I appreciate the on-list reply from Lieutenant Reinhardt of the Minneapolis Police Department. The first paragraph of his reply answered some of my questions:
"I am Lieutenant Gregory W. Reinhardt of the Minneapolis Police Department
(MPD).� I am the commander of the Traffic Unit, which includes Accident
Investigations.� Each year, there are 15,000 accidents in Minneapolis. On
the average there are 20 fatal accidents.� In 2002, there were 14 fatal
accidents. Seven (7) involved pedestrians.� Most regrettabley, Ms. Jones was
one of the victims."
Officer Reinhardt goes on to say that every accident involving a fatality is investigated impartially by the police. I do wonder how many charges were filed in the cases of the 7 pedestrians killed, or even in the cases of the 7 other people killed in accidents. I wonder if people are really held responsible for the consequences of behaviour while driving, or if we just assume that "accidents happen" -- which is not the case at all. Car crashes happen for a reason, or reasons.
Officer Reinhardt continues:
"Not every fatal accident involves a crime.� Not every driver is arrested.
Many accidents do not have a unbiased witness nor is there sufficient
evidence to prove criminal guilt.� Economic, racial or other status of the
victims are not factors in the investigation. Only the material facts
matter."
I do understand that such investigative work must be very complex and challenging. I appreciate the people who do this on behalf of our community. The following sentence speaks volumes:
"However, many accidents do go to civil litigation where perceived wrongs are
addressed."
Only those with the money to engage in civil litigation may go to court. Insurance companies and wealthy people, I suppose. This is not a police matter, but rather a matter of -- what, justice for sale? This leaves me haunted by the fact that "civil" justice is more about who can pay for legal representation than about actual justice.
I also appreciate the power of the following paragraph, coming from a police officer who is responsible for traffic enforcement for a city the size of Minneapolis:
"Last year there were over 625 people killed on the roadways of Minnesota.
(this 4 times as many people murdered in all of� Minnesota each year).
There are over 30,000 people who die every year on the nations roadways. The
press reported on everyone of them.� But very few people care.� It's easy to
demonize� gangs or drug dealers for society wrongs. It makes great press.
It's much harder to do so with traffic fatalities, because the enemy is us.
It's our driving behaviors that cause traffic accidents.�� We need to slow
down, pay attention, buckle up and stay sober."
Four times as many people are killed by cars in Minnesota than are killed by people with guns, knives, or other weapons.
Of course, we would rather not make a peep about this because we are too afraid to look in the mirror. The media glamourizes the gangs and so-called "war on drugs" because it allows some people to be entertained while at the same time blaming death and destruction on "them" instead of "us". The media gets so much advertising money from car dealers and such, that I suppose it really is not profitable to focus on death-by-car rather than the other more glamourous "criminals."
There is another layer behind this as well. It has to do with both class and race, and with conformity to a worldview which associates violence and crime with the poor and with those of nonwhite race. That is best left for another post, but I believe it bears mention.
I do agree that we need at least double the number of traffic officers on duty in Minneapolis. I've counted as many as one in five drivers talking on cell phones while driving during peak traffic times on DuPont Avenue south between 40th and 50th. It is easy to spot from a cargo trike! But I don't think there are enough police officers in Minneapolis to chase down these folks -- "inattentive drivers" - like the one who killed Janet Jones.
I do hope to see less de-contextualized reporting from the Star & Trib and other media sources as well. We need follow-up. We need reporters assigned to follow stories through to the end, and to ask questions about the relationship of these stories to the bigger picture.
I commend the Star & Trib for reporting this fatal crash, but sure hope that media can find the heart and soul to ask tough questions. The media needs to hold a mirror up to our culture so that we can see, understand, and make changes for the better.
Thanks again to Lt. Reinhardt for his considered reply!
Gary Hoover
King Field
