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5 cases where police may be the criminals
Other | Thursday 9th January 2014 | Tilly
5 cases that make you wonder if police officers are criminals in disguise
Mark Duggan
“The police had got away with murder” was the claim made by supporters of Mark Duggan. Duggan’s family burst into outrage after finding out that the jury reached a verdict of lawful killing. 29-year-old Duggan was shot by police in August 2011 whilst unarmed due to allegations of picking up a gun. What’s worrying is the confusion within the police force with previous statements saying Duggan had a gun on him during the attack, which have been changed to him throwing a gun over a fence near the place he was killed. The gun that was found was wrapped in a sock, both items contained no fingerprints or DNA belonging to Duggan. His family who are still seeking justice claim the police had planted it there.
Rodney King
11 skull fractures, permanent brain damage, broken bones and teeth, kidney damage and emotional and physical trauma are the injuries Rodney King suffered after brutal beatings from Los Angeles Police Department. The results of a high-speed car chase lead to this attack, which was recorded by a witness from his balcony. Having evidence of the unruly actions to Mark Duggan, did not stop 3 out of 4 officers to be acquitted of all charges, including assault with a deadly weapon and use of excessive force for their conduct during the incident. The trial was on April 29, 1992 which is said to spark the LA riots the same year.
US Pepper Spray Attack
University police officers pepper-sprayed a group of student demonstrators at the University of California, Davis on November 18, 2011. A distressing video was shared around the world showing the shocking retaliation to a student protest. Officers are seen freely walking around, pepper-spraying peaceful protestors in the face. Pepper spray is to keep violent people from being able to mount an attack. This is just another case showing members of the police abusing their authority and the lack of freedom of speech that we claim to have.
Stop and search
A short documentary and secret audio recording reveals secrets that are kept from the public about New York stop and searches which are very similar the stop and searches in the UK. A NYPD veteran reveals that he was presented with a speech from his captain about harassing the public, he said “we’re gonna go out there and were gonna violate some rights”. The video that was recorded by Ross Tuttle who had been stopped showed an office saying “Do you wanna get smacked” for having an empty bag and asking him if he wanted to be arrested for being a “fucking mutt”. He was then pushed and provoked violently. The documentary shows shocking statistics that 87% people stopped in the last decade being black or Latino, with 9/10 of them doing no wrongdoing. Officers are obliged to make a certain number of arrests to be promoted was exposed in the video. Take a look below.
Injustice
Between 1969 and 1999 over one thousand people died in police custody in England. Injustice is a documentary that shows the battle for justice by black families. This is an excellent film that captures the pain families go through and the unjust system that allows police offices to walk away with blood on their hands.
