# Controversial encounters between law-enforcement and civilians - the omnibus thread **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 10, 2014, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942 "2014-10-10T07:35:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 175
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2015, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3481 "2015-06-09T23:12:43Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > The half-naked minors were told to leave the area, and were then told to get their ass outta there. Hahaha. I love it when you make stuff up. Tell us another one. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2015, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3482 "2015-06-09T23:22:48Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Hahaha. I love it when you make stuff up. Tell us another one. Or you can watch the video. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/didnt-the-mckinney-tex-police-officer-know-he-was-being-recorded/2015/06/08/504033e6-0df7-11e5-9726-49d6fa26a8c6\_story.html](http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/didnt-the-mckinney-tex-police-officer-know-he-was-being-recorded/2015/06/08/504033e6-0df7-11e5-9726-49d6fa26a8c6_story.html) ---
**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:** [June 10, 2015, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3483 "2015-06-10T00:17:51Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Hahahaha. The half-naked minors were told to leave the area, and were then told to get their ass outta there. They chose not to obey repeated lawful orders, and they ended up sitting, or lying, on the grass with brand new silver bracelets… So you are explicitly implying that whatever the officer tells you to do, you are required to do it? ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3484 "2015-06-10T00:22:28Z")
Nevermind Steophan. Can’t let you take away a good American job from Doorhinge. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3485 "2015-06-10T00:49:33Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > By focusing only on two frames (I don’t know how much time that represents) you ignore the time immediately prior and after. I’m asking you if that is intentional to portray the action in a negative light. I perceive this comment as odd. Purple shirts’ hands were out of sight to the officer for those 2 frames, implying he could have been reaching behind his back for a knife, gun or flamethrower. I was reporting facts that tended to put the officer in the best possible light. I added that there could have been other frames involved not captured by my methodology. If I wanted to present things against the officer, I would note that his hand touched his weapon only after purple shirt had run a couple of yards away from him: when the gun was drawn there was little possibility that purple shirt was armed. But I figure that once a risk is perceived, there’s an element of autopilot. So I didn’t get into that. Instead I focused on the frames putting the officer in the best possible light. What actually happened? I don’t know. The cop may have perceived a third scenario altogether. > [@](#): > > Okay. Without the gun draw I don’t think this is a story. It was the lead headline in all reports of the incident. If that’s not the largest outrage, what do you think is? Answered in previous post. > [@](#): > > This seems unintentionally funny. First you don’t like to form conclusions. But you are comfortable concluding that the police in the video display unacceptable levels of racism, a particular individual should be fired, and his career in law enforcement ended. I don’t know what the rules of engagement are in that jurisdiction, so I can’t move to a conclusion on the gun draw. I also don’t know what the officer is claiming to have done. I do have some eyewitness testimony on racism. The 15 year old kid who shot the film was white and furthermore crashed the party: he had no invite and did not live in the residential community. Some of the black participants did live in the residential community, reportedly. The 15 year old kid noted that he was basically passed over when the cops asked kids to go to the ground, and he perceived racial bias as the motivator. His perceptions are backed up by his footage. The McKinney Chief of Police had this to say about the incident, following the resignation of Officer Loudmouth: [INDENT][INDENT]Our policies, our training and our practice do not support his actions. He came into the call out of control and, as the video shows, was out of control during the incident. I had 12 officers on the scene and 11 of them performed according to their training. [McKinney “Pool Party” police officer Eric Casebolt resigns after video of teen abuse goes viral - Boing Boing](http://boingboing.net/2015/06/09/mckinney-pool-party-poli.html) [/INDENT][/INDENT] So the Chief of Police appears to agree with me regarding the appropriateness of Officer Loudmouth’s behavior. Taking the Chief of Police at his word, it appears that his officers need additional training. One key skill is peeling off an officer who is losing his cool. NYPD cops are trained to do that, for example. > [@](#): > > Do you think the officer was issuing lawful commands prior to detaining the yellow bikini girl? A transcript would be nice. But that particular question is frankly beyond my knowledge of Texas law. I make no apologies for my hesitance to draw firm conclusions with respect to ongoing stories. Nor do I apologize for distinguishing between issues requiring legal specialization and ones that do not. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3486 "2015-06-10T01:03:39Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > This seems unintentionally funny. First you don’t like to form conclusions. But you are comfortable concluding that the police in the video display unacceptable levels of racism, a particular individual should be fired, and his career in law enforcement ended. To be honest, the unintentionally funny part is the contrast between my judicious appraisal in some threads with my broad brushed barroom characterizations in most gun threads. But I’m not treating this as a gun thread. Hey, at least I admit it. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3487 "2015-06-10T01:28:00Z")
I stand strong with McKinney Police Chief Greg Conley’s decision to accept Officer Loudmouth’s resignation. Conley said that officer’s behavior was “[Indefensible](http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/McKinney-Officer-Resigns-Amid-Pool-Party-Investigation-306696581.html)”. I agree. The usual commie pinkos will side with the police unions. You know, folks like Steophan. Doorhinge. Smapti. A motley crowd of anarchists, ruffians and social undesirables. I side with the Chief of Police of McKinney’s decision. And America. ---
**Author:** ![sich\_hinaufwinden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@sich\_hinaufwinden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sich_hinaufwinden)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3488 "2015-06-10T02:08:49Z")
At the risk of being labled a racist police apologist for not falling completely and blindly in line, there is something that I don’t recall being discussed here: two black witnesses that I’ve seen interviewed on TV do not believe there was a racial element to the incident. A black male youth (late teens?) at the scene whose name I don’t recall said he thought the cop’s actions were bad but did not think there were racial motivations. A black male adult who was there and lives in the neighborhood said the incident was the result of a handfull of “knucklehead” youths that started all the trouble. As I recall, he thinks some of the police actions were inappropriate but not racially motivated. He argues that trying to make this about race detracts from incidents that really are about race. That adult, Benet Embry, has been receiving death threats for being an Uncle Tom and not supporting the cause. He felt unsafe enough (from the threats, not the police) to have his son go live elsewhere for the time being. It appears that people are mostly split between those who think the cops did nothing wrong and those who think the cops are horrible _and_ were racially motivated. But some people who were actually there have an opinion that doesn’t fully land on one side or the other. And I won’t be surprised if both sides here castigate me for daring to bring this up instead of just picking one side and going with it. ETA: Looking it up, his neighbor is also receiving death threats and he is the one who sent his kid to live elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3489 "2015-06-10T03:17:15Z")
I just watched Adrien Martin, the only kid arrested in this mess, being interviewed on MSNBC. He offered a very reasonable explanation of the events without any overwrought statements or hyperbolic name calling. In fact, he made a point of thanking the officers who arrested him on how professional they were in their treatment of him, unlike Officer Casebolt. His lawyer was a fellow named Heath Harris and I have to say he totally blew my mind, and undoubtedly disappointed a number of folks posting here. When LO’D asked him it they would be pursuing any “legal remedies” or “suing for false arrest” Mr. Harris was emphatic in his response. No. Nope. Not at all. They want to work with the police and the city to see to it something like this doesn’t occur in the future. Wow, what a letdown for all the race baiters out there. Both sides are in agreement that public servants should know how to better handle situations than tackling citizens, especially young girls, without cause. I’ve spent 3 to 4 weeks in McKinney over the last 20+ years to visit family. The first time I visited it was a quiet town of 25,000 an hour north of Dallas. Since then it has rapidly grown to be a pleasant city of 150,000. The place is decidedly middle class to upper middle class. Conservative and very Republican. From what I’ve seen on the news, heard from family and know about the town, it looks to me like the civic leaders are as appalled and shocked by the events that played out and the behavior of Officer Casebolt as many of us rotten liberal supposed cop haters. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3490 "2015-06-10T03:45:14Z")
> [@sich\_hinaufwinden](#): > > It appears that people are mostly split between those who think the cops did nothing wrong and those who think the cops are horrible _and_ were racially motivated. > > But some people who were actually there have an opinion that doesn’t fully land on one side or the other. Those who believe that racial considerations played no role need to address the cameraman’s testimony that whites were passed over when police instructed black kids to go to the ground. The kid wasn’t exactly yelling, “Attica!” He was just reporting what he saw. With regards to **Kolak of Twilo** ’s post, I applaud efforts to bring the community together. ---
**Author:** ![sich\_hinaufwinden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@sich\_hinaufwinden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sich_hinaufwinden)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3491 "2015-06-10T04:25:35Z")
> [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > Those who believe that racial considerations played no role need to address the cameraman’s testimony that whites were passed over when police instructed black kids to go to the ground… All those detained being black does not mean that all those being black were detained. The crowd was overwhelmingly black. Most of the people there were not detained. More black kids than white kids were not detained by a huge margin. Of the small handfull of white kids that were there, none of them happened to be among the small handfull of the whole crowd that was detained. Maybe they didn’t happen to be among the small number of people whose behavior drew the attention of the police. It’s not like the white kid has come out and said “I was acting like a real asshole and they let me go because…privilege.” Anyhow, I can’t know for sure; I wasn’t there. But two black witnesses that were there have said they don’t think this was a racially based incident. Were you there? Is that the kind of thing you were hoping for? ---
**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:** [June 10, 2015, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3492 "2015-06-10T04:30:31Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Or you can watch the video. > > [http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/didnt-the-mckinney-tex-police-officer-know-he-was-being-recorded/2015/06/08/504033e6-0df7-11e5-9726-49d6fa26a8c6\_story.html](http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/didnt-the-mckinney-tex-police-officer-know-he-was-being-recorded/2015/06/08/504033e6-0df7-11e5-9726-49d6fa26a8c6_story.html) I did. Thanks for posting it. I can’t view youtube on a work computer. Jumping Jehoshaphat, that guy was an ass. Is it me, or did this guy seem absolutely _amped_ and shaky? Like had had drank his weight in coffee before responding to the call? My first impression was he was a little guy trying _real_ hard to get him some respect, in an Eric Cartman kinda way. Maybe it was the editing. But this guy looked agitated and the other officers appeared very calm. ---
**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:** [June 10, 2015, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3493 "2015-06-10T04:34:22Z")
> [@sich\_hinaufwinden](#): > > Is that the kind of thing you were hoping for? That is just a pathetic thing to say. No need to be a shithead about it. Do you think we want the police to prove that they are racist? I, personally, would like to see them calm the fuck down and approach every situation with the attitude that their job is to calm everybody the fuck down, not escalate things. So far, it looks a lot like escalation has been their MO, and it just needs to stop. ---
**Author:** ![sich\_hinaufwinden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@sich\_hinaufwinden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sich_hinaufwinden)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3494 "2015-06-10T04:52:24Z")
> [@sich\_hinaufwinden](#): > > …Is that the kind of thing you were hoping for? > [@eschereal](#): > > That is just a pathetic thing to say. No need to be a shithead about it. Yeah - that came out more snarky than I should have been. Like I said, I expect both sides to not like what I brought up and I was being preemptively defensive. Or rather offensive. Apologies for that **Measure for Measure.** > [@eschereal](#): > > Do you think we want the police to prove that they are racist? I, personally, would like to see them calm the fuck down and approach every situation with the attitude that their job is to calm everybody the fuck down, not escalate things. So far, it looks a lot like escalation has been their MO, and it just needs to stop. It seems like you think I’m defending the bad cop behavior. I’ve done no such thing. I merely wanted to bring up that not everyone thinks it was a racial incident. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3495 "2015-06-10T04:53:45Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > That is just a pathetic thing to say. No need to be a shithead about it. Do you think we want the police to prove that they are racist? I, personally, would like to see them calm the fuck down and approach every situation with the attitude that their job is to calm everybody the fuck down, not escalate things. So far, it looks a lot like escalation has been their MO, and it just needs to stop. You do realize that there are hundreds of thousands of “situations” annually in the US where police is called on the scene of some kind of an incident, and you’re somehow deriving the “MO” from a handful of them? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_fun_ball/32/17664_2.png) [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Fun_Ball)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3496 "2015-06-10T04:53:53Z")
> [@sich\_hinaufwinden](#): > > At the risk of being labled a racist police apologist for not falling completely and blindly in line, there is something that I don’t recall being discussed here: two black witnesses that I’ve seen interviewed on TV do not believe there was a racial element to the incident.\ I am not convinced there was a racial element with the incident; there is not enough evidence for me to be sure (this is just IMHO, I have not spent much time besides watching the original video). One thing that is clear is the officer that resigned was completely out of control and was doing nothing but escalating the situation. I remember when my friends and I used to trespass in the middle of the night at a gated neighborhood pool. We were not doing any damage, we just snuck into the pool at 1:00 in the morning to take a swim after getting really high. We were caught by the police and told to get out and if they ever caught us again they would prosecute. We never did come back. There were many instances like this. Another time an officer caught us smoking a joint, searched us, and then threw all our paraphernalia and our stash in a nearby river. There was the huge out of control party at a friend’s house where the police came and took those of us that they could catch home and made us explain what happened to our parents. It goes on and on. This was the eighties, suburbia, and we were all white for the record. If it were today I have the sense that I would now be a felon instead of the successful pillar of the community I am now. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3497 "2015-06-10T05:05:03Z")
(Apologies accepted sich\_hinaufwinden and thanks.) Here’s my cite of a eyewitness report of racially biased enforcement of the law. > **[Meet the Teen Who Bravely Shot the McKinney Pool Party Video](https://cw33.com/news/15-year-old-who-shot-mckinney-pool-party-video-speaks-out/)** > > MCKINNEY, TX — The 15-year-old who shot the now viral McKinney pool party video is telling his side of the story to NewsFix. “The cops showed up and the parents immediately started yell… The 15 year old white kid isn’t a fire-breather. He just noted that he was passed over by the cops while black kids around him were not. Despite the fact that he crashed the party and didn’t live in the residential complex. He was willing to speculate on causes. I’m all for moving forward. But the first part of truth and reconciliation is the truth. Also, it seems to me that the white woman who told the 14 year old to go back to Section 8 housing needs to have a talk with … somebody, preferably not in law enforcement. Maybe a minister. sich\_hinaufwinden - It would be helpful if you would provide a link to the vid you saw if you could find it. As I observed upthread, another set of eyes and ears can be illuminating. ETA: My views are also shaped by this article: [Police officer who slammed black girl to the ground at McKinney, Texas, pool party resigns - Vox](http://www.vox.com/2015/6/7/8744011/mckinney-texas-police-officer) Fun and awkward fact: McKinney is in one of the most economically segregated metro areas in the US Also from the article: “Research shows that police officers and the public hold subconscious biases against black people, which could explain both why residents called the cops on a group of kids at a pool party and why the officers behaved the way they did …” ---
**Author:** ![sich\_hinaufwinden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@sich\_hinaufwinden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sich_hinaufwinden)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3498 "2015-06-10T06:03:23Z")
> [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > (Apologies accepted sich\_hinaufwinden and thanks.) (And thank you for being so charitable.) > [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > …sich\_hinaufwinden - It would be helpful if you would provide a link to the vid you saw if you could find it. As I observed upthread, another set of eyes and ears can be illuminating… Here’s that video on CNN with the adult that I was talking about. Around 1m30s the news woman references an interview with the youth on CNN that I saw this morning. I haven’t found it yet because I don’t remember his name or something else to search on. > **[Radio host: 7 ‘knuckleheads’ ruined pool party for all | CNN](https://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2015/06/09/texas-radio-host-pool-party-benet-embry-live-erin.cnn)** > > Benet Embry, a radio host who witnessed the Texas pool party incident, joins Erin Burnett to explain why he feels police action wasn’t racially motivated You can check out the feedback on his radio show FB page at your discretion. (There’s a lot of incredibly racist stuff there.) ETA: I think I’ve seen the video of the white kid if it’s the one where he’s standing in the front doorway of his house but I’m going to check out your link to make sure. > **[The Benét Embry Show | Dallas TX](https://www.facebook.com/benetembryradio)** > > The Benét Embry Show, Dallas, Texas. 88,371 likes. The Benét Embry Show broadcasts every Monday from 8pm to 10pm CST on www.TheBenetEmbryShow.com > [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > Fun and awkward fact: McKinney is in one of the most economically segregated metro areas in the US Dang it - I was just about to post an article about that very thing! ---
**Author:** ![sich\_hinaufwinden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@sich\_hinaufwinden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sich_hinaufwinden)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3499 "2015-06-10T06:24:28Z")
Okay - somehow I farked up and put the ETA note in the middle of my last post. Need sleep… > [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > …I’ve spent 3 to 4 weeks in McKinney over the last 20+ years to visit family. The first time I visited it was a quiet town of 25,000 an hour north of Dallas. Since then it has rapidly grown to be a pleasant city of 150,000. The place is decidedly middle class to upper middle class. Conservative and very Republican… Depends on which side of 75 you’re on. That’s the major north/south highway in the area that splits the town in two. This is from an interesting article called “McKinney, Texas, and the Racial History of American Swimming Pools.” > **[American Swimming Pools Have a Long History of Racial Exclusion](https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/06/troubled-waters-in-mckinney-texas/395150/)** > > Backyard pools and private clubs only proliferated after municipal pools were forcibly desegregated. [QUOTE=The Atlantic] Like many flourishing American suburbs, McKinney has struggled with questions of equity and diversity. The city is among the fastest-growing in America, and its residents hail from a wide range of backgrounds. Formal, legal segregation is a thing of the past. Yet stark divides persist. In 2009, McKinney was forced to settle a lawsuit alleging that it was blocking the development of affordable housing suitable for tenants with Section 8 vouchers in the more affluent western portion of the city. East of Highway 75, according to the lawsuit, McKinney is 49 percent white; to its west, McKinney is 86 percent white. The plaintiffs alleged that the city and its housing authority were “willing to negotiate for and provide low-income housing units in east McKinney, but not west McKinney, which amounts to illegal racial steering.” All three of the city’s public pools lie to the east of Highway 75. Craig Ranch, where the pool party took place, lies well to its west. BuzzFeed reports that the fight broke out when an adult woman told the teens to go back to “Section 8 housing.” [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![sich\_hinaufwinden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@sich\_hinaufwinden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sich_hinaufwinden)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3500 "2015-06-10T07:01:59Z")
(Wish I could remember how to do the multi-nested-quotey thing.) > [@sich\_hinaufwinden](#): > > At the risk of being labled a racist police apologist for not falling completely and blindly in line, there is something that I don’t recall being discussed here: two black witnesses that I’ve seen interviewed on TV do not believe there was a racial element to the incident.\ > [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](#): > > I am not convinced there was a racial element with the incident; there is not enough evidence for me to be sure (this is just IMHO, I have not spent much time besides watching the original video). One thing that is clear is the officer that resigned was completely out of control and was doing nothing but escalating the situation. The McKinney police department agrees with you. I think even he realizes it now. Or at least he realizes that most people are thinking the same way and he knows he has no real choice. > [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](#): > > I remember when my friends and I used to… I hear ya. I’m not posting anything here but I know what you mean… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942.md?page=174) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942.md?page=176)