February 19, 2007
Nearly three months later, Atlanta is showing some encouraging signs. Last week, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard announced a series of tough charges against the officers who conducted the raid on Johnston's home, including felony murder. And in today's Atlanta Journal-Constitution, city Police Chief Richard Pennington and Christopher Stone, a criminal justice professor at Harvard, call for the city to set up a civil rights commission with subpoena power to look into police excesses.The author argues, however, that there's a need for reform, and not just punishment:
If Kathryn Johnston's death is going to be a watershed moment in the way Atlanta conducts its drug policing, the city will have to do better than New York (and, frankly, just about every other city in the country). Reforms need the teeth of enforcement mechanisms, the accountability that comes with transparency, and they need to grant review boards broad jurisdiction and subpoena powers. These reforms will have also to come from policy makers, at the insistence of their constituents. Advocates will have to see them through to implementation without losing interest, or developing outrage fatigue.h/t : Glenn.Anything less, and within months it will be back to business as usual.
Posted by: Ragnar at
07:18 AM
| Comments (21)
| Add Comment
Post contains 229 words, total size 2 kb.
Posted by: L at February 19, 2007 02:12 PM (Gvo/q)
Unfortuanately, if Johnston was Black, as I suspect she was, nothing will come of this. It will be portrayed as a racial civil rights issue, rather than the issue of out of control law enforcement that it actually is.
The adversarial attitude law enforcement agencies hold against the public has got to go. So do the dickless punks who are promulgating it.
I'm tired of seeing smug cock-suckers like Joe Arpayo in Aridzona bragging about throwing innocent men awaiting trial into desert tents to eat bologna sandwiches, while his deputies rack up millions of hours in overtime payment fraud, and he violates traffic laws with impunity.
Posted by: Jeff Bargholz at February 19, 2007 06:18 PM (Dt3sl)
Sloppy law enforcement is not a racial triat just a trait of the same ignorance that drives other crap.
She was actually in her nineties when it was first reported. In any case she was a nice shot. She hit all three before she herself was taken out. The pukes at Waco did about the same but suffered the same repercissions.
Posted by: SeeMonk at February 19, 2007 10:00 PM (yKwZ2)
I defy any critic of the law enforcement community to spend just one week doing the thankless job they do. The "adversarial attitude" that many cops have is a defense mechanism they've learned from dealing with a public that is at best dismissive and at worst, hostile to their efforts.
Try being a cop. Try not heaving your guts as you tell someone the pile of goo on the road is what's left of their kid. Try exercising restraint as yet another fool who was speeding asks why you don't go find a "real" criminal. Try going to work everyday knowing the uniform you wear is as good as a bullseye to some scum. Try explaining to your kid why you'll miss their ballgame/recital/party at school because you've been called out for extra duty. Try holding your breath as you walk into an apartment and look at a suicide who swallowed poison two weeks ago, and it's the middle of summer. Try any of this and much more I can't think of right now and don't have the skills to articulate.
I'm not a cop and never was. I've been busted by some bad ones and known some good ones. I wouldn't do their job, and I put 22 years into the military doing things many folk couldn't/wouldn't. I wouldn't do their job because I'm not the man many police officers are. Period.
They have my respect, and when the worst of them generate news stories like this one, they have my sympathy. God bless them all.
And their critics can go to Hell.
Posted by: Subvet at February 20, 2007 12:51 AM (DNVxw)
Posted by: greyrooster at February 20, 2007 02:11 AM (PFUNQ)
Posted by: greyrooster at February 20, 2007 02:21 AM (PFUNQ)
Any thread about police excess wouldn't be complete without some dickless cocksucker mewling about how "tough" a job cops have sucking up our tax dallars. Worthless fucking queer bait.
Joe Arpayo/Arpaio (who gives a shit how it's spelled,) is a miserable prick who exults in the punishment of innocent men. Only a slimy little cock-worm would defend him and his vile practices. Very predictible.
I defy any defender of unconstitutional law enforcement to spend just one week doing a job that they aren't worshipped for in film and tax dollars. Cops are lavished with unearned praise from all quarters. Even criminals praise them.
The indisputable adversarial attitude most cops have towards the public they ought to be protecting is taught to them at their police academies from day one. Officer safety is paramount, but protecting the public is a non-issue. If a citizen has to be killed to protect a cop, they're taught to pull the trigger on the citizen.
You know this, you wretched piece of misbegotten shit. You have no honesty and no honor.
The same cops who give out high yield tickets for speeding, break the traffic laws they enforce every single day. Utter hypocrites. Pad the local government coffers with outrageous fines against John Q., but break every traffic law in existence yourself. Very admirable.
Cops are rarely killed on duty, but they have the highest kill rate of any profession in the country. Convenience store clerks do the dying, cops do the killing.
Most cops miss family functions becasuse they're busy bilking their cities out of millions of hours in fraudulent overtime, and because they have the highest marriage infedelity rate of any profession. This is starange, because most cops aren't sucessful or attractive.
You cango to hell for defending them, you dickless little bitch in the ass. Fuck you.
Posted by: Jeff Bargholz at February 20, 2007 03:13 AM (Dt3sl)
Read my comment again. I made the same point about Blacks getting preferential treatment.
Posted by: Jeff Bargholz at February 20, 2007 03:16 AM (Dt3sl)
Your diatribe only proves how the anonymity of the internet works in favor of cowards like yourself. Were we face to face you wouldn't have the cajones to mouth off as you do online.
But I will thank you for helping to fund my lifestyle. As an American taxpayer your money goes to make it possible for me to live as well as I do. It's a constant source of amusement for military retirees like myself. Think of me when you get your next paycheck :-)
Tah tah little boy.
Posted by: Subvet at February 20, 2007 03:45 AM (DNVxw)
1421 N 104 plaza, #250, Omahha NE, 68114
There is no excuse for bolowing away old women or throwing innocent men into tents with real criminals. Bilking the public with phony overtime is a crime.
Fuck you, tough guy. I wouldn't bother mouthing off in person, I'd just sock you up.
Posted by: Jeff Bargholz at February 20, 2007 06:59 PM (Dt3sl)
Posted by: greyrooster at February 20, 2007 10:11 PM (XmI6X)
In order to make good on your mouthing off you'd have to come down here to Dallas, I don't go up to Nebraska. Just as a friendly suggestion, you might want to spend the money on a remedial spelling class. In addition, your baseless attacks against the police in general and Joe Arpaio in particular, done with absolutely no facts to back them up only prove the paucity of your intellect. As for "socking" me, you would only get one shot. You'd hit me, I'd hit you and you'd hit the deck, end of story.
Grey Rooster:
I retired as a senior chief from the sub service. Like J. Bargholz your personal attacks with no real information show your lack of intellect. And the internet allows all sorts of outlandish claims to be made, such as yours that you married a retired officer. I know it's a stretch so let me make it easier for you. You're a liar.
Both of you reinforce my thinking that coming to this site is really a waste of my time. While it's entertaining to deal with cretins at times, I don't really glean anything from it. So while I'm sure you'll fuss and fume at this latest reply it will be solely for the entertainment of the more intelligent readers on this thread. I won't be back. Bye, bye little boys.
Posted by: Subvet at February 21, 2007 12:08 AM (DNVxw)
Posted by: osamabinthere at February 21, 2007 05:01 AM (ZxuJ4)
Posted by: greyrooster at February 21, 2007 03:29 PM (smCdV)
Seriously, you old pig fucker. Get a stroke already. You are a waste of life.
Posted by: osamabinhiding at February 21, 2007 03:33 PM (ZxuJ4)
Why am I not surprised that you're a mincing little coward? Libeling my typos as spelling deficiencies is a weak response from a physical and mental weakling.
Joe Arpuko is a piece of shit, and anybody who defends him is even lower. If you can prove that every man sent to tent jail was convicted of the crime he was accused of, I'll shut up. We both know that you cant, so you're the one who needs to shut the fuck up. Arpuko preys on the innocent for political and monetary gain. He is a slithering worm with no human decency.
You aren't a vet and you aren't a man. If you're afraid to come to NE, feel free to give me your address, big-mouth.
Run and hide, bitch. I'm still here.
Posted by: Jeff Bargholz at February 22, 2007 02:16 AM (Dt3sl)
Flaming bags of poop? About what I'd expect from a coward like you.
Come and get some, punk.
Posted by: Jeff Bargholz at February 22, 2007 02:19 AM (Dt3sl)
like little girls. You wanna fight? Buy a rifle and join the revolution.
Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at February 22, 2007 09:24 AM (eGb9y)
I don't fight girls. You only deserve flaming poo in a bag!
Posted by: osamabinhiding at February 22, 2007 04:05 PM (ZxuJ4)
Posted by: Jeff Bargholz at February 23, 2007 02:54 AM (Dt3sl)
Posted by: osamabinthere at February 23, 2007 05:29 AM (ZxuJ4)
34 queries taking 0.0462 seconds, 176 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.