Remembering K. – By Danny Donovan – Mad Science #9

March 7, 2012 Danny Donovan 7 Comments

I wanted to go all out on this.

I wanted to put a big picture of N.W.A. and title this column “Fuck Tha’ Police.”

K would have been amused by that, but this is more important than tongue in cheek jabs and hip hop references. Kirill Deyakin went by many names “K”, “K.G.B.”, but regardless of what you called him, was my friend.

In April of 2011 K lost his life due to the negligible actions of a rogue police officer by the name of Steven D. Rankin. (the D is for “danger” oooh ahh scary)

K was a good kid. A Kazakhstan national (yes, like Borat) he came to this country on a student visa, like many kids in this town over the summer and winter months. He took a job at a local hotel and that’s where I met him.

He worked in the kitchen, I worked in banquets. He was a very smart, kind, quiet person that was always friendly, one of the few good people that worked in that horrible place. Always giving, and always with either a cigarette or beer/vodka in his hand, he reminded me of a Kazakhstan version of Hunter S. Thompson.

He worked hard, sometimes well over 40hrs a week. So he could send money home to his family, and yes so he could build a life for himself here,  in our supposed land of opportunities. He found and lost love, his girlfriend had kicked him out of the house, and he was going in-between living in his car and staying with friends.

One night he went out drinking after a 60hr work week to celebrate his Easter. As an orthodox Catholic his holidays were just a little bit earlier/later than ours. (Christmas is in January) He came back to the place he currently called home, three sheets to the wind, and found himself locked out.

He banged loudly on the door, to get the attention of his roommates, and because it was loud and late at night, cops were called. Officer Steven D. Rankin was the first and only person on the scene. Within moments of his arrival he shot K 11 times.

ELEVEN TIMES.

BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG

The officer would later say that K ’charged’ at him, and that he had his hands in his pockets and it appeared that he was going for a weapon.

The facts of the case however is that K was about 150lbs soaking wet, tall and lanky, and he had a blood alcohol content of about a 2.0, He could barely stand on his own, let alone charge. If he had even taken a step in the officer’s direction it would have been to try to hear what was being said. K didn’t speak English all that well, and he was in fact, drunk.

Forensic scientists will show that K was shot through one of his hands, yet there were no bullet holes in his pants proving his hands were up, not in his pockets at the time, and in plain view as a result of the assassination.

K was not unknown to officer Rankin, in fact his friend was dating K’s ex at the time and said friend had said publicly in a bar days prior to K’s death, “he’s going to get what’s coming to him” in regards to the fact K was trying to reconcile with his ex.

I can’t imagine what it was like for his mother, who spoke no English to come to this country to view her son on a metal slab, riddled with bullet holes. I can sympathize with his brother, after losing mine to suicide later that year, but I will never be able to know the kind of pain and anger to know that the person who took your brother is still wandering the streets.

Yes, Rankin is still a member of the Portsmouth City Police Department in Portsmouth, VA. He was ‘investigated’ and it was dropped for some reason…

This man, (if you can call him that.) who cold bloodedly killed a kid, who’s facebook hosted a picture of an African American being lynched with the caption reading “Mommy, can we go out and kill tonight?” and his collection of semi-automatic weapons, and assault rifles, is still a cop.

This man, (if you can call him that) who taunted posters on news articles concerning his accusation and trial with statements like “money won’t bring their son back” and other jingoistic commentary, is still a cop.

K’s family tried to pursue the case in civil court, but sadly lost because the defense had the trial moved to another city, away from where Rankin served, and K died.

You would think if Rankin was such an ‘upstanding public servant’ you’d want to have your trial in the city you serve, but no, the trial moved to Norfolk and the lies heaped on.

They would paint K as a burglar.

(who apparently was trying to break into his own home if that makes any sense)

They would paint him as a dangerous foreigner, as an alcoholic, (not as a 25 year old kid who occasionally enjoys a wild night)  and they portrayed the monster in the badge as some sainted cop that was just doing his duty to take out this dangerous skinny kid, that could have been disabled with one hand and blindfolded.

The Portsmouth City Police Dept. is one of the most corrupt departments in the country. It’s members have been accused of sex trafficking, drug abuse, and operating a child porn ring. We need to take our community back from people who think that they can just do whatever they want as long as they wear a badge.

During that kerfuffle in Georgia (the country not the state) John McCain said “We’re all Georgians now.” Well in this matter “We’re all  Kazakhstani now.”

I have started a petition on Change.org I’d appreciate it if you all could sign it.,

http://www.change.org/petitions/justice-for-kirill-denyakin

RIP K. You were a good man, and you will be missed.