When Cops Are Indistinguishable From Criminals

[Revoltingest]

No, this isn't about Mr Floyd's killing.
Here's the story....
Death of Breonna Taylor - Wikipedia
On March 13, 2020, Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old American emergency medical technician, was shot eight times[1][2] to death by Louisville Metro Police Department officers....who entered her apartment in Louisville, Kentucky, while serving a "no-knock warrant".[4] The investigation was supposedly centered around a "trap house" over 10 miles (16 km) away from Taylor's residence and two people police believed were distributing controlled substances.[5]
Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, allegedly discharged his firearm first, injuring a law enforcement officer. Walker's lawyer stated that Walker thought that someone was entering the residence illegally, and that Walker acted only in self-defense. Walker faced criminal charges of first-degree assault and attempted murder of a police officer.[2][6] Walker was released from jail due to coronavirus concerns, which drew criticism from Louisville Metro Police Department Chief Steve Conrad.[7] In late May 2020, Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Wine moved to dismiss all charges against Walker. The case could be presented to a grand jury again after reviewing the results of investigations by the FBI and Kentucky Attorney General’s Office. Wine dropped the charges because the officers never mentioned her name to the grand jury or the fact that they shot her. Walker's close friends said that his job was to protect Taylor at any cost.[8][9] On May 22, 2020, Judge Olu Stevens released Walker from home incarceration. Rob Eggert, an attorney representing him, released a statement saying, "he just wanted to resume his life". At the same time, his attorney said that he could be charged again later as more facts come out of the shooting.[10]

I know that's a whole lotta text.
But it's worth reading in order to understand what happened.
On to my issue....

How could a private citizen know that armed intruders are cops if they
purposely do not identify themselves when violently breaking in?
There's no way to know they're cops. And they're behaving exactly like
the most violent criminals.
I find it outrageous that some authorities still want to prosecute Walker
for simply defending himself in a legal manner. The cops should be the
ones prosecuted for breaking & entering, & murder.
I say that we have the right to self defense when attacked by cops.

 

[Heyo]

I say that we have the right to self defense when attacked by cops.

I prefer my right to not be attacked by cops.

 

[Revoltingest]

I prefer my right to not be attacked by cops.

I wish only the best for you....& everyone else.
Except for that one guy here. You know who I mean.

 

[Stevicus]

How could a private citizen know that armed intruders are cops if they
purposely do not identify themselves when violently breaking in?
There's no way to know they're cops. And they're behaving exactly like
the most violent criminals.
I find it outrageous that some authorities still want to prosecute Walker
for simply defending himself in a legal manner. The cops should be the
ones prosecuted for breaking & entering, & murder.
I say that we have the right to self defense when attacked by cops.

I've often heard it said that "no one is above the law," and that includes the President and every single law enforcement officer out there.

But there is a certain mentality and attitude among many who believe that the police (and by extension, the government in general) should be above the rest of the population. This is actually a classist, aristocratic way of thinking.

There was once a time in this country when we really didn't have "police departments." We still had law and means of dispensing justice, but we didn't have a system where full time police officers go around patrolling randomly looking for things to cite or arrest people for. That's rather absurd, when you think about it. The fire department doesn't do that. They stay in their station until someone calls in a report of a fire, and then they go out.

 

[Revoltingest]

I've often heard it said that "no one is above the law," and that includes the President and every single law enforcement officer out there.

But there is a certain mentality and attitude among many who believe that the police (and by extension, the government in general) should be above the rest of the population. This is actually a classist, aristocratic way of thinking.

There was once a time in this country when we really didn't have "police departments." We still had law and means of dispensing justice, but we didn't have a system where full time police officers go around patrolling randomly looking for things to cite or arrest people for. That's rather absurd, when you think about it. The fire department doesn't do that. They stay in their station until someone calls in a report of a fire, and then they go out.

I'm not convinced that a "pre-police" era was better.
We need to improve what we have.

 

[Stevicus]

I'm not convinced that a "pre-police" era was better.
We need to improve what we have.

Maybe there's a happy medium somewhere. Obviously, if some cowboys are raising a ruckus at the local saloon, someone has to deal with them.

But I've noticed that a lot of these incidents occur when cops just go around looking for trouble for no apparent practical reason.

Some police shootings have taken place after starting out over relatively minor situations, like jaywalking or someone being pulled over for expired tags or something equally petty.

In the case you cited in the OP, it seemed clearly related to the overall "war on drugs," which is a bogus political agenda.

 

[Revoltingest]

In the case you cited in the OP, it seemed clearly related to the overall "war on drugs," which is a bogus political agenda.

I disagree with the war on drugs, but it's hardly bogus.
It's a sincere but misguided solution to a problem.
All laws are backed up by the threat & use of violence.
This is true for even the smallest of infractions.

 

[Stevicus]

I disagree with the war on drugs, but it's hardly bogus.
All laws are backed up by the threat & use of violence.
This is true for even the smallest of infractions.

I disagree. I think the war on drugs is bogus.

I don't think that cops need to go in full force like gangbusters for minor violations, even if (theoretically) all laws are backed up by the threat and use of violence. There's no need for it, and I don't think it's within the spirit of a free and open society.

Some people often say "this is a country of laws," but then again, so is China. China is a "country of laws," but at least we still get to criticize the law and debate whether the law is wrong or right.

 

[Father Heathen]

I wish only the best for you....& everyone else.
Except for that one guy here. You know who I mean.

…me?

 

[Revoltingest]

…me?

Not even close....despite my feelings towards clowns.

 

[Father Heathen]

Not even close....despite my feelings towards clowns.

Racist!

 

[Fool]

I disagree with the war on drugs, but it's hardly bogus.
It's a sincere but misguided solution to a problem.
All laws are backed up by the threat & use of violence.
This is true for even the smallest of infractions.

Lao-Tzu claimed that “the more laws one makes, the more criminals one creates”

 

[sun rise]

officers never mentioned her name to the grand jury or the fact that they shot her.

Blacks don't count.

find it outrageous that some authorities still want to prosecute Walker
for simply defending himself in a legal manner. The cops should be the
ones prosecuted for breaking & entering, & murder.

Black people have rights? That's news to many of them. How many stories have we read about blacks being killed especially now that people can record all those incidents and let the world know what is going on.

I say that we have the right to self defense when attacked by cops.

We agree. If people have guns, they have the right to self-defense. If I had a gun and the door was smashed in, I would not look around the corner to see who was entering - I'd fire the gun in the general direction of the intruders and hope they're stopped.

 

[Revoltingest]

Lao-Tzu claimed that “the more laws one makes, the more criminals one creates”

Aye, it can get messy. Between the zoning law, fair housing laws,
licensing laws, & human rights laws, I've run into situations where
anything I do is illegal in some way. One must prioritize the laws,
ie, run afoul of those most local cuz they're the least dangerous.

 

[Fool]

No, this isn't about Mr Floyd's killing.
Here's the story....
Death of Breonna Taylor - Wikipedia
On March 13, 2020, Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old American emergency medical technician, was shot eight times[1][2] to death by Louisville Metro Police Department officers....who entered her apartment in Louisville, Kentucky, while serving a "no-knock warrant".[4] The investigation was supposedly centered around a "trap house" over 10 miles (16 km) away from Taylor's residence and two people police believed were distributing controlled substances.[5]
Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, allegedly discharged his firearm first, injuring a law enforcement officer. Walker's lawyer stated that Walker thought that someone was entering the residence illegally, and that Walker acted only in self-defense. Walker faced criminal charges of first-degree assault and attempted murder of a police officer.[2][6] Walker was released from jail due to coronavirus concerns, which drew criticism from Louisville Metro Police Department Chief Steve Conrad.[7] In late May 2020, Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Wine moved to dismiss all charges against Walker. The case could be presented to a grand jury again after reviewing the results of investigations by the FBI and Kentucky Attorney General’s Office. Wine dropped the charges because the officers never mentioned her name to the grand jury or the fact that they shot her. Walker's close friends said that his job was to protect Taylor at any cost.[8][9] On May 22, 2020, Judge Olu Stevens released Walker from home incarceration. Rob Eggert, an attorney representing him, released a statement saying, "he just wanted to resume his life". At the same time, his attorney said that he could be charged again later as more facts come out of the shooting.[10]

I know that's a whole lotta text.
But it's worth reading in order to understand what happened.
On to my issue....

How could a private citizen know that armed intruders are cops if they
purposely do not identify themselves when violently breaking in?
There's no way to know they're cops. And they're behaving exactly like
the most violent criminals.
I find it outrageous that some authorities still want to prosecute Walker
for simply defending himself in a legal manner. The cops should be the
ones prosecuted for breaking & entering, & murder.
I say that we have the right to self defense when attacked by cops.

psychopaths tend to gravitate towards positions of authority. police work is one of these.


The 10 professions with the most psychopaths


Is the Cop Dangerous? 4 Tips to Detect Psychopaths in Uniform



its a people problem and not the uniform per se.

 

[Revoltingest]

Blacks don't count.

You misunderstand how a grand jury works.
They want to justify prosecuting the person in their sights.
Only evidence which supports that agenda is introduced.
The gal the cops murdered would just be a distraction.

Black people have rights? That's news to many of them. How many stories have we read about blacks being killed especially now that people can record all those incidents and let the world know what is going on.

You're trying to make this solely about race, but that's short
sighted. It can & does happen to anyone. It's just bigger
news if it happens to black folk.

We agree. If people have guns, they have the right to self-defense. If I had a gun and the door was smashed in, I would not look around the corner to see who was entering - I'd fire the gun in the general direction of the intruders and hope they're stopped.

We agree?
Give me back my brain!

 

[sun rise]

We agree?
Give me back my brain!

I'm not done washing it yet.

 

[Heyo]

You're trying to make this solely about race, but that's short
sighted. It can & does happen to anyone.

Yep, but it happens to black people disproportionally often ...

It's just bigger news if it happens to black folk.

and the media exaggerates the fact by reporting only when it happens to black people.

 

[metis]

I prefer my right to not be attacked by cops.

Amen to that.

I used to play baseball on a police and fireman's team for several years back several "moons" ago, and I would say that most were basically nice guys but there were some police especially that were basically hostile types and quite intolerant. Meanwhile, the firemen were seemingly more interested in exchanging ideas for what they'd like to eat at the fire station.

OK, a bit of hyperbole, granted.

 

[dianaiad]

I prefer my right to not be attacked by cops.

we dont have that right, when cops are doing their jobs properly, nor should we. We should have the right to defend ourselves if they are not.