Are American Police Officers above the law? Serious violations of basic rights!

[muman613]

This story is very disturbing. Having grown up in America I was indoctrinated with the idea that American authority figures are to be respected. I was a normal child who played Cops and Robbers and always had respect for law enforcement. But as the years pass I lose all respect for those who work in law enforcement. Most of those whom I encounter {save for one officer I know personally} are rabid thugs who seek to dominate others in a sadistic manner. I believe that America has given badges and weapons to literal idiots who don't know right from wrong.

I am very fortunate because every encounter I have with police has a peaceful resolution {except for once when one officer claimed I was resisting arrest}. But I believe that the governments attempt to make it illegal to film police officers who are doing wrong is a wrong-headed law. Law officers NEED TO BE HELD to a higher standard and filming them doing injustice is a perfect way to prevent them from violating the civil and human rights of a person.

In this story a man who was doing absolutely nothing wrong in his own backyard ended up being beaten and crushed by 20 police officers while his wife was being abused by other officers. Luckily she filmed the entire episode and posted it on YouTube.... But the Police forced the video to be removed from YouTube {is this a case of government censorship?}. Apparently there are other copies of the video on youtube and I hope to see it soon...

Any police officer involved with abusing an innocent man should be tried, de-badged and de-armed, they should be locked up for a long, long time, and possibly given the death sentence for abusing their power.


http://www.examiner.com/la-county-libertarian-in-los-angeles/twenty-police-respond-to-man-playing-with-crossbow-his-backyard-seize-house

A scuffle outside a Lincoln, Nebraska mobile home turned into a demand to search inside the home after the homeowner was arrested for allegedly assaulting police. Gary Grana was initially accused of shooting a bow and arrow inside city limits after a neighbor called police. The police came to the home and demanded Grana's ID, and according to events featured in a youtube video, Grana believed police had no just cause to demand his ID. The video, posted by youtube user corneliuscomedy, currently has 304 views and is titled Police State. The compelling 20 minute video, recorded by Grana's wife, begins with footage of her front porch with officers piled on top of her husband. She repeatedly demands to know what they are doing and why they are hurting him, that he didn't do anything wrong.

 UPDATE 12/26/10: Hours after going viral, 'Police State' crossbow video yanked from youtube

The video description reads "This is a video that I took of my husband being wrongfully accused and detained. They originally came because someone wrongfully accused my husband of firing a crossbow in our yard (crossbows are legal in our state). He told them he was not firing a crossbow and there was not a crossbow outside or any evidence of one being outside. The police asked him for ID and he refused on grounds that he wasn't doing anything to facilitate them asking for ID. Next thing he knew the police jumped him, then the police tripped over our steps and crashed through a wooden fence which injured the officers hand. They slammed my husbands head against my front door, breaking my door (I can't even shut it properly now and have to replace it) and sprayed him with mace and started beating the crap out of him. All of a sudden my husband is being charged with assault on an officer?! SOMETHING IS WRONG HERE!!!!!"

Soon after the scuffle begins, at least 10 Lincoln Police squad cars and a dozen or more uniformed police show up at the home of a man who committed the alleged 'crime' of shooting a bow and arrow at a target in his yard.
At around minute four, a middle aged blonde haired officer comes to the door with what appears to be a cut under her left eye and a nose covered in blood.  The woman, whose blue police uniform has blood spattered down the length of the right arm, tells Gary's wife that he refused to show ID and then ran from them. They demand the wife's last name and when she asks why they need it, the woman officer closes the front door of the house on the woman saying 'we're done". She is flanked by a taller dark haired female officer who sneers 'he's going to jail'. The wife responds "No. I need to know what's going on. You can't close me in my own house, for one thing."
 
At minute eight, a male officer wearing a black uniform, bulletproof vest and black ski cap comes and asks the woman to 'do him a favor', come outside to talk to someone. She says "No, I'm not gonna do that, my daughter's inside the house, I'm gonna stay right here." "Well how old is your daughter? he asks. "Does that matter?" she replies. The cop, whose demeanor then becomes physically agitated, is clearly outraged that someone refuses to answer his question, and demands "Actually it does, I want to know how old your daughter is". "She's young enough for me not to want to leave the house"  the mom replies."I'm just asking a simple question maam, how old is she?" the officer pleads. "I don't have to answer questions though, I need to know what's going on", she replies. The fact the woman knows her rights seems to disarm the agressive manner of the officer. Regarding the alleged bow and arrow activity in the front yard, the officer says "you can't do that; you can't shoot a firearm within city limits", oddly referring to a crossbow as a 'firearm'.
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http://www.examiner.com/la-county-libertarian-in-los-angeles/twenty-police-respond-to-man-playing-with-crossbow-his-backyard-seize-house

[White Israelite]

I used to want to be a cop when I was a kid, played police games, was addicted to the police quest series by jim walls for the PC, and that was pretty much what I wanted to do. My cousin was the same way and he became a deputy sheriff but after seeing how they really are from my own experience and what they did to my dad in Chicago, I can't say I view them in the same light anymore...

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

It sounds like the cops overreacted but it seems to me that this couple did wrong, and had an attitude about it. It's easy for adrenaline to take over from there.

[nopeaceforland]

Cops can be dirtbags!

[Ari Ben-Canaan]

American police are simply another gang.  Most of my interaction with cops has been incredibly sour, with cops lying and concocting a crime up from scratch to have me arrested at one point [the trumped up charges were enormously difficult to combat!  A cops word = fact in the eyes of the judge... you really must spend thousands on a lawyer...  even still I still got a slap on the wrist which I did not deserve and had to plea 'no contest'!!!].  I have been pulled over without reason twice in my life as well ["You were swerving all over the whole road" (a likely story, considering I was locked into a pack of cars driving in an identical manner), and "Uh.... your middle tail light is out." (which is a light not required by law!)].  And an unmarked cop once even got behind my dad while he was driving and tailgated him fiercely until my dad went a bit faster, the cop tailgated further and further and so on, until the cop pulled my father over and gave him a ticket for "speeding" [my father was petrified by this car, which was unmarked]!

In "Never Again", Rabbi Kahane spells it out that he has been told by police while being arrested, "they didn't gas enough of you Jews in Germany", as well as other things.

Its a pretty safe bet to assume in any conflict the police are involved in that they have a 50% [or higher!] chance of instigating the altercation.  Wearing a kippah does not help either.

The best thing for anyone to do is to look up "how to deal with police" on Youtube, and other internet outlets.  The ACLU has a great tutorial on how to shut a cop down in a traffic stop, on the street, or at your home [the protagonist in their videos is a pothead, but the lessons taught are valuable to anyone who wants to control as much of an interaction with cops as they can].  I have used what I have learned in these lessons to get a cop to turn around and leave me alone [in pursuit of an easier victim].  We don't have to like the ACLU to make use of the ACLU.