More on the SCHP fiasco
I always see the dishonest or ugly side of law enforcement, like the scenes of police abuse depicted on the many videos recently released by the South Carolina Highway Patrol, or the cop that lied through his teeth on the stand in trial yesterday (blatantly - he told the truth, the prosecutor got off a leading question telling him what he was supposed to say before I could get out an objection, then the officer changed his testimony and stuck to it on cross). I think it is the feeling of betrayal that I feel when persons sworn to uphold the law break it. Or when individuals granted power by the government (by us) abuse that power.
I suppose I don't talk enough about the honorable deeds I see, because it is what is expected of law enforcement. To act honorably. I have had several trials where I knew that an officer took the stand and told the truth. I am always moved when I see that happen, and usually it doesn't hurt the government's case anyway. This article makes some good points. The SCHP has approximately 850 troopers, who make approximately 500,000 traffic stops a year. The article points out that these were only a few dozen incidents taken from literally millions of traffic stops each year. Although the author has to realize that we are only seeing the incidents that were caught on video, and only the videos that were preserved and then released, it is still a valid point.
The article points out that law enforcement is a dangerous business and that officers cannot take chances while in the field. I agree with all of this, but it still does not excuse police abuse or misconduct. How many incidents of police abuse are acceptable? The answer is none, but under the best of conditions some will occur. The question is whether police abuse in the SCHP and other law enforcement agencies is systemic and if so then can it be fixed.
The article suggests that if we "hold our officers to an unreasonable standard of conduct we risk creating an atmosphere in which our officers are too cautious, out of fear of reprisal," which "would expose them to more risk from violent and even deadly assaults." I agree with that statement on its face, but, then again, I don't think it is unreasonable to ask an officer not to kick a person in the head when they are lying on the ground handcuffed, or not to run people down with their patrol cars.
