When the Trayvon Martin case broke, a wise black friend of mine commiserated with me about how awful that case was, but he told me he was more concerned about police officers who have been killing young black men all across America.

I thought of his comment when I heard about Chavis Carter, a 21-year-old black man who was killed in Jonesboro, Arkansas, last Saturday night.

Police had pulled over the van he was in. They said they found marijuana in the van. They searched Chavis Carter twice, then they handcuffed him, and put him in the back of the squad car.

What happened next is highly suspicious: Chavis Carter died from a gunshot wound.

Police say he shot himself in the head.

That’s right. They say he managed to grab a gun, while handcuffed, after having been searched twice, and shot himself in the right temple, even though he’s left-handed.

His family isn’t buying that, and neither is the FBI, which is investigating Carter’s death.

Two police officers have been placed on administrative leave.

How this particular case will turn out I do not know, but what I do know is that too often in America, police are literally getting away with murder, especially when the victim is a young black man.

If you liked this story by Matthew Rothschild, the editor of The Progressive magazine, check out his story “How the New York Times Tries to Cover Its Ass on Glass-Steagall."

Follow Matthew Rothschild @mattrothschild on Twitter