I should be writing a short story for my assignment due tomorrow for my creative writing class. Instead, I am preoccupied with the shortcomings of various law enforcement officers around the country. To wit:
The Clay County, Fla., Sheriff's Office punished a deputy Tuesday for the wrongful arrest of 18-year-old Cody Lee Williams, who didn't even share the same middle name as a man accused of having sex with a young girl.
"Other than the name, there’s no other similarities," Kris Nowicki, Cody Lee Williams' attorney, told the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday. “Cody Williams had never met this girl and didn’t know anything about her."
[...]
"Not only did they not do a photo lineup, but further … they put him directly into adult court, filing an affidavit that not only is it this guy, but he did something" so serious that he should be charged as an adult, Nowicki said."
Deprive a man of 35 days of his life. No big deal.
Meanwhile, on the west coast, we have officers engaging in more predictable shenanigans, that of corruption:
Those arrested on Tuesday in the agricultural town of King City included interim Police Chief Bruce Miller and his brother Brian Miller, who owns a towing company, said Monterey County Chief Assistant District Attorney Terry Spitz.
"The victims were economically disadvantaged persons of Hispanic descent who were targeted by having their vehicles impounded, towed and stored by Miller's Tow," Monterey County District Attorney Dean Flippo said in a statement. "The vehicle owners were unable to pay the fees and the vehicles were sold or provided for free to some of the officers."
From earlier reports, it appears that the six persons arrested in the sting represent a full third of the police force in King City.
Need I mention the sinking feeling distinct in many stomachs when the Supreme Court this week relaxed rules for officers attempting to search a person's home? As long as one resident gives consent, the officers need not have a warrant, even if another legal resident refuses access.
Rather dark days for those who wish to fight against the creeping collateral of the police state. At least in New Jersey, in one particular case, the police were unable to flush corroborating evidence (a second dashcam) showing that a suspect actually was not resisting arrest or fleeing a scene. We all have our own estimations as to how many of these dashcam videos go down the memory hole.