My heart just breaks for this family....

[MelissaTC]

This is so sad and it angers me as well. We have a very large Southeast Asian population here so it is very common to see older people walking around. No one thinks twice. They are our neighbors, co-workers and classmates. If this happened here, all hell would break loose.

[maestramommy]

Saw the breaking story yesterday, and read today that one officer is under arrest. This is just so outrageous and my heart breaks for his son's family.

[baymom]

This could have been my grandparents. It's so senseless and upsetting. I'm glad the officer has been terminated, but just can't get over the annoyance I feel towards the 911 caller, who I believe is also at least a bit to blame. What the h*ll kind of 'emergency' was that??

[calebsmama03]

This story is just sickening. Both the 911 call that a "skinny black man" is walking where the caller thinks he shouldn't be, and the police's use of force on an elderly grandfather out on a walk bothering absolutely no one (other than by the color of his skin, apparently). The way they shove him and then grab him up is horrifying especially when you learn it caused him spinal injuries and paralysis. The only bright side I see to this is the kindness of strangers who have contributed to his medical care. Probably still far from enough to cover his injuries and nothing can compensate for being paralyzed. When will this stop?

OMG, this is just horrifying. There is no punishment good enough. Do they not have protocol for when a person is saying "No English"?!? He keeps repeating "Do you understand me?" but obviously the guy is TELLING him he does not understand ENglish! And people wonder why there is such mistrust of police these days!

[stefani]

Ugh, that is heart breaking. I see lots of people walking around our neighborhood here, and I usually don't know them. Definitely a number of Indians as well.

Thinking that could have been my parents...

[arivecchi]

Both the 911 call that a "skinny black man" is walking where the caller thinks he shouldn't be, and the police's use of force on an elderly grandfather out on a walk bothering absolutely no one (other than by the color of his skin, apparently).

Wonder what the 911 caller thinks now that they set this awful set of acts in motion. Horrible.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

Wonder what the 911 caller thinks now that they set this awful set of acts in motion. Horrible.

To his credit, he didn't call 911, he called non-emergency line, but still..it's obvious from the call it was a xenophobic/ignorant motive. Apparently leaving your wife home alone (like if she's some sort of pet) with a dark-skinned person walking around the neighborhood is a legitimate fear (cue eye-roll). HOpefully this makes others think twice before doing something similarly stupid.

The main thing I think of is what an (awful) impression of America must Mr. Patel's family (and others in India) must have now. Because from this, you'd be America is a place where people who look a bit different or "foreign" are automatically feared and deemed suspicious. And if you're just an unarmed 60-year-old man talking a walk, police can attack you for no reason. This incident is pretty shameful in all respects.

Anyway, the governor of Alabama has issued a public apology to the Indian government and family..and is launching an investigation.
Hopefully something good can be come of this.http://time.com/3712806/alabama-gove...t-grandfather/