Cops to citizen review panel: Beat it
The City of Portland's anemic civilian police review board just got laughed off by the police brass:
The man, in a written statement reviewed by internal affairs, wrote that he had said out loud at the scene to the officer who arrested him, "You broke my arm on purpose." The man who was arrested said he overheard the officer involved say to another officer, "Yes, I did."Citizen committee members questioned why internal affairs investigators did not ask the second officer if the officer involved had made that remark.
An honest answer to that question was too much to ask, apparently.
| Posted at 8:45 AM | Permalink |
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Comments (6)
I gues they did not want to get their arms, or anything else broken.
Posted by Portland Native | May 3, 2012 9:40 AM
How absurd. A dislocated elbow is not a calamity.The poor fellow is dead, he died a year after the 2010 incident, of "unrelated causes". (I hate to be unchristian in asking about his cause of death, but can't help but wonder if it might not perhaps have been related to the contents of his backpack, of such interest to the police, at the time of his arrest. Mea culpa in advance if he died of natural causes).
Is this really a good use of CRC time and effort? An altercation between a cop and a civilian, resulting in a minor injury of a person who is currently no longer with us?
Posted by Gaye Harris | May 3, 2012 10:13 AM
Gaye,
So are you saying that anytime the police do something that isn't right that they should just make sure the person dies before a decent review of the situation is done? I don't care why the fellow died, I certainly wouldn't want my arm broken/elbow dislocate for no good reason. The police have to be accountable.
Posted by Michael | May 3, 2012 10:36 AM
Hey, I want there to be a clause in the police union contract that allows the city to demote to a clerical job any police officer who kills an unarmed civilian. Of course police have to be accountable for deaths and serious injuries. But every non-serious injury, even when the complainant is DEAD? Just strikes me as an absolute waste of time, considering there are so many much more serious police issues to worry about. Like letting Frashour back out with a weapon, eg. You know, when the watchdogs start focusing away from the big stuff to focus on the little stuff, it just renders them even more impotent.
Posted by Gaye harris | May 3, 2012 1:29 PM
I intended to attempt some snarky humor about breaking arms vs. ribs and Dave Famous vs. Famous Dave's, but I can't let the comments go by.
I recall a mayor and police chief proclaiming that they would crack down on Jay-walking because it was a gateway crime leading to loss of respect for the law.
Well it cuts both ways -- violent tendencies and overreactions are gateway indicators of things to come. I have no knowledge of the subjects or the incident. Perhaps the bicyclist tried to squirm out of a hold, or perhaps the officer wanted to teach a lesson. I don't know. That is the point of the investigation.
But when the police bureau thumbs its nose at the review board, well, that is another indicator. One we should not ignore.
Posted by Old Zeb | May 3, 2012 6:35 PM
Police break a guys arm. Response? Question the nature and value of the victim.
I think that's exactly the christian thing to do.
Posted by Jo | May 4, 2012 3:18 AM