this post was submitted on 04 Nov 2024
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THE POLICE PROBLEM

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    The police problem is that police are policed by the police. Cops are accountable only to other cops, which is no accountability at all.

    99.9999% of police brutality, corruption, and misconduct is never investigated, never punished, never makes the news, so it's not on this page.

    When cops are caught breaking the law, they're investigated by other cops. Details are kept quiet, the officers' names are withheld from public knowledge, and what info is eventually released is only what police choose to release — often nothing at all.

    When police are fired — which is all too rare — they leave with 'law enforcement experience' and can easily find work in another police department nearby. It's called "Wandering Cops."

    When police testify under oath, they lie so frequently that cops themselves have a joking term for it: "testilying." Yet it's almost unheard of for police to be punished or prosecuted for perjury.

    Cops can and do get away with lawlessness, because cops protect other cops. If they don't, they aren't cops for long.

    The legal doctrine of "qualified immunity" renders police officers invulnerable to lawsuits for almost anything they do. In practice, getting past 'qualified immunity' is so unlikely, it makes headlines when it happens.

    All this is a path to a police state.

    In a free society, police must always be under serious and skeptical public oversight, with non-cops and non-cronies in charge, issuing genuine punishment when warranted.

    Police who break the law must be prosecuted like anyone else, promptly fired if guilty, and barred from ever working in law-enforcement again.

    That's the solution.

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Our definition of ‘cops’ is broad, and includes prison guards, probation officers, shitty DAs and judges, etc — anyone who has the authority to fuck over people’s lives, with minimal or no oversight.

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RULES

Real-life decorum is expected. Please don't say things only a child or a jackass would say in person.

If you're here to support the police, you're trolling. Please exercise your right to remain silent.

Saying ~~cops~~ ANYONE should be killed lowers the IQ in any conversation. They're about killing people; we're not.

Please don't dox or post calls for harassment, vigilantism, tar & feather attacks, etc.

Please also abide by the instance rules.

It you've been banned but don't know why, check the moderator's log. If you feel you didn't deserve it, hey, I'm new at this and maybe you're right. Send a cordial PM, for a second chance.

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ALLIES

!abolition@slrpnk.net

!acab@lemmygrad.ml

r/ACAB

r/BadCopNoDonut/

Randy Balko

The Civil Rights Lawyer

The Honest Courtesan

Identity Project

MirandaWarning.org

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INFO

A demonstrator's guide to understanding riot munitions

Adultification

Cops aren't supposed to be smart

Don't talk to the police.

Killings by law enforcement in Canada

Killings by law enforcement in the United Kingdom

Killings by law enforcement in the United States

Know your rights: Filming the police

Three words. 70 cases. The tragic history of 'I can’t breathe' (as of 2020)

Police aren't primarily about helping you or solving crimes.

Police lie under oath, a lot

Police spin: An object lesson in Copspeak

Police unions and arbitrators keep abusive cops on the street

Shielded from Justice: Police Brutality and Accountability in the United States

So you wanna be a cop?

When the police knock on your door

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ORGANIZATIONS

Black Lives Matter

Campaign Zero

Innocence Project

The Marshall Project

Movement Law Lab

NAACP

National Police Accountability Project

Say Their Names

Vera: Ending Mass Incarceration

 

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 

On Sept. 12 at 8 a.m., came across a stopped vehicle with hazards on the left shoulder near John Hanson Highway and got out of his cruiser to help.

"Are you here to help her?" Sgt. Warrington asks the man.

"No, she's taking me to the hospital," he responded.

Moments later, he fires a single shot at the passenger who says he was getting a hat blown onto the road.

"Oh my God, what did you do? What did you do?" the driver screams out.

"He had a gun!" Warrington says.

"No, I don't have a gun!" the man shouts, lying on the roadway.

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[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 61 points 1 day ago (4 children)

At this point we're going to start giving the same advice for interacting with police as with soldiers in a war zone. Basically do whatever they say. And if it's contradictory then sit on your heels and put your hands up. Make yourself as un-aggressive as possible so the ~~scared, sleep deprived, teenager with a machine gun~~ man child with a badge and a gun can't possibly see you as a threat.

[–] ChronosTriggerWarning@lemmy.world 26 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

Lol, no. Remember when they shot the aid worker who was spread-eagle on the ground next to their charge? And then the aid worker asked the cop "why did you shoot me?" Cops response? "I dunno."

[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 12 points 11 hours ago

Yup. I actually pointed this out a couple comments down. You can do everything right and still get shot because they're just that stupid and unaccountable.

[–] ThatWeirdGuy1001@lemmy.world 35 points 1 day ago (3 children)

They'll still just shoot you for not following orders. Especially if you're not white.

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 11 hours ago

They will also give you conflicting orders (often on purpose, so they can claim resisting arrest), so sometimes it is literally impossible to "just do what they say."

[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 9 points 23 hours ago (2 children)

Unfortunately we can't make it zero chance. You could always just sit there on the curb, oblivious, and get shot.

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 11 hours ago (1 children)
[–] NOOBMASTER@lemmy.ml -1 points 10 hours ago

Coming soon to your country.

[–] LordGimp@lemm.ee 4 points 22 hours ago (1 children)

Sure you can. Can't be shot if you shoot them first.

[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 6 points 21 hours ago

Oh no. You most certainly can. If that officer doesn't manage to shoot you then the next one will, repeat as needed until true. Unless you've got a literal army to fight off the national guard this does not end well. And as a reminder they get drones, attack helicopters, armored vehicles, and infantry squads with 20 years of experience in exactly this fight.

I seriously implore you to think about how that goes, for you, and for the country.

[–] IAmLamp@fedia.io 9 points 23 hours ago

The ghost of Daniel Shaver would like a word

[–] prettybunnys@sh.itjust.works 7 points 23 hours ago (2 children)

Idk what this dude coulda done different except not be there, he just was walking and the cop draws on him and fires

[–] LowtierComputer@lemmy.world 2 points 11 hours ago

And walking away!

[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 9 points 23 hours ago* (last edited 23 hours ago)

That's it that's the problem. The only thing he could have done was be immediately and massively submissive.

Yet again we see where the civilian is expected to have better de-escalation skills than the person with the badge.

[–] Revan343@lemmy.ca 2 points 19 hours ago (1 children)

I kind of have the opposite advice for interacting with soldiers in a warzone.

I have a cocktail recipe that might interest you

[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 3 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago)

Unless you've declared yourself independent of everyone else that's only going to help you 50% of the time, and it's not easy to deploy in a manner allowing escape. I would really just suggest joining whichever side you support at that point.