I blame the LEO but I also think the Walmart Employees have a lot to blame on this. Calling the PD on $14.00 of merchandise that was returned by someone who was essentially disabled seems pretty extreme.
Speaking of poorly trained employees, I don't really blame a Walmart employee making ****-all an hour for calling the cops. But yeah, you'd wish they would call and say "I think this woman needs help" and not "help some old lady is trying to steal a coke". This reminds me of a situation I found myself in last week. I was driving home at night from dinner with my wife and we spotted what appeared to be a middle aged woman standing in the middle of a 4 lane major thoroughfare holding up a blanket/sheet. She was just begging to get hit by a car it seemed. My wife freaked out and wanted to call the cops, and while I reluctantly agreed to do so, I made sure to tell police that this was a mental health crisis and NOT a crime in progress. The last few years really has driven home the idea to me that sending the police anywhere can be a deadly mistake if they're not the right people for the job.
Completely agree. The woman eventually told the Walmart employees she would pay for the merchandise. Instead of calling the cops off and taking her payment, they refused to allow her to pay for the items. As for all the cops on the scene, they should be fired, and the city should have to pay for all her medical bills for the dislocated shoulder and broken arm inflicted by the first officer on the scene.
The mimimum wage employees dont really have much leeway. Follow the script in WalMart's employee guide or get fired. And the scripts definately don't include a step to "asses whether the thief seems like they need help from social services". The way those type of large corporations with minimum wage workers operate, their goal is to remove as much judgement and volition from the little people as is possible. Do it as we scripted or you're fired.
Beyond protocol, if you're getting paid 8 bucks an hour to have your soul crushed you're probably not gonna have much patience with an incoherent shoplifter. Anyone who has worked retail knows the struggle. You just want the problem to go away with minimal skin off your own ass.
Nobody in the right mind wants to be a cop anymore. The pay sucks for the responsibility given. Who wants to put up with shitty people all day long for near poverty wages.
Shitty pay? A quick Indeed.com search shows that's bullshit... Police Officer Recruit San Jose Police Department 4.4 San Jose, CA 95116 (North Valley area) $98,051 - $152,415 a year No experience or training is required. At least 20 1/2 years-old at the time of application / Maximum age is 70 years-old (mandatory retirement age). Entry Level Police Officer City of Bloomington Bloomington, IL 61701 $66,969 a year Easily apply Responsive employer Police officers must be able to multi-task effectively to complete the probationary period and consistently perform the job functions of a competent, fully… Police Officer City of Longview, TX 3.8 Longview, TX $53,990 - $74,220 a year High School Diploma or equivalent; no experience is required as this is an entry-level position. Responds to calls for police service involving criminal…
If you think that's what the job entails you should never be a cop. This why there is so much abuse of police power. The butt end of the public? Really? Thank god that pay is demeaning for you to be a cop.
Yes, we live in a country where half the country is screaming defund the police and the other half who are screaming blue lives matter get pissed off when the police try to do their job when it comes to them. Being a cop is a thankless job. And when the barrier to entry is a high school education, we all should expect problems.
This is BS. And Half the country is not screaming defund the police is that even a thing currently? So police have no blame in all of this? So all of this excuses the police breaking the woman's arm and dislocating her soldier and not getting her medical attention?
Be objective instead of trying to blame someone else. That fact is most of the time when someone sees a cop or a cop car, its an unwelcoming sight. Some are terrified they will get dragged out of their car and executed. Most others are worried about being harassed because they broke some rule. The vast majority of places in this country doesnt need a cop in sight to feel safe. As I said before, its a thankless job, much like customer service. The general public shouldn't fear for their safety or fear they are being shaken down for revenue.
On the contrary, the pay (when I went through the process 15 years ago) was quite good. The benefits were top notch as well, including the pension.
It's cases like these that show the dangers of LEO too eager to use force and are a threat to everyone. People like to counter "Black Lives Matter" with "All Lives Matter" but given that this was the same state where Elijah McClain's death happened show why Black Lives Matter does affect All Lives. If we cannot hold LEO accountable for their actions just means they act with more impunity. That increases distrust between the public and LE and ultimately makes things more dangerous even for LEO.
Im not sure what you would consider a good salary. My base case of a good salary is that you're either getting ahead or getting behind. There are local law enforcement cities that were paying as low as $15.00 an hour. Now granted this is rural america with no crime, but you're not getting ahead on $15.00 an hour. Of course there are areas that pay much better. And as a LEO, there is not a lot of room for advancement. I really disliked how the 'demilitarize the police' turned into defund the police. As a society, we should be heading towards a direction where officers do not need to carry firearms. I have noticed a small trend in this direction where local law enforcement are now using specialized divisions for specific common tasks, such as road side assistance. I know people hate the surveillance state, but we should be headed towards a self governance system...meaning if you're in a vehicle and you violate a rule, it gets reported to your insurance company. The less traffic cops you need, the more they can focus on more meaningful tasks. We can pay police better, give them better pay and create more of a demand, thus raising the requirements. As long as our country focuses on individualism and less on society, we will continue to see problems increase.
I am objective I used to be a probation officer and as a teacher I am talking to cops about once a week that are in the schools. Just like a lot of people don't like cops a lot of them also kiss cops asses or at least hold them in great respect. It's not a thankless job do you know how free **** cops get and the respect among a huge demographic the command. I can say teachers have thankless jobs using your logic but that would be false as well.
https://www.hpdcareer.com/benefits.html Honestly, once you get out of your probationary period, it's a pretty solid gig. Once you start factoring in the incentive pay and weekend/private gigs you can really make some bank. Again, I'm not saying it is an easy job, just that they don't struggle to make ends meet.