Jason Johnson was quoted in The Grio story “White West Virginia man kills innocent black neighbors” regarding the case of Rodney Bruce Black, charged with murder after he shot and killed Garrick and Carl Hopkins, Jr. with a rifle while the two men were inspecting a building on a piece of land that was newly-purchased by Garrick Hopkins and his wife.
Some experts see this case as part of a pattern in which African-Americans often fall prey to accidental shootings by people of other races.
“This is just textbook racism,” Dr. Jason Johnson told theGrio. He compared this latest death to the case of 19-year-old Renisha McBride, who was shot and killed by a neighbor while seeking help after an accident, and that of Roy Middleton, who was “shot by police in his own driveway because a white neighbor called the cops,” Johnson said.
Middleton survived the altercation, but for the professor of political science and communication at Hiram College, these occurrences point to a lack of public safety for African-Americans.
“The stories go on and on,” the frequent MSNBC commentator on race continued. “Clearly there are some Americans who believe it’s open season to shoot and kill black people.”
In the case of McBride, her killer Theodore Wafer stated that he shot her through a locked screen door in self-defense, because he felt threatened. It was later reported that McBride was under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time of the shooting. Wafer has been indicted with second degree murder and manslaughter charges, but authorities maintain race will not be considered by the prosecution.