Here’s Alton Sterling, the guy they’re making a cause celebre out of.

• 9/09/96 aggravated battery
• 10/31/97 2nd degree battery
• 1/06/98 simple battery
• 5/04/00 public intimidation
• 9/20/00 carnal knowledge of a juvenile
• 9/04/01 domestic violence
• 5/24/05 burglary of an inhabited dwelling place
• 7/11/05 receiving stolen things
• 9/12/05 burglary of inhabited dwelling place
• 3/17/06 simple criminal damage to property, simple robbery, simple theft, drug possession, misrepresentation during booking, simple battery, aggravated battery
• 4/12/06 aggravated battery, simple criminal damage to property, disturbing the peace, unauthorized entry
• 4/04/08 domestic abuse battery
• 6/03/09  resisting an officer, drug possession, receiving stolen things, possession of stolen firearm, illegal carrying of a weapon with CDs,       sound reproduct without consent
• 10/12/09 illegal carrying of weapon, marijuana possession
• 8/13/15 failure to register as a sex offender
• 4/08/16 failure to register as a sex offender
• 6/14/16 ecstacy and marijuana possession

None of that makes it OK if the cops shot him while he was subdued. And that’s the argument here; if he was subdued at the time he was shot, it’s a bad shooting and the two cops involved, Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake II, need to face criminal charges for it.

But if not, and he was actually reaching for the gun he had on him, which would have been an illegal gun and it wouldn’t be the first time he had an illegal gun on him when the cops arrested him (and it wouldn’t be the first time he was resisting arrest, either), then there isn’t much to argue about here.

What this arrest record shows is not the story the family and the “community” is trying to paint, of a “misunderstood” poor father trying to earn a living selling CD’s. He got arrested three weeks ago on drug possession – that’s hardly somebody trying to turn his life around. His arrest record shows that, charitably, he was a wannabe drug dealer but wasn’t very good at it.

And since he knew that gun was illegal and he was likely to be off to jail for a good while for having it, you can understand struggling with the police. Not to mention that if he was arrested three weeks ago for possession of ecstasy, you now have at least something to speculate about as to why he could be tazed and it wouldn’t even affect him. We know that gang-bangers use ecstasy, or a form of it called thizz which is something akin to crystal meth, as fuel for street violence, and it’s often mixed with marijuana for maximum effect. There was even a sizable drug case involving a rap label that was apparently a front for an ecstasy ring a few years ago.

Again, not a whole lot of this matters where the shooting is concerned unless the cops had a reasonable suspicion he was trying to get his gun.

Follow all the Alton Sterling controversy here at The Hayride:

‘Nation Of Islam’ Rep Orchestrating Mall Of Louisiana Boycott After Alton Sterling Death

Five People Found Dead Across Different Parts Of New Orleans; Will Dept Of Justice Investigate This?

VIDEO: Brass Band And Dancing Outside Store Where Alton Sterling Was Shot In Baton Rouge

VIDEO: Four Men Violently Carjack New Orleans Couple At Gunpoint – No National Outrage?

There Were Ferguson-Style Demonstrations In North Baton Rouge Last Night…

UPDATE: John Bel Edwards Just Asked DOJ To Investigate The Alton Sterling Case

The Second Video