Guess
what – more civil disorder, thanks to a second instance of prosecutors
inexplicably (?) unable to bring indictments against allegedly misbehaving
police officers. Shortly after the
Ferguson debacle – even protested in New York City – NYC itself wound up
embarrassed after a cop walked free after apparently choke-holding a black man
to death – on camera, no less. Eric
Garner, Public Enemy #1, was investigated for bootleg cigarettes. Clearly a very dangerous man.
Indictment. This isn’t a conviction, this is merely an
official criminal accusation, for which the standard is extremely low,
“probable cause.” Every state has a
different criminal procedure, so the specifics vary widely, but generally an
indictment is something any prosecutor can get if he asks for it, ESPECIALLY if
there is anything close to strong evidence – e.g. videotape – of a crime being
committed. The indictment would fail
only if there was practically no evidence at all. Mind you, the defendant doesn’t have to be
implicated beyond a reasonable doubt, that standard is reserved for trial. The indictment is merely an accusation.
Given
how easy it is to secure one, how do we explain the prosecutor in Ferguson, Mr.
McCulloch’s, apparent failure to do so against police officers not once but
FIVE TIMES, including this one? Perhaps
it’s because his father was a cop, killed in the line of duty. Perhaps it’s because he wanted to be a cop
himself. Perhaps it’s because he’s a
prosecutor, and as such works with and for cops every day. To expect this man to be objective and go
after a police officer accused of killing a criminal is just too much.
I
don’t know about the prosecutor in the Eric Garner case, but even Judge Andrew Napolitano,
a conservative talk show host, wondered why that indictment failed. At least this should go to trial.
Mind
you, the prosecutors in Florida, who were sympathetic to Zimmerman and
reluctant to press charges, at least brought that case to trial. The same holds true with the Rodney King
trial of officers (Koon, Powell, Briseno & Wind) in April 1992 (that
travesty appears more the fault of the Simi Valley jury and less that of the LA
prosecutors). To not even get an
indictment smacks of extreme corruption.
Personally,
I don’t know for certain if Officer Wilson is innocent or guilty. That would have been for a jury to determine,
beyond a reasonable doubt, at a trial.
Why would Michael Brown, who was apparently unarmed, attack Wilson? Why would Wilson shoot Brown, who was apparently
unarmed? Wilson’s story was that he was
immediately threatened by Brown, even to the point where he claimed Brown would
take his weapon from him. In that case,
why didn’t he shoot Brown in the arms?
Arnold to John Connor, after shooting a mental institution security
guard in the legs, even after Connor had specifically given the Terminator
orders “not to kill anyone:” “he’ll live.”
And how much times did he
shoot? Six? There are as many holes in Wilson’s story as
there were in Brown’s body. Plus, the
delay in picking up Brown’s body, the delay in filing reports, the delay in
disclosing Wilson’s identity, all elements which pile up and look extremely
unprofessional – as if the police department was in cover-up mode, because they
knew Wilson screwed up – big time.
Bottom line is that there was much more than enough evidence to satisfy
a probable cause standard, and thus an indictment, and thus a trial.
Now
we have the NYPD closing ranks around a cop, Daniel Pantaleo. Even after the police themselves (!!!) ruled
Garner’s death a homicide, somehow we’re deprived of even an indictment.
Christopher Dorner. You may recall the manhunt in LA for this “rogue”
LAPD officer who issued a rambling manifesto before being surrounded in his
cabin and taking his own life. According
to Dorner, he was fired from LAPD for making a false report against a fellow
officer, Evans, who he accused of beating a handcuffed, mentally ill
suspect. An LAPD investigation concluded
that Evans had not done so. Dorner
appealed the termination all the way up to the California Supreme Court, and at
each level the LAPD decision was affirmed.
Dorner’s manifesto alleged, among
other things, that (1) LAPD is extremely racist and that he was routinely
called a “nigger”, yet such activity was ignored and accepted; (2) that the
superiors at LAPD responsible for the Rodney King beatings were not only still
on the force, but had been promoted; (3) that LAPD does not hold its officers
accountable for mistreatment of civilians, closing ranks to protect its own –
Dorner’s crime was not filing a false report, but filing a report at all.
Unfortunately for Dorner, he also
saw fit to call out to various celebrities, e.g. Charlie Sheen, in what appears
to be an effort to solicit their support for his cause. The result, though, was that the celebrities
in question ignored him, and the press mocked him for doing so without
addressing any of the substantive issues raised in his manifesto. Without retroactively re-trying Dorner’s specific
case, certainly the events in the recent past indicate that Dorner’s complaints
about LAPD should be re-examined objectively.
Thin Blue Line. I saw this bumper sticker around fairly
often: a black rectangle with a thick blue line crossing horizontally in the
middle. This is a cop callout,
symbolizing the role of police in keeping law & order amidst the darkness
of crime in society. Often the police perceive
themselves as the only defenders of justice against a rampaging horde of
violent criminals. Is the black of the
rectangle also supposed to imply the race of their opponents? Possibly, but not necessarily. But
the cops consider themselves to be a sacred fraternity. Internal Affairs (the PD section responsible
for disciplining cops and wiping out corruption) seem to be pariahs. Ratting out a fellow cop is verboten.
Examine “Magnum Force” (1973), the 2nd “Dirty Harry” Callahan
(Clint Eastwood) film. A radical subset
of the SFPD, including officers portrayed by Robert Urich, David Soul, and Tim
Matheson, turn vigilante and begin taking out mob figures who somehow managed
to escape the criminal justice system. Assuming Callahan to be sympathetic, they attempt
to recruit him, without success. As
frustrated and disappointed as Harry might be with the obvious shortcomings and
inconsistent success of the system, he’s still sworn to uphold it
(notwithstanding chucking his badge at the end of the first movie).
“Serpico” (1973) is a similar story – although in this case, actually
true. In his case, Serpico was trying to
stop corruption in the NYPD, which was widespread and open. But no one helped him, he was ostracized, and
almost killed when his fellow officers refused to back him up on a drug raid in
a violent part of town; presumably he was “set up”.
Bad Cops. Every profession has its “bad apples”. There are bad lawyers, bad judges, bad doctors, bad accountants, bad chefs, bad talk show hosts, bad actors, bad interior designers, bad priests, etc. Cops are humans, humans are imperfect, and thus make mistakes, some not quite so honest. It used to be that if a cop went bad, an innocent person went to prison based on perjured testimony or phony evidence. Now it seems the court and prisons are cut out of the deal, and the bad cops simply fast-forward to being executioner as well.
The Bar takes attorney discipline extremely seriously. They do NOT want outsiders coming in to discipline their own, so they are scrupulous about weeding out bad attorneys. But it seems the police close ranks and protect their bad apples, shielding them from discipline and prosecution. The prosecutors do their part by weaseling the indictment procedure in favor of suspect cops. And the result is a police force which is no longer accountable to its own people. “To care and to protect” – but who protects us from them? Is this a good thing? Is the Thin Blue Line worth it? Many of us would disagree. Not all cops are bad, of course, but those who are should be held accountable.
Riots. After the King verdict was announced, LA
erupted in riots which lasted for 5 days and killed 63 people. “Dark Blue”, the movie with Kurt Russell,
features some of that. At the original
riots in Ferguson, the police made obvious use of military vehicles and
weaponry, compromising their legitimacy and helping Rand Paul’s chances in
2016. This time around the armored cars
and Urban Assault Vehicles seem to be stowed away – at least away from the
cameras.
On the other hand, the rioters
attack their own neighborhoods, loot their own stores, and help themselves to
merchandise which has no real connection to Brown’s shooting. I see the NYC protestors seem to be the more
Ghandi non-violent types, laying down, holding hands across the West Side
Highway, deliberately avoiding violent confrontation with the police but still
making a nuisance of themselves to everyone else in NYC. The indiscriminate violence of the Ferguson
crowd is liable to further entrench the Red State Reactionaries who take the
police at their word and firmly believe Wilson and Pantaleo must be 100%
innocent.
Civil Suits. Even without criminal charges or convictions, the victim’s relatives can still bring a civil suit against the police, for wrongful death. Since the civil action is completely different and has a much lower standard of proof – preponderance of the evidence – the lack of an indictment or conviction in the criminal case is not necessarily a bar to a civil recovery. Garner’s estate has filed a $75 million civil suit against NYPD; it is highly likely that Brown’s family will do so against the Ferguson PD. In addition to Federal charges and convictions against the same 4 LAPD officers, Rodney King successfully sued LAPD and won $3.8 million, something which no one ever seems to mention.
Solutions?
1) The most obvious is to use independent,
outside investigators and special
prosecutors to handle these matters.
The local DA cannot be trusted to do this. Should we act surprised when these clowns
cover for their cop buddies? Enough.
2) Federal charges. In some sense the Feds do this when they
come in and bring their own charges, as they did against the Rodney King
officers. Maybe Eric Holder can finally
be useful for a change.
3) Civil Remedies. Recall also, as noted above, that Rodney King
walked away with $3.8 million, so not only did he survive, he earned some
measure of justice. That’s $3.8 million
more than I have.
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