Brickbat: Justice Is Blind

The St. Louis police department fired officer Rory Bruce after he was caught on video punching a handcuffed suspect. Prosecutors charged him with assault. But a judge found him not guilty of that charge without ever looking at the video. Now, Bruce and his union are fighting to have his job restored.

Comments

[WTF]

But a judge found him not guilty of that charge without ever looking at the video.

Due process was served, he was charged by DA, totality of the circs, NO double standard.
hth

[Night Elf Mohawk]

"Police officers have to make split second decisions in life and death situations and I don't think that folks over at the Circuit Attorney's office or folks up in Internal Affairs should second guess them based on their brief impression of a video tape," says Jeff Roorda with the SLPOA. "It doesn't tell the whole story," he says.

So now getting a handcuffed 16 year old out of a van while in the company of your friends is now a split-second, life and death situation.

When your hiring pool is pussies of average intelligence, it's not surprising you get the results you do.

[WTF]

I just wonder how Roorda can say that shit with a straight face. I guess pathological liars have certain abilities.

[Fist of Etiquette]

I had to make a split second decision at that intersection, ossifer. You know those types of decisions can't be scrutinized.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

I wonder if shooting an intruder in the face when he breaks into your bedroom during a no-knock raid counts as a split-second, life and death decision for the shooter. No, actually, I don't wonder. Hyper-deference for the cop, strict liability for you. It's only fair.

[WTF]

But there's NO DOUBLE STANDARD - dunphy has told us this over and over! I guess we just don't get it.

[Almanian!]

Cops are held to a higher standard. I'll never cite an actual example or provide a link, and even if I do, it's the exception, not the rule. Gotta run - powerlifting, surfing and then acting lessons with a Morgan Fairchild poster.

SMOOCHES.

[Flyboy]

Below average intelligence. Remember, the courts have ruled that having a maximum IQ score is perfectly legal. If you artificially cut off the top of the bell curve, your average will be below the population average.

[Almanian!]

AND NOTHING ELSE HAPPENED. Isolated Incident.

[Fatty Bolger]

The St. Louis Police Officers Association says it was a defense tactic.

Punching a handcuffed kid in the face is self defense. Seems legit.

[wareagle]

as more than one poster has said, baboons with guns. I used to have a great deal of respect for law enforcement having known a good many solid men and women in the profession. But way too many stories like this one have eroded that respect; if the profession refuses to weed out the morons, if not criminals, in it, then you can't take it seriously because it doesn't take itself seriously.

[RBS]

This. I learned this a few years ago when my wife applied to be a cop. She was weeded out after the psych eval because she did show enough deference to authority. She's also way too smart to be a cop but she really wanted to be a detective.

[sarcasmic]

Don't you mean she didn't show enough deference to authority?

I thought the whole thing was that you do what you're told without question, even if it is illegal, and in time you'll have the chance to order your underlings to commit illegal acts.

And nothing else will happen.

[RBS]

yeah, that's what I meant.

[Ted S.]

Take out ads on local TV showing the video.

[Bean Counter]

They won't accept the ads because they are controversial...yada yada yada.

[sarcasmic]

Judges give cops a pass because they know that if they get pulled over for driving drunk or whatever, the cops will not give them a citation. Now if judges started convicting cops, then they might actually get a citation the next time they drive drunk, brandish a firearm, or break some other law.

What goes around comes around.

[UnCivilServant]

I keep wanting to run for judge, but then I remember that the Lawyers have it all sewn up. They actually require you be licenced to practice law in the state which requires (for New York) that you attended law school.

Personally I think Lawyers should be BANNED from being judges because the purported purpose of a judge is to enforce the law, while the role of a lawyer has always been to pervert the law.

Also, a ban on lawyers holding public office.

[Floridian]

I think banning a group of people from office for their profession violates their right to free association.

[sarcasmic]

Treat them like felons.

[Floridian]

I don't agree with treating felons different after they have served their time.

Disclaimer: private companies can hire or not hire whoever they want. The government shouldn't be able to create a group of second class citizens.

[Bean Counter]

"Ends justify the means."
"You don't understand, this is an exception."
"The Constitution is a living document."
Libertarian means not having to be consistent...... and so on and so forth.

[Floridian]

There are NO exceptions!!! Except for special cases obviously.

[UnCivilServant]

Then banning me from being a judge because I'm not a lawyer violates my rights.

[Bean Counter]

Yeah, it's discrimination to require that the person making rulings on legal arguments and procedures be educated in....legal arguments and procedures. I think it's called a BOQ - Bonafide Occupational Qualification.

[Ted S.]

Also, a ban on lawyers holding public office.

Probably unconstitutional, of course. I'd like to see a setup in which the DAs and AG can't run for further office, but I'd bet that's unconstitutional, too.

[Floridian]

I think this makes the case to privatize the police. If your local peace officers are abusing their employers then when the contract is up at the end of the year don't renew Bob's security and contract with Cory's security.

[Bean Counter]

But, what about the police union? Then they wouldn't have the power to force the city to knuckle under to their demands. OH, THE HORROR!!!

[Floridian]

I know giving the people a direct choice is not democracy. Now letting a percentage of the eligible voting population pick from a special class of people from two parties, that is real democracy.

[Bean Counter]

It's gratifying to see that you understand. You can get up off your knees now. As soon as we've tasered you a few times to make sure you fully absorbed your lesson, you're free to go...until next time.

[Auric Demonocles]

I guess justice is also alt-text blind.

[Loki]

Remember folks. there's no double standard for cops. In fact, they're aften held to a higher standard than civilians are. Blah blah blah, totality of circs, something something fact pattern. /hth

[UnCivilServant]

AnonBot, we're going to update your posting algorithm, okay?

[Jack the Reaper]

AnonBot forgot is /sarcasm tag.