Father Shot by Police
Published by michael July 27th, 2005 in law, crime
Driving home from work I was listening to a local NPR station. I the reporter say (approximately) “Ventura County Sherrifs responded to a domestic violence call last night in Oak View…” They named a very small street I used to live on, and blood rushed to my ears, sensing events that were too close to home. They went on to say that Scott Osler was holding a knife when they arrived, they told him to put it down, he did not, and they shot him.
Scott Osler was my landlord although I considered him more a friend; my wife and I lived in his guest-house 11 years ago and I knew him well. I took care of both of his children over several years in a childcare center, and am deeply upset by the news of his death. He was a good daddy, always involved with his kids, and obviously loved his family very much.
I do not know the circumstances under which police were called,
but I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of intoxication, in fact it’s the explanation I prefer, since I knew him to be a very kind and loving man, it is the only explanation of his alleged behavior that makes sense.
If, hypothetically someone is inebriated, and not in command of themselves, what are our police trained to do to subdue them? The police believed themselves to be in imminent danger? Even if I were in imminent danger would I shoot to kill? Absolutely not. Scott Osler was a good man, though maybe he’d made a grave mistake, but it really seems that police are out of control, poorly trained, and incompetent when they open up with gunfire on someone with just a knife.
I know there are plenty of good cops out there, but we seriously need to raise the bar of the entrance exam, or start doubling police salaries to attract some more qualified personnel. I write from emotion. I do not state in a knee-jerk reaction that these police murdered him, although I think they self-defense is a weak defense, and extreme scrutiny and an independent investigation should be applied if necessary. I will not presume anyone’s guilt, but I will never presume they were righteous, as killing someone never is. I wish only for the best for his wife and his two daughters. I wish there were anything I could do to support them, in spite of much time having passed since we’ve had contact.
I cannot know, having only heard the NPR report and having read the
Ventura County Star’s report, what exactly happened last night, and why 2 deputies felt the need to fire guns against a 50 year old man who was holding a kitchen knife. How hard is it to fire into someone’s legs, if you are not skilled enough to take a man down without getting cut by his knife?
If you wish to express your desire for an in-depth impartial investigation please send letters to the following people: (add more if you can find or suggest them). If I receive any more information on what we can do to help I will post it here as an update below.
Sheriff Bob Brooks
800 South Victoria Avenue
Ventura, CA 93009
District Attorney Gregory Totten
800 S. Victoria Ave.
Ventura, CA 93009
da.criminal@mail.co.ventura.ca.us
In respect and in memory of Scott Osler
with respect, support & love for his wife and daughters.
11 Responses to “Father Shot by Police”
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So sorry to hear this, Michael. My condolences to you and your wife and especially to your friend’s family.
How horrible. I’m sorry to hear that, too, Michael. And I agree with your thoughts on the police and their use of deadly force. I seems there are many cases where they could fire at a limb, or simply fire a warning shot and situations like this would be avoided. Please let us know if you learn more.
What a horrible tragedy Michael. Yet another tragic ending to what seems to be mindless violent acts committed by our own police force. I will write to the contacts to express my sentiments.
I agree its horrible but why do we have to blame the police? Was there not someone here that took it upon themselves to drink, beat up their spouse and refuse to comply with police orders? Im sorry, but if you decide to take it upon yourself to charge a police officer with a knife, stick, bat..whatever….then you know what the consequences might be so don’t do it. The police are trained to protect themselves and you! Its a violent world we live in. This isnt Disneyland or Hollywood where everything is scripted or time runs in slow motion. I feel for Michael’s family. I really do. I also feel for the deputies who had to shoot him.
The fact that the media repeats the police coments and excuses verbatim, creates a bad aura against the police victims. Do they have independent witnesess who saw Osler holding any type of Knife? Was the Ventura Star reporter there to witness the events? If not, why are they only reporting what the police said instead of looking for the truth.
It is sad the cops use the media to spread “their own truth.” Sadder is to see the media lend themseves so willingly to carry that purpose as long as the ratings go up. The term “Yellow Journalism” comes to mind.
I think the tragedy is all of your negative responses towards the police. Were any of you there? Aren’t you just as guilty as the Star or NPR.
Have any of you had police training in how to disarm a man with a knife?
Do you know how fast a man with a knife can move 10 feet?
Do you realize how many law enforcement personnel are killed or wounded on domestic violence calls?
These are just a few questions I would ask.
If the man would’t have had a knife this wouldn’t have happend, period. I think it’s time for people to take some personal resposability and stop blaming the cops all the time.
Saheli, Robert, Kurt: Thanks.
Ralph:
There is no need to feel for my family, as we are not the ones who lost a dad. I appreciate your criticism of “blaming police” but I clearly stated up front that I was writing from emotion, and that it seemed that it was incompetence or poor training that would result in death by gunfire when threatened with a knife.
Dan:
I feel that your opening line is over the top, nonetheless I will agree that there are circumstances that could have led to the shooting that would be justifiable under the law. Police, like many public employees are under extreme scrutiny especially because of the power they wield.
I respect those doing their best and risking themselves to try and make the world a safer place. If the police in this case are not guilty of negligence or misconduct, I hope that the investigations will rightly determine that.
I didn’t forsee this entry growing into a discourse as it has, and in honor of the family, request that we not debate the case any longer. If you have positive or negative feedback for the PD, send it to them.
I’ll close with a quote from the Ventura PD from the followup story in the Star:
May Scott rest in peace, may his family be surrounded by care and support, and may the whole truth be known at least to them, justice clear and evident.
Any ‘pattern of misconduct’ needs to be brought to the attention of the U.S. Department of Justice. An indepth comprehensive investigation can be conducted. I recommend doing some serious research then gather as many instances of ALL types of misconduct/abuse as possible. There are many many cases dating back quite a few years regarding the inappropriate use of deadly force in VC. Amnesty International has also taken issue with VC’s deadly law enforcement tactics. It’s overwhelming and distubing the amount of info that can be found on the Internet regarding VC. Ventura County does NOT have the effective systems for training, reporting, monitoring, complaint procedures etc in place, yet the Department of Justice requires these for ALL law enforcement agencies that receive Federal funds. WHY???? Again . . . WHY doesn’t our local law enforcement have any desire, or value the importance of complying with the Federal Governments procedures that are required to be in place to protect the Civil Rights of the taxpaying citizens that they serve? Local law enforcement will ultimately have to answer to the people that they serve via the Attorney General.
Hope the following helps in your efforts.
Department of Justice Police Misconduct Pattern or Practice Program
-The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. 14141 (”Section 14141″), authorizes the Attorney General to conduct investigations and, if warranted, file civil litigation to eliminate a “pattern or practice of conduct by law enforcement officers … that deprives persons of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States.” The Attorney General has delegated the authority to enforce this statute to the Civil Rights Division.
-Section 14141 makes a governmental authority directly responsible for a pattern or practice of unlawful conduct by its law enforcement officers. As a result, a court can order a governmental authority to take actions to eliminate the unlawful pattern or practice.
-Our pattern or practice investigations involve a comprehensive evaluation of the agency’s policies, procedures and actual practices impacting on the areas in which there are allegations of misconduct. Our investigations include examination of specific incidents that may be pieces of an alleged pattern of misconduct and civil rights violations. In general, we review the following kinds of information:
-We conduct in-depth interviews with the police command staff, representatives of police labor organizations, persons who believe that they have been subject to police misconduct, lawyers and community leaders who have dealings with the police department, and individual officers.
-We evaluate the agency’s education and training programs and curricula regarding areas involving alleged misconduct. We may attend relevant education and training sessions.
-We review the agency’s written policies and practices, as well as any systems for reporting or otherwise memorializing specific officer actions in the areas of alleged misconduct. We review implementation of these systems.
-We review the agency’s systems for monitoring and supervising officers, including any procedures and systems to inform supervisors of officer actions in areas of alleged misconduct. We also review any procedures and systems providing for supervisory feedback to officers on the propriety of such actions. We review implementation of these procedures and systems.
-We analyze the agency’s formal procedures and actual practices for receiving, investigating, and adjudicating citizen complaints. We also assess the agency’s records regarding how complaints are adjudicated and whether and to what extent discipline is imposed or non-disciplinary corrective action is taken in appropriate cases.
I worked with Scott. I miss him. He was a great person. I am sure intoxication was a problem that night. I know alot about the prior events to the shooting. I drove a truck with his number after I transferred to Bakersfield in his honor and then retired from the teamsters union in June 2006. I hated Bakersfield…it’s not Ventura.
I hope we have all learned a lesson from this tragic event.
I was thinking about Scott yesterday and decided to do a search on him today.
You all take care.
Earl in Arlington Texas where it’s not California…
Peace
I knew Scott since I was 12 years old. I remember sitting in Church with my grandmother and asking “Who was that sitting with Bob and Louis Osler?”,and my grandmother said “that is their son Scott”, I did not believe her but said that I was going to marry him when I grew up. I remember seeing him driving in his Ranchero up Ellenbogen when I would be riding my horse and how exciting it was to see Scott Osler!!! I also remember him finding out when I was 18 that I had always wanted to go out with him, so he came to the restaurant where I worked to check me out, I thought I was going to melt. We did date on and off over the years but it did not work out for one reason or the other. Mostly it was me, not knowing how to appreciate a nice guy. He was not a violent man, would not hurt a fly.
I think about him all the time and think about his family and wish them nothing but the best. I hope that they are doing well. They have suffered alot of loss and I hope that they have some peace in their lives.
Scott may not know it, but he will be very missed by many. He was a good person who was a little lost at times, but did not deserve this.
To his wife, I hope you and the girls are doing OK. You are in my prayers often.
God Bless Scott Osler! I hope that he is resting easy with his Father Bob, Brother Ralph and Uncle Frank and Aunt Ruth as well as his great Aunt Reba and great Uncle Jim.
Rest Easy Scott, you are missed.
I grew up in the neighborhood with Scott and just happened to be remencing my past and did a search and unfortunately came across this site. How sadden I am to hear about Scott Osler. I have asked people over the years of if they knew where Scott went. I love Scott. He such a gentle fun soul. My prayer and thoughts to his family.
Now in Pennsylvania