Responses to Carol Becker:
> I had thought we had discussed this issue pretty thoroughly a couple of
> weeks ago. Let me reiterate a few facts:
>
i thought we had discussed this issue several times over the past several
months, but it seems like your discussion is with yourself because you keep
bringing up the same points that keep getting refuted or put in proper context
by other list members. it gets tiring to repeat the same points, so i will do
it once more; but if you repeat the same lines in the future and there is no
response, it is not necessarily because people agree with you but probably
because you are repeating yourself.
>
> 1) Crime is down substantially in Minneapolis. Lower than it has been in
> decades. This is something to be celebrated.
there is no proof that the lower crime rates are the result of police policies.
crime STATISTICS are down nationally and is much more likely related to current
national economic trends of lower unemployment - and the huge increase in the
number of people incarcerated - than the increased police repression in
communities of color. It is also important to note that just because crime
STATISTICS are down does not necessarily mean that crime is down. a majority of
crimes go unreported. it is possible that people in the communities most
affected by crime are reporting crimes less because they are more afraid and
mistrusting of the police. Finally, even if contemporary police tactics have
contributed to any reduction in crimes, is it worth the cost? The cost of
denial of constitutional liberties, brutality, harassment, racism, and a record
high number of people in prison? I think not. Thoms Jefferson (although not a
flawless person) had an instructive quote: [approximate] "Any person who is
willing to give up a little freedom for the promise of a little more security is
entitled to neither."
>
>
> At the same time, complaints about inappropriate police action are also
> down. There are three ways of measuring this:
>
> a) complaints lodged at the Police Internal Affairs
> b) complaints lodged at the Police Civilian Review
> c) complaints brought through the court system, which leads to another
> measure;
> i) payouts from lawsuits brought against the City
The decrease in complaints likely has less to do with decreased police
misconduct than with an increased realization of the ineffectiveness of the
legal channels.
The police internal affairs unit, which consists of police investigating their
colleagues, has always been notorious for not finding anything wrong.
The Civilian Review Authority, which activists fought hard for about eleven
years ago, has proven extremely ineffective. It only pursues the really obvious
cases of policy violations. Since most cases involve the word of the
complaining citizen versus the word of one or more police officers, there are
few cases that will fit the Civilian Review Authority. Furthemore, there is
police misconduct that the Civilian Review Authority (CRA) will not
investigate because it might violate the constitution but no specific police
department policies. For example, the CRA generally does not pursue cases of
illegal searches or illegal arrests - the type of conduct that is most prevelant
under the racist and unconstitutional CODEFOR program. Finally, even if the CRA
doesn find misconduct, it can only make recommendations to the police chief who
can decide completely on his own whether to impose discipline.
The court system is also ridiculously skewed in favor of the police. It is
extremely expensive to pursue a lawsuit because of the high cost of
investigation, depositions, and expert witnesses, and the large amount of an
attorney time that is needed. There are also loopholes such as "qualified
immunity" which allow judges to dismiss many police misconduct cases before they
go to trial. Most lawyers will not take a police misconduct case unless there
is a severe injury and the evidence makes victory almost certain. Since the
police are usually given the benefit of the doubt and most victims of police
misconduct are not personally appealing to predominantly white middle class
judges and juries, very few cases fit these criteria. This is most likely why
there have not been lawsuits on behalf of the five people killed by police in
the past year. Notwithstanding all of the obstacles to police misonduct cases,
there have been some large payouts. The city paid out more than a half million
dollars for the innocent person killed in car chase by a police officer going
the wrong way on interstate 94, with a supervisor's approval.
In summary , the decrease in legal complaints has much more to do with an
increased in the inadequacy in the remedies and an increased awareness of the
inadequacy of the remedies, than a decrease in misconduct.
>
> And as to the statistic of the police budget growing from 23% of the General
> Fund to 40% of the General Fund (the Police budget is 37% of the Mayor's
> 2001 proposed budget actually). This statistic is as much because of costs
> were shifted out of the General Fund (Solid Waste, graffiti, debt service,
> etc) as it is about the Police budget growing.
Someone with more knowledge of the budget should respond to this. I find it
really hard to believe. there is obviously a continuing increase in the number
of police officers, the number of precincts and sub-precincts, and the absurd
expenditures on repressing political protesters (such as in Highway 55, Mayday
and ISAG).
>
Response to Carol Becker by
Jordan Kushner
Powderhorn
