Standing up to injustice.

[EUBlink]

Re: Standing up to injustice.

How is that legal? How can they just remove evidence of a reported civil rights violation?

To some that don’t respect the law, or human life for that matter, it’s only illegal if you get caught. That’s especially disappointing when those skirting the law consistently are law enforcement officers, themselves. I’ll keep all the evidence I have backed up and see where the trail leads from here. The ball is in their court to play.

[jasontoddwhitt]

Re: Standing up to injustice.

Not a long update but a credible one, nonetheless. I was ordered to turn in my issued laptop, bodycam, external hard drives and in-car camera hard drive today. I'll have them given back to me when I return to work Tuesday once they are "cleaned up", as it was told to me. Basically, all camera footage and evidence of the event are going to be removed from all of my tech. Bummer...

...except, wait, I suspected this would happen and, therefore, backed all of the footage pertaining to the event on a department-issued USB drive that we keep our case studies on. I'm not going to put anything on a personal drive and risk legal backlash, but I still know how to be a little sneaky if it means securing some justice in the end.

Would be a shame if that footage ended up in the hands of the news media.

Yes, it would give the woke scourge another round in their war against all police.

Injustice is injustice. Bad officers and bad administrations need to be dealt with. But the blanket statements of ACAB and the calls to defund the police don't help either.

Good luck dude. You are on the right side of this, even if it sometimes feels like you are not.

[Jeffx]

Re: Standing up to injustice.

Injustice is injustice. Bad officers and bad administrations need to be dealt with. But the blanket statements of ACAB and the calls to defund the police don't help either.

This.


That 'defund the police' nonsense comes from folks who aren't living in the real world. Everyone (regardless of what neighborhood they live in) wants to feel safe.


My brother is a retired NYPD officer, and he still has friends on the job. They told him they were ordered to hold back, while acts of vandalism were going on NYC last year. He was ticked off about it and so was I. I'm all for justice and protesting (the right way), but breaking the law is never an option.

[Hassan Darkside]

Re: Standing up to injustice.

I agree with what y'all are saying, but I don't see what relevance those anti-police jeers have to do with what EUBlink has been sharing in this thread.

To reiterate everyone else, thanks again for taking this stand. It's difficult to stand up for the right things when that requires you to at times stand against your colleagues or superiors. Props for seeing this thing through. I know you say that you don't see yourself getting out but I'd hope you would consider opportunities that may allow you to affect a type of change that you might not be able to from your current position, or because of departmental politics.

[EUBlink]

Standing up to injustice.

Hey yo. I always wondered how Nash and Hall felt when they got the crowd pop/boo each time after starting an in-ring promo with that. Eh. Anyway.

It’s been a hot minute since I updated you all. They gave me a fun little gag order. Since last time, I have been accused of lying about everything. My bodycam was deleted and my laptop was modified. My in-car surveillance and bodycam software were both altered to only allow “Admin View”, meaning I couldn’t view or review them myself. I have asked and confirmed that no other officer at my department has this setting on their equipment.

Yesterday, I was accused of having lied or falsely collaborated everything that took place on June 24th with the excessive force. I was told to admit I was lying and everything could possibly return to normal and I could likely continue working. Nah. I refused to commit such a foul act and literally lie to please admin. Today, I was called in and informed that effective immediately, I am being placed on administrative leave and will remain as such until further notice. I had to turn over my badge, all of my guns and other weapons, my police ID and my patrol Tahoe. I was told to not represent myself to anyone, for any reason as a police officer of this department until I have been told otherwise and/or instructed that I can begin to do so once again. Well alright then. I have several off-duty jobs that this is going to hurt me financially with now, so that’s cool. I now have a trial board hearing this coming Tuesday at the department, which will be “among my peers”, aka other officers from the department. It will almost certainly be a dog-and-pony show of smoke and mirrors and just an event of general tomfoolery, I’m sure.

I have been peaceful and I have been pacifistically approaching this from the start, possibly more than I should have. However, today that has changed and will stay this new course of approach, going forward until the end. I have a group of three attorneys representing me, and they have been involved from early on. One of them is good friends with the city attorney that represents my department for all legal matters. He reached out to him today and discovered that the department has not informed him of any of the matters I brought forth, and he was pretty upset about it. Our city uses this attorney for everything and has done so for some time, ever since I swore in as an officer here or before then, and the city uses no one else. For gits and shiggles and with the blessing of my attorney, I even reached out to admin/brass afterward and asked if another attorney was involved besides the one I had contacted and was told that the city has only one attorney for all matters. I was then asked by the admin/supervisor I was speaking to, while he was stuttering, why the issue would require the city attorney. I hung up. It is almost as if they really are truly thinking that this issue can be brushed under a rug and not discovered outside of the department walls. Sadly for them and the ones the issue they’ve created has affected, this cannot and will not be a silent issue any further. The charade has been played long enough. Dare I say, the facade must fall.

Not entirely related but worth mentioning, I discovered today that the city attorney, myself and my attorney as well (and several fellow officers that have remained silent yet have been kept informed), that we are all members of the same fraternity (non-Greek and not college related [I was a GDI in college, sorry]). So that’s a peculiar yet enlightening point that may come of use down the road or in the future, should it be necessary. It also establishes a firm foundation that we all acknowledge we are standing on and can discuss things amongst ourselves as such.

My attorney has also contacted the district attorney’s office to investigate officer misconduct and likely ethics violations pertaining to the totality of circumstances that have transpired since June. I’ve been in touch with the district attorney also. As of today, I’ve been given the green light to talk candidly [but not live, which I will refuse] with news agencies. There are three news agencies, so far, that have reached out to me to gather my own statements of the matter. All three were pretty awe-struck. I may have mentioned this and it’s nothing I gloat about and never would, but I was recognized and given a solo First Responder Achievement award for Alabama, Florida and Mississippi for one of the regional news outlets a little while back. It was a really big deal locally (a little too big for my liking, honestly [I prefer to fly under the radar and just be known for integrity and honesty but silently]) and the events that took place were all really nice, although a little embarrassing at work after the fact, but the important part of that was the relationship and rapport I somewhat built with the news agency and have since then.

That said, when I spoke with one of the three news outlets, they knew me by first name and were pretty disgusted by everything as I explained and described it to them.

Things I’m missing that have happened and are important or worth mentioning… my Sergeant pulled me aside two weeks ago and stated, “I really wouldn’t slip up if I were you. I’d hate to be the hatchet man, but someone’s likely got to do it with the mess you’ve stirred up.” I kind of laughed and asked him to repeat himself and he did, statement again exactly. I’ve also been having the air let out of my tires on the passenger side of my patrol Tahoe at least seven different occasions. I keep 40-42 PSI because they’re pursuit-rated tires and have recognized them as being low, checked them and they have, each time, been lowered to 18-20 pounds. That much weight difference, while funny if done as a joke, could prove very costly to a vehicle and its driver at a high rate of speed. If I had not noticed them each time and had, say, had to leave the station in a rush due to a wreck or a hot call and I had driven at high speed, the vehicle would react differently to pot holes and sudden turns than it may otherwise. It would or could become “bouncy” and handle poorly in hard turns or defensive driving maneuvers. I informed command staff and was told it would be “looked in to”. Nothing came of it. Again, I know saying that just further proves my identity as a snitch and snitches don’t last long in law enforcement, no matter which side of the table they’re on.

This has all begun affecting my sleeping patterns (as it changing from days to midnights and back again every 28 days isn’t enough) and it’s just overall been a terrible time in my life and my family’s life. I’ve started meditation through yoga and binaural/isochronic beats and waves and they are working tremendously. I have also registered to get my master degree, starting in August. I am going to pursue my masters in Criminal Justice and then in Education, then become a professor or teacher. I am getting out. Best to do it now than to allow this career to consume me further. There are good cops and always will be, but there are bad cops that have overwhelmingly installed a culture of fear and control into their departments that many in the public do not realize.

I am not resigning or giving my notice of resignation until this is all over, though. I’ve spoke with my attorneys and they have agreed with that approach. I am going to see this through to the end. I owe it to myself, to my honor and integrity, I owe it to my fellow officers and future officers that will come, I owe it to citizens that may some day be mistreated if I were to walk away now, I owe it to the man that was mistreated back in June, I owe it to the officer that did what he did to that man and I owe it to the command staff and admin that are actively trying to force me to stand down with an approach of fear mongering and smoke and mirrors. As long as I don’t feel that my family’s safety is in jeopardy further than it is now, I will continue to see this through. I feel I need to and I have the desire to close this properly.

For context, if anyone wonders, my skin is white. I am, by definition, a Caucasian white male, I suppose. However, my half-brother is African American/mixed race with my father being Caucasian/white and my brother’s mother being African American, my great grandmother and grandfather on my father’s mother’s side was 100% Choctaw, my great grandmother and grandfather on my father’s father’s side were 100% Ahtna, and my great grandmother on my mother’s side was supposedly Cherokee but I never met her and I really don’t know much about her. My family is really diverse, family reunions are usually pretty nuts and most of the family that I am really close to or talk to now live in Alaska, either in Wasilla or just east of Valdez. I am thankful for that. It taught me, growing up, that the world can get along just fine while having different color skin and different upbringing of cultures. Some day, I suppose I will go back to my roots up/over there and settle down. Until then, I have to be who I am and stand for what is right, at least I think so.

[Jr.]

Re: Standing up to injustice.

Your story is ****ing enraging, man. I can't believe you have to go through all of this **** for doing the job you're supposed to do.

Your efforts will surely be appreciated by your community, whether it all becomes public or not. I want to thank you for standing up for what your job should be. Good luck with everything, I hope it turns out in your favor

Sent from my SM-G970U using Operation Sports mobile app

[EUBlink]

Standing up to injustice.

I received a couple of messages from fellow OSers. Those mean the world to me. I really appreciate it. This post will be a similar post to what I responded to them, just me trying to fix my many typos, ha. These last ten days have been a little slice of hell. I have been called into the office every other day to be interviewed, interrogated, ostracized and intimidatingly told to change my narrative of the events that took place in June, as I’ve described to you all.

I have never received a single write-up or valid complaint in my entire career in law enforcement. My approach has always been one of open-mindedness in all situations, and it has worked well up to this point. Suddenly, several supervisors and former supervisors have conveniently come forward, remembering little things they recall that I may have done in the past that would have offended them, such as being ten minutes late for work in August 2020 when my son cut his knee open and required stitches or when my wife was having trouble after her hysterectomy in December 2020 and I had to call in.

For context, we work 12-hour shifts, 6-6. I typically go 10-8 over the radio by 4:45 at the latest (often 4:15-4:30), every single day. This allows the working shift time to get their paperwork finished earlier and one of them, if finished, can then go home earlier to their families. In turn, they may do the same for me if they’d like, but it’s never expected. Often, I’ll work 4:30-6 [or longer] or 13.5 hours by choice because that allows another officer ample time to cross their t’s and dot their i’s without the anxiety of answering calls if I’m available to do so. It just makes sense, logistically. It’s how I was trained to work when I first began my career at another agency and I have carried that on. It also develops a healthy comraderie among officers because you know you can count on those guys or gals to be there every day, every time. Many of my fellow officers started doing the same and admin got on-board with the idea, as it increased morale and brought us officers closer together.

Back on topic, these supervisors [that praised my work ethic and integrity not long ago] have now retro-actively written me up for the two events I described, with the write-ups all dated in the last week, although the alleged events occurred months or over a year ago without being documented then and department policy clearly states that corrective actions can not be brought against an officer once thirty days has passed. I’ve been told that there are “always exceptions”.

Fast forward to Thursday, August 5th. The patrol commander (who was the first to passively threaten my job without good reason and never denied doing so), the Chief and the Mayor all agreed that it was best for the city that my employment be terminated. The Mayor stated that he respected my statements and admired my courage but that he could not make a decision against his Police Chief. The Mayor was visibly shaking when he was stating this to me, as the Chief sat directly next to him with a smirk on his face. I have until August 15th to appeal the decision to the County Personnel Board, which I am doing with my attorneys.

In addition to this, I have become aware that there are small projects blossoming out with other officers that have done the same, such as TheLamplighterProject.org. I myself will be posting a detailed, documented narrative of the unfortunate journey eventually, free of charge and not seeking profits whatsoever. It has never been about money and that will not change. It can’t. Any money offered, I’ll throw it together and donate to a homeless shelter or one of the many Blue Help groups that try and curb suicide rate among officers, which is disgustingly high. I’m thankful that I have a life that means so much to me, that my family continuously makes me smile through this pain. If I wasn’t so content with my own life and life choices, this whole ordeal could have negatively affected me mentally to a dangerous level.

My career in law enforcement is effectively finished now, regardless of the decision of the personnel board. I’ve had numerous supervisors threaten to also end my wife’s career as a teacher, and I do believe they are serious that they will try. That said, we have been in contact with her school administration to keep them educated and they support us, and hopefully will continue to.

All thoughts and prayers are appreciated. I’m not a religious person by doctrine but I am spiritual and I do have concrete, reasonable beliefs about my life and what happens once my life here on this earth ceases to exist. The local news outlets that I’ve been in contact with have also, now, been contacted by the police department. The news agencies reached back out and told me that while they do want to cover the issue, after weighing everything that has been communicated to them by the department, they will be pumping the brakes temporarily to allow the department to produce its own narrative for what occurred and then compare the two. While I agree that multiple sides of every story need to be observed, I know what the second side is going to produce and it’ll be chock-full of smoke and mirrors. I offered to have witnesses submit evidence backing my side and was told that it would be irrelevant for the time being, but that they would reach out to me when the time was right.

The district attorney’s office is also involved but told me they are doing so with utmost delicateness because of the well-known reputation of the admin of my department, as it is known in their office. I’ve been here two years and am just now finding out about the colored, violent past of the admin here when dealing with anyone speaking against them, dating back to previous admin staff.

Much longer story short, it feels very similar to how things were handled in the past by the Ku Klux Klan and similar groups that operated with fear-mongering objectives and intentions, which is alarming because my own family was attacked and intimidated by the Klan as recent as the early and mid 1990s because of my family being interracial and welcoming of foster/adoptive children of different races in the area we were in. Poverty was high in a town not far from ours and my grandparents took in children often to provide for, no strings attached, until the families of the children could get back on their feet. It would always be a situation where the family would come to my family and ask for assistance then receive it. It was very often tied to our Masonic connections, and my grandfather believed in bridging the gap between Blue Lodge and Prince Hall Masons, as there is often a firm racial divide between the two groups of Freemasonry, despite our having overwhelmingly similar rituals, obligations, beliefs, principals and objectives. Needless to say, I grew up amongst a plethora of culture influences, all the while being physically abused by my own father (not blood related to my other family mentioned) whenever he would find the convenience to come home for a period of time.

The homeless man that was initially part of all this and was injured, he has not been seen in over ten days. I cannot find any information out about his safety or his current location. I’ve checked local shelters and hospitals with no luck. The department refuses to treat it as a missing person because he has no family nearby to report him missing, and will not allow me to do so. I have posted locally about it but no one has any information. Although he is an important part of this as being a potential witness, his safety and well-being are most important to me.

This long road is far from seeing its ending point, unfortunately, but I am here for the long haul, no matter. This is what I signed up for. This is what I swore an oath to. I love the passion I share for people even when that passion does not love me back. If I have to move my family to secure their health and safety, the plans are already being made and we are making arrangements. I cannot and will not allow this to hurt the ones I love, although the mental toil has already taken place considerably.

[cam21224]

Re: Standing up to injustice.

As someone who has personally gone through an injustice two years ago, when the “woke” speak we aren’t all for defunding the police, we just need more police like you.

To stand on your principles, morals, and sacrifice your career for doing your job the right way, while going above and beyond your job title I salute you brother!

I felt so much rage for you reading all your post, sabotaging your vehicle, the threats to not only you but to threaten your wife’s career is flat out disgusting and sickening.

Thank you for not only being a great policeman but an even better man, one with great character and integrity. Anything to assist you in your fight or anything in life, don’t ever hesitate to shoot me a direct message. I stand with you and for you, take care my good brother [emoji1364][emoji1478]


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[ImTellinTim]

Re: Standing up to injustice.

This is the problem in many departments across the country and the reason the profession tends to have low public perception.

Officers like you who have to deal with this bull**** often end up getting fired or leaving the job and that leaves departments full of boneheads and flat-out terrible people who do nothing but cover for each other.

This from people who are paid by our tax dollars and should supposedly be held to a higher standard.

I am sorry that this happened to you.

[ImTellinTim]

Re: Standing up to injustice.

Sorry for the double post, but this reminds me of a situation that I witnessed personally.

I'm in admin at a community college that has a Law Enforcement program - it's a very good one too. It is run by a former local police officer. Apparently he ran afoul with a clique of officers that he used to work with. A real bunch of "good old boys" that included the Chief. These guys would find him around town at things like parades and try to intimidate him. Which was fine, he's a man and can handle these man-children.

But then one of the officers somehow got his daughter's (late teens/early 20s at the time) contact info and sent her a series of intimidating texts and/or calls (I don't remember the specifics). That's where he drew the line and made a formal complaint to the department. Thier response? Call our President and demand he be fired. Now, our President would have liked to laugh them off the phone, but you gotta investigate. So this guy, who is very good at his job here, has to sit down and talk to her about these clowns. It must have been so damn embarrassing. Of course nothing happens to him because he didn't do anything wrong. Then what happens a few months later? One of the officers from that group ends up getting caught falsifying a police report, and as a result over a dozen criminal cases he was involved in get thrown out.

What a bunch of pricks, smh.