitude
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