Who is Daniel Shaver's widow Laney Sweet? TikToker demands police reform revealing crisis after husband's death
Daniel Shaver's widow has come forward with claims of her entire family being in dire straits as a result of her husband's death allegedly at the hands of Arizona police. Posted by Laney Sweet from her Instagram account (@thebirthingtree) a few days ago, Shaver's widow begged for police reform in a video that has since gone viral.
“When will #DanielShaver’s story finally be heard? When will cops be held accountable? Why do they get lifetime pensions for killing citizens?” Shaver's widow, Sweet, asks her audience. "Can someone please tell me how is it possible in the United States of America that these police officers keep getting away with murder?” she asks, before providing a rundown of his death. "He’s collecting a pension for the rest of his life. Meanwhile, my daughters and I are losing our housing… and we don’t have a working vehicle. Tell me how this is justice.”
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Who is Daniel Shaver's wife?
Laney Sweet is the wife of a then-26-year-old man who had fallen on the floor and begged for his life, before he was fatally shot by Arizona cop Philip Brailsford. The shooting happened in the hallway of a La Quinta Inn & Suites hotel in Mesa, Arizona, five years ago in 2016. Police were responding to reports that Shaver had allegedly pointed a rifle outside his hotel room window, but neighbors had mistakenly interpreted Shaver showing the gun to others inside his room.
The alleged rifle had turned out to be a pellet gun used for Shaver's job as a pest control businessman. Shaver had complied with the cops, stepped out of his room hands raised before he laid down on the ground and attempted to fix his clothes when Brailsford shot him. Although charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter, Brailsford was acquitted at the time. In March 2018, the United States Department of Justice reopened the case and all possible civil rights violations by Brailsford were investigated.
@thebirthingtree When will ##DanielShaver’s story finally be heard? When will cops be held accountable? Why do they get lifetime pensions for killing citizens?
♬ original sound - Laney Sweet
Laney Sweet doesn't believe cop's 'PTSD'
The policeman was however reinstated to the Mesa Police Department in August 2018 in a reportedly “procedural” manner" in an “unfunded budge position with no pay or duties.” His post-retirement life saw him earn $2,569.21 monthly tax-free pension for life. Lawyers also claimed the then-28-year-old cop had PTSD from the encounter and the criminal trial that followed — something Sweet refuses to believe in a follow-up video she posted. Since Brailsford and his wife also filed for bankruptcy, Sweet and her family also had to give up any hope of monetary compensation from their lawsuit.
Claiming the city paid for Brailsford's bankruptcy, Sweet also alleged the cop "requested to keep the gun he used to murder [Daniel Shaver].” She then confronts, "Tell me, if you have PTSD from shooting and killing somebody, do you want to keep that weapon? Do you fight to keep that?” Sweet's videos have reached viral popularity on TikTok, although she maintains their car and housing situation are still dicey. In a GoFundMe fundraiser to 'Help Us Hold Mesa Police Department Accountable', Sweet writes "I have been encouraged to start a new GFM account to raise money for the immediate needs of my family." The fundraiser has been able to raise $78,705 out of its $150,000 goal.