By: Rahja Watson and Destiny Merren
– Antwon Rose Story

Michael C, who declined to give his full name, is a 53-year-old chemical engineer from Kennedy Township and was the first to share his opinion on the death of 17-year-old Antwon Rose. “I think we all have to come together,” he said. “Everybody’s gotta come to together. It shouldn’t happen. You shouldn’t be shooting people in the back…”

He continued by stating that “I think the police have to be trained a little more… so that this doesn’t happen again.” However, he emphasized the difficult position policemen are in, noting that they must use more discretion. Upon further discussion, it was learned that Michael comes from a family of policemen, including his father and grandfather who served as city police officers.

Although protestors halted on Monday to respect the funeral of Rose, Michael shared his opinion on prior protesting and if he believed it was justified or not.  “Yeah, I think people have to… vent their opinions out.” He attributed that actions such as protests and writing articles to “the American way.” He felt that the protests are “justified to a certain extent.”

Lastly, he answered whether or not the policeman who shot Antwon Rose should face disciplinary actions. He said, “I think they should, again, review it and look to see… the other side of the story.” As stated earlier, Michael C comes from a family of policemen feels that review is necessary before any decisions.

Picture by Destiny Merren – Interview Photo of Ray Kelly

Ray Kelly is a 46 year old accountant who lives in Penn Hills. Sitting outside of a Five Guys restaurant in Market Square he told us how he felt about the events concerning the Antwon Rose shooting. Antwon Rose was a seventeen year old student who attended Woodland Hills High School. Rose was a passenger in a car that was pulled over on June 19. Rose and another passenger began to run away from the seen which led to Rose being shot in the back which ended his life. These are the questions given and answers Ray Kelly gave.

Question: How do you feel overall about the Antwon Rose shooting?

Answer: He feels it’s a sad situation that should not be occuring as much as it is and his main concern is “Hoping society in general isn’t desensitized”. He also feels there needs to be better law enforcement.

Question: Why do you think that it happened in the first place?

Answer: “We have a serious problem in law enforcement”. Ray feels that the situation generates and starts with law enforcement.

Question: What do you think should be done to try and fix it:

Answer: It starts with the society and from that point we can “train officers to be more aware”. There also needs to be disciplinary actions taken as well as the society realizing the issue.