In the Line of Duty

[AFTT47]

Besides, it's about time that police officers were recognized for their service and for their sacrifice other than having a "Fucking Cops"  thread made up about them.

There's room for both.

[Whateverist]

Where was your post for the numerous times that cops did the killin' Kinda silent on the home front for that weren't you?

Probably the same place your posts were for the numerous times when police officers were being murdered in the line of duty. Kinda silent on the home front for that weren't you?

What makes me wonder is why policemen close ranks and fail to speak out against the many terrible acts by their fellow officers. Have any spoken out publicly against it? That is the silence I find deafening.

[Jericho]

Hell, I'll speak out publicly about it, even though I am military police rather than civilian. What some police officers do is wrong, especially when they hide behind their badge and claim to know the laws. They are wrong to aggravate, assault, torment, and viciously apprehend people who haven't broken the law or have broken minor laws. They are wrong for escalating to deadly force when their lives are not truly at risk. They are wrong for misjudging a scenario and taking the wrong action, which could end in the death of innocent people. THEY ARE WRONG.

However, NOT ALL police officers do these things. For every one police officer that isn't performing their duties correctly, there are at least five who are. You do not have to believe me…you can even ridicule me for this post…but it is true. It hurts my heart to see people attacking innocent police officers for what guilty ones have done and are still doing. So please, continue to use the Fucking Cops thread of Min's to bring to light the evil that some police officers have displayed. And please allow this thread to remain and show how innocent police officers are brutally murdered for something that others did. Both are equally wrong.

End rant.

[Whateverist]

I certainly want to believe you are right and it is my own impression as well. That is why I wish more police unions and representatives would do more to speak up publicly as you have done here. Kudos to you for saying so.

[A Theist]

Besides, it's about time that police officers were recognized for their service and for their sacrifice other than having a "Fucking Cops"  thread made up about them.

There's room for both.

Not according to a couple of posters who weighed in on this thread, namely, Minifullofshitalist. He doesn't want the other side told. He wants everyone to believe that all police officers are bad and that all suspects, (especially if the suspects are black), are just innocent victims of the police. He doesn't want anyone to know that police officers put their lives in jeopardy everytime they wear their badges to protect the communities they serve.

In memory of Police Officer, Robert Wilson III. Killed in the line of duty, March 5, 2015

...from Pennsylvania was shot and killed on March 5 while conducting a security check of a video game store. Two men entered the store and announced a robbery and when Wilson announced his presence, he was struck three times during a shootout where more than 50 shots were fired.

https://www.odmp.org/officer/22401-polic...wilson-iii

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...For every one police officer that isn't performing their duties correctly, there are at least five who are.  You do not have to believe me…you can even ridicule me for this post…but it is true.  It hurts my heart to see people attacking innocent police officers for what guilty ones have done and are still doing.  So please, continue to use the Fucking Cops thread of Min's to bring to light the evil that some police officers have displayed.  And please allow this thread to remain and show how innocent police officers are brutally murdered for something that others did.  Both are equally wrong.

Kudos

[AFTT47]

For every one police officer that isn't performing their duties correctly, there are at least five who are.

It wouldn't surprise me if that number is true - as long as their duties do not include challenging the bad cops. But that's a huge issue. A bad cop is far worse than any criminal because he has the power of government behind him. If one of these good cops is keeping the petty criminals in line but allowing the bad cops to run amok, I don't know how much good he is.

[Cato]

 It hurts my heart to see people attacking innocent police officers for what guilty ones have done and are still doing.  

How innocent are they really? The problem with the gross lack of accountability for the bad actors is systemic, which includes the 'good' cops. They too are culpable to the extent they continue to sit back and not change the system from within. That's what needs to change and is the purpose of driving awareness Of police malfeasance.

What purpose is there in creating a police obituary page? The equivocation simply doesn't work. Does anyone doubt what happens when cop killers are caught? Making this a good cop vs. bad cop debate drastically misses the point. There are shitbags in any occupation, this won't change. It's the lack of accountability that's intolerable.

[Faith No More]

I agree that it's not really about the good and the bad. It's about how the system as a whole is broken.

Still, even though the system is broken, it's best not to forget that if we didn't have people putting their lives on the line like this, the system wouldn't exist.

[nihilistcat]

It's not really "cops" per se (cops don't formulate public policy, they don't fund or equip themselves, they don't hire themselves, they don't decide whether or not to prosecute themselves, and they don't even have very much input into the procedures governing their own job). It's THE WHOLE DAMN SYSTEM.

Sure, there's racist cops, stupid cops, incompetent cops, etc. (the same deficiencies we see in the general population). But the real problem is the system. Without a political realignment, a reconfiguration of government towards a participatory system of democracy, where local communities have a real ability to influence the public policies that affect their day to day lives, it won't matter how many video camera lapels we pin on police uniforms, people of color in urban communities (and other marginalized/disenfranchised groups) will always view police as more analogous to an occupying army rather than a police force designed to serve and protect their communities. I should note ... I'm not saying video lapels are a bad thing (studies show that they do reduce incidents of police violence), or we shouldn't demand justice when police actually break the law. But unlawful misconduct is not the only problem, in fact, it may not even be the primary problem. It's the laws and policies themselves that are the problem, and the configuration of the system that creates those laws and policies. 

Our system has simply become too detached from the people in whose name it serves. Power has been slowly sucked away from communities, and our political system has become overly centralized. Combined with increasing amounts of money swirling around our government, and we find ourselves in a situation where people have been virtually removed from the equation. This affects all Americans, but it's most acutely felt by more vulnerable communities. 

[AFTT47]

It's not really "cops" per se (cops don't formulate public policy, they don't fund or equip themselves, they don't hire themselves, they don't decide whether or not to prosecute themselves, and they don't even have very much input into the procedures governing their own job). It's THE WHOLE DAMN SYSTEM.

Granted. There are cops who will operate responsibly in whatever system they are placed in but there are plenty who will take full advantage to indulge their human weaknesses.

The FAA has one of the better systems for taking human weakness into account. When a pilot gets into an airplane, he or she is REQUIRED to pull out a checklist for that particular aircraft type, read it line by line and execute those instructions. It seems silly and burdensome - even for a recreational pilot. I know it by memory; I could practically do it in my sleep. But it is necessary to overcome human weaknesses. I can have a 'brain fart' and forget to check something critical. It's easy to do when I am complacent because I have flown hundreds of times and my mind is on something else. The checklist will prevent such a mistake. If I dutifully read each item and execute it as I am supposed to, I cannot forget a critical step. The checklist turns me into a robot.

Police departments need to similarly account for human weaknesses. There needs to be all kinds of rules, checks and balances to prevent an officer from abusing the power he or she has been given.

Those of us who are old farts like me will remember the 1960s TV series Dragnet about LA Police Officer Joe Friday. Friday was a robot to the point of comedy. So much so, a cinematic, comedy version of Dragnet was made - and it was funny! The the ironic thing is that Joe Friday may have been the ideal police officer. He did his job without emotion. He never used more force than was necessary, he never disrespected people and he never so much as offered an opinion as to the moral character of those he arrested unless such an opinion was solicited. The guy had all the personality of a filing cabinet - on duty at least - but that's probably exactly what a cop should be. A professional doing a negative but necessary job. Complete detachment. Don't judge because that's not your place. Do what you've been hired to do and keep your opinions to yourself.

That's not to say they shouldn't use their brain. You come upon a situation where somebody has technically committed a crime but you can see there was no intent of malice, you can reason that a warning is more appropriate than an arrest. But in no case do you disrespect, rough-up or violate the rights of the accused in any way. That isn't your place. The power you have been given is to be used to serve the public good - not to indulge your human weaknesses like your emotional opinion.