Hamilton shooting not justified

I have to respond to Scott Campbell’s recent letter to the editor regarding his justification and explanation for police continuing to display excessive force and justification for shooting someone 14 times (“Hamilton attacked officer,” Aug 6).

Yes, we are still talking about the unbelievable and horrifying actions of the Milwaukee police shooting of Dontre Hamilton. The fact of the matter is that a police officer awakened and startled a sleeping man with mental health issues who responded by trying to protect himself.

One can exaggerate all you want that Hamilton was “using deadly force against a police officer,” but let’s get real. Why wasn’t that police officer responding as he should have in coming into contact with a situation that clearly fell under how to approach someone who may have diminished capacity — otherwise, why would Hamilton have been sleeping out on a bench.

Under the circumstances and with the strength and training of police officers, can one really think the public will believe the officer was facing a threat to his life? In your dreams. There should not be any justification for an officer shooting anyone 14 times who clearly was not a threat. Hamilton, if he indeed became unruly, could have been subdued some other way.

This type of “magical thinking” is exactly why we continue to have the mistrust of police. Until some police stop using any justification for emptying their guns in citizens who deserve to be treated humanely, we will continue to have the unrest we see between the public and police who are supposed to be protecting us — not shooting to kill because they can get away with it.

K. Romano Milwaukee