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June 20, 2020The murder of another African American by a private guard from a motel in Tulsa, where Donald Trump will hold his first post-pandemic rally today, rekindles the debate on racism and force abuse. The victim is the 36-year-old Carlos Carson: he had gone to complain about his car vandalized with the motel manager and then with the (white) guard Christopher Straigh. But the latter, when he came out, first used the stinging spray on him and then, when he reacted, he shot him in the head.The episode dates back to June 6, but only now have the exact circumstances emerged, as revealed by the Washington Post, which has examined the video surveillance images. When Carson, the father of three, left the motel with a cup of coffee in his hand, Straigh shoots him and kills him. the same police then called that of the guard an unjustified assault. The charge is of premeditated murder.
The 53-year-old man is a former sergeant and a former prison officer in Tulsa County prison, where he is repeatedly accused of misconduct, including for racial discrimination. After four internal investigations Straigh was demoted and retired in 2018, later becoming a security guard. He had also been investigated by Tulsa police while working for another company, on charges of using stinging spray in a free assault on an African American woman, only a few weeks before Carson was killed.
In some states such as Oklahoma, armed guards do not have to report the use of force unless it involves the use of weapons, their background in law enforcement has not been sifted and they can retain their work even after charges for serious crimes.