In a moment, if I don’t fully submit, he’s going to take a step forward and place the gun against my head as he uses his handcuffs to arrest me. He’s trained not to shoot someone standing still—but someone resisting an arrest in any way that threatens his safety is fair game. Usually when cops kill unarmed people, it’s because they perceive some threat as they make physical contact, or they get scared and squeeze the trigger, not realizing how much pressure they’re already placing on it. Some cops carry guns with heavy triggers, like five or six pounds, in order to make it more difficult to
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