I am also curious at once called out there what the proper response was for the officer once kicked in the groin. Agreed, mistake 1 was the parent calling the cops. Mistake 2 was telling the cop he could taze her if necessary. But what was the right thing to do for the cop? Any use of physical techniques on a 10 year old done by a grown cop could cause alot of damage. Heck, those of you with 10 year olds tell them to keep trying to punch you and just block them martial arts style. The force and speed of your block will actually cause bruising on their arms. Try to grab an arm to cuff them behind the kids back, and you risk breaking said arm especially with her struggling. Are cops trained how to only use enough force of their muscles to subdue a 10 year old?? You ever start to think that uncommon subjects of police interjections continue to attack or in some cases begin to attack because of the bad pub the cops get when they use their most nonlethal form to subdue them?? They know that the Court of Public Opinion will side with them because the cops tazed a kid, elderly, handicapped individual. Heck, its sensationalized on TV all the time. Kids arent as obvlivious as we would like to think. And I guarantee you if the cops break an arm trying to pin or cuff an individual of an elderly, handicapped, or adolescent background the department or them will be subject to civil suits out the wazoo.
You have to be one hot tempered helpless police officer if your first response to a 10 year old's aggression is the taser. Not that a 10 year old can't do some damage, but tasing should not be the answer in such a case. If that's allowed and that's why he did it, then that should change.... either through policy or legislation. The mother is obviously either an idiot, but who knows if she was trying to scare the kid or if she really "needed" police help? Who knows if she was trying to scare the kid, or if she really wanted him to tase her? I have an opinion/guess, but that's not really relevant. All the blame and what else could he have done and what's the rest of the story is irrelevant, or at least unknown. What is known is that a cop tased a 10 year old, and that is just wrong. Maybe he did the right thing by himself/the department, because legally that's what he could get away with, but make no mistake, it should not have come to that. There ARE legal ways of containing/restraining aggressive UNARMED kids who are endangering others or themselves, ask anyone in the public school system. Of course, if it escalates, police eventually get involved, and evidently that means all bets are off with some. The officer should have been able to take some action other than tasing her, if he's worth his salt. All that said, bet she doesn't do that again, but end doesn't justify the means. Further, bet the officer doesn't do it again either. Not that I agree with it, but the example of Tasing the mother and telling the kid YOU'RE NEXT made me laugh.
you said multiple times that the cop can't do that.. and there are other ways of dealing with it.. but you don't know what they are. You can't just say "there has to be a better way, but i can't think of one". If it's really as simple as you think it is, then it shouldn't take police training. One of us should be able to think of a way to easily handle the situation. My conclusion? It's not so easy..
It doesn't say in the article that that was why she was arrested. That was why she was tased. She was arrested and her case will go before the juvie court. But, it doesn't say what she was arrested for. If the arrest is for assaulting the officer, that's weaksauce. And, it shouldn't have come to that, because he has no reason to restrain her unless he needs to arrest her. If it is for assaulting her mother, that's exculpatory for the officer. But, poor form for the mother and the daughter. Btw, I just noticed she was tased in the back. Was she running away? Already pinned?
Artesticle/Southern Select/Shovel Face is one of the better trolls we've had on this board. Charming really. If only WWR was here to defend this cop's actions as well. Hmmmmmmm.
No - it's the law, 10-year old or not. I have absolutely no problem letting a 10 year old understand the consequences of breaking the law and assaulting a police officer. If they can be arrested for breaking curfew then they can be arrested for hitting a cop.
i got an awesome mental image...kid crying that their eyes burn, then the cop going Goldberg style on her to take her down. Followed by a knee in the back while cuffing her. thanks
Were talking about the Ozark Police Department here guys. Its not entirely out of the realm of possibility that this officer wasnt related to the 10-year-old in question. Hell, we would be looking at two seperate charges. 1)Official Oppression 2)Domestic Violence Personally, if my dispatch sent me out on a call like that, I would rip into that mom for not being in the right frame of mind as a parent.
I suppose you also carry a gun, defend the 2nd amendment feverishly in a debate over Soy beans, Champion Authority as the only means of keeping the masses under control, and take time to point out to everyone around you that you're a hard-working American who loves freedom and anyone else who doesn't should be placed in an internment camp and be force-fed right wing propaganda from an Animatronic Ronald Reagan.
I didn't say it was easy, or that I can't think of one, I said... Not being in the school system (but very close to it), I can't give you a play by play or diagram, but I can tell you that I know for a fact that even in elementary school, teachers / administrators are trained to implement restraining holds on children in just such an occasion. My point is, if they are trained to do it and it is legal, which it is, the police can/should be too, and I stand by my opinion that Tasing an unarmed 10 year old is not acceptable. Period.
He wouldn't have been assaulted if he hadn't tried to restrain the girl. Was he trying to restrain her merely because her mother told him to? That's not a good enough reason to restrain someone. If he was foolishly acting under orders from the complainant and got himself kicked in the nuts while doing something he should not have been doing, it is weaksauce to then arrest the girl for it, even if she is in transgression of the law. I hope for the officer's sake that you are wrong about why she was arrested, and that the charge has to do with assaulting the mother.
My parents were/are school teachers and from what I gather, using these techniques always come to a he said/she said on if they were too much when the child enivitably comes up with the "the teacher hurt me" line. There is a reason I chose not to pursue the teaching field, and the dimishing ability of the teachers to maintain order in their class while at the same time being pushed to get the kids to pass certain tests was a big reason why.
Usually I side with the public, but it sounds like the brat deserved it and needs to learn discipline. Good job in this case by the police IMO. DD
As the father of a 9 year old daughter I'm amazed the cop had to resort to using a Tazer on a little girl. At that age they are almost still small enough you can put your hand on their head, keep them at arms lenghts, and let them swing away and not get hit. If he couldn't use training, wit, quickness and strength to get the situation under control without the use of the tazer he should lose the badge.
If ya'll don't mind. . . . . I am probably going to derail my own thread but .. . . IMO, The Cop was wrong. I will leave it there. HOWEVER alot of folx think he was right QUESTION: Are we allowing a cop to do something we would not condone a parent doing? Seriously. If a parent tased their kid . . . I feel most folx would feel it was indefensible. H*ll most folx b*Tch about people spanking kids but now we ok with a Cop TAZING ONE?? Question: What exactly is Child Abuse now? Is the definition different for parents and cops? Rocket River
