Sonny Clark
Diamond Member
- Banned
- #1
We're Spending Billions to Support the Most Corrupt, Abusive Arm of Law Enforcement
Almost 1,200 allegations of excessive use of force were launched against the Border Patrol in just five years.
As a former police chief in Buffalo and Seattle, Kerlikowske was familiar with the problems inherent in increasing a force's size that rapidly:
“Law enforcement always regrets hiring quickly,” he says, sitting at the conference table in the spacious wood-paneled commissioner’s suite. The horror stories are legendary in police circles: the infamous Miami police hiring surge in 1980; the notorious Washington Metropolitan Police class of 1989, when Mayor Marion Barry, under pressure from Congress, tried to increase the police force by nearly half in a single year. Both agencies faced widespread corruption problems in the years after.
Of the more than 21,000 records that we received, we reviewed the allegation summary field for the 2,093 records from JICMS data—excessive force and abuse allegations and intentional discharge of weapon. This included 1,896 records from FYs 2007 through 2012 in the excessive force and abuse data. We identified 1,187 of these records as possible allegations related to excessive force. The allegations also included physical abuse (punching, kicking, and pushing) during apprehension, and use of an electronic control device, baton, or pepper spray. Almost 1,200 allegations of excessive use of force in just five years. Those were only the allegations that were made. It is likely that there were multiples of that figure in actual excessive force actions that were never reported by the very vulnerable community that the Border Patrol encounters.
In February 2013, Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) issued a report to the CBP of its analysis of the agency's policies and cases of use of force. After keeping the report secret for over a year, it was finally released in May 2014, after the ACLU had filed a lawsuit over the CBP's refusal to comply with a FOIA request.
We re Spending Billions to Support the Most Corrupt Abusive Arm of Law Enforcement Alternet
Law enforcement covers for law enforcement. It takes a lot of effort to force law enforcement agencies to admit wrong-doing. And, when they do admit it, they find ways to excuse it.
Almost 1,200 allegations of excessive use of force were launched against the Border Patrol in just five years.
As a former police chief in Buffalo and Seattle, Kerlikowske was familiar with the problems inherent in increasing a force's size that rapidly:
“Law enforcement always regrets hiring quickly,” he says, sitting at the conference table in the spacious wood-paneled commissioner’s suite. The horror stories are legendary in police circles: the infamous Miami police hiring surge in 1980; the notorious Washington Metropolitan Police class of 1989, when Mayor Marion Barry, under pressure from Congress, tried to increase the police force by nearly half in a single year. Both agencies faced widespread corruption problems in the years after.
Of the more than 21,000 records that we received, we reviewed the allegation summary field for the 2,093 records from JICMS data—excessive force and abuse allegations and intentional discharge of weapon. This included 1,896 records from FYs 2007 through 2012 in the excessive force and abuse data. We identified 1,187 of these records as possible allegations related to excessive force. The allegations also included physical abuse (punching, kicking, and pushing) during apprehension, and use of an electronic control device, baton, or pepper spray. Almost 1,200 allegations of excessive use of force in just five years. Those were only the allegations that were made. It is likely that there were multiples of that figure in actual excessive force actions that were never reported by the very vulnerable community that the Border Patrol encounters.
In February 2013, Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) issued a report to the CBP of its analysis of the agency's policies and cases of use of force. After keeping the report secret for over a year, it was finally released in May 2014, after the ACLU had filed a lawsuit over the CBP's refusal to comply with a FOIA request.
We re Spending Billions to Support the Most Corrupt Abusive Arm of Law Enforcement Alternet
Law enforcement covers for law enforcement. It takes a lot of effort to force law enforcement agencies to admit wrong-doing. And, when they do admit it, they find ways to excuse it.