The desire to kick him would be extreme after the chase however to do so makes you no better then him, my opinion.
Very easy to Monday morning quarterback when its not YOUR life on the line chasing criminals.
I dont judge what soldiers do in a war zone because I am not there...I dont judge what prison guards do to keep order because I am not locked on the inside with hardened felons. those that haven't walked in an officer's shoes should be slow to judge.
Cops make bad decisions too...but their career should be judged on their body of work, not what they did in the heat of battle for one second, on ONE occasion.
I agree with both of these statements. I was not there so I Will not pass judgement. However the officer's covered the view after the kick and I saw no "blows to the kidneys". I might have missed something but I didn't see that. I think it is a bad practice to start the nit picking after a video clip, hind sight is 20/20. On the other hand txinvestigator is right in the sense that we cannot let LE carryout punishment street side, that is what courtrooms are for.Re: My earlier post...
I was making a broad statement about judging police, not saying this guy was right or wrong. I don't know the specifics of this case, or what the suspect was saying that couldn't be heard.....or any other number of variables. Therefore, I will withhold judgement.
Yeah, That's goona probably cost him his job. It should.
Probably will, but you know what? The punk deserved it. I was watching that chase go on on live TV (in the L.A. area right now) yesterday, and that got nearly cost the lives of several police officers and civilians during the 45 minute chase. It was a bad call on the officers part...atleast to do it in public....he should've waited till he got to the station IMO. The punk ass deserved alot more than that.
Did he deserve it? Yes
Is this still America? Who knows...
In my unit they caught an iraqi planting IED's along the road. Prior to that week an IED had taken the life of a soldier & severly maimed another on that same road. When they caught him it was it was something ugly. I'll say no more.
Very easy to Monday morning quarterback when its not YOUR life on the line chasing criminals.
I dont judge what soldiers do in a war zone because I am not there...I dont judge what prison guards do to keep order because I am not locked on the inside with hardened felons. those that haven't walked in an officer's shoes should be slow to judge.
Cops make bad decisions too...but their career should be judged on their body of work, not what they did in the heat of battle for one second, on ONE occasion.
On a personal level, as a fellow citizen; of course a police officer has the same rights as everybody else.
The thing is, on a professional level, nobody has these rights. At least nobody in the private sector.
This cop is pretty safe, though. You should see how powerful the laws in CA are when it comes to protecting public servants from any kind of accountability.
For what I saw on the video, I have a lot of trouble imagining justification to kick someone in the teeth in a situation like that.
For better or for worse, we are a nation of laws. Rule of Law > Mob Rule
I'm not anti-LE, although I may have given some here that impression. I'm all for everyone following the rules.
Hell, if I strangled everyone that deserved it...
The thing is, the officer should not have done that. I can not think of any scenario were that is acceptable, I'm all for the officer's due process tho. Like D said the BG probably deserved it, but it is not the officers place to deliver it. I do think that when you wake up in the morning (or whenever) and you pin that badge on no mater the badge weather it is law enforcement, fire fighter or a security officer, you have a responsibility to act professionally and responsibly, the officer in question did not do that. He should get some kind of fair punishment. But what we as a general public tend to forget (and I've been guilty of this to) is that cops are people to and just like the rest of us they make mistakes. And if anyone would like to tell me they have not made a mistake I'll call bull shit before you finish talking.
So my question once again is this...if the criminal is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law...isn't the officer too???
I thought I made it clear in my post that I agree with you. I do think he should be on desk duty until there is a hearing. Read the last part of my post and you will see that I do hold the opinion that until the officer in question is given his day in court he is not guilty. I understand what you are saying. You are saying that the officer is innocent until his day in court, until the court says he is guilty he is not guilty. I get that. In my personal opinion he should be put on PIAD leave pending investigation. Only after the investigation can a verdict be reached. Or in this case his superior officer will or will not pass punishment. Who knows the home owner could have just watered the yard, and the officer really did slip. I understand that there are variables that you just can't see on that clip.More than likely you are right that he should not have done that.....that having been said <sigh> why are we passing judgement based on a short video clip, without knowing all the surrounding facts. Based on the guy running from him, we can assume he is guilty of evading arrest....but he is NOT guilty until a court says so.
My point was not that the cop should kick him in the face, or that he shouldn't be riding a desk until his case is heard, but that the cop should get the same due process as the criminal....
these posts keep stating that cops have to keep their cool, and they are all correct. my point is something entirely different....
Example: The ACLU often crows about "innocent until proven guilty!!!".....and in the same breath will state how the cop used excessive force and needs to be fired....it seems as though when you put on the badge, your case is heard by the court of public opinion, not a court of law.
So my question once again is this...if the criminal is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law...isn't the officer too???
I thought I made it clear in my post that I agree with you. I do think he should be on desk duty until there is a hearing. Read the last part of my post and you will see that I do hold the opinion that until the officer in question is given his day in court he is not guilty. I understand what you are saying. You are saying that the officer is innocent until his day in court, until the court says he is guilty he is not guilty. I get that. In my personal opinion he should be put on PIAD leave pending investigation. Only after the investigation can a verdict be reached. Or in this case his superior officer will or will not pass punishment. Who knows the home owner could have just watered the yard, and the officer really did slip. I understand that there are variables that you just can't see on that clip.
Very easy to Monday morning quarterback when its not YOUR life on the line chasing criminals.
I dont judge what soldiers do in a war zone because I am not there...I dont judge what prison guards do to keep order because I am not locked on the inside with hardened felons. those that haven't walked in an officer's shoes should be slow to judge.
Cops make bad decisions too...but their career should be judged on their body of work, not what they did in the heat of battle for one second, on ONE occasion.
My point was not that the cop should kick him in the face, or that he shouldn't be riding a desk until his case is heard, but that the cop should get the same due process as the criminal....
these posts keep stating that cops have to keep their cool, and they are all correct. my point is something entirely different....
Example: The ACLU often crows about "innocent until proven guilty!!!".....and in the same breath will state how the cop used excessive force and needs to be fired....it seems as though when you put on the badge, your case is heard by the court of public opinion, not a court of law.
So my question once again is this...if the criminal is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law...isn't the officer too???