美国国家公共电台 NPR Protests In St. Louis After Ex-Cop Acquitted In Anthony Lamar Smith Murder Case

 

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

People are again protesting in the streets of St. Louis. They're angry over the death of a black driver at the hands of a white police officer.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Chanting) Whose streets?

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) Our streets.

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Chanting) Whose streets?

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) Our streets.

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Chanting) Whose streets?

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) Our streets.

CHANG: Whose street; our streets, they chanted. The shooting happened six years ago, and just this year, prosecutors¹ charged the officer with first-degree murder. And today he was found not guilty. St. Louis Public Radio's Willis Ryder Arnold reports.

WILLIS RYDER ARNOLD, BYLINE³: It was in December of 2011 that St. Louis Officer Jason Stockley and his partner suspected Anthony Lamar Smith was dealing⁴ drugs outside of a fast food restaurant in North St. Louis. Smith drove away, and Stockley and his partner gave chase. During the pursuit, a dash cam recorded Stockley telling his partner he'd kill Smith. He then told the other officer to ram⁵ Smith's vehicle. Stockley got out of the vehicle, went to Smith's window and fired five shots, which turned out to be fatal. Initially⁶ the officer wasn't charged with a crime. Stockley, who's no longer on the force, had a bench trial before Circuit Court Judge Timothy Wilson that ended last month. The city's been on edge ever since that time.

In today's verdict, Judge Wilson wrote, quote, "this court, as a trier of fact, is simply not firmly convinced of the defendant's guilt²." Wilson's verdict also says the state did not prove that Stockley acted beyond a reasonable doubt of self-defense and that Judge Wilson saw no proof of Stockley planting a gun in the car. Prosecuting⁷ attorney Kimberly Gardner says her office presented a case that showed Stockley was guilty.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

KIMBERLY GARDNER: We cannot let the naysayers and guardians⁸ the status quo let us miss this opportunity to seek real change.

ARNOLD: Smith family attorney Al Watkins says he's appalled⁹ by the judge's decision. He finds Stockley's story of the shooting difficult to believe.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

AL WATKINS: I'm sorry. I don't buy it. I don't buy it for a heartbeat.

ARNOLD: Immediately following the verdict, protesters took to the streets in downtown St. Louis.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Chanting) Whose streets?

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) Our streets.

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Chanting) Whose streets?

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) Our streets.

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Chanting) Whose streets?

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) Our streets.

ARNOLD: Protester TK Benson says the verdict should be a catalyst¹⁰ for recognizing the deep-seated racism¹¹ in the judicial¹² system.

TK BENSON: To say that it is heartbreaking would be too much of an understatement. But this generation of black people need to wake up and realize that the system has proven time after time after time that it is against us when it comes to stuff like this.

ARNOLD: Like the protests that erupted in Ferguson following Michael Brown's shooting death at the hands of then-Officer Darren Wilson, activists¹³ vowed¹⁴ to protest throughout this weekend and into the coming weeks if necessary. For NPR News, I'm Willis Ryder Arnold in St. Louis.

1 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

2 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

5 ram   

(random access memory)随机存取存储器

参考例句：

• 512k RAM is recommended and 640k RAM is preferred.推荐配置为512K内存，640K内存则更佳。

6 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

7 prosecuting   

检举、告发某人( prosecute的现在分词 )； 对某人提起公诉； 继续从事（某事物）； 担任控方律师

参考例句：

• The witness was cross-examined by the prosecuting counsel. 证人接受控方律师的盘问。
• Every point made by the prosecuting attorney was telling. 检查官提出的每一点都是有力的。

8 guardians   

监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者

参考例句：

• Farmers should be guardians of the countryside. 农民应是乡村的保卫者。
• The police are guardians of law and order. 警察是法律和秩序的护卫者。

9 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 catalyst   

n.催化剂，造成变化的人或事

参考例句：

• A catalyst is a substance which speeds up a chemical reaction.催化剂是一种能加速化学反应的物质。
• The workers'demand for better conditions was a catalyst for social change.工人们要求改善工作条件促进了社会变革。

11 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

12 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

13 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。