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A few thoughts on #GeorgeFloyd.
1) This case is an excellent example of why "qualified immunity," which keeps many civil rights violations by public officials from being prosecuted, should end: https://theweek.com/articles/859853/how-police-protect-themselves-from-prosecution">https://theweek.com/articles/...
1) This case is an excellent example of why "qualified immunity," which keeps many civil rights violations by public officials from being prosecuted, should end: https://theweek.com/articles/859853/how-police-protect-themselves-from-prosecution">https://theweek.com/articles/...
1b) Some potentially good news on that front: SCOTUS is currently considering whether to hear 10 challenges to qualified immunity: https://www.cato.org/blog/qualified-immunity-back-weeks-scotus-conference">https://www.cato.org/blog/qual...
2) Early reports said police were responding to a call about a forgery in progress. The actual accusation against Floyd was attempting to spend a fake $20 bill, neither a violent crime nor an imminent threat to public safety: https://www.startribune.com/mpls-police-marchers-clash-over-man-s-death-in-custody/570763352/?refresh=true">https://www.startribune.com/mpls-poli...
2b) We should think about these cases every time we want to make something illegal. This 2014 piece making this point in connection to Eric Garner is essential reading: https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2014-12-04/law-puts-us-all-in-same-danger-as-eric-garner">https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/a...
3) Here we have a case of bystanders objecting to police violence in real time.
There& #39;s no, "Oh, they got caught up in the fear and chaos. They didn& #39;t realize what they were doing until it was too late."
People told them what they were doing as they did it.
There& #39;s no, "Oh, they got caught up in the fear and chaos. They didn& #39;t realize what they were doing until it was too late."
People told them what they were doing as they did it.
3b) On-duty police deaths have been trending down for years, both in absolute numbers and proportionate to population growth: https://www.vox.com/identities/2016/8/13/17938238/police-officer-on-duty-deaths-killings">https://www.vox.com/identitie...
3c) Yet unreasonable fear is a major contributor to police violence, especially involving black men: https://time.com/5840195/ahmaud-arbery-violence-against-black-men/">https://time.com/5840195/a...
3d) And too often this paranoia is accepted as a legitimate defense! https://reason.com/2018/04/09/if-police-kill-because-citizens-are-afra/">https://reason.com/2018/04/0...
3e) Police training is a contributing factor here, as this former police officer explains: https://medium.com/s/story/fearing-for-our-lives-82ad7eb7d75f">https://medium.com/s/story/f...
4) None of this is new. A lot of the links in this thread are several years old. They& #39;re not about George Floyd. They& #39;re about other victims of police violence, mostly other black men. It& #39;s hard to know what to say now that hasn& #39;t been said before: https://mobile.twitter.com/thEMANacho/status/1265434414990966788">https://mobile.twitter.com/thEMANach...
4b) And as I wrote in 2016 in conversation with @austinchanning, @BlanksSlate, & @MsPackyetti, that pattern is exactly the issue. George Floyd& #39;s death is one boom in a problem that constantly hums along at a dull roar: https://theweek.com/articles/597750/what-take-white-americans-distrust-police">https://theweek.com/articles/...
