cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/1337781
Archived version: https://archive.ph/pnSkK
Archived version: https://web.archive.org/web/20230811190927/https://www.techdirt.com/2023/08/11/appeals-court-says-a-cop-can-violate-another-cops-rights-by-squints-at-ruling-shooting-at-the-other-cop/
This is crazy. Basically, 2 cops arrive and open the door and see the suspect with a gun at his side that was not raised or pointed toward either cop. Without any provocation from any party involved the rookie runs in the opposite direction firing over his shoulder without even looking where he was firing and hit the other cop. After that the suspect fired too.
What a friggin mess. When are they going to start training cops to handle situations like they have a brain and not just fire at everything threatening?
And it was the cop whose rights were violated, not the guy who they were shooting at for no reason.
No, they just gave that guy an attempted murder charge he has to fight off.
Average police officer salary in the US is 60k.
Do you know the average salary in the US? Also 60k.
Wouldn’t you rather have an average job instead of an “I could be killed today” job? We all would.
And so the only people that actually want to take average salary at the risk of death are people that are power-hungry and murder-hungry.
You aren’t gonna get better training at this salary level. You aren’t going to get a system that pays Walmart Manager salary that also has some rigorous hiring and training process that teaches you how to make split second life or death decisions.
This isn’t the secret service. It’s Walmart Managers with guns.
Suffolk county homicide police make $100k+, with unbelievable benefits. Guys later in their careers can get 200 days of paid time off per year, a very generous pension that cannot be taken away, and take home cars with gas paid for by the county.
They are unbelievably bad at homicide investigations, mostly just following hunches and beating suspects.
The problem isn't just the pay, they are rotten institutions that are beyond repair short of firing most of them at once.