I live in England, part of the United Kingdom, and I also spend a lot time in Brazil. Brazil is the more dangerous place and there is a lot more police brutality in Brazil than in the UK. But the USA, “Land of the Free” has got to be the worst of the developed countries in respect of gratuitous violence towards the public. Have I got this wrong aren’t they supposed to be serving American citizens?
This video, provided by Attorney Paul Edlund, shows six Minneapolis Police Officers punching and kicking Derryl Jenkins, 42, during a traffic stop on Feb. 19 in north Minneapolis.
Minneapolis Police Chief Tim Dolan said, “I have reviewed the videos of the arrest of Mr. Jenkins by Officer Walker. Hand to hand fighting with a suspect on the street is one of the most dangerous encounters for police officers. Officer Walker’s actions all appear to be very appropriate”.
Should Tasers Be Banned?
I invite you to comment on this story and the whole issue of the use of Tasers by the police. What’s your opinion? Should they be banned? Should only well-trained officers have them?
Was the use of a Taser justified in this case? Should cops get away with this level of violence? What about Mr Jenkins civil rights?
The Duck Shoot Opinion: Tasers should be banned and cops in the USA need intensive training in dealing with the public they are supposed to be serving. These cops should be sacked immediately and heavily fined.
These human rights abuses if not checked now will lead to an eventual breakdown of law and order.
Other reporting:
Related posts:
- Police Taser Brutality: First Cop Tasers Unarmed Man Then Kills Him Police said the officer used a Taser on Mallory, but...
- Police Brutality: Three Brave Cops Beat Up Teenage Girl In this video, police beat a teenage black girl for...
- Police Brutality: This Kind Of Shit Just Makes Me Hate Cops! Exactly just what this incident is about I cannot say....
- Police Taser Brutality: Pregnant Woman Tasered At Baptism Party Relatives say the police used excessive force just to quiet...
- Police Brutality: More Taser Bull-Shit Continuing with my campaign to make people aware of the...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
So you think you’ve burst my bubble do you? I love your arrogance! Sorry to disappoint but you have done nothing of the sort. You protest that Minnesota police are well trained but those six police didn’t demonstrate good training and the increasing brutality of cops everywhere seems to suggest otherwise.
The original news site that I got my information from has now taken the story down. It reported that Mr Jenkins was Tasered but I cannot find this mentioned on any other news report. However, you can clearly see cops kicking and punching him after he had been restrained. Tasers are NOT non-lethal and they are instruments of torture and therefore illegal under International law.
Police are not using Tasers as an alternative to using guns they are using Tasers because they are sadists.
I live near Minneapolis, and I hate to burst your bubble, but police officer’s in Minnesota, especially the metro and suburban areas are VERY well trained. It is very hard to obtain employment period in Minnesota as a officer, let alone those areas. As for tasers, all officers who carry them have been tased themselves, many times, so they know just what they are inflicting. The public for YEARS pressed for a non-lethal alternative to firearm defense, and this so far is the most effective, least-lethal method. I guess the citizens who gripe about this would rather the police just shoot people instead of tasering them.
Here in the UK 12-bore shot guns mainly are used by farmers and some come with two barrels. the ‘12-bore’ refers to the bore size of the muzzle.
In the UK they are a favourite of robbers, partly because they are fairly easy to get hold of and partly because of the fear they instill in victims. You do not have to be accurate as, unlike a bullet which has to be aimed to hit a target, the shot sprays pellets over a wide area. The ’shot’ is a large cartridge filled with lead pellets.
To adapt a shotgun to fire a Taser is just sheer wickedness. If these get into the hands of the type of cops we see using existing Taser types we will see a lot more innocent deaths.
Oh, I don’t know if you’ve got this already somewhere else on your site, but newscientist reported recently that they’re now coming out with XREP (Extended Range Electronic Projectile) that can be shot with a 12-bore shotgun.
I actually don’t know what that means, but it doesn’t sound like anything we want. Here’s the article:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20327236.300-longrange-taser-reignites-safety-debate.html
Isn’t that nuts?
Thanks very much. I think I found you on twitter, I don’t usually comment on things but I couldn’t resist. I will link to you, too.
Hi Polly, Thanks for the comment. The link to the video is appreciated too. I must see if there is a similar video for British citizens.
I am going to post the video on The Duck Shoot for the benefit of US citizens that read my blog and will link to your site as a way of saying thank you for the valuable information.
I think the attack on this individual was punitive. And unfortunately all too common. Cops in the U.S., where I live, are likely to initiate a physical confrontation over the slightest of things. If they feel angry or insulted, they seem to lose their minds. They also exhibit what I call chronic taser tantrums. The tiniest of things are successful at provoking them. (BART officers here, for example, initiated a violent confrontation with some passengers because they overheard them being critical of BART officers. That’s something a child would do, not a self-possessed adult.)
Too, if you make their job difficult (for whatever reason, maybe you asked one too many questions, maybe you’ve asked if you could please put some clothes on) they’re likely to punish you for that, too. And when they get punitive, it becomes very dangerous for citizens. Sometimes fatal.
I have the following video posted on my site, as a public service:
http://ultravioletgarden.com/2008/12/06/busted-the-citizens-guide-to-surviving-police-encounters/
I think every citizen should know how to survive police encounters, especially since they can be so very dangerous. Of course it’s no guarantee and I wouldn’t recommend that anyone argue with a cop.