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The fiancee of Sean Bell officially changed her surname to "Bell". Nicole Paultre was supposed to marry Bell on November 25, but Bell was killed when police opened fire on him and two friends after his bachelor party. Paultre revealed that a civil court judge signed an order for Paultre to change her name to Nicole Paultre Bell in an exclusive interview with Essence.com.
ESSENCE: How does it feel to suddenly become the face of the police brutality issue?Paultre's lawyer revealed that the wedding rings Bell had in the car were retrieved with the help of the Queens DA's office (Bell was buried with his ring, Paultre wears hers).Nicole: I don’t think it’s really hit me. I see these things on TV, and we all know it’s wrong, but I never thought it would hit home in my life. I get a lot of support from strangers, and my family is 100 percent there for me. Famous people that I never thought I’d meet have contacted me through my attorney Sanford Rubenstein and Al Sharpton. I talked to Spike Lee just the other night. Hillary Clinton—I spoke with her and Mayor Bloomberg. Everyone sends their condolences and love. It’s very comforting to know that people care, people that don’t even know him. It helps. They give me strength. I also find strength in church and God.
ESSENCE: Many people were surprised to hear you say in the Larry King interview that you’re not angry. Can you explain?Nicole: I’m not angry with the entire department. It’s not the department that did this. It’s those five police officers; it’s them that need to be held accountable. A lot of people ask me about my saying I’m not angry, but they don’t understand that I have to focus my energy on other things besides anger.
am New York had some thought-provoking statistics about police shootings: In NYC, 11 people (including Sean Bell) were killed (and 31 people have been hit by police bullets); the NYPD has 35,000 officers. And that's lower than in Las Vegas, where 12 people were killed by the 2,100-officer LVPD and in Philadelphia, where 19 people have been killed (the PPD has 6,600 officers). While the statistics show that police shootings are steady, it would be helpful and more enlightening for the NYPD to reveal how many times the police have fired their weapons.
More:
- The NY Sun has an extensive article about Bell and his life beyond the night of November 25; for instance, he was once a top-ranked high school baseball player in the North East and met Mayor Giuliani in 1999.
- The NYPD has turned over the ballistics report to the Queens DA's office.
- And one of the witnesses to the shooting was arrested for disorderly conduct. Lorenzo Kinred was later released, but his lawyer criticized the police for being uncooperative as Kinred was being processed.
Photograph of the makeshift memorial outside the Kalua Lounge where the shooting took place by Adam Rountree/AP
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I assume that means that 11 have been killed by the NYPD, 12 by the LVPD and 19 by the PPD this year?
Nicole Paultrie Bell seems like an amazing woman. So much hardship, and yet she remains logical and fair.
Agreed, Jen. She's completely right in that the focus of anger should be towards those officers, not the whole department.
50 ShoTS!! We demand just... Waitaminute, this context would make my post make sense. never mind.
Her focus is not the 5 officers—Good. But the community and its leaders like Sharpton have focused on the entire NYPD i.e. the march of protest of the entire NYPD just the other night in front of NYPD Central Command in Manhattan.
Since when is protesting against the law?
Oh wait, it is with the NYPD.
Give it a rest. Leave her alone.
Wow - she seems to be so level-headed and well-spoken in such a terrible time; it's comendable. Hopefully she won't let Sharpton corrupt her sensibilities.
she seems to be so level-headed
Well, except for the whole 'taking the name of a dead guy' thing.
jpe, it's about love.
I think the statistics and numbers are quite clear Gothamist. NYC: 8 million residents, 35,000 police officers...If you follow up on the ratios in the other cities mentioned in the am ny piece, I think you have a pretty clear picture of what your looking for.
I think she is a strong women and she do have children that she need to be there for. Just keep your head up I know things seems to be hard but God will always be there to have your back, keep him first and he will always keep you.
I am appauled at what has happened to another black man once agaig. However, it does not surprise me;the thought that this continual murdering of black men in america somehow hit's home. I worry about my thirteen year old nephew and the challenges that he might face, growing up in a racist, gunhoe society. I asked myself a question? " Do white males get shot in their backs, and Do white males suffer from poliece discrimination in their neighborhoods." tThe only ansewrs that I kept getting was No, No, No. Something is clearly wrong with this picture. Black people from all walks of life need to come out and demostrate to help promote the fight for justice. I will be marching on Dec, 16th and I will get to voice my opinion as well as facts. To Nicole I say " keep your head up because we all know that one day the whole wold will get justice starting from the Indians that had their land stolen, the Africans that were stolen and soled into slavery, the Jews that were put in concentration camps and the other minority classes that suffered by Euro Americans. In the end justice will prevail. God bless you and your family.
NICOLE, WORDS CAN'T EXPRESS THE HEARTAHCE AND PAIN THAT YOU'VE ENCOUNTERED ALL I COULD SAY IS PRAYERS AT NIGHT FOR YOUR FAMILY. I CAN'T SAY NOTHING TO MAKE YOU FEEL BETTER BUT TO LET YOU KNOW NOW SEAN IS AN ANGEL WATCHING OVER YOU AND YOUR TWO BEAUTIFUL LITTTLE GIRLS. I JUST HOPE THAT JUSTICE IS DONE, AND YOUR FAMILY CAN GET THE ANSWERS IN WHICH YOUR AWAITING. BUT I'M 19 CAN EVEN THOUGH ON THE NEWS WE SEE SAD THINGS, THIS HAS GOT TO BE THE SADDEST AND HONESTLY, REALLY TRUTHFULLY BROKE MY HEART. IF I COULD GET AN EMAIL OF THE ADDRESS OF YOU CHURCH IN WHICH YOU ATTEND, AYBE SOME WARMFUL POETRY, OR MONEY FOR THE GIRLS. BUT BETTER OFF JUST SSOO YOU COULD KNOW I'M KEEPING UP TO DATE WITH THIS DAILY. MY GOD BLESS YOU ALL AND TRY AND HAVE A SAFE MEMORIAL HOLIDAYS.