Minneapolis has, among other responses to the Floyd murder, implemented requirements for officers to intervene and report other officers for violations, excessive force, etc.
It's a good start. It is.
But it's not going to accomplish a damn thing. /1
It's a good start. It is.
But it's not going to accomplish a damn thing. /1
Mandatory intervention/reporting won't do anything until other major systemic problems are resolved.
The police have a code of silence comparable to omerta. It's well-known that cops don't rat out cops because snitches get stitches.
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The police have a code of silence comparable to omerta. It's well-known that cops don't rat out cops because snitches get stitches.
/2
I have literally heard with my own ears cops telling each other this, often as a warning to one who's considering reporting a problem. Sometimes it's a threat. Sometimes it's a concerned buddy saying, "bro, ask yourself if it's worth what's going to come your way."
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I personally witnessed an ex-cop berating his son (now a cop) for reporting a supervisor for DUI because "There's a gray area with cops. You don't rat out other cops." I was there. I heard the words. This after his other son had been hurt by a drunk driver weeks earlier. /4
No amount of rules, requirements, or regulations are going to break that code of silence. This is why we need massive amounts of reform. The kind that involves total dismantling of what's in place, complete purges of personnel from the top down, & construction of something new./5
Because as it stands right now, reporting requirements are nothing more than performative reform. They won't fix anything as long as the system is comprised of those who long ago committed to that code of silence, and for whom "snitches get stitches" is the law of the land./end
