MABECKER@UKANVM.CC.UKANS.EDU (06/15/91)
A depressed 22)year old man locks himself in his room with a kitchen knife.
His parents, concerned for their son, call 911 and ask for help, expecting the
police to aid them in disarming their maybe suicidal son. Or at least the
assumption is made that Gregg might have been depressed and thinking about
suicide. But no one knows for sure. He might have been using the knife to
clean his fingernails; he might have been using the knife for a hundred other
things. Was it wrong for him to be sitting alone inhis room listening to
music and playing with a knife?
Two police officers arrive within minutes of each other; without asking the
Seviers any questionsabout the circumstances or about their son's emotional
status, they take control of the situation. They shout orders to Gregg Sevier
that he does not obey, and in less time than it took to drive across town
torespond to the call, within four minutes and twenty)one seconds of their
arrival to "help," Gregg Sevier is dead, shot twice in the heart, shot a total
of six times, when two of the three responding officers open fire.
WHAT HAPPENED?
According to Mrs. Sevier's testimony, when Officer Bordman arrived, he barged
into the house, shouting, "Which bedroom?" The bedroom door was locked, but
easily accessed with a toothpick, and the policeman pushed the door open with
his nightstick and gun drawn. "I didn't do anything," Gregg said, and Bordman
responded, "Show me your hand, show me your hand . . ." The other officer
arrived, immediately ordering the parents out of the hallway and into the
kitchen. His gun also drawn, he joined his colleague in the confrontation
with Gregg.
The dialogue immediately preceeding the shooting went something like this:
"Drop the knife. Drop the knife. Drop the knife." Gregg, facing two cops
with guns pointed at him, does not comply. He made some wisecrack like "Go
ahead and shoot me," according to his father's testimony. And to his mother,
"Mom, I love you." At this point, Bordman and Phillips testify that Gregg
"lunged at them with the knife," and, fearing for their lives, they opened
fire. (The parents' view was blocked at this point by the officer in the
hallway. They did not see the alleged attack, and do not believe that it
occured.)
WHO'S AFRAID OF WHOM?
Fear is a mighty powerful motivator. And I like to believe that these police
officers were genuinely afraid for their own personal safety when they began
pumping bullets into Gregg Sevier. But imagine, for a moment, the fear that
must have been rampant in the mind of the victim. He's depressed. He's been
drinking. He's been fighting with his girlfriend, maybe thinking that this
life can seem pretty worthless attimes. Maybe not thinking too clearly. He's
got a kitchen knife. He locks himself in his room. Turns up the stereo.
Doesn't respond to his parents when they try to talk to him. And now two
policemen burst through the door, guns drawn, now shouting "Drop the knife,
drop the knife." Maybe he's afraid of the police. He doesn't drop the knife.
He's about to lose his life. Maybe fear made him tighten his grasp on the
knife. Maybe fear made him say, "I love you, Mom."T
The police of ficers, upon arriving at the residence, did not respect the
Sevier family enough to discuss the situation with Mr. and Mrs. Sevier before
forcing their way into Gregg's room. This indicates that the policemen made
no effort to fully understand the situation. After all, Gregg hadn't
threatened anyone with the knife; quite the opposite, he'd locked himself in
his room with it. While his parents may very well have helped to resolve the
situation, they were ordered by the police to stay out of it.
According to testimony at the inquest, the police not only neglected to
communicate with Gregg's parents, they didn't talk to Gregg much either, or,
for that matter, to each other. Instead they shouted orders. When Gregg
said, "I didn't do anything," the offlcer did not even respond. Why not try
"Iknow you didn't, we're here to help." Was such an approach briefly
considered and determined too risky? Did the officers make any serious effort
to reason with the troubled young man, or help him ease his way out of this
standoff situation?
Bordman and Phillips, in the four minutes they took to deal with this
incident, did not spend much of that time considering any alternative
strategies to disarm Gregg, short of shooting to kill. Such alternatives
could have included (but not been limited to): dialogue (officers must have
some psychological training ) or do they?), the use of their nightsticks (this
was briefly considered by one officer, but not attempted), tear gas, martial
arts, shutting the bedroom door and consulting with superior officers about
their options . . . Was the use of lethal weapons the last resort or the first
resort?
The officers did not ask the Seviers if anyone else was in the house. In
fact, Gregg's sister was in an adjoining room when the shooting occured, and a
bullet entered her room near where she was laying. After the shooting, they
did not let the Seviers go to their dying son. They did not respect the
spiritual and emotional needs of the family by allowing the family to call a
preacher to say a prayer for their son's soul. They took custody of the
house, took the family to police headquarters, and did not allow them to go
back to their home for twelve hours. Not a routine 911 call. But the officers
testified that routine Lawrence Police Department procedures were followed.
"COULD THIS HAPPEN IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD?"
Can we trust local police to follow consistent moral and official guidelines,
especially regarding the use of lethal weapons? Would the police have reacted
to this situation in exactly the same way if they had been responding to a
call from a rich, white family in Alvamar instead of a Native American family
in East Lawrence? They may have shown more respect. Maybe not. Did classism
or racism play any role in the outcome of this call for help?
Sadly, any stereotyping that may exist within the LPD is a reflection of the
racism in our community at large. We like to consider Lawrence a tolerant,
close)knit town, but racism is pervasive. If you don't believe this ask any
of the 13% of the population that is non)white. If you don't find anyone in
your neighborhood to ask, keep walking. Any person of color can tell you
stories of racial antagonism. Haskell students report increasing harassment,T
but we can work to alleviate racism. The first step is the hardest: Check
your own heart. Anything missing?
>From The Lawrence (Kansas) City Flyer, May 16, 1991, VOL. 1, NO. 3