Facts matter in the current racism debate, guest blogger Sonja

The mayor of Columbus, Ohio is lying to the citizens who elected him. We have a friend on the police force, and one CPD friend retired.  We heard about the stand down orders directly that is allowing the downtown to be smashed and looted, making it unsafe to drive there. He is a Democrat. Sonja posted the following on Facebook.
“Facts, facts, facts. They are our only defense to emotion, manipulation and systematic media and SJW misinformation and fraud. Mr. Scanlon is a St. Catherine and Bishop Hartley graduate and expert in police training and tactics.”
James J. Scanlon Columbus Division of Police – Retired
Columbus Ohio City Council Meeting June 29, 2020:
“Good Evening Council members. My name is James J. Scanlon. I am a retired Columbus Police officer. Between 1978 and 2011, I primarily worked night shifts, protecting the good citizens who live in our inner-city precincts. I loved being there and they loved having me there. Like thousands of other CPD Officers, I protected them against the criminal gangs, robbers and other predators. Now – criminals and their families didn’t like me being there. But, as cops, we are more concerned about what good and decent people think about us than the thugs that hurt and intimidate those good people.
Mayor Ginther and members of City Council have waged an on-going assault upon the fine men and women of the Columbus Division of Police. It is shameful how you and other city officials have demonized these officers and misinformed the public into believing they are a group of “rogue, racist cops”. All of you have relentlessly and falsely accused the Columbus Division of Police, and its officers, of being complicit in a culture of systematic racism. Due to my 42 year involvement with the Columbus Division of Police, I know that you are spreading falsehoods.
Mayor Ginther has stated that “countless black men and women have died at the hands of police officers”. That statement was both false and dangerously inflammatory. There have not been “countless” police-involved shooting deaths.
Here are some facts:
· There are 600,000 – 800,000 Columbus Police encounters with individuals per year.
· There were 7 black suspects fatally shot by CPD Officers in 2016
· 4 in 2017
· 5 in 2018
· 1 in 2019
In every single case, the suspects were armed and threatening.
Facts matter! Each of these incidents has been thoroughly investigated and presented to the ultimate “citizen review board” – a grand jury.
Mayor Ginther, you will be pleased to learn that, in those four years, if you were not armed and threatening, the odds of a black suspect being fatally shot by a Columbus Police Officer was exactly zero. You have every reason to be proud of the police officers you have been tasked to lead.
But, at last week’s City Council news conference, Council members falsely vilified CPD Officers for racist, systematic abuse and murder of African-American men and women. No facts or statistics were used to support their lame accusations. Instead, Council President pro-tem Brown went so far as to condemn a specific CPD police-involved shooting, citing a “skewed system that resulted in the death of Henry Green”.
Many of you have spread a great deal of misinformation concerning the Henry Green Case, leaving many Columbus citizens to believe that officers gunned down Mr. Green for no reason. In reality, Mr. Green was shot by police officers after he fired 6 rounds of .45 caliber ammunition at the officers from a distance of 14 feet or less. Those rounds came within inches of striking officers, lodging in the car door that one officer was behind and a headrest the other had been in front of seconds earlier. Mr. Green was carrying a stolen Glock .45 caliber handgun loaded with those 6 rounds. I believe these to be relevant facts in the case. It’s too bad the public never heard these facts from their City of Columbus elected officials. By the way, under the new “reforms”, how many rounds need to be fired at an officer before that officer may fire back?!
By not addressing specifics, Mayor Ginther and City Council members have purposely misled the public into believing Columbus Police Officers are routinely killing innocent black men. Their false narrative has greatly damaged the public’s opinion of this amazing agency and created the most dangerous situation I have ever witnessed in this city.
Facts matter! You should be ashamed of yourselves for misrepresenting the facts, misinforming the public and driving a wedge between the citizens of Columbus and their fine police department.”