My Turn

My Turn

The first thing I used to do when my Newsweek arrived was to open it to the very back to read the commentary by George F. Will, entitled “My Turn.”  I’ve resisted the temptation so far to make my own comments about the mess in Minneapolis.  I can no longer remain silent.

First, let me explain that the death of George Floyd is tragic.  It never should have happened.  In the perfect world it would not happen.

In the court of public opinion, Derek Chauvin has already been found guilty and sentenced to death.  He may well be guilty of Murder in the Third Degree and Second Degree Manslaughter with which he is charged.  In essence, Third Degree Murder in Minnesota is causing death of a person by acting in a dangerous manner and showing a disregard for human life.  Second Degree Manslaughter is creating an unreasonable risk and consciously taking the chance of causing death to another person (609.195 and 609.205 2019 Minnesota Statutes).

Is Derek Chauvin guilty of these crimes or any other crimes for which he is charged?  I DO NOT KNOW.  I prefer to wait until all the evidence is in to draw a conclusion.

Yes, I’ve seen the videos.  I also know that the videos tell only part of the story.  I do not doubt their authenticity.  They do not tell or show everything.  There are a few things that I DO know.

If Derek Chauvin is in fact guilty, he should be the one to suffer the consequences, not Minneapolis, St. Paul, Denver, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Rochester, Austin, Salt Lake, Columbus, Los Angeles, New York City, Amarillo, Binghamton.

There are police officers who are dirty, show extreme prejudice, discriminate, are racist, and act unapologetically on that racism.  However, racist police officers represent only a small sliver of the total police population.  Oh, and by the way, dozens of police officers have been severely injured and a handful of police officers killed in the aftermath of Floyd’s death.  I long for the day when we judge a person by the content of his character and not the color of his uniform.  (I invite my police friends who read this far to join in and tell us how often you were accused of racism on a traffic stop when you had no idea what the race was of the person you stopped until  you saw that person – especially at night.)

Had death of a white man occurred the same way at the hands of a police officer as it did to George Floyd, you would never have heard about it.  I can guarantee you that it has happened.

There is a difference between Civil Disobedience and rioting.  The word “civil” should mean something.

Why can’t we accept a man (or woman) at his word when he says he is not racist?

This country really does not have “riot police.”  We may have police dressed in “riot gear,” but that does not make them riot police.  They are regular patrol officers who are told to suit up and get out there and protect life and property.

The media is not helping by using inflammatory adjectives, such as “unjust” death, “needless” death, “racist” police, and so forth.  Nor is the media helping any by offering their own opinions and commentary.  This has been a problem now for a few decades.  The media has forgotten how to report facts instead of spin.  I’m talking to you, CNN, ABC, MSNBC, FOX, ABC, NBC, CBS, NY Times, Washington Post.

The word “thug” applies to any person, not just a black man, who acts like a thug.  A thug is a ruffian, brute, or combative criminal, or a person who bullies his way through to get what he wants of any and all colors.

The media reports that Chauvin has had 18 prior citizen complaints filed against him as though that means something.  Just because he has had complaints filed against him does not mean that he did anything wrong.  The only other mention made about those complaints is that no actions had taken place against him.  There are two reasons for inaction on a citizen complaint.  (1) It is unfounded or (2) the department doesn’t care.  My personal experience with citizen complaints is that they are filed by people who have been arrested who are looking for some way to get out of their charges.  I’ve had my share of complaints filed against me as a police officer.  Without exception, every last one of them came from a person who wanted to get out of the arrest or who had been publicly embarrassed by being confronted in public for some citable action I had observed.  A police officer who doesn’t have complaints filed against him/her isn’t doing his or her job.  No, that does not mean police are to go out and collect complaints.  (I invite my police friends who read this far to weigh in on their experience with citizen complaints filed against them.)

About half the people police arrest will complain on the spot about some physical ailment.  Every field sobriety test I gave in connection with a suspected drunk driving suspect was accompanied with a complaint about a busted knee either from football, the military, or a fall.  I repeat.  EVERY DWI suspect.  Arrests for other charges included dislocated shoulders, poor heart condition, breathing difficulty, stomach problems, and on and on.  That is not to say all arrestees had a medical complaint, but a sufficient number of people complained that I came to anticipate that there would be some sort of medical condition a person would profess.  If police didn’t take physical control of all subjects placed under arrest, those arrested would never make it to jail.  Lots of people tend to “rabbit” when they are arrested.  Anyway, if the rest of the world was as sick as those arrested for crimes, then we would be a very sick country.  (I invited my police friends who read this far to weigh in on their experience with DWI/DUI field sobriety tests.)

This I can tell you.  Communities across the country are begging for qualified police officers.  Every state requires psychological screening of those who are conditionally offered employment in addition to physical exams and background investigations.  Bad apples slip through the cracks.  Many police departments have lowered their standards just to get someone to apply for vacant positions.  That’s what you get when people continue to castigate the police or any occupation for that matter.  Many police families across the country qualify for welfare and food stamps. 

After I retired from my policing career, I taught criminal justice at the college level.  Occasionally, I had the ability to invite my students to help with traffic direction or crowd control (more of a courtesy position – “please watch your step as you walk on the ice” or “can I help you find…?”  Without exception, after every event, students came to me and said they wanted out.  They wanted to change majors.  They didn’t deserve to be treated the way they had been treated by the public.  I figured it was best to find out early what it was going to be like.

As for me, after 25+ years of “I pay your salary” or “Do you know who I am?” or “I know your boss” or “I’ll have your badge” or “I’ll see you in court” or “I’ll sue you for every penny you have” or “I know where you live” or “I know who your kids are” or….  After 25+ years of being spit upon, yelled at, screamed at, threatened, beaten up, lied to, lied about, threatened with a shovel or a knife, and fought to keep my gun out of the hands of a man whose life ambition was to kill a police officer, and on and on, would I go back and do it again.  No Way! 

Is Derek Chauvin guilty of a crime?  Possibly.  Perhaps probably.  I don’t know.  Like you, I do not know all the facts.  I’m going to reserve judgment until the facts come in and are revealed.  I’m sure as hell not going to burn down a building and break windows one way or the other.

You want better police?  Act like it.

(You are welcome to express opposing opinion on your own timeline.)