Editor’s Note: The USA Today recently published a story that implied that police bias existed in police pursuits. This was too much for Bullethead so here are his thoughts………
Really USA Today…..REALLY!!!! So let’s now imply that police are targeting the black community in vehicle deaths? I mean really! How do you think up this crap with a straight face?
How does a cop know who is in the vehicle when the pursuit begins?
How does a cop know the race of the person crossing the intersection up ahead?
Does the cop think, “oh please good lord baby Jesus…please let their be an innocent black family in this vehicle”? I mean really!
“Blacks have been killed at a disproportionate rate in pursuits every year since 1999. On average, 90 black people were killed each year in police chases, nearly double what would be expected based on their percentage of the population”.
REALLY!! Here we go again with the argument that based on population percentages, the numbers are way out of proportion. Again not taking into consideration how many drivers of a particular race refuse to stop for police.
Is it possible that blacks are running from the police at a higher rate than their population base?
I don’t know but try looking at the Part 1 Crime Data and see if that matches up with the population in this country. Do you call cops racists because over half of all homicides are committed by 50% plus blacks while they make up 13% of the population? The cops don’t make blacks commit homicide and they don’t make them run from the police!
We know that you’re smart enough to know that. But it doesn’t fit your overall agenda sooooooo…screw facts, right? Remember, police don’t start vehicle pursuits. The operators of the target vehicle do.
“Deadly pursuits of black drivers were twice as likely to start over minor offenses or non-violent crimes. In 2013 and 2014, nearly every deadly pursuit triggered by an illegally tinted window, a seat-belt violation or the smell of marijuana involved a black driver.”
Again, the operator still chooses to flee. Why would someone flee if what they’re involved with amounts to a minor offense or violation? How does the officer know the race of the occupants if the windows are tinted or even if they aren’t tinted? And should the cops just let them go? If that was the case, nobody, no matter the race, will ever stop for police again.
“Black people were more likely than whites to be chased in more crowded urban areas, during peak traffic hours and with passengers in their cars, all factors that can increase the danger to innocent bystanders. Chases of black motorists were about 70 percent more likely to wind up killing a bystander.”
Once again, police don’t initiate vehicle pursuits. The operators, who you seem to find no fault in, do.
When will the pandering and sensationalism stop. I mean really!! You put all that effort into this garbage? I’m surprised that you didn’t attempt to break down the paint color of the vehicles as in white police Crown Vic against black Camry. This biased attacks against law enforcement are gaining nothing in the eyes of the public.
Let me remind you of the Gallup poll that came out over a month ago confirming that the public’s support of police has never been higher. The same poll showed that the public’s support of the main stream media has never been lower.
How did that come to be? I’ll give you a minute….. Need some help? It’s because of this very nasty, pandering crap you continue to publish.
You’re fooling no one. And I mean no one.
I know for a fact that you’re smarter than this. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that those that commit the majority of all violent crime will produce that many more contacts with the police. And that is the only statistic that matters. But no. Go on and do what you do. Make that next Gallup poll even more devastating to your profession.
You cannot and will not succeed in categorizing our great profession as nothing but racists. Americans know better and so should you.
Really, you should know!