[leto]

http://abcnews.go.com/US/video/caug...g-teen-12834744?&clipId=12834744&cid=embedded

 

[EJR914]

They didn't do anything wrong. Every single one of those blows was a distraction blow. SOP for a suspect who lays on his stomach and puts his hands on his head.

 

[The AmBASSaDEER]

Wow, wonder what happened before hand?

 

[Fallschirmjäger]

The good news is that we can all be thankful it was only four officers out of the entire department that appear to be guilty. They're are only a minority and not at all representative of the rest of the department.



The bad news is that due to some ironic cosmic oversight, those four officers just happened to be in the same spot, on the same day, assaulting the same person. We shouldn't draw any conclusions or anything.

 

[Fallschirmjäger]

Wow, wonder what happened before hand?

Is it germane? He was performing (well, he'll be accused of performing) an illegal act and then attempting to elude capture. That doesn't mean that officers are allowed to administer "street justice."
In armed conflicts (aka, war) you can have people ambush you, mine the ground with boobytraps, drop bombs on your head, and even shoot at you.
But, that doesn't mean that you are allowed to mistreat them once they have surrendered or been captured. If you can't beat the shuffin' outa someone in way, why would it be allowed in a civilian situation?

 

[gunsmoker]

He could have been reaching for a sharpened hair-pick hidden in the hair on the back of his head.
He could have been trying to pull a sword out of the neck opening of his shirt, like He-Man used to do in that old cartoon.
There is an "officer safety" exception to all suspects' rights, not just the 4th Amendment, and you can beat the snot out of someone because until you've broken all their arms and legs and kicked their head until they're bleeding out of both ears, you can't be sure that they don't plan to resist some more after catching their breath.

(SARCASM OFF)

Seriously, we've had a number of posters here at this website say it's OK to shoot fleeing felons in the back after they appear to be in full retreat, because they may in fact be doing a short tactical retreat to a better position, where they will take cover and re-engage you. Is that kind of wild speculation any less absurd than these cops saying the black teenager may have not really been safe to cuff until the kicked his head and groin and stomped all the major muscle groups in his arms and legs?

 

[The AmBASSaDEER]

[quote="The AmBASSaDEER":3n9ofjhe]Wow, wonder what happened before hand?

Is it germane?[/quote:3n9ofjhe]
Maybe

 

[Fallschirmjäger]

Have I ever heard a more impassioned, concise and convincing argument?

 

[stuk in irak]

Is it germane?

As Archie Bunker said, "What do the Germans have to do with it???" :rotfl:

But seriously, once the "accused" was no longer a threat, on the ground and appearing to submit, the chase is over. The police officers in this case were out of line, and should be punished accordingly.

 

[ber950]

[quote="Fallschirmjäger":ezsbuoxs]Is it germane?

As Archie Bunker said, "What do the Germans have to do with it???" :rotfl:
[/quote:ezsbuoxs] Actually I am pretty sure that was Sheriff Buford T. Justice, but I was thinking the same thing.

 

[gunsmoker]

What this skinny black teenager did before and during the high-speed chase MIGHT be relevant for the defense of the big white cops that stomped him after he surrendered, IF, and only if, they want to plead temporary insanity.

Maybe what the kid did was horrible enough that they were just overcome with rage that removed their free will, and left them unable to control themselves?

This could be a mitigating factor when sentencing them, too.

But it looks to me like they're guilty. Now, should they be punished MORE or LESS than a regular citizen who participates in that same kind of beat-down of another citizen? In Georgia, beating somebody up is usually a misdemeanor that gets you a fine and no jail time, if you have no criminal history. Only if you break bones or cause somebody to suffer loss of use of part of their body does it become felony aggravated battery.
If this kid was not crippled or otherwise seriously injured, it would be regular misdemeanor assault and battery if the cops were just regular citizens. Does it become a felony Civil Rights hate crime just because the kid is black? (Maybe, if that's part of what motivated the cops!)

 

[EJR914]

One of the officers may be non-white from their pictures, so at least in part, he is a minority, so I really don't think this is a bunch of racist white LEO beating a minority, IMHO. I could always be wrong, though.

I would be ok with an assault charge, or an aggravated felony assault charge if the victim was beaten badly enough. Those kicks to the head can certain cause a concussion. I'd call that a serious injury because the brain is involved at that point.

I'm not really aware of what "official oppression" even means and how is that correlated to an unprovoked beating.

This is what one website says about the Texas Code.

What is OO? If the police pull you over and offer to let you go for sexual favors. Or if the game warden illegally keeps you from voting.

It doesn't have to involve law enforcement, just a "public servant acting under color of his office." From the penal code.

[quote:37dkhrcu] § 39.03. Official Oppression

(a) A public servant acting under color of his office or employment commits an offense if he:

(1) intentionally subjects another to mistreatment or to arrest, detention, search, seizure, dispossession, assessment, or lien that he knows is unlawful;

(2) intentionally denies or impedes another in the exercise or enjoyment of any right, privilege, power, or immunity, knowing his conduct is unlawful; or

(3) intentionally subjects another to sexual harassment.

(b) For purposes of this section, a public servant acts under color of his office or employment if he acts or purports to act in an official capacity or takes advantage of such actual or purported capacity.

(c) In this section, "sexual harassment" means unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, submission to which is made a term or condition of a person's exercise or enjoyment of any right, privilege, power, or immunity, either explicitly or implicitly.

[/quote:37dkhrcu]

http://www.dallascriminaldefenselawyerb ... ssion.html

 

[chainsaw123]

Arent the police supposed be held to a higher standard that an average citizen? If yes then their punishment should be more severe if found guilty.

 

[Quest50]

One of the officers may be non-white from their pictures, so at least in part, he is a minority, so I really don't think this is a bunch of racist white LEO beating a minority, IMHO. I could always be wrong, though.

NSFW
Dave Chapelle's "Black White Supremist"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wITchV88 ... re=related

 

[JeF4y]

[quote="Fallschirmjäger":2bdilu5w][quote="The AmBASSaDEER":2bdilu5w]Wow, wonder what happened before hand?

Is it germane?[/quote:2bdilu5w]
Maybe[/quote:2bdilu5w]

Sure was in Rodney King's case...

 

[bdee]

Perhaps in cases like these if they are convicted they should be put in with the general population in prison, no special treatment.

 

[Xiclotl]

From True Crime Report:

After the incident in March of last year, seven officers were fired, and four of them were charged with misdemeanor official suppression, while two of them, Hassan and Phil Bryan also received violation of the civil rights of a prisoner, also a misdemeanor. Three other officers were fired without being charged. Two of those officers have since been reinstated by arbiters.

...and maybe after all is said and done the thieving little will learn that stealing is wrong. :righton:

 

[bdee]

accused, not convicted, so shouldn't the penalty phase come after the conviction instead of before?