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Leslie Jill Patterson

#sayhername: pearlie golden


On May 7, 2014, in Hearne, Texas, the nephew of Pearlie Golden dialed 911 to report that his aunt, 93-year-old Pearlie Golden, was waving a gun, upset because he had taken her car keys after she failed a driving test. Clearly, the woman was elderly and mentally impaired. However, when police officer Stephen Stem arrived at the scene, he saw the frail woman waiving the gun around, but rather than attempting to intervene with non-violent means and regardless of the fact that she was not threatening him or anyone in particular, he fired four to five rounds at her, hitting her at least twice. Four days later, Stem was fired, but a grand jury failed to indict him for Golden's killing.


For further information, read the article in the New York Times.

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