I think this seriously over-generalizes how negative people’s perceptions of policing as a job are. I don’t wanna be a cop because I find the entire institution and its politics disgusting, but the idea that most people see being a cop as a shitty job (or even, say, “as shitty as a decent office job”) seems really unfounded to me. And the pay? Really not as bad as you’d think.
That said, that a job where you get to wield the might of the state might appeal to psychopaths is not a new observation. Something like 40% of cops beat their wives. It’s pretty fucked. So that’s definitely one bias here.
The culture around them - everything from the unions that have apparently never seen a cop who only deserves the representation the union is required to provide ( yes, they have to represent the cop in disciplinary hearings. No, that doesn’t mean they are required to hold protests , turn their back on the mayor, engage in a work slowdown and so on ) to the vocal portion of the population who believe that if the police arrested you, you must be guilty of something.
I’ll put in my 2 cents. As a public defender for 14 years, I work with law enforcement daily.
I’d say that most run of the mill LEO’s do have more of an authoritarian streak, but are mostly decent, hard-working folks who just want to go home and see their families. The most dangerous situations for them are responding to domestic violence calls. Ironic, since they do statistically have some serious DV issues of their own.
But like any other profession, I think the institution becomes stronger than the individual. Maybe even more so given the nature of their work.
Good Anecdote - a deputy in my county was responding to a citizen that had caught a young man breaking into his vehicle to scrounge for loose change. The citizen was man-handling the kid when the officer approached, slamming him repeatedly against his vehicle. The intervened and put the kid in his car and called his mom to come get him. As he talked to the concerned citizen, he said in effect… “we don’t take kindly to people like him. This is a white neighborhood.” The deputy, upon hearing this, arrested the man for A/B against the kid. This deputy also refused to cover for another deputy caught driving intoxicated, and even defied a supervisor instructing him to. The drunk deputy and supervisor are now out of a job. And the deputy who refused to uphold the thin blue line just got promoted to detective.
Bad anecdote - a hypothetical client of mine was pulled over for speeding. He turned his vehicle off, put the keys on the dash, and held his hands on the steering wheel. After some very casual chat, and the officer allowing him to root around his vehicle for the registration, the officer asks him if he ever uses drugs. Client says no. Officer says well you need to step out because I’m going to search your vehicle. My client again says no, and you see the officer puff up with rage. Officer repeats to step out of the car, and my client reaches for his keys and wallet to get out of the car. Officer yells, “he’s fleeing,” and begins punching my hypothetical client in the head repeatedly, then drags him out of the car. My client is charged with obstruction of justice and assault and battery of an LEO. Because the officer got a bruise on his arm banging his arm against the window frame while hitting my client. NO INDICIA OF INTOXICATION, and lo and behold, NO DRUGS in the car. Bodycam completely confirms my client’s version of events. This matter is set for preliminary hearing. But the prosecutor refuses to drop the matter at this point.
Police get away with whatever because citizens let them. I was impaneled on a jury several years ago (years before Black Lives Matter happened). As it happened, I was designated one of two “alternates” just before deliberations. The jury was pretty split on the topic and the other alternate and I had to chill out in the break room for hours. Other alternate also thought the cop was an asshole and was surprised it was taking so long and openly wondered why the cop wasn’t under investigation since the woman he arrested had to be taken to a hospital for injuries sustained during her encounter with him.
Anyway, the beat up woman was found guilty.
Afterwards the jurists asked us what we would have done and we told them honestly, not guilty. Several expressed dismay and I’m under the impression these are the ones that also wanted not guilty which is why it took hours for them to get a verdict. Then one of the guys on the jury peppered us with questions like… “He’s a cop. Why would the officer lie?”
That’s why cops can do whatever the fuck they want. The vast majority of ordinary citizens WANT to believe that everything is A-OK, so they will ignore contradictory evidence.
I’ll also point out that on Day One, we were explicitly told that if we had bias either for or against someone simply because some is a cop we should say so and not be on the jury.
The word of an officer is generally treated very differently from the word of anyone else. Cops get the benefit of the doubt, even when it would absolutely be in their best interest to lie, even when there are incentive systems in place that specifically encourage them to lie.
I’m not sure if this is an actual legal thing in courts, or if it’s just a matter of public perception, but either way, it is crucially important to break that public perception. I don’t think there’s any reasonable case to be made that a gun and a badge makes you statistically less likely to lie about a criminal case.
It totally is. After proving that the officer could not see the alleged traffic violation from where he was sitting and that he didn’t know the traffic controls at that specific intersection the Judge still found me guilty because “he wouldn’t give you a ticket if you weren’t guilty.” So the cop’s word that I was guilty outweighed all of the facts.