Only Ones
Never was a fan of the meme myself though I did understand the reasoning behind it.
But Ahab is apparently going to start a series highlighting the good done by police officers, obviously as a counter to David’s bit highlighting their less than stellar moments.
There’s a fine line with this one, folks. It’s very difficult to be critical of police action and not be assumed to be anti-police. For instance, the casual reader here or someone coming from a link to a post in which I point out shooting dogs or invalid warrants will assume I’m anti-police. I’m not. I like the police and think that the vast, vast majority are fine folks. Heck, my Dad has been an officer of the law (at the federal and local levels) since the early 1980s and only recently left. However, in some cities there is a thriving culture of corruption and, though it’s the minority, gives the police a bad name. If we’re critical of the bad and complimentary of the good, maybe we can get the vast majority to crack down on the few who give the rest a bad name.
August 12th, 2008 at 9:24 am
I like the Only Ones meme, not to rant on cops (my old man is still a cop) but to indicate that they’re no more, no less human than we are. There’s nothing special about being a police officer that should grant them the ability to own and carry firearms.
But I like that idea – show the good and bad at the same time.
August 12th, 2008 at 9:25 am
New Orleans, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles come to mind the quickest when thinking of groups of police that might be less than stellar human beings. All the ones I know are fine gentlemen, the mind set is a little different as it would have to be if you went to work every day and prepared mentally to survive a gun shot wound. that has to seriously skew your thinking if you are not fairly stable to begin with. I can see why some would like to disarm everyone who isn’t a police officer. All the cops wear uniforms so it would be easier to identify the friendlies from the perps.
Over all when comparing our forces to some in the world we have a fairly good level of police men and women.
At least that is my humble opinion.
August 12th, 2008 at 9:33 am
Keep in mind that Hollywood has been churning out “corrupt cops” stories for decades. Think “Gauntlet” (Clint Eastwood, et. al.). Those beliefs are embedded in the psyche of generations of American viewers.
August 12th, 2008 at 9:48 am
I like David’s pointing out of all the immoral, criminal, and insane behaviors of LEO’s because we NEED a counter to the prevailing notion that they are more equal and entitled to freedoms you and I should be restricted from.
A good cop is a huge asset to a city, but they’re pretty rare. A bad cop is is dangerous because of all the special protections, accomodations and double-standards legally. Making the problem worse, there is a gang-mentality. They complain about he “stop-snitching” culture? Theirs is the most institutionalized stop-snitching culture in the country.
Compounding our problem is the militarization. Here in Texas you’ll find decent cops out in the country, but in Houston HPD is more of an occupying army.
August 12th, 2008 at 10:20 am
What?? That’s like pointing out, “Marines took the beach,” or “Marines are the best.” It’s so obviously true, and that’s their job! What would be news worthy is if the Marines DIDN’T take the beach. Just like when the only ones DIDN’T protect the innocent. That’s their job and why get are respected more than most occupations, and why they get a fat pension. Pensions don’t exist for most of us, and their’s is backed by taxation as well!
August 12th, 2008 at 10:53 am
Every day I see cops breaking the law around here. As far as I can tell they’re a bunch of arbitrary, racist, lying thugs. There are some good apples. I even know one. But he’s being shoved out of the force for not getting in line with the corruption. Criminals with badges. They’re the best-financed, best connected and protected gang in the city. Everybody I know has had extremely negative interactions with cops.
So, yeah, cops sometimes do their job without being complete assholes. But it’s rare.
August 12th, 2008 at 10:56 am
BH, I think it’s a matter of where you live. All of my interactions with police (even speeding tickets) have been positive & professional.
ETA: as positive as can be when getting a ticket. I mean, it’s not like I enjoyed it.
August 12th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Agreed. All of mine have been positive as well, even the one where I was arrested. Even then, I was breaking the law.
August 12th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
Jobs more dangerous than being a police officer, in order: timber cutters, fishermen, pilots/navigators, metal workers, driving sales workers, roofers, electric power installers, farm workers, construction workers, truck drivers. Law officer doesn’t even make the top ten. Strangely, law enforcement is the only field whose members enjoy special protection under the law (de facto at least; you try asking for the same sweetheart deals a police officer gets in a criminal prosecution), the very thing pointed out by the “only ones” meme. They’re the only group with members who receive special respect from the public, and yet they have members who demand more respect and get taken seriously.
I’ve met many more good cops than bad. I’ve had state troopers stop to see why I was stalled partly in a traffic lane who pushed me out of the way, asked if I had called a tow truck, and went on their way. I’ve been issued warnings on little technical issues that could, barely, have been tickets. I know a police officer in a management position who I’m impressed with, and I like my local sheriff.
But. If you’ve never noticed police officers saying “our guy couldn’t have done that, he’s a police officer,” responding to allegations of corruption or brutality or needless tazering or trigger-happy shooting by saying “support your police” then you haven’t been paying attention. F*^# em. Seriously. The standard their spokesmen and apogists have set out and stood by is that their members always acted properly, that the multiple tazering was always justified, the shooting was always justified, the theft or bribe was a terrible mistake and the officer has been punished enough.
If that’s what they want then fine, but that’s absolutely all they get from me. I’m polite and cooperative with individual officers. More in self-protection than real respect. I have no respect left for the police as an institution. I reserve judgement on individuals and departments until I come to know them. And again, most that I know I respect. But the militarization of the police combined with thin-blue-line protecting of their own has not been good for this country, and I don’t see how more respect for the police ala NRAhab helps any.
August 12th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
HtownTejas and Saladman express my sentiments pretty well.
For years police have set themselves above other citizens, and demanded we non-privileged citizens view them as special and more-entitled than ourselves.
Now we do. And we don’t like it a bit.
August 12th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
Don’t think the intent of this blog will over come the haters that populate the site. Don’t matter how good they (most cops) are the above will find some reason to hate and envy those that take the risks while some, the majority perhaps on this blog sit back and whine. I took hits for defending HR218 but I spent three years, lots of my own money and vacation time lobbying for it. What have you done to make anything better?
August 12th, 2008 at 1:10 pm
I don’t hate cops. I hate criminals. Even ones in blue uniforms. That includes the so-called good ones who cover for, refuse to arrest, will not testify against the bad ones. They are accesssories.
Ok, but how is that different from any other gang?
August 12th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Sulaco: I provide for my own defense. I own and practice with firearms; I practice martial arts. I don’t “envy those that take the risks” any more than I envy, hate or worship lumberjacks or crab fishermen. I simply want one rule of law for police and civilians alike. The best police writers I know of (from LawDog to Sir Robert Peel) hold themselves and their peers to a higher standard, not a lower standard.
And if I mention the teen who fell 30 feet off a bridge, breaking his back, who was then tasered 19 times for “refusing to comply with officers … and … making incoherent statements,” do you call that whining or is it a legitimate topic of discussion?
August 12th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
The problem with police is, as far as I’ve seen, that the “vast majority” of “good” cops can always be counted on to rally around and protect the “bad” ones. Even if they themselves are not overtly corrupt, or thuggish, they nearly always, to a man, come out to defend those who are, often just by their silence. Any wonder why internal investigations of officer wrongdoing turn up nothing %99.99 of the time? Anybody really think cops are that squeaky clean?
As Radley Balko asked, how many bad apples do we have to find before we start wondering if there’s something seriously wrong going on inside the barrel?
August 12th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Having to highlight someone doing their job as something special speaks for itself. I’ve met and know some cops, some I consider friends, I even have a relative currently employed in that capacity. Just because you wear a badge or uniform does not make you a good guy. It’s what’s inside that counts. The Only Ones get pointed out specifically because they’re the opposite of what a cop should be. I don’t hate cops, but I have no respect for those who break the law and somehow expect because of their position they should get a pass. The last I checked, the law is supposed to apply to everyone equally.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:17 pm
Like the others, I think it’s good that bad cops are still rare enough to be worth pointing out.
I also would like to see a broader commitment among the LEO’s to making the bad ones even more rare, but the problem there seems to be coming from above (the political ranks).
August 12th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
“If we’re critical of the bad and complimentary of the good, maybe we can get the vast majority to crack down on the few who give the rest a bad name.”
I’ll fuckin’ believe that when I see it.
I remember America. It was a place where one could respect cops.
Those days are gone. Fuggetaboudit. No respectable person would want the job now.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Police are special, try calling a random name in the phone book the next time you would have called 911.
They come to your aid when the normal, average folk won’t and they deal with those who’d do harm to others. Does it make them super-human and above the law? In some senses, yes (like driving 100mph to get to a crime scene or tracking down a fleeing felon). Their jobs require them to be able and willing to do what others won’t or can’t (which can be applied to other occupations, no doubt). I despise corruption in PDs as it gives the vast majority of officers a bad rep, much like those few assholes at the gun counter give all gun counter jockeys a bad name.
Cops, to do their jobs, need a certain level of protection from prosecution, for instance, when arresting a drug dealer, they take possession of the drugs, yet you or I could not without being arrested. I’m not saying they alone should be allowed to have guns, heavens no, but they do need certain protections. This shouldn’t absolve them from outright criminal activity, like taking said drugs home with them.
As for coming off as anti-cop, well when the number of critical posts outnumber by a great margin the posts praising them (I’ve no clue as to Unc’s ratio), you’ll have a tough sell keeping your pro-cop credibility, much like the MSM doesn’t have a leg to stand on when we call the Liberal.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
It depends. Take Balko. He never mentions police (or prosecutors) without frothing at the mouth. He hates cops. And he lies through his teeth — Patterico has caught him more than a few times. That’s not the same thing as pointing out abuse of power.
But Balko needs to have the holy shit beaten out of him seven days a week for a good ten years.
August 12th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
I get a better ROF if I keep both hands on the weapon instead of trying to juggle the phone. I have absolutely no expectation that the cops can help me in any situation that I would want to call 911 in. I generally call them simply because it would be more trouble for me in the end if I didn’t give them a heads-up.
I used to try the “I’m highlighting the bad ones without being anti-cop” thing. Then I realized that every.. single… time… the “good” cops rallied around the bad cops. I couldn’t figure out how good cops could do that. Then I realized that they can’t.
August 12th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
As for coming off as anti-cop, well when the number of critical posts outnumber by a great margin the posts praising them _Jose
Of course you couldn’t consider there might be a valid reason for the disparity of posts pro and con?
As for dialing 9/11 why. It wouldn’t be the perimeter the caller would need secured. You know, those places behind trees, brick walls, etc. Just a thought.
Anybody see the videotaped beating of a handcuffed suspect on the news last night? None of the cops reported it, at least three of them took turns kicking him in head after he was unconscious. None of the cops reported it. NONE OF THE COPS REPORTED IT!
How clear do you need it. Was it not for the videotape guess what?
August 12th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
I have the solution. Police in the US will get the next month off. ALL of them at the same time….
I know all you brave key board warriors will welcome this…at least as unknowns on a blog….quoting incidents that may or not be true or correct, but all of them without any way to check the incident to see if its true. Bad cops? Sure, but most of the posters here do hate and it has nothing to do with LE in general but their own situation. Investigate complaints like these, as I have and 999 out of 1000 you see the complaints are retribution attempts by people driven to make all others as big a looser as they are.
This blog has an anti cop reputation within Law Enforcement generally (for those I have asked and know it at all) and I place the above posts, (most of them) as evidence. I have seen nothing to change anyone’s mind.
August 12th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Personally, I like to read good stories of cops. But certain things I see regularly upset me, such turning on the sirens to pass through red lights only to turn them off. It is hard to forget the police as oppressive when one is on the receiving end of injustice.
In general, I like police officers. I remember a master sgt. that was a police officer. Completely told me straight how his department worked, including the quota. Nice guy, knew when common sense prevailed over getting that extra buck. No pretensions that is commonly portrayed in the media, like gung-ho officers on sees on movies. If more cops were like that man, there would be a lot less ill feelings towards law enforcement, to be sure.
But I stopped giving to the fraternal order of police when my brother got pulled over and was repeatedly insulted and threatened with harassment because he had audacity to drive ‘like grandma’ ala the speed limit. Army vet? FU, I am undercover.
Or when my family was threatened by a gang, with a bunch of those monsters yelling to us that they will come back to kill us later. It was not the police who protected my family, but a neighbor’s shotgun.
Thank goodness for the internet, allowing common citizens such as myself and the others to air our their problems with the police without retaliation. But I will be reading that pro-cop blog and hope to regain my sense of trust in the boys in blue.
August 12th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
Sulaco: My bad, I failed to provide a cite on a widely known, easily verifiable case. http://www.ky3.com/home/video/25829234.html
Believing critics of abusive cops are hate-filled seems to be an article of faith with you, but I’ve yet to see you back that up or refute anything anyone else has said.
As for this blog’s anti-cop reputation; seriously? You’ve asked around the law enforcement community and some of them know a mid-ranked, pro-gun blog as being anti-cop? And you post this insight below an entry which links approvingly to a pro-cop post on a pro-cop blog? The comments you’re so proudly “placing in evidence” were a reaction to that.
“However, in some cities there is a thriving culture of corruption and, though it’s the minority, gives the police a bad name.”
Tell me, what part of that is anti-cop? Or what does it say about you that holding police officers to a high standard of integrity is somehow disrespectful or out of bounds? We’re supposed to take it and like it to avoid any implied criticism of our employees who do what (you say) we dare not?
And again, law enforcement, while more dangerous than accounting, is not in the top ten most dangerous occupations in America. I’ll take the “respect the job” argument more seriously when I see cops giving lumberjacks their due respect.
August 12th, 2008 at 7:35 pm
I’m calling total bullshit now. Blogs in general are unknown the LEOs generally, much less any particular blog.
August 12th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
And instead of asking me about it, they just decide to show up at my house over it.
August 12th, 2008 at 9:19 pm
I believe it was uncle who said it was the bad ones who ruined it for the 99% good ones. Something with which I disagree, but you certainly can’t call uncle anti-cop.
As far as how dangerous it is, bullshit. I worked my entire life in careers far more dangerous that law enforcement and we had the fatalities to prove it. LE isn’t even in the same insurance GROUP.
I do take exception to the list of the ten most dangerous, though. I don’t believe the commenter initiated the fault, but one group who definitely belongs in the top 10 is underground miners. And no, I wasn’t one of them. Their job, at least 20 years ago was by far the most dangerous, even worse than firefighters, who also have a far more dangerous job than LE.
Now I know you didn’t miss the instance I mentioned, not if you turned on your tv in the last two days. The video is all over it. Happened in Palm Beach, Fl. Check it out and tell me again what sterling characters they are, and all those cops who never reported it or tried to stop it.
As I said, these guys are criminals. The uniform doesn’t change that. If you think it does,it bespeaks ill of you.
August 12th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
When seconds count, the cops are minutes away. Hence, the second amendment.
August 13th, 2008 at 12:39 am
I am anti-police. I am also pro-peace officer. There is no contradiction.
Too bad there are so few peace officers left.
August 13th, 2008 at 1:36 am
“when seconds count, the cops are minutes away.”
“(police) come to your aid when the normal, average folk won’t”.
except at columbine, where – even though they got there in time to help – the cops hid like little girls while the teenagers continued on their killing rampage. IIRC, they didn’t muster up the nuts to enter the building until long after the bad guys killed themselves.
it was a *tactical* decision, you see, because every cop knows dead cops can’t cash their pension checks. better to let it all sort itself out rather than take a chance. like when they bravely shoot the friendly dog when storming the mayor’s house. or when they gun down the little old lady, then plant drugs on her corpse to cover their stupid asses.
yeah, *balko’s* the problem here. not cops.
August 13th, 2008 at 1:59 am
Well you gotta admit they secured the perimeter at Va.Tech. Not one cops got across it before Cho was finished. That’s a hundred percent effective. And they never lost a victim, they found them all.
August 13th, 2008 at 2:47 am
I have an hypothesis. I think that normal decent folks tend not to meet normal decent cops, because normal decent folks generally don’t break laws.
Normal decent cops leave people alone who don’t break laws.
Bad cops are more like schoolyard bullies, and pick on isolated victims who seem small and weak, or out alone after midnight, or just asserting their rights, because that’s safer than doing their actual job.
Anecdata: The times I met cops and we both knew I was in the wrong, the cops were right nice; the times when we both knew I was in the right, the cops were rude bullying assholes.
That seems backwards, somehow, or maybe it’s professional courtesy to fellow criminals?
August 13th, 2008 at 2:54 am
(continued) So, normal decent folks are more likely to meet mean bad cops than normal decent ones, except at traffic wrecks and suchlike.
August 13th, 2008 at 6:09 am
I was feeling a bit moderate and made some excuses for the blue thug gang in my comments above, but then I saw this at Wendy McElroy’s site:http://www.wendymcelroy.com/news.php?extend.1815
The last line of her article, there, is “Teach your sons and daughters to fear the police.”
I concur.
August 13th, 2008 at 6:26 am
I reckon I’ll have to type the link in: Horrible pig-thug atrocity
August 13th, 2008 at 7:27 am
I had a (minor) Only One encounter last night. Cop pulled me over and his partner came to the passenger window. When the first cop asked how fast I thought I was going I replied “same as you.” The partner yelled “that doesn’t matter!” to me.
August 13th, 2008 at 8:03 am
@HTownTejas”
Actually, “slower than you” would be accurate – the officer had to catch you…
Also, I want to point out that we gunnies use an argument with regard to handgun carry laws – ‘It isn’t important that everyone carry because if only a few do, it will deter criminals because they don’t know which people are carrying.’ Similarly, we still need a good, effective police force because they deter criminal activity just by their very presence. Even if they are not there to prevent most crimes that do occur.
There is a bit of cop-bashing here and elsewhere. But most of it stems from people who have been granted special powers and have abused that position of power. If state employees in California didn’t have to pay tolls it would be an outrage. If judges broke the separation of church and state, it would be an outrage. If mayors lied under oath, it would be an outrage. If governors hired hookers, it would be an outrage.
See that pattern?
August 13th, 2008 at 8:29 am
I don’t think there is any cop-bashing in this thread. We’re simply responding to widespread inappropriate (and often immoral or illegal) behavior by LEO’s in light of generally severe LEO self-regard and feelings of entitlement.
August 13th, 2008 at 9:41 am
Sulaco! Where are you, and do you know who Bobby Peel was, and what were his Principles of Proper Policing?
Hint: They had more to do with being a good neighbor than with being a bully.
I dunno if you’ve read much in the Bible, neither have I, but one of the parts I did read, and which stuck in my mind, was the Parable of the Samaritan, the burden of which was, everybody is your neighbor, and should be treated charitably.
August 13th, 2008 at 10:21 am
I agree with Uncle here. However, let’s play a game really quickly:
s/cops/troops/g
August 13th, 2008 at 10:32 am
Ah, yes, one of the things said about the Argentine Army was that it was a typical South American “police army”, used to intimidating the citizens of its own country, who could not shoot back. They folded when they came up against another army, in the Falklands, who were serious fighters.
What frightens me, is that we seem to be developing our very own police army, right here at home.
P.s. No aspersions against the Argy Air Force, who covered themselves with glory pressing their attacks so close their bombs didn’t have time to arm their fuzes.
August 13th, 2008 at 11:14 am
“I have the solution. Police in the US will get the next month off. ALL of them at the same time….”
Promises, promises.
I’d take my chances with the bad guys every fuckin’ day of that month, pal. They’re not lying to me like the cops are.
August 13th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Some cops are tolerable people. Others really are pigs in every sense of the word.
August 13th, 2008 at 11:51 am
Keep in mind that Hollywood has been churning out “corrupt cops” stories for decades. Think “Gauntlet” (Clint Eastwood, et. al.).
I’ve met enough pigs in my life that I dont need Hollywood to “invent” stories of cops who abuse their position and the people they are supposed to help.
August 13th, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Keep in mind that Hollywood has been churning out “corrupt cops” stories for decades.
And ever since 9/11 the pendulum has swung the other way, until every other movie and four out of five television shows are about some branch of patriotic law enforcers gettin’ the bad guys. From “COPS” to the bazillion “Law and Order” spinoffs to the Navy to Animal Control, you name a group of government officials that carries guns, and there will be a liberal Hollywood scumbag behind them carrying their water and pitching their story.
And why does this crap sell? Because as Jeffrey Snyder observed, most people today are utter intellectual and physical cowards. They quake and cower, begging SOMEONE ELSE to protect them. From the horrible drug dealers, from terrorists, from the acid rain, from the ozone layer. They’re dead sheep walking, and they don’t know or care.
But the endless stream of Hollywood commies? You can bet they care. Because they know what will make people open their wallets.
August 13th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
One thing I would like to address here since Hollywood has been brought up several times. I would bet that almost everyone here roots for the good guy cop in the movie or the tv show, when he cannot do the same for the real cop in his town.
Why? Because in the Hollywood version the cop is usually the good guy, with morals, conscience and dedication to the law. Something we do not think carries into reality. That’s a shame. I won’t speak for anybody but me, but I can remember when there was no bigger supporter law enforcement personnel than myself. I didn’t change. Someone did!
August 13th, 2008 at 11:53 pm
“Well you gotta admit they secured the perimeter at Va.Tech. Not one cops got across it before [nameless one] was finished. That’s a hundred percent effective. And they never lost a victim, they found them all.”
Straightarrow: Please read the timeline from the report on Virginia Tech. It’s available here. Specifically, look at page 7 of the PDF that link takes you to.
“9:45 a.m. The first police officers arrive at Norris Hall, [...] rush to one entrance, then another, and then a third but find all three chained shut. Attempts to shoot open the locks fail.” (emphasis added)
and on page 8:
“9:50 a.m. Using a shotgun, police shoot open the ordinary key lock of a fourth entrance to Norris Hall that goes to a machine shop and that could not be chained. The police hear gunshots as they enter the building. They immediately follow the sounds to the second floor.”
The news cameras didn’t get there until 10-15 minutes into the incident. That’s when all the footage of officers outside was filmed. Yes, they were securing the perimeter… BECAUSE OTHER OFFICERS WERE ALREADY INSIDE!
I don’t know if you’re familiar with Norris Hall, but 5 minutes is about the right amount of time to run around the building to try the main entrances, and then figure out where else you might be able to get inside. The ground floor windows are not an option. They have metal panes, and the windows themselves are very narrow. I doubt a full grown man in a ballistic vest and a gunbelt could squeeze through easily, if at all, and it would be stupid to try when you don’t know if the gunman could come into that room while you’re halfway through.
I’m sorry if I come off as ranting here, but I’ve seen this same sentiment in several blog comments over the last few weeks, and I can’t let it go unanswered anymore. It pisses me off, because it ascribes cowardice where none exists, because it’s WRONG, because it’s based on MSM misinformation, and because the facts can be easily checked by anyone interested.
August 14th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Well justthisguy I do know Mr. Peel and his Peelers, having had to take tests in college and the academy, 30 year cop here and 4 year Military Police. Can’t wait to retire have to deal this these types every day. Yes have read the Bible not sure what that has to do with anything under discussion here but I am sure you can work it in…
August 14th, 2008 at 11:09 pm
Jake I take your point and my outlook on this incident has changed because of it. Thank you for setting me straight on it. I will not make this mistake again. I am actually relieved to find out I was wrong.
August 14th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
doesn’t excuse me. I should have dug deeper. I thought I had. Obviously not.
August 15th, 2008 at 10:40 am
No problem straightarrow, and I wasn’t really irritated with you personally. There’s a slightly more in depth reply at my blog, in response to your comment there.
August 16th, 2008 at 5:41 am
On the Bible thing, Sulaco, I was writing about doing the right thing by somebody, even if you and he belong to antipathetical classes of people. With my animus against policemen, I’ve often pondered the situation of finding a crippled policeman in his car in a ditch. I hope I would do the right thing, which would be exerting myself to the utmost to save his life while cussing him out for being a stupid pig who cain’t drive right and has a single-vehicle accident.
Feelings aside, you know, there is right and there is wrong, and I hope I’ll have the gumption to do the former.
August 19th, 2008 at 12:10 am
“I have the solution. Police in the US will get the next month off. ALL of them at the same time….”
Here’s a better idea, Sulaco: How about, for one whole month, every police officer is subject to the same laws the “civilians” are, and face the same treatment when caught and the same penalties when punished.
(of course, that means that y’all will have to give up your “Don’t pull me over, I’m a cop/cop’s family and above the law” Thin Blue Line car stickers…)
Fair? I’d think so.
Surgeons and ER docs face far more on-the-job pressure than cops do, and THEY’RE held liable for their mistakes and misdeeds; I’ve never heard a doctor claim that a jury “just didn’t know what it was like” to do their job.