Southern California exists as a playground
even for law enforcement.
Unincorporated areas have the Sheriff's
Department and cities have the Police.
Courts are monitored by Sheriff now
and the prisons are staffed with
Correction Officers.
This is group represents the largest
political lobby in the State of CA and
they donate more money to candidates,
ballot issues, and political parties
than any other lobbying group in
California.
Further, local law enforcement are
given special protections under the
California laws so that they are not
accountable to the public and have
virtually no oversight at all.
For example, not even the media can
obtain the work records of a law
enforcement officer to find out
how many complaints of abuse and
misconduct have been filed against
him/her. Citizens' complaints against
officers themselves are not made
public. Disposition of the complaints
filed against officers are also kept
secret.
An attorney who represents parties
seeking justice in court for law
enforcement misconduct said that
80% of all cases filed are summarily
dismissed by the courts, and in her
opinion, are valid and serious cases.
Local law enforcement officers/deputies
average $100,000 per year with overtime.
Many make much more. They will not work
if they do not get the overtime hours.
Therefore, the departments are routinely
left with vacancies so that overtime is
insured.
When an officer of any branch, including
the State Highway Patrol, is killed,
entire departments take the day off -with
pay- to attend the funerals which are
often covered by media. During those times,
it is a fact that people have died as the
result of no one being available to attend
to the needs of the public. The dispatcher
will tell a caller than there is no one to
respond because they are all at the funeral.
Southern California law enforcement are
given high priority for less than lethal
weapons. They are outfitted for riot
control. Yet, when there was a riot, none
of them went into it. One poor truck driver
was pulled from his truck and beaten without
mercy as people watched real time on TV.
Citizen's felt compelled to go in and
help him - which they did - while there
not a law enforcement officer to be seen
almost through the entire riot.
In San Diego County, Sheriff's Deputies
and various city police officers shoot
an excessive number of people per year.
Most of them are unarmed and outnumbered.
The officers who shoot them are always
reported to have "believed that" he or
she was armed or going to lunge at officers
or some other explanation for why 23 bullets
were pumped into an older unarmed homeless
person. In one recent case, a woman called
law enforcement because a loved one had
locked himself in the bathroom and threatened
to commit suicide. The officers responded
and as the depressed man was walking down
stairs as told, he was shot and killed by
an officer.
Victims of law enforcement abuse of
minorities have generated a grassroots
group called Cop Watch.
Mel Gibson was arrested for DUI.During that
arrest, he apparently spewed an anti-semetic
rant, some of which was noted by the arresting
officer. It has been reported in the news
that the officer who included that information
was reprimanded by his superiors for doing so
because it leaked out to the press and
embarrassed Mr. Gibson.
So, we see local So. California law enforcement
as a group of over-armed, over paid, over
protected, union represented workers who
wield their political clout and get to
act out on minorities when they can and are
also allowed to avoid situations that may put
them in harms way. They are not accountable
to anyone because protective laws are in place
to assure that.
Recently, a group of Latinos who were publicly,
lawfully, and peacefully demonstrating were
shot with rubber bullets in the back when they
were leaving. Heavy handed for a situation
where no crime was taking place.
Yet, when Paris Hilton was caught driving drunk
on an expired license, because she was caught
doing that before, and the judge gave her
45 days, which then were reduced to 26,
LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT made the decision to
allow her to go unpunished in contempt
of the court ruling of jail time for her crime.
What we are seeing here is blatant corruption.
Southern California law enforcement needs a
deep cleaning and a serious overhaul.
We are not safe from drunk drivers and we
are not safe from local law enforcement.
Both are unpredictable and dangerous.
Seems that in California, if you are one
of the rare cases where a guilty person
actually gets convicted of a crime, local
law enforcement will be there to see that
you don't have to submit to court judgements
IF you have some of the necessary criteria:
1.Lots of money that you are willing to share
2.Beauty that you are willing to share
3.Sex appeal that you are willing to share
4.Other perks that you are willing to share
5.Fame that you are willing to share
