# Controversial encounters between law-enforcement and civilians - the omnibus thread #2 **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 23, 2020, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531 "2020-06-23T20:29:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 55
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1082 "2021-04-12T18:47:50Z")
I wish I could step in and render judgement in cases like this. I would get the name of the border guard who made this decision, and immediately seize his car. I’d do it while he was in the middle of nowhere, and tell him “too bad, so sad, have a nice walk”. An eye for an eye. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1083 "2021-04-12T18:53:48Z")
Things are out of control in Greenville, NC! That goat had nothing to do with the break-in; he just saw the broken window and wanted to make sure nobody was stealing stuff! > **[Police: Goat 'arrested' after report of break-in](https://apnews.com/article/arrests-north-carolina-greenville-cdf8816a74637248900eed7865929bce)** > > GREENVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Police in eastern North Carolina say they've “arrested” a goat after they got a call reporting an attempted break-in... ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1084 "2021-04-12T19:08:20Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > The story, though, is about Civil Asset Forfeiture, It amazes me that we have the constitutional right to be secure from unreasonable seizures, and can have our property taken from us at any time, with no compensation, as long as the government says “you used this for crime”. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1085 "2021-04-12T19:23:59Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > … as long as the government says “you used this for crime” Well, if you can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you did not, you might get it back. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1086 "2021-04-12T19:44:19Z")
Why am I the first to [-=Link=-](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/minnesota-police-shooting-daunte-wright-sparks-protests-n1263838) to the killing in Minnesota on Sunday. The policeman shouted “Taser, Taser, Taser,” and then shot the man. She obviously made a mistake. There can be little doubt. But the local police chief called it an “accidental discharge.” I know what the heck an “accidental discharge” is. This is not one of those. The officer aimed and fired. The weapon did not malfunction. When you kill someone by mistake, that is roughly what manslaughter is. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1087 "2021-04-12T20:10:40Z")
@Snowboarder_Bo linked to it above. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1088 "2021-04-12T20:17:54Z")
Yeah, I seem to have a reading problem too. ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1089 "2021-04-12T21:32:46Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > And they didn’t think THAT was important enough to turn their body cams on for… What the hell good is a police body-cam if it’s not automatically on (with no override possible) 100% of the time, no exception? I honestly did not know for quite a while that police body-cams were ever _off._ How is that tolerated? BTW, I do not believe that all of that 24-7 raw footage should be available to anyone, no-questions-asked. Instead, some police/citizen review board or whatever would have the unfortunate task of figuring it out. Yeah, yaknow, hmmmmmm. This sucks. I do think some entity should have the power to prevent just any insignificant body-cam video coming to light, but I have no idea who that should be entrusted with that power. In any event, my first point holds no matter who vets the video for release. To wit–automatically record every millisecond of every cop’s every moment on duty. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1090 "2021-04-12T21:34:32Z")
“,.,got a reading problem…” Can relate. Starts small, birthday cards, comic books. Next you know, you’re shivering in the cold outside the library,waiting for it to open… ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1091 "2021-04-12T22:10:34Z")
> [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > In any event, my first point holds no matter who vets the video for release. To wit–automatically record every millisecond of every cop’s every moment on duty. Are you under the impression that policemen go through their entire shift without using restroom? ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1092 "2021-04-12T22:54:38Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > The officer who shot Wright has stated that he meant to pull out his taser, not his handgun. Whoopsie! I think we can ALL agree that a cop who cannot tell the difference between a taser and handgun should NOT be a cop under any circumstances. ---
**Author:** ![mikecurtis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikecurtis/32/3284_2.png) [@mikecurtis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikecurtis)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1093 "2021-04-12T23:45:26Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > pull out his taser, not his handgun. Her… ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2021, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1094 "2021-04-12T23:47:18Z")
“_Oh shit_, I just _shot him_.” ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2021, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1095 "2021-04-13T00:15:22Z")
> [@ENugent](#): > > Are you under the impression that policemen go through their entire shift without using restroom? That’s a perfect example of irrelevant body-cam video that should never be released publicly. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2021, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1096 "2021-04-13T00:48:30Z")
I think that most policemen would prefer that that video not be accessible even to the entity in charge of reviewing video for release, and probably most non-policemen, too. Less frivolously, police sometimes do things like visit the domestic violence shelter to take complaints. That’s another video that should definitely never be released (because you don’t want abusers to learn the location of the shelter), but I think most victims would rather it wasn’t taken in the first place. I’m not pro-policeman, but I can definitely see why it’s possible for them to turn off their cameras. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2021, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1097 "2021-04-13T00:51:26Z")
> [@ENugent](#): > > I’m not pro-policeman, but I can definitely see why it’s possible for them to turn off their cameras. Not without prior permission and/or notification first. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2021, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1098 "2021-04-13T00:56:57Z")
> [@ENugent](#): > > Are you under the impression that policemen go through their entire shift without using restroom? Of course not. Based on how often many cops’ body cameras seem to be turned off, it seems that many think the world is their restroom and are just peeing everywhere, all the time. I think it would be interesting if qualified immunity were contingent on having a functioning, enabled body camera and cops who apparently “went to the restroom” right before an “unfortunate” encounter would by default be held personally liable. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2021, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1099 "2021-04-13T01:51:19Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > I think it would be interesting if qualified immunity were contingent on having a functioning, enabled body camera and cops who apparently “went to the restroom” right before an “unfortunate” encounter would by default be held personally liable. I’d be for that, if it’s what it takes. And really, the vast majority of encounters people do not get abused. But when things go wrong, they _ **really** _ go wrong. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2021, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1100 "2021-04-13T13:45:07Z")
It’s not like the body cam is going to see anything, given the way it is positioned. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2021, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531/1101 "2021-04-13T13:51:56Z")
> [@ENugent](#): > > Less frivolously, police sometimes do things like visit the domestic violence shelter to take complaints. That’s another video that should definitely never be released (because you don’t want abusers to learn the location of the shelter), but I think most victims would rather it wasn’t taken in the first place. Has there been a poll done of victims of domestic violence that indicates that this is the case? Their name and location is in the report that the cop takes, so if they are worried about someone tracking them down through hacking the police’s “mainframe” or something, they are already exposed. A recording would ensure that they victim’s statement is accurately reported, rather than interpreted by a potentially biased or unsympathetic cop. But, if there are cases where a cop turns off their camera, that should be the exception, rather than the rule. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531.md?page=54) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread-2/912531.md?page=56)