Trump Picks Up Police Support Even As He Glorifies Those Who Assaulted Police On Jan. 6
JUST SAYING
BY RAUL HERNANDEZ
The reason the cop unions suck up to the Orange Lunatic is that police are being held accountable for abusing, brutalizing, or using lethal force against unarmed people.
This wasn’t always the case. Politicians treated police union endorsements like Olympic gold medals to brag that they were tough on crime.
For many decades, police brutality incidents and the fatal shootings of unarmed individuals were often dismissed by unions or not pursued by district attorneys. Essentially, numerous instances of police gunfire amounted to acts of murder, and the beatings within minority communities were akin to campaigns of terror under the guise of crime fighting.
I wrote countless stories about police brutality and fatal shootings throughout the three decades. I was a newspaper reporter at four newsrooms in two states.
I wrote a two-part series on police brutality allegations in El Paso two months after the infamous Rodney King beating that touched off the L.A. riots
After King was pummeled on March 3, 1991, I proposed to my editors the idea of looking at the El Paso Police Department to see what we would find in the city. I was lucky to have great editors at the now-closed El Paso Herald Post, who immediately green-lighted my story proposal. They also decided it would be a two-part series initially published on May 11, 1991.
During my career in journalism, which ended in 2013, I went through stacks of police brutality and fatal shooting lawsuits along with other documents, records, police shooting reports, and medical and autopsy records. Hundreds of cops, victims, civil rights activists, and officials were among those interviewed for newspaper reports.
I unearthed a trail of broken bones, dead bodies, and serious and permanent bodily injuries caused by those who protect and serve.
Also, I quickly learned that cops and police unions — who fiercely fought body cameras — are thin-skinned when it comes to questioning and criticizing the way they do business inside their clubhouse. Yeah, the one where the taxpayers pay the rent, light bills, salaries and perks.
Trump is dangerous to policing and will allow rogue police departments to terrorize communities, especially poor and minority communities.
(Two Months Ago)
(Three Years Ago)
According to a Department of Justice press release dated June 2023, eight investigations into law enforcement agencies were opened during this Administration by the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department under Section 12601.
The Department has ongoing investigations into the Phoenix Police Department; the Mount Vernon Police Department; the Louisiana State Police; the New York City Police Department’s Special Victims Division; the Worcester Police Department; and the Oklahoma City Police Department. The Department has issued SectTion 12601 findings reports in the past year regarding the Louisville Metro Police Department, as well as the Orange County District Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s Department.
The days when officers could act without consequence are ending, as those who breach the law while in uniform now face the stark realities of demotion, dismissal, or even severe prison sentences.
Yet, the public must remember the invaluable role of dedicated, hardworking officers, those truly worth their weight in gold. However, the label of ‘good cop’ becomes meaningless if it applies to anyone who passively observes as a colleague unjustly assaults a suspect or takes the life of an unarmed individual without cause.