PrintJuly 12, 2010
The Feckless System Called 'Justice'
Once again, the lawless elements of society found an excuse to loot stores, damage property, and create mayhem in their city. When a white Oakland, California police officer was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for killing an unarmed black man (the color of the officer and the victim is emphasized because if the colors were reversed, there would be a deafening silence on the issue), rioting broke out. Businesses were smashed and ransacked, bank windows were broken, and a jewelry store was looted.
I'd like someone to explain to me what a jury verdict has to do with a bunch of thugs scooping up gems from a burglarized store and stuffing them in their pockets. Were they trying to gather enough funds to pay a lawyer for an appeal of the verdict? Nah, these are nothing but the usual slimeballs that spend every waking minute preying upon society. In their malevolent view of life, the verdict gives them an opportunity to do overtly what they generally do covertly.
What officer Johannes Mehserle did to Oscar Grant was unconscionable! Shooting the man in the back while trying to restrain him, with the assistance of other officers, is beyond imagination. He said he thought he was reaching for his taser but drew his gun instead. That seems about as incredible as saying you thought your gun was your flashlight.
I know better than most people what it's like to do battle with a prisoner and feel the rush of adrenaline that accompanies the struggle. You learn to fight like an animal because experience has taught you that anyone willing to engage a cop in a physical confrontation is willing to kill him. The fact is that the guy you're fighting is facing only the court system, while you're very likely to be facing imminent death. That's because only the most desperate criminals would resort to a physical confrontation with police.
In the Oakland case, the cop appears to have used a desperation tactic. He was wrong, so he was tried and convicted! Does that mean residents and businesses must be subjected to violent robbers and thieves masquerading as public avengers? The question is, why is it that we don't see rioting in the streets when a black man kills a white man? Moreover, why don't we see cities ransacked and burned when a black thug murders a white cop and gets a sentence that is less than expected?
Similarly, why are the civil rights division of the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney's Office in San Francisco, and the FBI investigating this case? When was the last time they stepped into a local matter that involved the shooting death of a cop? When cop-killers get acquitted or get reduced sentences, the only sounds of grief come from the cops' families and friends.
In the recent Oakland riot, police made 83 arrests throughout the night for violations that included failure to disperse, vandalism, and assaulting a police officer. The next morning, cleaning crews began sweeping up broken glass and debris from the sidewalks and streets. One of the lowlifes boldly declared on a graffiti-laced wall, "Oakland is our amusement park tonight!"
Spewing the typical rhetoric after one of these free-for-alls, the chief of police upchucked: "This city is not the wild, wild west! This city will not tolerate this sort of activity." Balderdash! They have in the past, and they will continue to tolerate lawlessness because they refuse to use the requisite force to put an end to it.
It's just another example of the feckless system that calls itself "justice." There was a time when the only people who might fight with police officers were those wanted for capital crimes, and some of them would put up limited resistance for fear of the consequences they would face if they were subdued.
Not anymore! For more than a generation, liberal policies have been undermining the law and those who enforce it. The result is that cops have found themselves being challenged continuously, even when they attempt to enforce violations of misdemeanor offenses.
We can't delude ourselves into thinking that every cop has the temperament, the forbearance, or the training necessary to handle the stress that accompanies such resistance. Hence, sometimes, those challenges are going to be met with excessive force. When they are, as in this recent case, the cop will have to face the consequences.
Sadly, when the victim is black, it seems as though the entire city must face consequences, too. That's a subject which is conveniently being avoided by the cowards on both sides of the political spectrum.
Bob Weir is a former detective sergeant in the New York City Police Department. He is the executive editor of The News Connection in Highland Village, Texas. E-mail Bob.
