It sounds very “official” and important, right? Even overdue.
Many policing organizations and jurisdictions already utilize this tool
and the information contained therein.
Sounds great. Sounds
like a positive point at which to start.
But… it’s not enough.
It will never be enough.
How many African-Americans, Black people, people of any color have to give their lives in
order for law enforcement officers,
police officers, state troopers, county sheriffs to do the right thing?
Rayshard Brooks is the latest. Just a few weeks ago it was George Floyd.
Banning one single move, a chokehold, is a start, but right now those moves require mandates
and suggestions.
That’s a frame from the police bodycam of the Atlanta
officer administering a breathalyzer test on Mr. Brooks, after that same officer already knew who he was dealing with. He was patted down and no weapons were found,
so, Mr. Brooks was unarmed.
The ensuing moments resulted in Rayshard being tased and subsequently shot in the back. He died on scene.
These are the two officers, now charged with murder and aggravated assault:
Neither officer was ever in any imminent danger, as scene in bodycam or surveillance videos, so,
they got to go home to their respective families.
Rayshard Brooks was denied that.
The charges came rather quickly within a few days, and
hopefully justice will not be displaced or lost on these two – Mr. Brooks
deserves justice. His family and friends
deserve justice. Moving forward, we, as a nation, deserve justice.
Are policing reforms needed and long overdue? Absolutely.
George Floyd wasn’t placed in a chokehold, but he was pinned
down, with a knee on his neck for almost 9 minutes. EMTs arrived after those 9 minutes, and Mr. Floyd was pronounced dead while en
route to the hospital.
Derek Chauvin, who pressed his knee on Floyd's neck for
nearly nine minutes, was charged with second-degree murder, and the three other
officers on scene -- Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J. Alexander Kueng -- have been
charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder.
Officer Thao, it should be noted, stood by, actually keeping bystanders from interfering
with a police investigation.
 |
| Left to right: Derek Chauvin, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao |
Solutions? For
starters, reaching out to those overlooked and under-served populations – Latinx, Asians,
Indigenous, Blacks, and Hispanics.
Making a concerted effort to recruit them into your ranks. More foot patrols involving community
policing. Involving communities in your
decision making processes.
We can do this list all day, but for me, bottom line, those
changes have to come from within that field and recognize that systemic racism
exists, Black Lives Matter.
