Time to put a stop to police brutality

[Ugnmoose]

As evidence by the Rev Yearwood incident yesterday the degree of force being exercised by our police officers has gotten way over the top. Yes police do have a right to protect themselves, but it does not require 6 officers to subdue a non-violent man who is not threatening them with harm. This kind of abuse of power has to stop. And the only way to stop it is to video tape every opportunity to document it such as was done on You Tube. Then sue their asses off. When municipalities start having to pay large awards for this unbridled abuse they will muzzle their cops. By the way, I would love to see Yearwood's case go to a jury of his peers in D.C. It would never happen because no DA in his right mind would ever try this case. I hope they get the ACLU all over this one.

[Mythsaje]

1. My point exactly...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=226&topic_id=5747&mesg_id=5747

[Buzz Clik]

2. You don't understand. The good reverend cut in line. He had to be stopped.

He's fortunate that the police didn't use lethal force.



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(please don't tell me I have to use the sarcasm smilie....)

[Jed Dilligan]

3. I think the problem is more structural and can't be dealt with

through policy change in existing departments. It's time to put an end to local police in general. There should just be state police assigned to cities and other areas according to need. Right now we have over-policed areas where the deployment is just a soft path to racial and economic segregation, and under-policed areas controlled by criminal gangs. Does it make sense to let people with more money buy more policing for themselves? This is a lethal tool of state power and we allow it to be controlled by local elites. That's feudalism, and it will get worse and worse as the dismantling of other parts of the state continues.

[LakeSamish706]

4. I agree with you, in Canada they have the RCMP that is a Federal force..

throughout the land, and far fewer problems seem to result. There are some Provincial police, but most small communities are policed by the RCMP.

[Jed Dilligan]

6. It's much easier for a central authority to produce uniform standards

If there was a "culture of corruption" in a state police force it would take one assiduous governor to end it. The thousands of local cultures of police corruption around the US each depend on a different authority to end them, unless we take them all in hand at once and build a stronger command and oversight structure.

[KG]

5. like the military, police force are trained to serve power, not protect their fellow citizens

[Jed Dilligan]

7. Kick

I want to see more eyes on this thread.