# 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:** 184
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3661 "2015-06-12T13:49:35Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > So, looked at the right way, his slamming that girl into the ground was a cry for help. And what we have here is a _failure_ to _communicate_. Which girl? The earlier incident where the officer talked a girl out of suicide, or the later incident when some asshole wouldn’t leave after she was repeatedly told to do so? ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3662 "2015-06-12T13:57:49Z")
[Country singer Randy Howard shot to death in gunfight with bounty hunter.](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3120445/Authorities-Singer-killed-gunfight-bounty-hunter.html#ixzz3cqtHjZLr) Obviously this guy isn’t a poster boy for innocent victim: > [@](#): > > Howard had been charged with fourth-offense DUI, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a firearm while intoxicated and driving on a revoked license, DeVine said. But he missed a court appearance, DeVine said. > > Howard’s friend Terry Dotson told Nashville TV station WSMV that he had tried to drive Howard to his court appearance, but the singer brushed him off. > > ‘He said he wasn’t going back to jail. That’s what he told me,’ Dotson said. > > On Tuesday night, bounty hunter Jackie Shell showed up at Howard’s home to take him into custody, DeVine said. Howard opened fire, Shell shot back and Howard was killed, DeVine said. But the reason I’m tossing this in here is that the bounty hunter business is essentially the outsourcing of a law enforcement function to private citizens. Lord knows I’m pretty critical of trigger-happy cops, but ISTM that the solution is manifestly NOT to outsource some of their work to a group of [largely poorly-regulated](http://www.bountyhunteredu.org/) private individuals. ([In Tennessee](http://www.bountyhunteredu.org/tennessee/), where this incident happened, bounty hunters must (a) have no felony convictions, and (b) take eight hours of training a year from the Tennessee Association of Bail Agents. That’s it, AFAICT.) (FWIW, I’ve known for many years that this line of work exists, but just hadn’t had reason to think about it for awhile.) ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3663 "2015-06-12T14:00:03Z")
> [@xenophon41](#): > > Sure. (Those aren’t documentaries, though. They’re fiction. Y’know, like the other movie we were talking about. Do you get confused easily?) > > From [Groundhog Day](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107048/quotes?ref_=tt_ql_3): “Ned, I would love to stay here and talk with you… but I’m not going to.” Those aren’t documentaries? I guess there’s no point in trying to pass off the quotes of actors, or the scribbling of screen writers, as actual facts. That’s good to know. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3664 "2015-06-12T15:13:50Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Which girl? The earlier incident where the officer talked a girl out of suicide, or the later incident when some asshole wouldn’t leave after she was repeatedly told to do so? Why should she have left? She was making no trouble – only those two white women were making any trouble – and **it was her party.** ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3665 "2015-06-12T15:29:56Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > and **it was her party.** And she’ll die if he wants her to. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3666 "2015-06-12T15:37:51Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > And she’ll die if he wants her to. Then he wouldn’t have talked her out of the suicide. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3667 "2015-06-12T16:25:05Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Why should she have left? Because she was told to by a cop. You realise by “left”, we mean “crossed the road and waited while things were sorted out”, not " got out of the area for good", right? ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3668 "2015-06-12T16:42:24Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Which girl? The earlier incident where the officer talked a girl out of suicide, or the later incident when s **ome asshole wouldn’t leave after she was repeatedly told to do so**? (bolding mine) You’re OK with law enforcement slamming a citizen’s entire body into the ground for THAT?!? Jesus. I’d hate to think of what you’re OK with for a real infraction, like a half-housebroken puppy piddling on the carpet. ---
**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 12, 2015, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3669 "2015-06-12T16:55:27Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > What happened to all that Second Amendment hoopla about the right to resist tyranny and privately own guns to that end? I’m not sure that is the same group of folks. ---
**Author:** ![Sinaptics](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Sinaptics](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sinaptics)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3670 "2015-06-12T17:14:20Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > I know several people who work in law enforcement. One of the biggest problems I see is the complete inability in them to be able to admit that it might be possible for a cop to be an asshole. > > I think that’s a problem that has been going on forever. It’s that thin blue line. So even if only 3% of the cops are assholes, the other 97% might as well be assholes too, because they fail to do anything about the ones that really are behaving badly. > > I mean, the ease in which that cop picked up and moved that taser gun next to the body of Walter Scott right in front of his fellow officer just speaks volumes. Especially when the good cops are punished for pointing out the bad cops. [Missouri state trooper disciplined after blowing the whistle on in-custody drowning death.](http://www.rawstory.com/2015/06/missouri-state-trooper-disciplined-after-blowing-the-whistle-on-in-custody-drowning-death/) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3671 "2015-06-12T17:30:09Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Then he wouldn’t have talked her out of the suicide. You would cry too if it happened to you. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3672 "2015-06-12T17:40:48Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > I’m not sure that is the same group of folks. Didn’t the last spate of general gun-control hysteria happen when the Black Panthers started exercising their 2nd Amendment rights or something? If one is serious about gun control, the lesson is obvious - get black people to get serious about gun freedom. ---
**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 12, 2015, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3673 "2015-06-12T18:06:48Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > If one is serious about gun control, the lesson is obvious - get black people to get serious about gun freedom. [This was addressed earlier in this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=18372262#post18372262). It was not a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3674 "2015-06-12T18:36:26Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > 😕 The [insert minority here] who pushed ahead of me in line annoyed me. But I’ll still be polite to the next one. > > The cops, supposedly hired for responsible behavior and dedication to public service, who murdered a kid with a toy, murdered a guy complying with their orders, etc., seem _significantly more annoying_ than the [insert minority here] who pushed ahead of me in line. No, **manson1972**? What am I missing? You seem to be missing the fact that apparently painting all cops with a broad brush stained by the actions of a few is acceptable, while similarly doing that with any minority group would quickly get you labeled a racist. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3675 "2015-06-12T19:09:51Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > You seem to be missing the fact that apparently painting all cops with a broad brush stained by the actions of a few is acceptable, while similarly doing that with any minority group would quickly get you labeled a racist. Actions of a few?? My cop friend (who is an honest, good cop) will likely retire early. He is very unhappy in a job where the majority of his coworkers are bad. He includes cops willing to “look the other way” as bad cops. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3676 "2015-06-12T19:15:29Z")
Besides that, nobody is born a cop, ferchrissakes. We’re not treading on a marginalized minority here. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3677 "2015-06-12T19:20:17Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Actions of a few?? My cop friend (who is an honest, good cop) will likely retire early. He is very unhappy in a job where the majority of his coworkers are bad. He includes cops willing to “look the other way” as bad cops. Well, I have a friend who works with a bunch of “green-skins” He is very unhappy in a job where the majority of his coworkers are bad. He includes “green-skins” willing to ‘look the other way’ as bad “green-skins” Therefore ALL “green-skins” I meet must be bad. If there’s one thing for sure, an anecdote about your friend’s “bad” cop coworkers should be used to besmirch ALL cops countrywide. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3678 "2015-06-12T19:21:29Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > Besides that, nobody is born a cop, ferchrissakes. We’re not treading on a marginalized minority here. I see. So any group consisting of people that are not BORN into that group can generally be assumed to be the same as the worst members of that group? ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3679 "2015-06-12T19:29:50Z")
In your goofy head, I suppose. But, really, don’t let me stop you from pretending you don’t understand the point. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/3680 "2015-06-12T19:34:29Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > In your goofy head, I suppose. But, really, don’t let me stop you from pretending you don’t understand the point. Then why bring up the fact that nobody is born a cop? What relevance does that have? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942.md?page=183) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942.md?page=185)