Police Who Made Teenagers Do Push-ups Face Punishment

[Swagger]

Police becoming "society thugs" because they made them do push-ups?

Push-ups don't equate to police thuggery!

Give me a break!

I think you misundertood what I'm suggesting. I'm not saying that making a group of what we're told were the culprits do a few push-ups by the curb makes the attending officers "society thugs." No, what I'm trying to impress is that if this became the norm, thus chipping away at the notion of due process, we could end-up in a situation where the police become a law unto themselves.

I still stand by what I said... the Police is there to enforce Law and Order after all.

And I think you must allow the Police a margin of freedom, a certain leeway in their actions.

Indeed they are. But in this case they went beyond their official remit by passing sentence, which they're forbidden from doing.

Either way, in part I agree with you, in the sense that a slap across the face or a blow to the gut frees-up a lot of time and resources. Except in this case it was public, showing passers-by what happens if you piss-off the police, not break the law. Civilian complacency in the face of such a seemingly derelict attitude towards due process can potentially lead to the police becoming a potentially criminal nuisance themselves.

 

[skye]

I think you misundertood what I'm suggesting. I'm not saying that making a group of what we're told were the culprits do a few push-ups by the curb makes the attending officers "society thugs." No, what I'm trying to impress is that if this became the norm, thus chipping away at the notion of due process, we could end-up in a situation where the police become a law unto themselves.

I still stand by what I said... the Police is there to enforce Law and Order after all.

And I think you must allow the Police a margin of freedom, a certain leeway in their actions.

Indeed they are. But in this case they went beyond their official remit by passing sentence, which they're forbidden from doing.

Either way, in part I agree with you, in the sense that a slap across the face or a blow to the gut frees-up a lot of time and resources. Except in this case it was public, showing passers-by what happens if you piss-off the police, not break the law. Civilian complacency in the face of such a seemingly derelict attitude towards due process can potentially lead to the police becoming a potentially criminal nuisance themselves.

Cool! in part you agree!

That's all I need to hear

 

[Swagger]

I still stand by what I said... the Police is there to enforce Law and Order after all.

And I think you must allow the Police a margin of freedom, a certain leeway in their actions.

Indeed they are. But in this case they went beyond their official remit by passing sentence, which they're forbidden from doing.

Either way, in part I agree with you, in the sense that a slap across the face or a blow to the gut frees-up a lot of time and resources. Except in this case it was public, showing passers-by what happens if you piss-off the police, not break the law. Civilian complacency in the face of such a seemingly derelict attitude towards due process can potentially lead to the police becoming a potentially criminal nuisance themselves.

Cool! in part you agree!

That's all I need to hear

Only in part. But you've either failed to grasp or have ignored the potential risk posed to society by complacency in the face of extrajudicial punishment. In either case, that's kinda worrying, if I'm to be frank.

 

[skye]

Indeed they are. But in this case they went beyond their official remit by passing sentence, which they're forbidden from doing.

Either way, in part I agree with you, in the sense that a slap across the face or a blow to the gut frees-up a lot of time and resources. Except in this case it was public, showing passers-by what happens if you piss-off the police, not break the law. Civilian complacency in the face of such a seemingly derelict attitude towards due process can potentially lead to the police becoming a potentially criminal nuisance themselves.

Cool! in part you agree!

That's all I need to hear

Only in part. But you've either failed to grasp or have ignored the potential risk posed to society by complacency in the face of extrajudicial punishment. That's kinda worrying, if I'm to be frank.

No more to say to you,

Cheers

 

[Swagger]

It was a pleasure educating you, Skye. It's just a shame that I've ruined your perception of events by overwhelming you with logic and reasoning.

 

[skye]

It was a pleasure educating you, Skye. It's just a shame that I've ruined your perception of events by overwhelming you with logic and reasoning.

Respectfully, I don't need education from you .... you are abstruse and stubborn .... and I don't suffer fools gladly.

 

[Connery]

Police becoming "society thugs" because they made them do push-ups?

Push-ups don't equate to police thuggery!

Give me a break!

I think you misundertood what I'm suggesting. I'm not saying that making a group of what we're told were the culprits do a few push-ups by the curb makes the attending officers "society thugs." No, what I'm trying to impress is that if this became the norm, thus chipping away at the notion of due process, we could end-up in a situation where the police become a law unto themselves.

I still stand by what I said... the Police is there to enforce Law and Order after all.

And I think you must allow the Police a margin of freedom, a certain leeway in their actions.

I agree. Police discretion is an accepted practice and in this situation was exercised.

To expect "full enforcement" by police is onerous and unduly burdensome. Indeed, "full enforcement", is not a realistic expectation. In addition to ambiguities in the definitions of both substantive offenses and due-process boundaries, countless limitations and pressures preclude the possibility of the police seeking or achieving full enforcement. Limitations of time, personnel, and investigative devices, all in part but not entirely functions of budget, force the development, by plan or default, of priorities of enforcement. Even if there were "enough police" adequately equipped and trained, pressures from within and without the department, which is after all a human institution, may force the police to invoke the criminal process selectively."(see Goldstein, Joseph. "Police Discretion Not to Invoke the Criminal Process: Low-Visibility Decisions in the Administration of Justice." The Yale Law Journal 69.4 (1960): 543-594.)

 

[OohPooPahDoo]

"Four police officers in Rhode Island are being investigated for making five boys do pushups on the side of a street as punishment for damaging a mailbox.

"Acting North Providence Police Chief Paul Martellini said a woman called police Friday morning to report her mailbox was damaged. Officers soon found a bright yellow sports car that matched the description, he said. Several teenagers were inside.

Mayor Charles Lombardi told WPRO-AM on Monday the officers thought the best way to reprimand the teens was to have them do pushups.

A neighbor videotaped the stop from across the street and posted it online. It was first reported by WJAR-TV.

The video shows four police cars parked in a residential neighborhood behind a yellow car. People can be seen doing more than a dozen pushups next to the police cars while four uniformed officers watched. Once they were done doing pushups, they were allowed to leave."
Police Who Made Teenagers Do Push-ups In Rhode Island Face Punishment

This was probably the most effective type of "punishment" these people could receive. Should act as a nice deterrent for any future clownishness.

Does the law say cops can make up punishments for vandalism as they see fit or does it specify another procedure?

 

[Againsheila]

Due process is required. Police can not also serve as judge and jury.

Off the record, i think the cops did good.

Oh come on..think of all the money they saved the taxpayers.

 

[Againsheila]

"Four police officers in Rhode Island are being investigated for making five boys do pushups on the side of a street as punishment for damaging a mailbox.

"Acting North Providence Police Chief Paul Martellini said a woman called police Friday morning to report her mailbox was damaged. Officers soon found a bright yellow sports car that matched the description, he said. Several teenagers were inside.

Mayor Charles Lombardi told WPRO-AM on Monday the officers thought the best way to reprimand the teens was to have them do pushups.

A neighbor videotaped the stop from across the street and posted it online. It was first reported by WJAR-TV.

The video shows four police cars parked in a residential neighborhood behind a yellow car. People can be seen doing more than a dozen pushups next to the police cars while four uniformed officers watched. Once they were done doing pushups, they were allowed to leave."
Police Who Made Teenagers Do Push-ups In Rhode Island Face Punishment

This was probably the most effective type of "punishment" these people could receive. Should act as a nice deterrent for any future clownishness.

Does the law say cops can make up punishments for vandalism as they see fit or does it specify another procedure?

Well as the other procedure costs us thousands, if not millions of dollars every year, I say for something like this, give the cops the ability.

 

[OohPooPahDoo]

Due process is required. Police can not also serve as judge and jury.

Off the record, i think the cops did good.

Oh come on..think of all the money they saved the taxpayers.

Yeah - we'd better not go mess up another mailbox - we might have to do push ups! OH NO!

What a deterrent.

 

[Connery]

"Four police officers in Rhode Island are being investigated for making five boys do pushups on the side of a street as punishment for damaging a mailbox.

"Acting North Providence Police Chief Paul Martellini said a woman called police Friday morning to report her mailbox was damaged. Officers soon found a bright yellow sports car that matched the description, he said. Several teenagers were inside.

Mayor Charles Lombardi told WPRO-AM on Monday the officers thought the best way to reprimand the teens was to have them do pushups.

A neighbor videotaped the stop from across the street and posted it online. It was first reported by WJAR-TV.

The video shows four police cars parked in a residential neighborhood behind a yellow car. People can be seen doing more than a dozen pushups next to the police cars while four uniformed officers watched. Once they were done doing pushups, they were allowed to leave."
Police Who Made Teenagers Do Push-ups In Rhode Island Face Punishment

This was probably the most effective type of "punishment" these people could receive. Should act as a nice deterrent for any future clownishness.

Does the law say cops can make up punishments for vandalism as they see fit or does it specify another procedure?

I cannot imagine that procedurally the police are on solid ground. What I can imagine though is that if police everywhere, especially in your jurisdiction, enforce every single violation of the law without exception while perhaps some violent crime is being committed on you or someone you know and they cannot respond because they are busy with someone who spit on a sidewalk being issued a ticket or more being processed through the system how that you would not be happy with that reality.

When you place the realities of law enforcement against the needs of society there must be some leeway and respect for discretion of the line officer. Push ups a bit out there, but, hardly worth anymore than a verbal reprimand.

 

[idb]

Reading this thread, it's no surprise to me that the US has the highest incarceration rate in...the...world!

 

[Lionsmike]

I worry about the next group of kids who pull a similar stunt. Even if the officers are not punished, it sends a message to other officers and thay will fel the need to chase down and aprehend the perps (hope they hurt them too bad arresting them) and put then in a detention center (if it is mailboxes, move then to a federal detention center) where their parents can evetually bail them out unless they are willing to pleade guilty and take the criminal record.

I know that it was my son, I would rather have him do 10 pushups than 10 day and a lifelong record.

I had a friend who urinated on a neighbors lawn and his family would have loved to see him do 1000 pushups instead of the 20 year sentence that he got. they said that pissing on the lawn was a hate crime

 

[idb]

I worry about the next group of kids who pull a similar stunt. Even if the officers are not punished, it sends a message to other officers and thay will fel the need to chase down and aprehend the perps (hope they hurt them too bad arresting them) and put then in a detention center (if it is mailboxes, move then to a federal detention center) where their parents can evetually bail them out unless they are willing to pleade guilty and take the criminal record.

I know that it was my son, I would rather have him do 10 pushups than 10 day and a lifelong record.

I had a friend who urinated on a neighbors lawn and his family would have loved to see him do 1000 pushups instead of the 20 year sentence that he got. they said that pissing on the lawn was a hate crime

He got 20 years for pissing on a lawn??????!!!!!!

 

[L.K.Eder]

I worry about the next group of kids who pull a similar stunt. Even if the officers are not punished, it sends a message to other officers and thay will fel the need to chase down and aprehend the perps (hope they hurt them too bad arresting them) and put then in a detention center (if it is mailboxes, move then to a federal detention center) where their parents can evetually bail them out unless they are willing to pleade guilty and take the criminal record.

I know that it was my son, I would rather have him do 10 pushups than 10 day and a lifelong record.

I had a friend who urinated on a neighbors lawn and his family would have loved to see him do 1000 pushups instead of the 20 year sentence that he got. they said that pissing on the lawn was a hate crime

He got 20 years for pissing on a lawn??????!!!!!!

it was a very beautiful lawn. before the heinous micturition.

 

[idb]

I worry about the next group of kids who pull a similar stunt. Even if the officers are not punished, it sends a message to other officers and thay will fel the need to chase down and aprehend the perps (hope they hurt them too bad arresting them) and put then in a detention center (if it is mailboxes, move then to a federal detention center) where their parents can evetually bail them out unless they are willing to pleade guilty and take the criminal record.

I know that it was my son, I would rather have him do 10 pushups than 10 day and a lifelong record.

I had a friend who urinated on a neighbors lawn and his family would have loved to see him do 1000 pushups instead of the 20 year sentence that he got. they said that pissing on the lawn was a hate crime

He got 20 years for pissing on a lawn??????!!!!!!

it was a very beautiful lawn. before the heinous micturition.

Clearly it bordered on 'dastardly'.

 

[Sunni Man]

Mark my words........

The next thing we will hear about this incident is that the parents are suing the police officers, the police dept., and the city, for millions of dollars.

And no doubt the ACLU will be saying the teen's civil rights were violated and that a dozen push-ups were cruel and unusual punishment.

 

[editec]

"Four police officers in Rhode Island are being investigated for making five boys do pushups on the side of a street as punishment for damaging a mailbox.

"Acting North Providence Police Chief Paul Martellini said a woman called police Friday morning to report her mailbox was damaged. Officers soon found a bright yellow sports car that matched the description, he said. Several teenagers were inside.

Mayor Charles Lombardi told WPRO-AM on Monday the officers thought the best way to reprimand the teens was to have them do pushups.

A neighbor videotaped the stop from across the street and posted it online. It was first reported by WJAR-TV.

The video shows four police cars parked in a residential neighborhood behind a yellow car. People can be seen doing more than a dozen pushups next to the police cars while four uniformed officers watched. Once they were done doing pushups, they were allowed to leave."
Police Who Made Teenagers Do Push-ups In Rhode Island Face Punishment

This was probably the most effective type of "punishment" these people could receive. Should act as a nice deterrent for any future clownishness.

Yeah I understand and in this case I can see why it seems OKAY to let the pigs mete out punishment.

And if every cop was as sage as these guys seem to be I'd be on board with you.

Sadly most cops I know aren't so wise.

Sure enough, the MOMENT we gives cops this kind of discretion we'd begin hearing about cops meting out punishments that were wildly inappropriate.

Personally I think we need to do a much MUCH better job of hiring cops.

We need to weed out people who cannot handle the power the badge gives them.

 

[Connery]

According to the title on this video: Mom: Cops taught my son a lesson