FROM CHARLES FRONT PORCH: Last night my nightly prayer was short and sweet. “Lord let spring get here soon”. Actually the weather was somewhat improved over the last few days but still cold enough for me not to linger on the porch having my evening tea. In the short time I was on the porch a police chase came by. I live in a good no make that great section of town however if I look to my left I see our “IN” night life area of town and if I look to the right I see the Kansas State line. It is not common but neither uncommon to see someone fleeing the Police. Lets chat about this for a minute with the question being why does this happen. We are having a discussion nationwide about policing and their actions. You will find no one in our great country that has more respect for the police than I. It is true we have some cops that are better than others with public and personal relationships however look at the divorce rate in this country and it is apparent most of society needs some work with relationships. I have witnessed Police abuse however that was in the late 1950s. Since then I have witnessed situations I would have handled different but not even close to abuse. Spring of 1967 I was supposed to pick my girlfriend up at 4 AM. As we planned to visit her Grandmother who lived four hours away. I overslept and as I rushed to pick her up a Highway Patrolman pulled me over for speeding 77 miles per hour in a 55 mph zone. He was stern but not abusive. As we sat in his patrol car and he was writing a ticket he ask why I was in such a hurry? I told him two reasons the first I am late to pick up my girlfriend as we are visiting her grandmother and the other no poor slob should be out here to catch me this time of Sunday morning. He broke out laughing, stooped writing the ticket and told me he agreed with me. He changed it from a paying ticket to a warning. The lesson I learned was to slow down as they are always looking and being truthful works better than a lie. In the early 1970s I lived in a small town in New York. We had three arson fires in three weeks all of them I called in and I was a member of the volunteer fire department so naturally I became a suspect. I was interviewed, some might say interrogated, by the State Police. I was cooperative and became a witness rather than suspect. I did not become defensive or demand a lawyer. I was honest. They respected this. 1973/75 period I called on the Armed Forces base Exchanges commonly called the PXs. The pentagon in their wisdom located military bases in some God forsaken areas of our country. The only logic to base location is they need a vast amount of land and the property is cheap. I drove in excess of 250 miles a day mostly on open highways. Speeding tickets were a hazard of the profession. In those days we didn’t have the computer network we have today so I carried at least three drivers license from different states where I could use the one with the least points when stopped. I would guess I received over 50 tickets in that eperoid. When I explained the situations many times I only got a warning ticket. Never in that time did I have one officer that was abusive. Cooperation meant everything. If people cooperated with the Police would we be having this discussion? The answer is a simple NO. There is no other Police Department in America structured like the one in Kansas City. The system, by design, invites police abuse. Our Police has a ride along program for citizens and community activist and leaders are encouraged to ride along. I have rode with them several times. I have seen with my own eyes the abuse they suffer on a daily basis. I have ridden with them in affluent areas of town as well as the ghetto. I know my ride along s are brief and not what happens everyday but in the so called “White” community I have seen no abuse. Ever-time I saw abuse was in the minority community and this was not limited to the Black areas of town. We have two separate Mexicans areas in our city, one being well established legal residents and the other all illegals who swam the Rio Grande under the cover of darkness within the last 5 years. I have seen disrespect for police authority in both areas however it is rampant in the illegal community. Our Police are abused on a daily basis so the question becomes Why?. I think the question will be discussed and dissected by Sociologist for years and never an answer found but I have some ideas why. The lack of sure and quick justice is the main culprit. Lets look at some of these reasons. In the late 50s when I was young you went to court with your checkbook in your pocket knowing you bank account would be lighter before the day was over. The liberal judges thought it acceptable to give people time to pay rather than jail until you paid. This started the liberal argument that it is no crime to be poor. While this argument has some merit it also encourages people who are poor to abuse the system. The liberal argument says rich people are never found guilty because they can afford good lawyers. I would like to know the rate of acquittals versus charges leveled. Most, yes, I said most white people lost faith in our criminal justice system when OJ Simpson was turned loose on society to commit more crimes. Many Black people will say the defining moment was the Rodney King beat down. Wold Rodney have been beaten if he had respect for the law? Would Anthony Brown or Eric Garner be alive if they believed and respected the law.? Here in Kansas City, Missouri our system works works like this. The Police issue a summons to appear in Municipal court (This court is illegal but that is a subject for a different day) The respondent appears in court, found guilty, never jail because we don’t have one, set free with time to pay, never pays, a bench warrant is issued, subject arrested upon the next contact with police, hauled off to jail, given a new court date, released on personal bond and given a new court date, does not appear, another bench warrant is issued and the cycle begins once more. Our Police have a no chase policy in many cases, are forbidden to enforce immigration laws and on and on and on. Why should people respect the Police when there is no swift and sure justice. This cycle is repeated across America especially in cities with a liberal Democrat Government. When you have a Sheriff Joe like in Arizona this doesn’t happen. Kansas City has a government dominated by the minority community and Democrats since school busing days and is an example to the rest of the world about how not to do things. Kansas City Missouri is a city of close to have a million people. The number of Bench Warrants outstanding varies all over the board. Liberals will tell you the figure is 40 to 60K, Moderates say 60 to 80K and conservatives can and will make a convincing argument the bench warrants equal the population. Personally I have no clue to the actual number but if I had to guess I would estimate 100 to 150K. Can the Police not be a target when this many law breakers are on the street? Can citizens feel secure in their home with this many law breakers on the street? This chat is published nationally so I cannot comment on your community. I can and will say that you can no longer feel safe in your home or the Police respected until we respect the law. The laws for all citizens, not select groups. Laws that are enforced equally across the board and a Court system that applies the law swiftly and equally. Many people deserve compassion but should compassion be part of the criminal justice system or should Police enforce the law without social concerns. Too many Police Departments are concerned more about compassion than enforcing the law. A Police officer has the authority to charge with a lesser offense than the one committed if conditions warrant and they do this every day. Our elected officials at all levels have the sworn duty to pass laws for the good of the community. They also should show compassion however the citizens must demand the Police enforce the law as written, not as they wish it was. Our elected officials also must be shouldered and required with the responsibility to rescind laws that no longer apply to society today. Our people need to understand the Police enforce laws that were made by people you elected. When you have a criminal attorney general who does not treat people equally and a President who does not believe in the Constitution our Police are put into a position where they have no clarity as to what laws they should enforce. This is wrong! We the people cannot chastise the Police when they enforce the law. We cannot vilify them when they protect themselves and uphold the law like in the Garner and Anthony Brown cases. We can and should question the conditions that led to Brown and Garners unlawful actions. Obama, Holder and Bill de Blasio have thrown our Police under the bus for the only reason they do not believe in the laws that people we elected passed. We must support our Police. They enforce laws that were made by representatives of we the people. The problem is with the differences within our society. This is solved at the election box not not by vilifying the Police. The Lord willing we will chat again soon Charles Melton cmltn42@yahoo
Posted on: Sun, 11 Jan 2015 16:12:53 +0000
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