ICPPUL > Police > Unaccountable **

 

• even if they are fired, they are easily rehired somewhere else despite misconduct
• malignant loyalty: (gang mentality) police collegues, associations, and unions cover for the bad apples and go after the good ones.
  • Fellow police rarely step forward to deescalate a rogue officer: charge will be dropped, but the process is the punishment.
  • What should be expected from fellow officers when a fellow officer deliberately throws a handcuffed man on his head (on a driveway) and then jokes about it?  Do the other officers have any accountability to intervene?
  • Follow direction of superiors that violates constitutional rights, look for an excuse to bring charges, lest they be immediately admit culpability.  Sergeant is repeat offender with suggestions of racial animus.  Runs the “stop resisting” falsified witness routine.
  • They hold back exonerating evidence and are unwilling to contradict a superior that is wrong or report retaliation (by attempting to get fired by client).
  • When they knowingly falisify charges to cover for a false arrest, they exhibit consciousness of guilt and should face additional consequences.
  • Prosecutors have absolute immunity to bring knowingly false charges.
• The public is held to a much higher standard than fellow officers.
• charge or threaten unlawful “interference” charges and bait for non-physical interference, such as recording someone else’s detention and gaslight that they are protecting the detainee
• Many police departments force complaints to go through an intimidating complaint process
• qualified immunity — if there is not an exact precedent, qualified immunity makes police (and judges) above the law. Even in the case of a a police officer handcuffing, and then arresting a fireman attending to a highway accident victim, it took multiple hearings/trials: an initial trial on qualified immunity, appealing the case to a second appeals trial enable the police officer to be sued on the merits in a third trial. Police would not be so cavalier if they could be more easily sued for their actions.
• conflict-of-interest / weak self-investigations
• even when courts believe they have lied on police reports and perjury in court,  police get to plead to a lesser misdomeanor
• are intentionally difficult and obstructive of efforts to protest government action
• exclude non-corporate press that is not friendly with them
• no accountability for authoritarian retaliation: handcuffing man for laughing at the idea that he could be arrested and given a 6 month charge for unsigned registration card.
• When under investigation for assault and battery: for pushing old woman to the ground, they shmirk about it, then get paid time off
• Internal Affairs is not an effective check on officer wrongdoing
• almost never admit that they are wrong | The exception: enlightened supervisor
• refuse to admit they were wrong.  Instead say: “I don’t want to argue“
• Qualified Immunity is so out of hand that a fake police officer was granted qualified immunity because their was no precedent for a government employee impersonating a police officer and detaining someone using a police vehicle
• British police accused of impunity.
• refuse to answer / deflect
• refuse to identify
• try to prevent recording  (2)  or mute/ obstruct body camera
• organized concerted effort to keep people off-balance to crush dissent of police management of the poor (due to high inequality)
• Without a warrant, destroy camera, kick-in door.  Uses daughter’s name to get cooperation. Don’t respect the withdrawal of consent of homeowner and refuse to listen or take accountability for property damage
  • Every officer that takes any effort to block or diminish footage should be automatically terminated and charged with tampering with evidence. And they should be presumed to be hiding something.  They should also be barred from getting rehired as a police officer in another town or state.  Proposal: They should not be hirable in any other government position.
  • The second police disable security camera’s that should be a sign to the court, and jury that the police had intent to act outside the law and constitution, and revoke any immunities they have.
  • just another example that show our police force has been militarized— they no longer see themselves working FOR the people but actively AGAINST “the people.” They have an “us vs them” attitude, as if they are in a war zone. This is why they have no problem treating us like dirty bugs underneath their boots. Until we end qualified immunity and make officers carry private insurance (like medical doctors must do), this won’t get any better. Right now they face no personal consequences, no matter what they do or how criminal it may be. They MUST start facing consequences. Period.
  • What the f*** is SWAT doing without a warrant?
• try to intimidate or prevent filing of complaints  (2) (3)
• Trained not to say sorry because of the legal liability.
• A culture of silence over wrongdoing, exposed in a WIN
• use pretext of “safety” as catch-all excuse, including for authoritarianism
• They engage in Massive retaliation when corruption is exposed (using a honeypot)
• The only accountability is through a taxpayer payout, but the officers are not held responsible and reform is not enacted. Many officers are actually promoted.
• Lie, evade, misconstrue, and never admit fault when deposed, and face no accountability (instead taxpayers pay).   (fascism is ok if someone is unusual)
• Disdain for rights: That says it all right there. When the cop says, do you not think I’m not trained on First Amendment audits and all that BULL SHIT?
• It takes years for court proceedings in pursuit of accountability

 

** NOTE: these notes are a compilation of comments I found on the internet, combined with my own thoughts.