Luther Krueger wrote:
> I regret I don't know what to say to allay your fears
> about the plainclothes officers, except perhaps to say
> you have much more to fear, and I think statistics
> would back up the statement, from crooks with hidden
> guns and knives than from plainclothes cops. So far
> in the year 2000, 985+ felony assaults (mostly with
> weapons) in Minneapolis have been reported, not
> including 80+ felony assaults on officers, nor
> hundreds of aggravated robberies of persons. I would
> be surprised if the number of complaints of
> police brutality so far this year approached
> those numbers...
A few things come to mind...
The number of complaints most certainly do not necessarily reflect the
number of occurrances. Many people are afraid to bring complaints against
the police, or they believe that the deck is stacked against them and
bringing a complaint will do no good. During the city council hearing on
the ISAG conference, people talked about the difficulty of bringing an
excessive force complaint when they weren't able to identify the officer
(due to gas masks and other riot gear).
Also, the possibility of being attacked or abused by a police officer
carries an element of fear that the chance of an ordinary act of violence
does not have. No one can help you if a police officer is out to cause
harm. The best you can hope for is to find a talented lawyer after the
violence is over. I've been told that unless bones are broken, there is no
point in even trying to get redress.
And here in Minneapolis, any given individual's risk of paying additional
property taxes or associated rent to finance the police department's
adventurous response to genetics protesters is nearly one hundred percent.
Rosalind Nelson
Bancroft
