Texas Police Caught in Enormous Lie About Their Murder of Unarmed Mother Yvette Smith
On February 16, 2014, Yvette Smith, a 47-year-old mother beloved by her family and community, was shot and killed on the spot by local police as she opened the front door of her home. A full 18 months later, as her case finally came before a jury, it’s disturbingly clear that the police lied, repeatedly, in an attempt to cover up their murder of Smith.
On the day of her murder, Smith called 911 for help because two men in her home were arguing over a financial dispute and she felt it was getting out of hand. She had nothing to do with the dispute and was an innocent bystander—a victim, even. When the police showed up, both men were already in the front yard and it appeared that the dispute was settled. This should’ve been case closed, but it wasn’t.
When Smith opened the front door of her home, she was shot twice with a high-powered .223 caliber rifle in less than two seconds by Officer Daniel Willis of Bastrop County, Texas, outside of Austin.
The lies and the coverup began immediately. The entire department was involved.
What you need to know:
- Police claim she was holding a firearm and they acted in self-defense. This is a lie. When Sheriff Terry Pickering issued the statement, he was fully and completely aware that Yvette Smith wasn’t armed. No weapon was found on or near her. He knew this. The officers on the scene knew this, but Sheriff Pickering issued that statement anyway. It sounded better.
- Knowing that the evidence and scores of eyewitnesses saw that she was unarmed, police later retracted the statement, but have given absolutely no answers or held anyone responsible for the earlier lie—which was the primary reason given for shooting Smith in the first place.
- Police also claimed that Smith ignored their commands. On September 17, in open court, we learned that this was also an elaborate lie told to justify police misconduct.
- Officer Gaskamp literally admitted that he made the whole damn thing up. He also stated that he couldn’t remember telling this lie to the lead investigator, until they played him the recorded interview where he stated the lie over and over again.
- It was discovered that the officer who shot and killed Smith was found incompetent by another police department. The evaluation said the police officer who killed Yvette Smith struggled with “common sense,” but was hired by a neighboring department anyway.
#StayWoke
SHIIIIIIIIIT!
fucking insane
disgusting.
What in the actual fuck?!
The least helpful thing to do right now is create a gendered discourse that specifically disenfranchises or entirely erases black women from conversations about state sanctioned oppression.
It is black women who are summarily disappeared in jails. Who also face the daunting threat of being at the other end of that bullet. Who get body slammed and dragged around streets and classes. It is black women who are forced into further economic destitution when their male partners are executed. It is black women who cook, raise, nurture and play the largest part in sustaining familial structures. It is black women who become the spokespersons for their dead loved ones. Who lead the marches. Who organize activism. Who accept those collect calls and sparse trips to their disproportionately locked up loved ones, if its not them who is behind bars. Who bear the intersection of misogyny and anti black racism.
This is not and never has been just about “our boys and men”. The amount of labor, compassion and commitment that goes into sustaining this community is largely the sacrifice of black women. Never forget that.
Why would you sign up to be a cop if you don’t think your life should be in danger… like do you people realize you don’t make any sense? “Stop laughing because now my dad who is a cop is in danger” what? why did he pick that job if he didn’t want to be in danger? He was in danger the second he chose to be a police that’s his fault… It’s not like he’s a fucking retail worker, cops job is to be put in dangerous positions, if that’s not what they want then get another fucking job like the rest of us. Nobody forced your ugly ass family to be cops…
Since the 1980s police have used the acronym NHI for crimes against sex workers, trans women, and “thugs” (i.e. People of color), meaning “no humans involved” and like that’s the atmosphere our current law enforcement comes from
Another colorful phrase from that same era (explicitly continuing into the 90s and further) for sex workers (and particularly sex workers of color) being killed was “misdemeanor murders”
Keep Lavish Diamond Reynolds, her child and the entire Castile-extended family in your prayers today. Lavish is said to have finally been released from police custody. Now she must begin to work to rebuild her and her child’s life, after witnessing and documenting Philando Castile’s execution by Minnesota police. We uplift their courage, and mourn for a loss no one should have to face. #farfromover
Oakland faces a major police scandal in which multiple police officers are facing allegations of statutory rape and human trafficking after allegedly having sex with an underage girl who was working as a sex worker. Three police chiefs have resigned in nine days.
Democracy Now! speaks to Cat Brooks, an Oakland-based Black Lives Matter activist and co-founder of the Anti Police-Terror Project. Brooks helped organize Friday’s protest against the Oakland Police Department.Watch and read the entire report: #BlackLivesMatter Activist: Oakland Needs to Name the “Predatory” Cops Who Raped & Trafficked Girl
HERE IS ALL THE RECEIPTS BITCH TRY ME IF YOU WANT SUPPORT HIS ASS IF YOU WANT YOURE SUPPORTING A RACIST BULLY
It all starts @ 19:44
okay so like… can someone tell me if it would be wrong of me to continue buying his products? i am furious at these things he’s done and said, but his lipstick is really good and i really like it…
……………………………..
Theres literally a video of him saying he would throw battery acid on black girl like…y'all really don’t care about black people? all for a lipstick,.
hes so gross ugh
this wasn’t a kid with issues or an islamic attack this was a full grown adult man who had easy access to guns and who specifically targeted members of the lgbt community,, please don’t let any news headline or tabloid take away from the fact that the worst mass shooting in american history was a direct hate crime against innocent lgbt kids
Let’s keep the Islamophobia in check. Non-Muslims are the greatest threat. Muslims were involved in .57%, that’s half of one percent, of mass shootings.
This is about access to assault weapons and homophobia, both pillars of Right Wing populism.
Do we even know if that guy was Muslim or we just assuming because he was of middle eastern descent.
Both his family and his ex wife has said that he was not a religious person
9-year-old girl gives care bags to homeless women
After noticing homeless people on her walk to school in Irvine, California, 9-year-old Khloe Thompson decided to start her own charity, dubbed Khloe Kares. She passes out hand-sewn bags filled with life’s little necessities (feminine hygiene products, soap, socks, toothpaste) to homeless women. Thompson’s work doesn’t stop at Kare Bags though, she just led a huge initiative for kids in group homes.
Black excellence!