Police Violence No Matter the Era

The duties of a police officer, also known as the boys in blue, Five-O and the derogatory term Pig consists of protecting the people and property. The boys in blue patrol areas they are assigned to, respond to calls, enforce the law, write citations and sometimes testify in court. Even though the officer's responsibilities involve enforcing the law cases have been made where police use excessive force to control the situation. This use of excessive force could be because of, departments not providing adequate training, and consequences are minimal for the officer. Police brutality will only strengthen the distrust towards the officers more.

Deborah Danner a New York resident who suffered a serious meltdown was gunned down on Oct 18 in her own apartment, when a security guard of the appt complex called the police. The officer arrived and heard that Danner was screaming "F you! Die! Leave me alone!" the 66-year-old diagnosed schizophrenic started to swinging a baseball bat around officer Barrys head when he opened fire and pumped two holes into Danner, killing her. Police have killed at least 10 other victims whose actions and behavior could be related to mental health issues. A report by the Ruderman Family Foundation found an estimate that up to half the people that are gunned down by the police in the United States are disabled in one way or another, most of them suffering from some kind of mental health issue. This lack of adequate training is the department's fault and it's their responsibility to show officers how to effectively and safely deal with someone experiencing a mental health illness. with adequate training, police can determine the safest route with the minimum amount of force. 

“We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality,” Martin Luther King Jr spoke this truth during his march on Washinton D.C in 1963. this is not only true for black people but for everybody. When police are getting away with brutalizing the public no one can be satisfied. Rodney King was stopped by the Los Angeles police department on March 3, 1991.King was beaten by several baton-wielding police officer. One bystander who happened to catch it all on tape. This video sparked a national debate about police brutality. Even with the video justice was not served the cops who beat King were clear of charges a year later and because of this injustice riots broke out causing 53 deaths and 1 billion dollars worth of damages. Police brutality instead of declining feels like its increasing.

Comments

  1. Julie Quinn TACApril 2, 2018 at 8:34 AM

    Sure, police have been called "the boys in blue"--that sounds like a positive nickname but it seems to both infantalize police (boys) and ignore the fact that women are also police. So I'm not sure I'd use the term (positive or negative) in longer form when describing police. I think it's interesting that you have a two-part thesis here. In the second body paragraph, what kind of "meltdown" did Danner have? Was it a mental breakdown? I agree with you that the Danner situation does highlight the need for adequate mental health training by police officers. I wonder how much training offers get at the moment? In the academy or elsewhere?

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