A major policing issue is officers’ abuse of power in their use of unnecessary brutality, especially in prisons. There have been countless accounts of prisoners being beaten and punished inhumanely by guards. One particularly horrifying instance was the punishment of Darren Rainey, a mentally ill prisoner serving a 2-year sentence for the possession of cocaine. The Floridian Department of Corrections officers are known for devising cruel punishments for their prisoners, such as starvation or in-site fights to place bets on the victor. Prison guards blasted Rainey with scalding water until his skin separated from his body, quickly leading to his death. These officers can get away with such deeds because they are neither checked upon nor will they receive retribution for their actions. The facility covered up the incident and claimed that Rainey died of a heart attack; no one was charged with his death. Another instance includes the killing of Oscar Grant, the events of which were recounted in the film Fruitvale Station.
Another concerning problem is the inefficiency of the court systems, especially those located in poor districts. The legal system of the Bronx criminal courts is overwhelmed by cases because of the lack of court staff. As a result, there is a backup of trial cases and many inmates end up pleading guilty to crimes they didn’t commit. The story of Kalief Browder illustrates the struggle many poor offenders must face. He was wrongly accused of stealing and his family could not afford bail. Consequently, he spent three years in jail without a chance for trial. Not only is there a problem with the court system impediment, there are also unfair and sometimes unlawful punishments issued by judges. Instead of using their objectivity and discretion, many judges do the opposite. One such judge is Herman C. Dawson, the main juvenile court judge in Prince George’s County, Maryland. He, like many other judges, believes in tough love and will usually opt for incarceration, despite law standards.
There has always been an underlying distrust of the police by the public, an issue that has become much more prevalent in recent years. The Mayor of New York City, Bill de Blasio, has created an even greater divide between the public and the police force. This fuels the anti-police sentiment that has been growing in response to recent police brutality incidents. My friend, a recent graduate of the police academy, observed that many police officers and audience members booed the mayor during his graduation speech. Many blame de Blasio’s “anti-police” policies for the recent hostility towards officers. Such apparent disagreement between city officials and the police department breaks the united front that they should maintain for civilians. There cannot be such a disconnection between the government officials and the police institution, because it leads to mass panic and distrust, which has already been observed. There was even a group of marchers shouting, “What do we want? Dead cops!”
References:
http://www.policestateusa.com/2014/darren-rainey/
I agree with your comments regarding the abuse of power by police. Many instances of brutality happen in public and have been well documented especially as of recently and it is not a stretch to see it happen in prisons when police are not monitored or held responsible. This raises the issue that there may be even more cases of police brutality in prisons that we don’t know about. This is a problem not easily solved since few people will ever sympathize with murderers and criminals and the fact that constant surveillance on police will be extremely costly. I also agree with your comments about the flaws in the judiciary system. A courtroom has to present itself as unbiased and equal so this example actively discriminates based on social status. Judges who impose their sense of punishment onto the judged also make the courtroom biased. Judge Dawson, in the article, even mentioned that his duty was to ensure the kids got into college but doesn’t seem to worry about the potential ramifications of prison time that can be of detrimental effect after college. This is also not easily fixed since human nature can’t be unbiased. It seems that every branch of government will need to reform in order to maintain a productive society.
I agree with your statement that a major problem regarding policing is abuse of power. It is truly shocking that such actions such as beating prisoners occur. Such instances where officers will abuse their power just adds to the growing problem regarding mistrust between and hate of police officers and civilians. The problem with the backlog of the court system in many impoverished communities such as the Bronx is also something of concern. Reading the story of Browder really shocked me because I had never realized how bad the system was, which is why I agree that it is also a major problem. In order for policing to be more effective, policies have to be implemented which target such problems like misconduct of police officers and unlawful brutality and also target problems on a bigger scale like better policies regarding how cases are processed. For example the six month policy that is discussed in the article about the backlog in the Bronx court system should be reformed so that someone who spends more than 6 months actually in jail not just on paper should have their case terminated.