The illusion of freedom

 The illusion of freedom

Everyone seems to be overlooking why African American men continue coming out on the losing end when confronted by police.  We all have what is commonly referred to as a Survival Instinct. I Googled it. It is the Ability to know what to do to stay alive. As a teenager growing up in Philly, I was taught to defend myself.  I was also taught 

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness

This presents a problem, especially when suddenly you realize you are not really free. One minute you are driving along and the next you are forcefully drugged from your car and are expected to willingly allow yourself to be physically restrained by men who are intent to do you harm. This unexpected turn of events goes against everything your instincts tell you to do. 

I have never been cuffed but as a teen I came close twice. Once you are handcuffed, any illusion of freedom goes out the window. You are literally helpless. Why is it difficult, especially for police officers, to comprehend that basic fact? 

Pew Research Center

Most gun owners say they own guns for protection

Similarly, Pew found that two-thirds of gun owners cited protection as a major reason for owning a gun. 

Gallup Poll

 In a Gallup survey conducted in August 2019, gun owners were most likely to cite personal safety or protection as the reason they own a firearm. 

In short black men do not run from the police out of fear of arrest, they run out of fear for their safety and in some cases their lives.  Whether it is 5 cops or just one pissed off cop with a nightstick, mace, a taser and oh yes a loaded gun, the natural instinct would not to put your hands behind your back it would be to flee. We have got to find a better way. 

Deuce Excerpt

 Standing across the room with a stogie in his mouth and guns in both hands was Deuce.  He shouted across the room. 

“You guys okay” Once it was clear to Deuce that Steele and Stan were not injured he looked down at the dead bodies and remarked “I’ll tell you one thing; I give those bastards points for persistence and determination.”  

Steele’s heart was pounding.  Once again he had danced with death and lived to tell the tale.  Flirting with death was an occupational hazard that hadn’t gotten any easier over the years.  

Excerpt from Return of the Deadly Trio

 

“No Vance sorry I haven’t seen it but I need a favor.  Mikhail Romanov, I need to see the body or at least I need to see his wallet and whatever was in his pockets.  It could help me get to the bottom of this mess.”  Vance shook his head, “no can do Steele.”

Duce stood up from his seat and confronted Vance.  “Can’t or won’t?  You claim to be Sugar Bear’s friend but you don’t sound like one you sound like a cop.  If you don’t want to help us then get the hell out of here, you’re wasting our time.”

Duce’s words did not sit well with Vance.  He leap to his feet and stood toe to toe with Duce.  “Look here young blood; don’t let this grey hair fool you.  We can take this outside right now.”  Steele separated the men and clamed things down.  

“Look Vance, take my phone.  Use it to take pictures of what I need from the morgue and e-mail or text or however the hell you do it.  Send it to Stan, this way you don’t have to remove any evidence and technically you aren’t breaking any laws.”

Vance agreed to Steele’s comprise but decided to use his own phone so that he could delete the photos after he sent them to Steele. 

Alexander Steele and the Case of the Missing Men

 

Coming this spring. Alexander Steele and the Case of the Missing Men Excerpt: Shakia didn’t know whether to be angry at Stan for nearly getting Steele killed or relieved that her man was back home and on the mend. Everyone loved Shakia; she was a sweetheart, but when it came to nursing her man back to health was as fierce as a lioness protecting her cubs. Shakia’s new nickname was the gatekeeper. She felt that something needed to be done about the non-stop visits from Steele’s constant flow of friends and family. When Shakia decided to be Steele’s full-time nurse, she had no idea that his house would become Grand Central Station.

“Baby”

she said softly,

“you have bruised ribs, a mild concussion, and a sprained wrist. Don’t you think you need your rest?”

Shakia was very skillful in getting her point across. The answer was hidden within the question. Whenever Shakia said

“don’t you think”

She may as well have been saying this is what I think and you damn well need to get with the program. #kindlebooks #audible #africanamerican #books t.ly/sg3U

Alexander Steele on Audio Books

Alexander Steele and the Case of the Missing Men - Preview

Alexander Steele and the Case of the Missing Men

Coming soon

Preview

The mystery man’s gold necklace flickered against the moonlight.  His hair was cut close and starting to gray. The stranger’s thin mustache grew wider as he smiled.  

“You don’t know me, do you?”  

He tapped his black cane with the gold tip lightly on the ground.  Steele played it cool, 

“No, should I?  Are you somebody special?”  

The man’s soft chuckled morphed into an eerie sounding laugh.  

“I am the man who’s going to kill you, Alexander Steele.  I’m going to murder you just like you did my brother.”  

Steele was curious, he had been down this road before but this time was different.  The look in the stranger’s eyes said he met business, but what was he waiting for? If he wanted Steele dead this would have been the perfect time and place to carry out his threat. 

Audio preview of Death on the Delaware

Message from the Grave - Excerpt from The Deadly Ring

 

The Deadly Ring

from the Alexander Steele Murder Mystery Series

Chapter 2 

Message from the Grave

 

Alexander Steele took the Schuylkill Expressway and headed uptown to Chelten Hills Cemetery.

It was a quiet spring afternoon at the cemetery where bodies of the dearly departed rested.  

The one thing you could always count on at cemeteries was peace.  On this day, that peace would

soon erupt into a deadly encounter, an encounter loud enough to almost wake up the dead.

Steele felt uneasy.  Something was off.  The birds were singing and the sky was blue but there

was a chill in the air,  a sense that something was not quite right, a feeling that has kept him

alive through dozens of fatal cases.  He scanned the gravesite for anything that looked out of place

Steele couldn’t help notice how nervous the caretaker was as he watched the three gravediggers

milling around the new gravesite, waiting for the backhoe operator to maneuver the big yellow

machine into place. Steele caught a glimpse of flashing light from behind a tree on the north

mound about four hundred feet away for a brief moment. The reflection of the sun bouncing

off a watch or maybe eyeglasses from the uninvited guest in the distance.

Steele began making his way toward where he had seen the light flash.  When he reached the halfway

point, a short man in dark clothing bolted from behind a weeping willow and began running away up

the grassy mound as fast as he could. Steele was in hot pursuit. When the man with the glasses

realized he couldn’t outrun Steele, he turned suddenly, pulled out his gun. He fired three shots

in Steele’s direction. Steele dove and rolled behind an old gray, four-foot-high headstone in

one fluid motion and quickly drew his weapon. He crouched down behind the small granite

wall and carefully peered around the side. He noticed the gunman was still running further

up the mound. When the gun-toting attacker stopped at the top of the hill and turned to fire again,

Steele was ready

Alexander Steele Mystery Trilogy

Philly Murder Mysteries

Case of the Death Dealer - Audio Excerpt

 Late night at the Badlands