What if the problem of police killing people has less to do with race than it does with the improper exercise of police authority? Central question is, do cops have to immediately win every fight even if it means death for their opponent? I doubt that race is the major factor in cops killing people. Racial stereotyping undoubtedly leads to profiling and unduly hassling people; and race may dispose cops to go to a violent state of defcon 1 sooner within an encounter. But I think the major issue is one, not of whether cops should have absolute control over people they encounter, but of how do they control themselves when things get hairy? I think that rules of engagement should be established that mandate that cops have to avoid the notion that they have to win every fight they get into., They should be made to think more strategically, knowing that they are going to win in the long run, with their technology and their skilled force. There needs to be a re-calibration of the use of deadly force so that it has less emphasis on winning the fight and more on enforcing the law smartly, mercifully and by the strategic use of technique rather than deadly force.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Dec 2014 16:43:03 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015