PHOTO: The man shot dead at Stockwell Tube

[Bluebear]

Jean Charles de Menezes (far right), pictured with friends.

A man shot dead by police hunting the bombers behind Thursday's London attacks was a Brazilian electrician unconnected to the incidents.

The man, who died at Stockwell Tube on Friday, has been named by police as Jean Charles de Menezes, 27....

The Brazilian government has expressed its shock at the killing and Brazil's foreign minister Celso Amorim is on his way to London to get an explanation from foreign secretary Jack Straw.

The family of Mr Menezes told the Brazilian media there was nothing in his past which would give him a reason to run from police. Mr Menezes' cousin, Alex Alves, told O Globo television: "I asked that the body be released as quickly as possible, we need to bring him to Brazil, which is what the family wants. He does not have a past that would make him run from police," he said.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4711021.stm

[FloridaPat]

1. Might have just been running for the train. I actually saw something

like that went I went to London decades ago. I was at the airport and there was an elderly professor type man just walking along. Next thing I know 3 guys are on top of him and he's on the ground spread out. No guns.

[MadisonProgressive]

4. I'm going to have nightmares

of this kid desperately trying not to be late for work and being run down by what seemed like terrorists and tripping, falling, and being shot FIVE TIMES IN THE HEAD!!!!!

[whistle]

2. So the British police killed the wrong man, eh? Tony Blair has....

....some explaining to do it looks like.

[adamtrask]

9. Why exactly

would Tony Blair be held personally responsible for the actions of these officers?

[Ikonoklast]

11. Those that set the policy

are responsible for the outcome, good or bad. Re: Rumsfeld and torture.

[adamtrask]

18. then wouldn't it be

Sir Ian Blair who would be held responsible? Or perhaps Lord Stevens himself, the man who implemented it in 2003?

[senseandsensibility]

13. Welcome to DU

And thanks for the insighful question. As you spend more time on our board, you will learn about holding elected officials accountable for their policies. It's really what democracy is all about. Beautiful, isn't it?

[Cha]

How very very Weird!

And Tragic. One of those horrible mixups on both sides.

[senseandsensibility]

3. I don't know what to say

This is a tragedy. He was an electrician living and working legally in Britain. He does not sound like an outlaw, and he has lost his life. I do have faith that the British government will investigate this thoroughly.

[Minstrel Boy]

5. "He does not have a past that would make him run from police"

Since they were not in uniform, perhaps he didn't know those armed guys bearing down on him were police. My instinct would be to flee, too.

[Gatchaman]

6. Especially since British police don't carry guns

At least, that's what I've heard.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

7. Generally, they don't, except for special armed squads.

Moreover, the police culture there is not anything about shooting folks, especially holding them down and shooting them 5 times in the head.

No, the people who did that were SpecOps, either SAS or Special Boat Squad.

[Mike Nelson]

8. Now we know WHY THEY DON'T CARRY GUNS --nt

:(

[soothsayer]

17. Oh, but they DO carry guns now...

[leesa]

10. He must have been scared shitless. All this anti-terrorism BS..purely

pointless!

[AzDar]

12. I wonder if Bush & Blair will still be spewing their.."fighting the terror

over there.." nonsense after this horrible, horrible, debacle???
THEY ARE THE TERRORISTS.

[LynnTheDem]

14. May God forgive bush & bLiar for yet another death at their hands.

I'm not God, so I won't forgive.

[fujiyama]

16. I couldn't say it any better myself

Fuck Bliar and Bush for this war and the culture of fear they have spread throughout the world. They are doing bin Laden's bidding and they are just as evil as those that blew up those trains.

[jsamuel]

15. Would an electrician know anything about making bombs for the Govt?

What if he knew something they didn't want to get out?