Police Abuse

18May/100

Over the past week I have seen several stories regarding the abuse, murder and harassment of citizens by local police forces. Serve and Protect has quickly become an outmoded euphemism, deserving of derision.

Just take a look at those three articles linked above.

In the first story, a SWAT team entered into a home, shooting at dogs with bullets ricocheting about the house while a mother was reading a bed time story to her young son in an upstairs bedroom. Police were looking for marijuana, which is legal to possess in that community - but the "suspect" was believed to have a whole bunch, apparently. What was he charged with? Possession of drug paraphernalia. He paid a $300 fine. That was certainly worth putting innocent people in mortal danger.

In the second story another police SWAT team burst into a home in Detroit, Michigan - this time looking for a suspected murderer and shot a 7 year old girl sleeping on the living room couch. They say it was accidental. Evidence shows otherwise. Of course, a suspected murderer should be arrested, and it would be reasonable to presume such a suspect dangerous. It would also be reasonable to wait until the man tried to leave the home and arrest him on the street where it's less likely that you might kill little girls. This would be reasonable to presume if you believed that the police were on your side.

In the third story, police in New York City are downgrading violent crimes so crooked politicians can look better statistically and harassing peaceable citizens to meet quotas. If you believe that my use of the word harassment is an attempt to steer the perception of my readers, consider this excerpt:

Officers were instructed to arrest people for "blocking the sidewalk," for not possessing ID (even while just feet from their homes), even for no reason at all (cops were told to "articulate" a charge at a later time). The cops were told to make arrests even if they knew they'd be voiding the charge at the end of their shifts. As a sergeant implores in one recording, "Again, it's all about the numbers."

About those numbers: While only about one tenth of 1 percent of the stops yielded a gun (at present it's nearly impossible to legally carry a gun in New York), the practice has helped drive up the city's marijuana arrests from 4,000 in 1997 to 40,000 in 2007. Marijuana for personal use was actually decriminalized in New York during that period. But you still can't display your pot in public. So the police simply stop people, trick them into emptying their pockets, and then arrest them for displaying marijuana in public.

If you can think of a better word than harassment, please let me know. I can think of a few, but they aren't suitable for family reading.

Once upon a time I believed that police officers were friends of the community. They were what stood between you and the bad guys. They put their lives on the line to keep the community safe. Today I no longer view local law enforcement as offering this protection. In fact, a loved one asked me the other day if I thought it was a good idea to teach her young son that police officers are safe in case he gets lost in a public place. I wasn't sure what to tell her. One would like to think that police officer would be more trustworthy than an average citizen, but does putting on a badge and carrying a gun really bestow that upon a personality? I am inclined to think it does not. The stories above prove it.

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