Autistic teen Ryan Gainer fatally shot by California police

Source: Douglas Sacha / Getty

This is so damn sad. God bless this family.

15-year-old Ryan Gainer needed professional help. He needed a doctor, not a police officer. According to CBS News, Gainer was autistic and was going through a crisis in which he was attacking his family members and destroying property in their Apple Valley home in San Bernadino County. This was a person in desperate need of care and compassion, unfortunately, that is far from what he received.

When San Bernadino deputies had their guns drawn as soon as they arrived on the scene. In the body camera footage, you will see them cautiously entering the house and asking where Ryan is. No sooner did the deputy ask, Ryan appeared from around the corner and began chasing the officer with what is described in the police report as “an approximate five-foot-long garden tool, with a sharp bladed end.” The report also noted that “without provocation, Gainer raised the bladed end of the tool and ran toward the deputy.”

You can see the incident in the video below. The shooting has been edited out, however, it can still be disturbing to watch. Please be advised.

A police officer certainly has the right to protect themselves from harm or death. Still, our question is, if the officers were made aware that Ryan, a child with a medical disorder, was behaving violently, why couldn’t at least one of the deputies have been armed with a non-lethal just in case? Why was a firearm the ONLY choice when they weren’t informed of a weapon?

Sheriff Dicus via CBSNews:

“Our social safety net for those experiencing mental illness needs to be strengthened. Our deputies handle seemingly insurmountable calls daily. Most of these calls do not end in violence,” his statement said.  “However, this one ended in tragedy for Ryan, his family, and for the deputies who responded. Rapidly evolving, violent encounters are some of the most difficult, requiring split second decisions. While these decisions are lawful, they are awful in terms of our humanity. I feel for both Ryan’s family and my deputies who will struggle with this for their entire lives.”

This s#!t has to stop. There has to be a change in protocol for the public response to a person amid a mental health crisis to get help without dying!