I am absolutely positive that there are people who work in law enforcement who are truly good and selfless people. I am sure that there are many people who wear a uniform that dedicate their lives to keeping people safe and providing them comfort.
There are also monsters with badges.
My 16 year old son is a happy kid. He’s funny and light of heart and well-spoken. He’s respectful (that is very nearly true!) and compassionate.
He came to me this morning very troubled. He said he didn’t sleep well last night because he watched the video of Eric Garner being choked by a police officer. He is angry and disillusioned and bewildered.
I so badly don’t want this for my child.
At least my son is white, though. At least I don’t have to worry about him being beaten or killed by the people we pay to serve and protect us.
We have a mess. Are we going to leave it to our children to clean it up?
Wouldn’t a good place to start be with some accountability? Is that really asking too much? To be held accountable when you wrongfully cause injury or death to the people who you are charged with protecting?
We have to stop making excuses. “We don’t really know the story”. “The person was a criminal”. And what does that mean? They deserved it? Innocent until proven guilty, right? Or we going to go ahead and live out the plot of Judge Dredd? Rob Schneider was in that movie for fuck’s sake. Can’t we pick a different dystopian future? Or not. Let’s go with not. Bad idea all around.
We can make all the excuses and arguments we want, I don’t think anyone can claim that there are no monsters with badges. Not without knowing they are lying.
Back in 1977, when I was 13 years old, I did a little more than flirt with a path that could have led to a life time of misery and addiction and pain. I smoked weed every morning before school. I was involved in some petty vandalism, skipped school, was mouthy to teachers and truly only cared about hanging with the cool kids and getting high.
One night, I was with a group of kids on a little strip of land between a cornfield and some woods. It was only a 5 minute walk through the woods to get back to the apartment complex I lived in, but it was still secluded.
We were out later than any kid should have been and smoking weed and laughing at things that 13 year old kids would find funny when we saw headlights coming through the cornfield. I don’t know who yelled ‘Cops!’ first, but we all scattered in different directions.
I was with my friend, Karen Ann. Karen Ann was a lanky blond 12 year old girl. She lived with her two older sisters and her mother in the same apartment complex as me. Her mother worked as a waitress in a truck stop. I don’t recalling ever seeing Karen Ann’s mother. She worked a lot.
Karen Ann and I made it to her back door when we heard someone directly behind us yell ‘Freeze’!
It was just like the movies, y’all. The cop stood with his legs askance and his gun drawn. On two children. It was terrifying.
Had it stopped there, it wouldn’t have been so bad. I mean, I would still say it was ridiculous to hold two children at gun point, but no harm was done.
It didn’t stop there, though.
He made us stand facing a wall with our hands up and our legs apart. He frisked us both. What I mean by ‘frisked’ is that he felt us up. He didn’t frisk us. He molested us.
I wore overalls and had a pack of cigarettes in the front pocket with weed in it. He didn’t even look there. He wasn’t looking for contraband or weapons. He was a pedophile. He was a monster with a badge.
Karen Ann’s neighbor came out to see what was going on and told the cop that we had been in her town house five minutes earlier and that he was chasing the wrong kids.
I don’t remember Karen Ann’s neighbor’s name, but I will always be grateful for her lie. I don’t know what else might have happened if she hadn’t intervened.
At least I wasn’t shot. Or beaten. I was humiliated and frightened and left with a lifelong mistrust of people in authority. Especially those with guns and badges.
I try though..I try to remember that there are good police officers. That there are people in law enforcement who want to help.
The point to this is I know first hand that there are people in authority who harm the people they are supposed to protect. There was no ‘gray area’ in that scenario. We were children and he harmed us.
We have to stop turning a blind eye to those who abuse their positions. We have to stop pointing fingers at the victims. We have to stop denying there is a problem.
We have to clean up this mess.
Our kids deserve better.
I hate that you had an anecdote for this.
My distrust of authority isn’t based on anything so vile.
This is becoming an epidemic, and unfortunately, even those protesting are being vilified.
I almost typed a comment that would probably come across as encouraging more violence, but I held my fingers. Let’s just say, I don’t believe the violence is going to stop, and I firmly believe that eventually, it will start to turn in the opposite direction.
Excellent writing, as per usual. Passionate and provocative.
Thank you. I hesitated to post this, I really did. It hurts my heart that my child is hurting over this. I want life to be better for him.
Unfortunately, being white is not a guarantee of safety. Last year in Oklahoma City, a young woman named Stacey Stout was killed, along with her boyfriend. They were both white. They were in a motel when a group of “law enforcement officers” from several different agencies showed up to serve a warrant on the boyfriend. They took off in their truck, made it less than a block before the cops got them cornered, and then the shooting started. The cops did not even bother to try to open the truck doors to arrest them – they just opened fire. The couple were not armed and the woman did not even have an arrest record. She was 20 years old and had a 2-year-old daughter. The boyfriend was 23. The grand jury declined to indict any of the cops involved.
Another example that I saw yesterday was a YouTube video of Kelly Thomas, a homeless man with schizophrenia. That was on a Reddit post with a list of truly horrifying monster cop occurrences. I couldn’t even watch the whole video on that one – and I didn’t go into any of the other links. It was just too terrible.
I think no matter what the situation, resisting arrest is NOT the right thing to do. I am not pointing a finger at the victims – I am saying that if I ever find myself in a situation with monster cops, I want to be a living victim, not a dead one. I would rather sue the bastards for false arrest than have my family sue them for wrongful death.
Yes, it is time to recognize that HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM. Sadly, we have had a problem for a long time – it’s just that the more technology gives us the ability to show the world, the more we see. What I don’t understand is why the people on these grand juries cannot see. By repeatedly saying “Yeah, that’s OK” every time a cop kills someone in a situation where it did not have to happen, they allow it to happen again. And pisses me off most of all is that they aren’t even in a position of having to say guilty or not guilty. All they have to do is say “YES, this deserves a trial!” WTF won’t they even do that?!
I swear sometimes I wonder if there is “pressure” being applied . . . maybe the system is even more corrupt than we think it is. And that would be saying a LOT.
I haven’t seen any of the videos…I can’t watch them. They upset me terribly. I wish my son hadn’t watched the one he did.
It breaks my heart that you were assaulted in such a horrid way, and that you had no justice for it. I, too, was molested as a preteen- only by a neighborhood pedophile, and it was the police who made me feel safe. It breaks my heart that you feel compelled to write, “At least my son is white, though. At least I don’t have to worry about him being beaten or killed by the people we pay to serve and protect us.” This tells me that there is much work to be done, by all of us. It breaks my heart that you don’t know about the time my husband kicked down someone’s front door…and cut the man down from the staircase where he was hanging himself. It breaks my heart that you don’t know about the time my husband broke his eye socket during a foot pursuit… or how he jumped up from the fall and continued on to catch the man wanted for raping little girls.
How can you help your son to feel safe? Consider the two of you signing up for a citizen’s police academy if your town offers one. Tell him that he has a right to always feel safe and protected, and he has a right to speak out if he sees or experiences anything that feels wrong. Tell him that good far outweighs evil in this world. Give him a huge hug…even if his 16 year-old self rebels against it. Hold him tight.
THIS is what I need. I need to keep reading the GOOD that is done. I think a huge part of the problem are the camps we break into. I don’t WANT to be in a camp. I want to believe in the good and I want to feel safe…but I don’t want to ignore it when there is a problem. And there is so much work to be done.
He won’t rebel against the hug. He still loves my hugs. I am grateful for that.
Michelle, I’m sorry that you went through what you did and that your son is going through this. I’m troubled by the Gardner case as well. I guess we always live with the dichotomy of people, whether in authority or not, not being what they seem or what they should be and abusing their positions. It would be so easy if we could just tell the bad people by the way they look!
janet
Yeah..the bad guys don’t always wear black hats, do they?
I agree with Linda. Being white is no guarantee. Remember the 19-year-old white girl killed by a Hebron police officer just a few months ago? All she did was (slowly) run through a check point. Dude jumped on her car and shot her multiple times through the window. No indictment. He was cleared of all wrong doing.
He could have shot her tires. He could have radioed for backup and gotten her plates. He could have handled it a dozen better ways.
Oh hell…How could I have forgotten about that? And how did that not become a huge news story? You’re right..being white isn’t a guarantee of safety..but I think it helps. I have black friends who just accept that they are going to get pulled over because they drive a nice car. It happens a LOT. It’s so frustrating.
I echo Helena’s comment. I’m so sorry you have an anecdote for this at all.
I won’t be watching the video and am very sorry your son did. The world makes me sad…
Yeah, I won’t watch it either..I’m still in news avoidance..but when my kid comes to me needing to talk about it, I can’t shut him out. Being a grownup is hard sometimes..
I am so very sorry. Sorry that that happened to you. Sorry that this happened to anyone. Sorry that Garner and Brown and Rice and So.Many.Others have been
…
I just don’t know another word for this. So many others have been desecrated. Their trust, their lives, their hopes, their families – all of it, desecrated by the very people who are supposed to be protecting us.
And yes, “sorry” is the exact word I mean.
I may not have been one of the monsters with badges, but I am complicit by silence. By putting my head in the sand for so long and pretending that lalalalala it wasn’t me, I wasn’t there, not my fault.
It is our fault if we don’t _do_ something, _say_ something.
—
Thank you for writing this. It is a bright spark of “I’m pointing at this and calling it wrong” in a huge world of blanked out stares and cat memes.
*hugs to you*
It’s not easy. It’s so much not. Screaming goat videos are so much easier. I can’t ignore it when my kid is hurting..and I’ve been sticking my head in the sand for a while.
How awful for you and your friend. And how sad that a few (I still want to believe it’s a few anyway) bad apples ruin the reputation and trust of law enforcement.
I hope that is true…I certainly do..
This is such a powerful message, michelle. How frightening that experience must have been for you and your friend. It’s really sickening. It’s happening right now though and it hasn’t stopped since 1977. ‘Monsters with Badges” are getting away with murder. Yes, there are good officers (most of them are) but the monsters are the ones that we remember. Time to stand up.
I just don’t understand how they aren’t even having to stand trial?
I can’t watch the video of Eric Garner anymore. It is heartbreaking. And maybe being white is no guarantee of safety, as others have commented, but it sure does help. No 50 something white woman is going to fear for her life when she’s pulled over by a cop. Lots of black men do.
Right? But saying that…just stating the obvious, is considered controversial. I don’t get it.
People suck sometimes, and I don’t think it’s to do with vilifying cops, because people in ALL walks of life can be abusive cunts. I’m just so sad that the system is so eager to clear cops and let them get away with it.
BUT
Let me point you towards Don Re, at donofalltrades. He’s a cop. He was in Ferguson. He makes friends with hookers and neighbourhood kids and tries to keep the peace, and buys basketballs when the kids’ one is busted…he’s so, so very good. He restores my faith in authority, because for every prick in a uniform, I think there must be MORE like him. I hope so, anyway. We just don’t hear about them (or celebrate them) because they’re quietly going about their jobs, getting it right.
But I’m sorry your kid got hurt. And I’m sorry you did.
I have read his posts and they are WONDERFUL. I appreciate what he does. I didn’t think of him when I wrote this..I was too wrapped up in feeling sad that my kid was troubled and that triggered the memory of my issue with a cop. I hadn’t thought of that in a long time. Thank you for reminding me about the good…we need that.
Yes our children deserve better, if you can’t trust the cops who can you trust same goes for doctors, nurses, ambos and teachers things need to change for the better
I agree…There are good and bad people regardless of profession. It’s when they carry a gun that it scares me the most.
sigh. Our kids don’t deserve this. You didn’t deserve this.
No doubt this was hard to write. This was hard to read.
We must do better.
Something has to change.
I just hope we can all get through the mud and the muck to a clearer day.
You know, it was so long ago that I can think about it and feel angry on that child’s behalf, but it almost seems like it happened to someone else. It hurts me more that my son is struggling. I feel like I was too one sided here. I know there are good law enforcement professionals and that they do good every single day. It’s just that when they commit crimes or abuse their authority, there seems to be no repercussions…we turn away and say things like…don’t break the law and you don’t have to worry. Well..that’s not good enough. And that is frightening to me.
I don’t believe the culture around being a cop in America is going to change much until we do something about the drug prohibition laws that cause them to be hated and feared by the very populations they are being paid to serve and protect.
There’s a self-selection process where certain personality types are drawn to certain professions that not only draws the monsters you describe to the power the position carries, but has been slowly militarizing our police forces for a long time.
Two things to know about cops:
First, they’re just people. The way many of them react to encountering mostly hate and fear directed at them from those they are charged with serving and protecting is entirely predictable: they get paranoid about their own safety. I am in no way excusing their behavior, but what did we think they would do?
And second, cops are notoriously difficult to prosecute. Not only is there a massive systemic bias in their favor, but a large part of their job is knowing how to testify or word a report to obtain convictions.
Lots of people abuse power. Most, when caught, face consequences. What to do about the epidemic of police abuses that are coming to light now that phones have video cameras? I can’t help but feel that if the cop walking down the sidewalk in Dogtown (West Oakland) was regularly greeted warmly by citizens who were glad to see him, instead of being cursed at and hidden from, he would be less likely to abuse those citizens, and more likely to respect them.
And lastly, sorry to hear about your run in with an abusive cop; I have some stories of my own which I won’t recount as I find them depressing. And I do hope your son is OK, these are troubled times to be growing up in, but he has you as a mom so I’m betting he will be fine.
All that makes so much sense. Who wouldn’t become resentful, mistrustful or angry if treated with abuse day in and day out? I don’t know what the answers are. I can see how it’s a difficult and complicated issue…on the other hand, it seems very simple…If an officer abuses his authority, then he should be held accountable.
I do think some personality types are drawn to positions that puts them in power over others. People like that scare me and make me feel angry..it’s so magnified when they carry a gun as part of their job.
Doug’s comments reminded me of a couple of GOOD stories that you will appreciate more than my first post.
I’ve only been living in a small town for about four years – I am still amazed at some of the differences. One of those differences is the cops.
Not that I have had a lot of interaction with them but I did get stopped for speeding about three years ago – by a sergeant even! And what really struck me about him was the fact that he had LAUGHING EYES! It was obvious he hasn’t dealt with the dregs of society, day in and day out, for eons, the way cops in bigger towns have. It was obvious he still enjoys life – and was mildly amused by the look of horror on my face when he told me they don’t give warnings in Alma. And you better believe I was horrified – it was my first ticket since 1998!
Another day, as I rounded the corner to my house, I saw a police car at the stop sign at the corner. And I watched a teenage boy on a bike race up to the police car and skid to a stop – to talk to the cop. They obviously knew each other and were on very good terms. Watching that really warmed my heart and made me feel better about the world.
There are definitely good cops left in the world. There is also definitely a problem with some others. I don’t have the answers. I don’t even have the questions. I am just glad I have seen a couple of good things that I can share with you.
And by the way, it wasn’t my intention to make you feel like your comment about white being safe was controversial. I just see stories about the same kind of thing happening to all kinds of people. They don’t all make national news – if they did, we would all have a heart attack.
Oh, it wasn’t your comment at all! Just everything I’m reading..other posts, FB, artices, etc…too many people are firmly entrenched in one camp or another. And thank you for sharing those stories. Those are important.
…sick making… Thank you for your bravery in opening up this critical but oh-so-difficult subject.
How do we test a teacher, or a police officer, or a priest or even a care-giver for the power-crazed-schmuck gene?
Right? I very often mistrust people in authority, any type of authority because I’m afraid of why they want it.
It’s heartbreaking. And when our children are aware of it, when there are children watching their parents being cuffed for no reason at the local mall, when they’re growing up to fear law enforcement rather than feel a sense of security from it, which by the way, the black community has had to deal with always and horribly, we need to continue to rally to stop this. This isn’t who we are. This can’t be who we are.
I agree so much..We don’t have to be this.
I don’t know if you’ll find this editorial as interesting as I did, but thought I’d share it anyway. I think it presents an important perspective about how it’s a lot of the same discussion and how hopefully those people (like your son) will be the ones who are going to change things. Progress is being made in public opinion even if not in public action…. http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/ej-dionne-talking-past-each-other-on-race/2014/12/03/e4bd24f8-7b16-11e4-9a27-6fdbc612bff8_story.html
Thank you so much for sharing!
Catching up on my blog reading this morning. That counts as church, right? I’m hoping that you never hesitate to express events that happened to you and your point of view on current events. Our pasts inform our present and explain who we are. Perhaps your posting has enabled others to think about the recent problems with police in a totally different manner. Thank you for your openness.
Thank you so much. I hesitated to post this, not because it was painful or shameful for me. That is just what happened..but because this seems to be such a polarizing issue. But then I decided if I don’t write what is true to me, then why the fuck am I doing this at all?
I’ve read so many anti-police posts and stories these past few weeks that it’s almost got me to a point where I just want to scream and go outside to shoot my pistol into some poor tree, but that would make me seem like a psycho, so I won’t.
I didn’t read the comments here, so I’m sorry if what I say is a repeat.
I’ve been a cop for almost 16 years. I’ve served almost exclusively in black neighborhoods. Rough, black neighborhoods, not the suburbs. Here’s what I’ve found…treating people with kindness and respect and telling them why they’re being stopped really works well most of the time. If you can’t articulate to a person why you’ve stopped them, then maybe you shouldn’t have stopped them in the first place is what I tell younger officers.
The problem for many people in the black community is an acceptance that the way things are as normal, and that there’s no way to change things. I’m not talking about the people who are out there protesting, because those are mostly college kids or people with the means and time to protest. Most of the black people in the community I serve are very interested in what’s going on, but they don’t have time to protest because they have menial jobs they can’t afford to lose and kids to get off to school, etc. You know, life? Most of them also know that they need the police and that the police aren’t the root of all evil in their lives. We’re just an easy target. I guess we’re the face of a system that has continued to let them down for decades.
I get that. I don’t really care for the police either, when I’m driving or not otherwise in danger and need one around.
The real problems for many people are shitty schools or not getting job interviews because the name on the application sounds black. Getting arrested by the police happens more to blacks than it does for whites for many reasons, few which have to do with biases on the part of most police officers.
When we take our uniforms off, ironically, many of us officers are rooting for change for the very people we’re shown on tv fighting with. We want others to have the same chances as us at happiness, because happy people make better neighbors, and we’re all neighbors.
You don’t think a lot of my black officer friends worry about their kids the same way that non-police officer black parents do? Of course they worry.
I’m sorry you had such a terrible experience with the law as a little girl. There are so many different dynamics in police work. Different departments have different issues and even within the same department, every officer has his or her own way that he likes to do the job, some better than others. I don’t know.
I feel like I have a million things to say about all this, but I don’t really know what to say. I wanted to comment to just tell you not to lose hope in all of us, because most of us have good intentions. Remember that for every black suspect of a crime we encounter, there are many black victims who call us for help everyday. That’s just where I work, I’m not generalizing that to anything beyond my own experience. It’s because o these people and the many “thank you, officers” that I get every day that I haven’t gone out to scream or shoot a tree. Lol.
Thank you so much for this! I can’t imagine the frustration you must feel. I truly hope that I don’t sound anti-police. I am not anti-police, even though I do profess that I have a general mistrust…but I recognize that is my issue. I am anti-abuser I am against the officers who abuse their power, who harm people..I have to assume they are a small minority..but that small minority is doing so much damage.
I appreciate what you do, I appreciate that you are doing your best to do a good job and that you are kind and fair. I wish all police were like you.
Thank you again for writing, we need to keep a dialogue going and not break off into camps. Nothing gets accomplished that way and shit needs to change.
I read “getting job interviews because the name on the application sounds black” and I immediately thought of a story I read a few weeks ago about Russell Wilson, QB for the Seahawks, and the question coming up about whether or not he is “black enough”. I couldn’t find the story I read back then – which bothered me so much that I didn’t even share it -but I did find an article about Charles Barkley and what he said on the subject.
Specifically, he said “When you are black, you have to deal with so much crap in your life from other black people. It’s a dirty, dark secret, I’m glad it’s coming out–it comes out about every two years–I wrote a big chapter in my book about it, to be honest with you. I say, you know, with young black kids, you know when they do well in school, the loser kids tell them, you are acting white. The kids that speak intelligently, they tell them, you are acting white. So it’s a dirty, dark secret in the black community, one of the reasons we’re never going to be successful as a whole, because of other black people. For some reason, we are brainwashed to think if you are not a thug or an idiot, you are not black enough. If you go to school, get good grades, speak intelligent, and don’t break the law, you are not a good black person. There are a lot of black people who are unintelligent, who don’t have success––it’s best to knock a successful black person down if they’re intelligent, they speak well, they do well in school, and they’re successful.”
Most things I take with a grain of salt but “Big Mouth Barkley” is usually right on the money with what he says. And this is sad.
When I was very young, I was in abusive marriage for seven years. I quit school to get married and although I wanted to go back, my husband wouldn’t let me. He also would not let me work, although he would not hold down a steady job either. I have never forgotten what he said to me one day. He said “I will not let you do anything that will make you better than me.”
That’s what I saw when I read the whole “not black enough” story. WTF?! It’s not just about police, civilian, black, white, rich, poor, anything else, or everything else. We ALL have to do better and we have to stop holding back people who can do better than we can. We have to stop hating people and hurting people. And the people who enjoy hating and hurting people need to be held accountable for it EQUALLY, no matter if they hold a “position of authority” or not.
There is a lot wrong with our world and it can’t be fixed overnight, but it will never be fixed if we only focus on one small part of it. Pointing fingers is a big part of the problem!
Thank you so much for this…Wow.
PS – I meant that copy and paste to be “NOT getting job interviews” but apparently my aim was off! LOL
It’s so sad that you had to go through that when you were so young, and that your son is having a hard time with the disillusionment.
My sister retired as a Lieutenant cop/fireperson from the force in Sunnyvale, CA.
There are many stories involved – too many to write about – but she has told me the only time she would tear up was when a child was involved in any crime event. She was tough, but so very fair and a huge softy.
I remember her telling me once when she had to interview potential cop candidates she asked a guy why he wanted to be a cop, and he said because he liked guns. Needless to say, he got no further, but sadly some do.
I am so proud of my empathetic, compassionate sister. We lost our youngest brother to his addictions, and we still have a brother who struggles. I’m grateful she was able to use that knowledge throughout her career.
Hang in there. Let your son know there are some amazing law enforcement people out there.
I will let him know! He needs to hear it as much as I do.
Two sides to every issue:
I have a lovely group of about 16 ladies that get together once a month for a “liquid lunch” (haha). We are a motley crew….ranging in age from early 20’s to early 70’s. Business owners, engineers, secretaries, stay-at-home moms, personal trainers…you name it.Several times a year, we also unite to raise money for good causes…animal shelter, battered women’s home, Relay for Life, Susan G. Komen. So we aren’t a total socializing group. But we are a very tight group who love each other and are there for each other.
On August 24th, 2011 around 11 am, the fiancé of one of our group (Brooklyn’s man) Justin Sollohub (27) was on patrol and saw a man (Joshua Russel, 25) who looked like he was doing a drug deal. BECAUSE HE WAS. Justin called in for backup and tried to approach the man, who took off running (because he had been engaged in a drug deal. Also? Had JUST gotten out of prison for dealing drugs…had spent a YEAR of his 5 year sentence). Justin took off on foot after him through a neighborhood…rounded a house…where Joshua Russell shot off his face. His backup found him moments later. He was airlifted to a Birmingham hospital where they kept his body going until 3 am the next morning so that his organs could be harvested. Now here in Anniston, AL, we have known our share of racial tension. Here is where the buses for the Freedom Riders were bombed. We’ve had visits in this town by Al Shapton….Jessie Jackson spoke at my high school growing up…Johnny Cochran led a march here 20 or so years ago about Monsanto contaminating poor neighborhoods.
But we have come A LONG WAY. Still, we have a few that try to keep the shit stirred. We have the REVEREND Ben Little, who tried to say that Justin shouldn’t have pulled his gun on the poor, scared Mr. Russell. But then eye witnesses said that Justin didn’t draw his gun until Mr. Russell had fled. Then the Rev. made a big fuss about how scuffed up Mr. Russell looked after he’d been taken into custody. Of course, Joshua Russell had spent 10 hours or so running and hiding in some pretty dense underbrush…ARMED. The Rev. was worried that Justin Sollohub’s brothers in blue might not have been gentle enough with Mr. Russell. You know, the men who had to find this armed scumbag in the underbrush, the ones who worried at every twig snap if they were getting shot…the ones who had seen their brother’s LACK OF FACE while they loaded him into a helicopter before joining the man hunt.
Then a year later, there was Jackie Stovall. I’m not real familiar with Jackie…but I worked with his wife, Wanda for 5 years back when I was in college. And she was wonderful. On December 15th, 2012 they had been married for over 30 years, had a couple of daughters and a grandchild. A man named Romera Moya…illegal immigrant…arrested once for cocaine trafficking…shot and killed 3 people, and injured a child. The police pursuit included two shoot-outs. At the first one, at the intersection about a mile from my house, Officer Jackie Stovall was shot in the leg. Mr. Moya fled and was chased down to the next Interstate exit where he was shot and killed by police. On Jackie’s Facebook page last week, he posted this:
“I’m 2 week away from 2 years. What really gets you down is 2 weeks after the shooting I was moving my leg in all directions and we had set a 6 month recovery. Then infection set in. Pieces of the bullet, bone fragments, whatever could happen has. I’m just going to say, I will be ready when the Lord decides I’m ready. I’m glad to be here with my family and enjoy my grandson while we wait on my granddaughter in April. I’m glad I’m here but I will never forget!”
He’s still not walking on his own two feet, and the constant pain he lives with keeps him teetering on the edge of depression.
I’m not sayin. I’m just sayin.
Horrific…that’s just horrifying..and yes, there are always stories going the other way. I wouldn’t negate that or even try to..
While I’m sure that similar things happen here, I have not seen them. I’m sorry that you were treated that way when you were little – children used to be taught to go to a policeman if they were lost – it’s pity that that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore.
K is looking to join the police force when she gets home – I do hope she upholds the law the way it is meant to be and treats those she encounters with respect until they show her that they are not worthy of that respect.
Thank you. I wish K all the luck, I’m sure she will be great!
THAT was so extremely well-put! And FUCK that cop who did that to you girls! I hope he got a baton shoved up his fucking ass by an angry dad! What a douchebag…
That Eric Garner thing is tragic and inexcusable – how they didn’t indict those involved is disturbing. But, really? – now Columbia Law School is letting students who feel “traumatized by the verdict” postpone exams so they have time to deal with their emotions.
a lot of people feel traumatized by the verdict and we still have to go about our daily lives. I guess it’s well meant, but I think it’s misguided.
I have no idea what happened to that cop or how many kids he terrorized or violated. Maybe he’s dead now.
2 things from Pope Francis TED talk yesterday
1. “the more powerful you are, the more your actions will have an impact on people, the more responsible you are to act humbly”
And…
Exactly.
2. “Hope is the virtue of a heart that doesn’t lock itself into darkness, that doesn’t dwell on the past, does not simply get by in the present, but is able to see a tomorrow. Hope is the door that opens onto the future. ”
Love this guy
So awesome!