What can we do about the war on police?

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 19:37:29 -0500

I believe a time will come where some will take up arms against law enforcement in mass. We already see small pockets here and there. But there is a growing divide that is only getting worse. Two officers were murdered in NY. Not for just being officers but for the perceived wrongful death of someone at the hands of police. This clearly was a revenge attack. I fear this may grow in time. I have been in law enforcement in the past and by merely being a police officer you can be targeted. We have seen this time and time again. What is new is the revenge attack on police.

How did we come to this as a nation and how do we go back to a peaceful resolution? Will the military, possibly the National Guard, be affected as they may be used in a civil law enforcement capacity? Will that also hurl the military into the conflict of race with law enforcement?

Response by SPC(P) Jay Heenan made Dec 20 at 2014 8:13 PM

SPC(P) Jay Heenan — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 20:13:16 -0500

This is crazy! May God Bless our brothers in blue and keep them safe.

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 20 at 2014 9:53 PM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 21:53:14 -0500

It is shocking and senseless.

Response by SSG Tim Everett made Apr 8 at 2015 1:03 PM

SSG Tim Everett — Wed, 08 Apr 2015 13:03:21 -0400

I don't really support murder of anyone, barring a few exceptions on a case-by-case and intensely personal basis. So obviously I don't support the homicide of police officers for the sake of them being police officers.

However, there needs to be a shakeup in the mentality that goes on in police departments. I get that whole thin blue line thing, and closing ranks. I do. The same thing happens in many institutions, particularly one where you're called to the mat about every aspect of your job. But honestly, there needs to be a lot better job being done with regards to A.) stopping incidents that are highly questionable, highly suspect, and sometimes just downright blatantly obvious; and B.) fully investigating in a transparent matter, followed by stiff punishment. Sometimes criminal charges need to be filed.

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 8 at 2015 6:21 PM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 08 Apr 2015 18:21:19 -0400

I agree CPT Private RallyPoint Member, sadly. While I was an officer I witnessed an increase in hostility towards us...even when we had been invited someplace, not even there responding to a call.

Response by SSgt Randy Saulsberry made Apr 8 at 2015 11:08 PM

SSgt Randy Saulsberry — Wed, 08 Apr 2015 23:08:44 -0400

In order for the war on police to go away America needs to listen to the people that are the targets of police brutality and murder at the hands of the cops. For as long as black people have been free in this country they have clearly stated time and time again that the way the police treat us and interact with us in a completely different way. This is nothing new under the sun. It's only new to the majority population that doesn't have to worry about it, thanks to cell phone cams. I think that in this country there are groups of people that are at the bottom of the social ladder and for the most part Noone cares about the injustice they experience. This problem is bigger than the police it's in almost every aspect of our society. Predatory lending, blacks have complained about since the 80s but it wasn't until the recession, when it affected white people that the country cared. It's the same for civil forfeiture, unemployment, Healthcare, and education.

So in closing, to fix this America has to live up to what it preaches. Stop saying that we care about all our citizens and actually care about them.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 9 at 2015 3:57 AM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 09 Apr 2015 03:57:51 -0400

We all know good Cops who try to do the right thing. I think the problem lies with a distrust for the institution as a whole. Right or wrong, the actions of a select few have damaged our law enforcement's reputation with a large amount of our populace. Unconstitutional checkpoints and the unfortunate employment of our police as uniformed revenue collectors doesn't help either. Until this changes I don't see an improvement in relations between law enforcement and the civilian populace. The worst thing I have on my record is a speeding ticket and I will still turn off and take a different road if there's a cop behind me. It's far too easy to make an expensive mistake with them around.

Response by Sgt Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 9 at 2015 7:03 AM

Sgt Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 09 Apr 2015 07:03:25 -0400

I support our Nations Police. There is no single answer. Police are being trained to us force against Society , our Society in which many people are finding that they have almost no chance to live a normal life with dignity , happiness and success. Because the economic picture is poor. The President had never created a job in his life and never met his jobs council. Wall St. paid bonus money to Wall St. workers worth more or equal to the full amount paid in salary to the bottom 50% of Americas working poor last year. Point being our Nations people , educated with poor people & social skills are acting out in dangerous ways and the Police are attacking. **Your right there will be a show down , i for one will not partake**. Not in the way you mention.

Response by PV2 Violet Case made Apr 9 at 2015 7:59 AM

PV2 Violet Case — Thu, 09 Apr 2015 07:59:41 -0400

When I lived in a big City of Des Moines Ia they were doing meth everywhere it was horrible. But the police there will drive every block keeping pace with each other down each block and looking threw to the next block at each stop light to be sure the other officers car is in tune with them to keep better and closer range of one another. But for one the police officers must be dealt with just like civilian if it is truly a proven shooting without cause. We need to as citizens realize that in old fashioned terms one bad apple doesn't mean the whole basket is that way. Just tonight on the way home in our little town along the border we have a lot of border patrol who guard this area and can act exactly as police. I was talking to one who is a Christian friend last night and I told him if he is ever up near my house and needs to come here I am not afraid and will aide him. He said probably not needed they run by twos up here like they did in Des Moines even filling vehicles at the same time. But I live by a rule no matter who the person is even if family, you do the crime you do the time.

Response by PO1 Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 9 at 2015 11:28 AM

PO1 Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 09 Apr 2015 11:28:14 -0400

I am under the authority of The Lord, and The Lord calls us who are in Him to be submissive and respect the authority that He has appointed over us, to obey the law, and respect those in authority.

Response by PO3 Steven Sherrill made Apr 9 at 2015 12:15 PM

PO3 Steven Sherrill — Thu, 09 Apr 2015 12:15:39 -0400

Two wrongs don't make a right. I feel bad for the decent police officers who want to serve their communities, make them safer, and then go home to their families. When these stories come out depicting abuse of authority, questionable use of force, shooting of an unarmed suspect, etc. it just makes the job of the 95% of LEOs that do a good job that much more difficult.

I hate seeing an officer abuse their authority. It just angers me to no end. I think that they should be sent to a desk pending investigation. Should the investigation show that they did abuse their authority, they should be terminated immediatley on the spot with a permanent record showing that they were terminated for abuse of authority so that they cannot work in Law Enforcement again. Should the investigation show that the abuse crossed into a violation of civil liberties, then the officer should be forced to pay restitution for any costs incurred as a result of their action. Should their action cross over into criminal offense, they should be prosecuted. If convicted they should go to jail. The investigation should be conducted by a panel made up of private citizens and Law Enforcement Officers.

I think that free press is important, but they should be required to vet what they are saying against FACTS before going on air with it. They are in such a hurry to break the story that they don't bother fact checking first, then go on with a half baked story. People see it, and first impressions are made. There is a reason " YOu never get a second chance to make a first impression" is a cliche. It is because it is true. So a media story with half the facts can be the catalyst for an entire event to explode.

Response by SFC Collin McMillion made Apr 9 at 2015 7:26 PM

SFC Collin McMillion — Thu, 09 Apr 2015 19:26:02 -0400

I was in law enforcement several years, enjoyed it, and hope I did my job correctly at least 98% of the time, but we all mess up. Would love to be there again, difference being I would be in body armor from hair to toenails.

Response by SSG Lloyd Becker BSBA-HCM, MBA made Apr 10 at 2015 3:21 AM

SSG Lloyd Becker BSBA-HCM, MBA — Fri, 10 Apr 2015 03:21:01 -0400

When the police start getting back on the track of being a public servant, things will change. Perceptions and reality have a fairly large line drawn in the sand. Until the police begin to understand that, police personnel will be assisinated, or ambushed.

With what is going on around the country with unecessary shootings, police personnel are not taking the hint that they may be next in the sights of the next shooter.

Police need to be taught that they are public servants and they serve the public, not themselves. Cops are having big egos because of the badge and the pistol they wear. They bring these problems on themselves. These people are not Wyatt Earp, or Elliot Ness. These two murdered in the name of the law.

Response by SFC Mark Merino made Apr 10 at 2015 9:48 PM

SFC Mark Merino — Fri, 10 Apr 2015 21:48:20 -0400

Cops are under enormous pressure and see the true evil in our society.My heart goes out to every single one of them. That being said, they are held to the highest standards that goes alng with that high level of respect. When one cop (out of the hundreds of thousands) goes rogue, all cops suffer. Before we call for all cops to wear 20 cameras, and get shot at 10 times before returning fire, I want to see the dirty cops get their day in court WITHOUT the media putting them on blast and getting the country full of rage. Many of us have seen societies that operated without law. That was the main reason I left fb.......idiots talking about shooting cops as payback. Do police departments profile? You bet your butt they do. We do the same in combat. Does it make us racists when we are ready to put 2 in the chest and one in the head to someone who has the potential to blow us away? Well, call me what you will. However, if I take out someone and can't justify the shoot, I expect that hammer to come down......hard.

Response by CPT Ahmed Faried made Jun 5 at 2015 10:31 AM

CPT Ahmed Faried — Fri, 05 Jun 2015 10:31:48 -0400

There is no war on Police. This is a false narrative that aims to cloud over the legitimate issues of poor training, bad decision-making and sometimes unqualified personnel being employed as Officers. In fact the rate of Officer deaths has been falling in recent years. But what we can do to head of a boiling point is to demand accountability when bad officers commit crimes. The thin blue line should throw the bad apples over the wall.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 11 at 2015 3:17 PM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 11 Jun 2015 15:17:46 -0400

I personally believe that the media, and sites such as copblock are to blame for this recent surge of violence toward police. The media is to blame because they are chumming the waters with misinformation and avoiding the facts so they can generate panic and chaos for profit. I blame copblock because that is far from an "educational" site. It only takes a few minutes reading post to see that frequently these O2 bandits make terroristic threats toward police. And the half wit followers read those post and think that it is accepted behavior. And finally, yes even the police have some policing up to do. Every orginization and profession has those special idiots that somehow squeaked through...... and it only takes a kid with a smart phone to make one of those special idiots a youtube sensation. Good cops hate bad cops as much as anyone. They give them all a bad name. And as an example the S.C. shooting, it did not take long for a large number of police to come forward call BS on that shooting. BUT a huge issue is that most of the critics out there have never served in that job before have unrealistic expectations of their police. They have watched too many movies and think that police can shoot moving targets in the hand while diving behind cover. And they are quick to criticize the reaction or response taken by the police while they sit safely in their lounge chair. It is easy to expect more restraint from the police when it's not their life on the line.

Response by PO1 John Miller made Jun 12 at 2015 2:31 AM

PO1 John Miller — Fri, 12 Jun 2015 02:31:35 -0400

Maybe there are good cops, but that doesn't get addressed by the media. What does get addressed, whether it is in the minority or not, is police brutality, unnecessary force, unlawful arrest/detainment, and unjustified shootings.

For example, this video. 2 alleged cops in plain clothes and plain car who refuse to fully identify themselves (no full names, no badge numbers) try to throw a 14 year old girl into their car because a 7 year old girl in her supervision allegedly pressed a call button on a police box. The community got involved and would not allow it, chasing these cowards away:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/05/18/1385618/-Must-See-Video-Police-try-to-illegally-detain-teenage-girls-women-bravely-rush-to-their-aid

Video captures police trying to illegally detain teenage girls, women rushing to their aid

Police, apparently from the 30th precinct near West Harlem in New York City, attempted to illegally detain two teenage girls from the community. As you will see in the video below the fold, these ...

Response by Cpl Mark McMiller made Jun 12 at 2015 3:30 AM

Cpl Mark McMiller — Fri, 12 Jun 2015 03:30:02 -0400

I have a lot of respect for good cops. However, having been the victim, myself, of a wrongful arrest by a ass clown wearing a badge, a former Marine as a matter of fact, I understand the frustration, distrust, and anger toward law enforcement. And the reason for that frustration, distrust, and anger is bad law enforcement. Since law enforcement caused the problem, they are the only ones who can fix it. And good cops don't do themselves any favors by protecting bad cops. When was the last time you heard of a police union admitting that a police officer actually did anything wrong? And how many times have cops wrongfully killed someone but then been protected from prosecution by municipal policies that prevent them from being prosecuted like you or I would if we had wrongfully killed someone. Just Google Erik Scott and read about how the badge wearing scumbags of the Las Vegas PD gunned this former West Point grad Army Major down for no reason and then lied, tampered with evidence and witnesses, and had a municipal process in place that effectively prevents police officers from being prosecuted for wrongdoing. It appears that Las Vegas PD has a long history of these types of shenanigans probably because they know they are immune from prosecution. It's the same in many other municipalities across the country. If the police want people to respect them, they have a lot of cleaning up to do.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 11 at 2016 12:06 AM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 00:06:29 -0400

I wrote this two years ago and sadly it is going the way that I thought it would.