Accounting for the Deaths of Young Men of Color

I've tried to avoid seeing the current video of a Chicago police officer shooting a 17-year-old in the back as he walks away, then shooting the boy 15 more times. We have our local death, a deputy shooting Andy Lopez, 14. In this nation, the police kill about one unarmed black man a week on average. The police have a kind of gentleman's agreement with district attorneys, a license to kill. Our local killer was excused by the District Attorney, and he is back in his car, roaming, armed to the teeth, ready to strike again. No accountability.

Often a district attorney will investigate, stall for long periods and then announce that the killing on an unarmed person of color was legal and good for the community.  On rare occasions there is a video of the street killing, and the district attorney must charge the killer or risk losing an election. The tactic changes. The D.A. can overcharge the police officer, making it almost impossible for a jury to convict him. Let's say the officer commits second degree murder. If you charge him with first degree murder, the jury will find him innocent. Everyone goes home happy.