The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1912-03-05
SHOOTING UNFORTUNATELY

life is in peril; he has the right to
use his weapon in trying to check
the speed of a person who is es-
Gaping from him, he has the right
to shoot any individual charged
with murder or other crimes, not
misdemaanors, who is seeking 20
evade arrest, but shooting indiscrlm
inately is not warranted nor justifI-
able in law.
Besides in indiscriminate shooting
the life of some innocent may be
forfeited.
In extenuation of this indiscrlm-
mate Shooting it may be said that
the individual when called to halt
should Immediately obey this com
mand, and if he should run the law
officer is warranted in shooting, even
to death.
This assumption of authority if
conceded or tolerated will make life
unsafe, especially when some crime
has been committed and the crim-
nal has escaped.
As an illustrations:
On Sunday afternoon Constable
Williamson of DeSoto shot at ne
gro who was believed to be Jack
Campbell, who murdered Officer
Porter Sanders Friday night.
Constable Williamson had been adj
vised BY the railroad agent at Stone
wall, of a suspicious negro being
on the track. When this negro was
a hundred yards distant Constable
Williamson called him to halt. The
negro who had no mixing of the
murder, and not recognizing the con-
stable, decided that he was abou.
to be held up" and instead of halt,
ing he started to run, when the con-
stable fired The negro fled into
the woods from which he emerged
at a water tank between Stonewall
and Glosfer. He had received a
slight wound in the arm. He is well
known negro and escaped death by
a close margin.
And still an I Ter instance:
Monday morning at an early hour
j. L. Crawford, a we'll known eiti-
zen of DeSoto, while enroute from
his home to the railroad station at
Gfcster, VAS commanded TO halt by
a party of eight men. Crawford was
on his way to Mansfield He had
on his person five hundred dollars.
for an Investment in land. He as
sun1ed, when called to halt, before
daylight, that these men would rob
him of his money and instead of
obeying this command he ram
Immediately the men fired at him.
He reached q pile OF cross ties,
which safeguarded him from the
bullets. Probably fifty shots We're
fired at him. Finally, with one des-
parate effort he leaped from the
pile of cross ties and reached the
residence Of P. 4. Bowling, while
still being fired at by the eight men.
He escaped with a slight wound.
II would seem miraculous that he
was not killed or seriously wounded
The pretense that d man should
not run when commanded to halt
is not tenable. If applied to negroes
the assertion is ventured that nine
ty-nine of hundred will run if
confronted by one or two white
men and ordered to halt. The ne
groes will become panicky at the
sight Of white men with guns.
Apply this 70 white men.
For instance: A law obeying citi-I
zen is hon1eward bound. It is dark
or seninight. He is commanded To-
hall BY persons he does not resog-
nize. Under the impulse of the
surprise. he will run. or attempt
to run. He is apprehensiye of be-
ing held up. He is seized for the
moment with uncomfortable fear. a
crime has been committed and be-
cause he has not needed the COM
mand to halt, must he be fired at
ana perhaps Killed!
Now, assuming that the man halt
ed is ssnefvy, that is, not the least
~scary" and obeys the command to
halt and when released he has real
lied that he has been held up" and
robbed. How would his narration
81 such an experience be received
By the public?
Without, perhaps. particle of
sympathy he would be pronounced
AN ass TO have been so easy IN
being held up and robbed
There has already been TOO much
indiscriminate shooting and i'll
shouA no longer be dolerated on the
part of officers OF the law Or Of in |
iiisdllals who may assume to bel
warranted in shooting and in killing
simply because the individual sus-