It should go without saying that, “Hey, LAPD, maybe you shouldn’t have killed those folks in the first place,” but we just said it, so let’s move on. The LA Times wrote on Wednesday that the LAPD is working on a new program—the Family Liaison Program—to “better communicate with relatives of those who are killed by police or died while in the LAPD’s custody.”
Police Commission President Matt Johnson noted that relatives of people fatally shot by LAPD officers often attend the commission’s weekly meetings looking for answers about such deaths or demanding to see video showing what happened. But they also come seeking documents, such as death certificates or police reports, so they can bury their loved ones or alleviate costs through insurance companies.
“If you hear some of the complaints of family members, of course some of it is that — they want to see the video. But a lot of it is, ‘I can’t bury my child’ because they don’t have a death certificate,” Johnson said. “This will give them a specific point of contact.”
Yes, you are correct: before this idea, the families of those killed by police were given the runaround, adding insult to injury. But we digress:
Johnson cautioned that the LAPD would still not be able to share certain information with the families because of the confidential nature of the investigations into such incidents. The LAPD, for example, does not generally make video of shootings by police officers public. But Johnson said a formal liaison could explain how the deaths are investigated and reviewed and the role of the district attorney’s office as well as work with the coroner’s office to help families get more information.
“These deaths, no matter what the circumstances, are tragic for the deceased’s loved ones, friends and community,” he said at Tuesday’s meeting. “I believe that there is more we can and should do.”
Yes, Mr. Johnson, there’s a whole lot more you can and should do. But wait … even though we digressed for a moment, let’s go back to insult and injury. The LAT quotes LAPD Chief Charlie Beck in the article which, they have to since he’s the chief but, there’s just something about these two paragraphs right here:
Beck said that although deadly encounters with police may occur after some type of assault against officers, “we shouldn’t hold that against the family.”
“As I believe to my core, even though the acts of an individual involved directly with the police may have been criminal, that doesn't mean the family isn’t grieving,” Beck said. “That doesn’t mean they don’t need information. That doesn’t mean that the process shouldn’t be explained to them.”
Sigh.
Chief Beck didn’t need to stick in the inference that the people killed by police may have been at fault and that his officers are without blemish. If only Chief Beck hadn’t made that video saying he supported the police when this very same police commission found two of his officers had acted out of compliance in a high-profile police shooting. If only his department hadn’t found more than 1,300 complaints of police misconduct not credible. If only Chief Beck had just kept his mouth shut … like when the relatives of those killed by police want to know why the police killed their loved ones.
If only.