Is America a Police state?

[Revoltingest]

Roadside violation: Drivers, passengers say police searched... | www.wsbtv.com

FOREST PARK, Ga. —
Officers are supposed to pull drivers over for traffic violations, but a Channel 2 Action News investigation found traffic stops leading to a violation of another kind.

Driver after driver told investigative reporter Jodie Fleischer officers searched inside their pants while they were stopped for minor traffic violations. In several cases, the invasive searches targeted passengers who were riding in the car.

"He was like, 'Just unbuckle all your clothes,' and put his hands down inside my pants," said Terry Phillips.

Forest Park police had pulled over Phillips' wife for a suspended registration.

Phillips consented to a search. However on the officer's dashboard camera recording Phillips can clearly be heard protesting when he realized the extent of the officer's intentions.

"That's illegal, man, you can't do that. You can't do that," said Phillips to the officer. The officer continued.

 

[oldbadger]

'We called for help, and they killed my son,' North Carolina man says - CNN.com

Every day it seems more and more a bad idea to call the police for any reason in the US.

Hi...
I don't often come on this thread, because I know that the OP is only asking a question and doesn't actually believe in a positive answer to it. But I woke up, so........

The problem with some people is that they can forget claims which they have previously made. Let me show you two paras:-
1. CNN iReporter Anthony Owens, whom Mark Ryan Wilsey described as a good friend of the family's, described Vidal as a slight young man who was never violent despite his mental illness.
"He was my little buddy," Mark Ryan Wilsey said.

But earlier the report said:-
2. ..............a man who identified himself as Vidal's stepfather said on a 911 call, a copy of which was obtained by WECT. "He wants to fight his mother. ... She's scared to death of him right now."

I just wonder why Mark didn't take care of his little buddy who was never violent..... That's enough for me to want to read all three Police Statements together....... which you didn't have to post here.

That's all.......

 

[oldbadger]

...........................
You should note that I don't claim we live in a police state.
I merely ask a provocative question to encourage vigilance for our constitutional rights.

....... there you go......... you answered your own question.
In the UK, we also believe in upholding our civil rights............

 

[oldbadger]

My grasp on reality slipped momentarily.
If a guy can get an 8 month prison sentence for slapping a kid....
Man gets eight months in prison for slapping toddler on plane - U.S. News
....a murderous cop ought to get 8 centuries. Let's watch to see what happens.

Weak! You're losing your edge.
The way you write it it looks so bad, doesn't it?
But you excluded quite a bit of info there...... Let me show you. :-

The convict was in an intoxicated alcoholic state similar to drunkeness..... on a plane! Why did you leave that out? That can send a Brit passenger to clink, all on it's own.

The child's mother previously said Hundley was belligerent and seemed intoxicated during the flight. He used a racial slur when the child started crying as the plane descended.

He assaulted a child, frightening it and terrifying its mother.

A former aerospace executive who slapped a crying toddler on an airplane and used a racial slur against the child, who is black,

We don't know what else he did, but his employer may have received more details because:-

Hundley was fired from his executive position at AGC Aerospace & Defense after the slapping incident, his attorney said.

I didn't see any mention of AGC's action in any posts...... what d'you think about their action?

Let's say that this was not a strong example for your OP, unless you want to include your judiciaries, big defence companies, airlines, etc.....

 

[oldbadger]

Institutionalized rape of people in custody.....
Guards, staff committed half of sexual assaults in prisons - Washington Times

......oh dear....... I woke up in the middle of the night..... couldn't sleep..... but this stuff is going to do the job, really.

Quote:

sexual abuse is still rampant in America’s corrections facilities, with a growing number of accusations lodged against the very officers charged with protecting their inmates.
Nearly half of all sexual assault accusations reported in U.S. correctional facilities in 2011 were aimed at prison guards or staff, according to a report released Thursday by the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics. That was up 18 percent since 2006.

Look....... obviously reporters want their articles to be noticed, and obviously some folks can be excited by these, but........
If I had five-pound for every thief who had ripped her dress and exposed her breasts in the street, screaming 'assault', whilst being arrested (forgetting or not knowing the coverage of town CCTV systems) I could take Mrs B out to a reasonable local restaurant for a good dinner tonite.

Now....... on a 1-10 count, 1 being 'not possible' and 10 being 'certain', what score would you allocate to the statement 'Some prisoners will make false claims about guards at every opportunity'. ???? Take care with that. Think about it.


EDIT:- I just dozed...... Was it the hour, or....?

 

[Revoltingest]

Weak! You're losing your edge.

I never had an edge.

The way you write it it looks so bad, doesn't it?
But you excluded quite a bit of info there...... Let me show you. :-
The convict was in an intoxicated alcoholic state similar to drunkeness..... on a plane! Why did you leave that out? That can send a Brit passenger to clink, all on it's own.
He assaulted a child, frightening it and terrifying its mother.
We don't know what else he did, but his employer may have received more details because:-
I didn't see any mention of AGC's action in any posts...... what d'you think about their action?
Let's say that this was not a strong example for your OP, unless you want to include your judiciaries, big defence companies, airlines, etc.....

My point was not to defend the perp on the plane, but rather to compare his
sentence with how cops are treated with kid gloves for similar & worse offenses.

 

[Revoltingest]

......oh dear....... I woke up in the middle of the night..... couldn't sleep..... but this stuff is going to do the job, really.
Quote:
Look....... obviously reporters want their articles to be noticed, and obviously some folks can be excited by these, but........
If I had five-pound for every thief who had ripped her dress and exposed her breasts in the street, screaming 'assault', whilst being arrested (forgetting or not knowing the coverage of town CCTV systems) I could take Mrs B out to a reasonable local restaurant for a good dinner tonite.
Now....... on a 1-10 count, 1 being 'not possible' and 10 being 'certain', what score would you allocate to the statement 'Some prisoners will make false claims about guards at every opportunity'. ???? Take care with that. Think about it.
EDIT:- I just dozed...... Was it the hour, or....?

I agree that many claims made by claimants of victimhood are false.
But give discounts on many statistics, & still find problems with authorities.
Enjoy your dinner!

 

[oldbadger]

I never had an edge.


My point was not to defend the perp on the plane, but rather to compare his
sentence with how cops are treated with kid gloves for similar & worse offenses.

No! No! I got to tell you this..... This whole argument was so weak. I only read the last couple of pages, what on Earth are the previous pages like?

1. If you get drunk (and disruptive?) on a plane, then you will certainly get arrested either on board, or soon after leaving the aircraft.
That will include cops........

2. If you do the above then you will get banned from flying with that carrier.
That will include cops.....

3. If you attack a child (or anybody) on a plane, that will get you imprisonment or a 'control-order' of some kind.
That includes cops.....

4. And I'll bet, that just like this convict got sacked from his job, a cop would very likely get sacked from his, if he did any of these things, as previously described.

Yes...... Police can make mistakes.
Yes.... When frightened, Police can use more force than might be necessary.
Yes.... Police will defend their own if possible.
Yes.... Judges will support Police actions if at all possible.


That doesn't make the USA a Police State and I think you know that, from what you've already written.
I'm still not exactly sure where strong debating becomes trolling, but I think it would be fair if, from time to time, I peruse through the given examples of naughty policing on this thread and then scrutinise the available details which were not posted. Like the couple of examples I had fun with last night because I could not sleep. RF folks do need to see the reverse of the medal.

And your Police Forces and Law Enforcement officers do need to know that there are masses of folks out there who do know just how legally and physically dangerous their jobs really are. By only digging up half stories about 'naughties' whilst disregarding the stories about 'goodies', posts can mislead horribly.

 

[Revoltingest]

That doesn't make the USA a Police State....

Well, I am just asking the question....not making the claim.

nd I think you know that, from what you've already written.
I'm still not exactly sure where strong debating becomes trolling, but I think it would be fair if, from time to time, I peruse through the given examples of naughty policing on this thread and then scrutinise the available details which were not posted. Like the couple of examples I had fun with last night because I could not sleep. RF folks do need to see the reverse of the medal.
And your Police Forces and Law Enforcement officers do need to know that there are masses of folks out there who do know just how legally and physically dangerous their jobs really are. By only digging up half stories about 'naughties' whilst disregarding the stories about 'goodies', posts can mislead horribly.

The big problem I see here is that the primary elements of a police state are
intentional abuse of citizens, rather than the more inadvertent misbehavior of cops.
Still, cops get away with more than is just.

 

[oldbadger]

Riding your bike on the sidewalk can get you a broken jaw in 'progressive' San Francisco.....
SF Mission Residents Angered By City College Student

This thread seems to be riddled with what could be described as misrepresentations........ Let me try to show you:-
This man had warrant issued for his arrest.
He tried to flee when approached by police.
He resisted arrest, and was arrested for 'assault and battery', which is attempting to strike, and then succeeding in striking.... in this case an officer.
One officer got bit during the ensuing attacks by other people.
Here we go:-

A hostile crowd then gathered around the officers, two of whom suffered injuries in the scrum. One person tried to hit an officer with a cane while another bit an officer, according to Shyy.
A total of four people, including Williams, were arrested, Shyy said. Williams and another person were arrested for felonies, one was arrested for a misdemeanor and the fourth was cited and released.
Williams was booked into custody on suspicion of assault and battery on an officer, felony resisting arrest, a traffic code violation and an outstanding local warrant, Shyy said.

Weak........
Have you ever been bitten by a stranger? (me=:yes
Have you ever waited for test results to clear you of HIV+? Very frightening time..... can change your whole life.

 

[oldbadger]

Well, I am just asking the question....not making the claim.

Of course....... just the question.....

The big problem I see here is that the primary elements of a police state are intentional abuse of citizens, rather than the more inadvertent misbehavior of cops.

Leaving bad cops to one side, just for now.... I don't know how a new cop manages to survive probation. It's so easy to make a mistake. It takes years to gain the knowledge and auto-responses that can protect her/him legally and physically. Ergo.... it takes years to build a decent, trained, safe force. And then, one day that surviving cop, in a difficult situation, frightened, uses a bit too much force, or arrests when it was not necessary, and then, 'wham' every know-it-all and self-righteous journalist is in there, rippin' and tearing.
Now, if you ran a thread on 'This country's mis-reporting and media-crimes'..... oh boy!

Try....... Bad 'cabbies' in (pick a city).....

How about 'the tricks that Letting Agents' play.......?

Hey..... pick a trade or profession and we can rip it to pieces.

Still, cops get away with more than is just

.
Nobody cares much about the terrors and risks that they are exposed to, shift on shift. They are humans as well....... and they deserve some slack from Judges .........

Bad cops? Wicked cops? Thieving cops? Bully cops? Go get 'em, but so far the few 'leads' I have read are weak...... pathetic.

 

[oldbadger]

See, the problem with this is that the same people who ***** about the heightened security at airports are the same people who are going to blame the government and president if something does go wrong. This isn't to say that I think our current security requirements are necessary or perfect, but our government really is in a catch-22.

This ^^

Travelers who make silly jokes about 'having a gun' or 'so you think I've got a bomb?' at our airports are arrested, held, charged and convicted within 24 hours. They often get prison sentences. They also get banned from the airport.

We cannot afford to mess with idiots, just now.

 

[oldbadger]

Obamacare Marketplace: Personal Data Can Be Used For
Your medical info to be shared with law enforcement now....oh, boy!

Of course........ if an officer gets scratched or bitten by a suspect during arrest the Police need to check the suspect's med-history fast.

In England our Data Protection Act handles this at point of legislation:-

.... Non-disclosure provisions do not apply in any situation where a legal case is to be undertaken or even anticipated...........

I used to use this section to obtain thieves' full names and addresses so that claims for the cost of their crimes could be made against them.

 

[Revoltingest]

Of course........ if an officer gets scratched or bitten by a suspect during arrest the Police need to check the suspect's med-history fast.
In England our Data Protection Act handles this at point of legislation:-
.... Non-disclosure provisions do not apply in any situation where a legal case is to be undertaken or even anticipated...........
I used to use this section to obtain thieves' full names and addresses so that claims for the cost of their crimes could be made against them.

Limited access for such a purpose is reasonable, provided that there is
independent oversight. We're having a problem with that right now.

 

[oldbadger]

Limited access for such a purpose is reasonable, provided that there is
independent oversight. We're having a problem with that right now.

Ok........ the balance between citizen safety and citizen-being-messed-about will be a problem for all the time that decent democracies exist. It disappears during dictatorships....

We now have Police Commissioners in every Constabulary, and I do hope that these people will always remain uncorrupted and straight. You know that we will get the odd bad un...... but we have to hold some faith in the system, or we need to change it..............

 

[Revoltingest]

Secret Military Contractors Will Soon Mine Your Tweets - Defense One

The Army wants a contractor to conduct detailed social media data mining to “identify violent extremist influences” around the world that could affect the European Command, responsible for operations in Europe as well as Iceland, Israel, Greenland and Russia.
Though the project is classified Secret, an Army contract shop in Europe posted a wealth of information on the FedBizOps contract website Tuesday.

 

[oldbadger]

Secret Military Contractors Will Soon Mine Your Tweets - Defense One

You think I go 'tweeting'? I thought a tweet was taking MrsB for a Pub lunch on Valentine's Day....

...........Oh frig........ Thank God that Tescos are open all night.... I need yellow roses, card and .... a tweet of some sort.

 

[Revoltingest]

USA falls 13 places to 46th in the world.
Reporters Without Borders

Countries that pride themselves on being democracies and respecting the rule of law have not set an example, far from it. Freedom of information is too often sacrificed to an overly broad and abusive interpretation of national security needs, marking a disturbing retreat from democratic practices. Investigative journalism often suffers as a result.
This has been the case in the United States (46th), which fell 13 places, one of the most significant declines, amid increased efforts to track down whistleblowers and the sources of leaks. The trial and conviction of Private Bradley Manning and the pursuit of NSA analyst Edward Snowden were warnings to all those thinking of assisting in the disclosure of sensitive information that would clearly be in the public interest.

 

[Revoltingest]

Deaf? Cops will just beat you for it.
Police Beat, Stun Deaf Man After Confusing Sign Language With Threatening Gestures « CBS Los Angeles
I've seen articles on this happening regularly.
Perhaps the deaf should wear special clothing or hats to inform cops?

 

[Revoltingest]

When in doubt, shoot the children....
Attorney: Teen Shot, Killed By Police Was Holding Wii Video Game Controller « CBS Atlanta

Who says video games aren't dangerous?