After:
From Wikipedia: Kelly Thomas (April 5, 1974 – July 10, 2011) was a 37-year-old homeless man suffering from schizophrenia, and living on the streets of Fullerton, California. He was fatally beaten by members of the Fullerton Police Department on July 5, 2011.
If you are curious how the protectors of community safety, the "good guys", decided upon this treatment of Kelly Thomas, watch this video:
Sadly, in Canada the oversight of the police rests with the police. And -- surprise! -- the police decide that the good guys only do good. There are no bad apples in the barrel and the citizens are the ones up to no good and must be "disciplined" to ensure public order.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all for a well-paid, professional police force. But I want a police that serves the public and not themselves. They shouldn't abuse their position to beat up the weak and defenseless. They should focus on crime. And their focus must not be limited to the corner store hold-up. It must include the while collar crimes that steal millions -- even billions -- and unfortunately are treated as "victimless" crimes. They aren't. People lose their life savings from financial crimes. The devastation of a Bernie Madoff or, on a smaller scale, the Canadian Bertram Earl Jones is vastly greater than a corner store stick up. But the police and the courts come down hard on the little guy and let the white collar criminal off scot-free.
What is especially bad is when police take matters into their own hands and become judge, jury, and executioner. A classic case of this is the killing of Ian Bush who supposedly struggled with an RCMP officer who was behind him and trying to subdue him. The RCMP story is that Ian Bush reached behind himself, disarmed the officer, then in the struggle managed to point the gun behind his head, and shot himself to death while holding the pistol behind his own head. (Try that for yourself!) If you believe that, I have a bridge in Brooklyn that I can sell you for a very good price.
For a short list of "police gone wild" in Canada, read this Wikipedia article.
No comments:
Post a Comment