My biggest problem with militarizing the police is that they become something else entirely when you do that. There is no reason whatsoever to have snipers at the scene of a riot and honestly I can't think of many scenarios where a police force would need more than gas, riot shields and rubber/bean bag rounds. If you need more than that to control a riot, call in the national guard. Police should be police, military should be military.
The Police, like other government departments, have a tendency to want to spend all the money given to them. They could be perfectly well-meaning and think they are doing something useful, but they can also be wasteful. With policing, fear and paranoia about crime often make legislatures allocate money to the police without looking too hard at cost-effectiveness or even at what exactly the police is doing. Military spending can be like this, too. Nobody who needs to be elected wants to be seen as anti-police or anti-military. There needs to be effective cilvilian oversight over the police departments or else they end up spending all that money on equipment that they don't need just because they look cool.
[rquoter](CNN) -- Darren Wilson was just one of 53 officers in a small-town police department until his encounter with a unarmed teenager on a street in a St. Louis suburb. After refusing to release Wilson's name since he fatally shot Michael Brown Saturday -- citing death threats -- authorities in Ferguson, Missouri, Friday disclosed the identity of a man whose actions sparked sometimes violent protests and thrust a quiet community of 22,400 into the national spotlight. It was not known if Wilson, an officer for six years, has been placed on modified assignment. Police Chief Thomas Jackson told reporters that the officer has face no disciplinary action during his time on the job. Jackson said the officer had responded to a call about a sick person before receiving a call about a convenience store robbery shortly before midnight on the night of the shooting. Wilson had received via radio a description of the robbery suspect when he encountered Brown on the street, Jackson said. [... ...] http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/15/justice/ferguson-missouri-cop-profile/[/rquoter] [rQUOTEr]FERGUSON, Missouri -- The police officer who fatally shot unarmed teen Michael Brown, prompting days of unrest in Ferguson, Missouri and rallies nationwide, has been identified as Darren Wilson. Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson made the announcement Friday morning, having previously refused citing concerns over the officer's safety. Jackson said that Wilson has been an officer in the police force for six years and no disciplinary action was taken against him. Wilson was treated for injuries after the shooting, Jackson said. Jackson said that the officer encountered Brown after responding to a description of a suspect involved in a robbery at a convenience store. He gave no further details. [... ...] http://www.cbsnews.com/news/darren-...er-who-fatally-shot-michael-brown-identified/[/rQUOTEr]
There are supposedly pics floating around of Michael Brown Robbing a convenience store and shoving a clerk before the incident that took his life.
Why isn't Brown's friend and alleged accomplice Dorian Johnson arrested if he is a suspect in a robbery? Dude's been doing TV interviews all this time and can be easily found. Why did the police wait all this time to let this info known? Just seems weird procedurally. And yes, there are even procedures that one must follow when dealing with suspects of a crime. Usually doesn't involve shooting a guy if you are not in imminent danger. Brown may or may not be a criminal, but the Ferguson police department doesn't seem to have their act together.
Spoiler <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Capt. Ronald Johnson criticizes Ferguson police chief press conference, says alleged robbery separate from shooting. <a href="http://t.co/4PMGFx1MKJ">pic.twitter.com/4PMGFx1MKJ</a></p>— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) <a href="https://twitter.com/keithboykin/statuses/500294403324645376">August 15, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Chief Jackson saying a robbery preceded the shooting of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MichaelBrown?src=hash">#MichaelBrown</a></p>— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/statuses/500276903031603200">August 15, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Police packet says Michael Brown was in fact a suspect in a robbery that occurred shortly before he was killed.</p>— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/statuses/500282744086474752">August 15, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>I'm reading packet. Michael Brown is named as a suspect in robbery along with Dorian Johnson who has said he witnessed Brown's death.</p>— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/statuses/500287831219392512">August 15, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Photos of robbery that police say Michael Brown was suspected of committing. <a href="http://t.co/dXYM5lAqyW">pic.twitter.com/dXYM5lAqyW</a></p>— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/statuses/500289988018573312">August 15, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p><a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche">@Yamiche</a> ARE THEY KIDDING? Warning - this link goes to a graphic photo of Michael Brown <a href="http://t.co/UwSaaukmx7">http://t.co/UwSaaukmx7</a></p>— ⓕ (@effdot) <a href="https://twitter.com/effdot/statuses/500291843385720832">August 15, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> Spoiler http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/16/u...oting-in-ferguson-missouri.html?smid=tw-share
So it turns out that dead guy was a D bag, doesn't really make it any better, but he's probably not someone that we should be mourning.
....yeah, you really can. People who rob convenience stores for blunts are D bags. How is that an advanced concept that anyone should struggle with?
If there was a struggle in the police cruiser, shouldn't there be a video or at least an audio recording available? I thought most squad cars were equipped with recording equipment.
