Baltimore police officers 'afraid,' don't feel empowered to initiate arrests

[LittleLebowski]

https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-police-survey-20190214-story.html


Most Baltimore Police officers who participated in a recent informal survey feel restricted by the department’s federal consent decree, inadequately trained and unsupported by city leadership.

Some of the officers surveyed said they don’t even feel comfortable intervening in incidents and making arrests without having been called to the scene.

[blues]

This certainly comes as no surprise given recent events.

The mayor and the DA had made it perfectly clear that it was open season on police officers whether supported by the evidence or not.

It's an untenable situation.

[feudist]

In breaking news, cops are discovered to be rational actors. In a landmark study, though previously thought to be racist robots, cops have demonstrated rudimentary if/then propositional understanding. This promises to shake years of black and liberal assumptions to the outer surface.

[Stephanie B]

I don't know if this is the same thing, but the NY Times had a long article (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/12/magazine/baltimore-tragedy-crime.html) on Sunday about what's going on in Baltimore.

[Alpha Sierra]

The tragedy of Baltimore is a toxic brew of Democratic paternalism towards minorities, affirmative action, free-shit-army recruitment, a dilution of morality and faith, reverse racism, and is an ever present example of what happens when government thinks it knows best.

[Jason M]

This certainly comes as no surprise given recent events.

The mayor and the DA had made it perfectly clear that it was open season on police officers whether supported by the evidence or not.

It's an untenable situation.

The same process has been instituted further up the I-95 corridor in Philadelphia. We are feeling some of the ripple effects in the suburbs.

[Lon]

I’m can’t blame them. Be careful what you wish for.

[UNM1136]

Hardly unique to Baltimore, kinda national trend started within the last decade.

pat

[Rex G]

Harris County’s (Texas) new DA was one of the significant reasons I decided to tone-down my enforcement activity in early 2017, even as I was armoring/plating-up, then burn a large amount of unused leave in late 2017, and then retire in early 2018, rather than complete 35 years of service by staying into early 2019. Not only was it “open season” on police, but actively physically resisting arrest was being prosecuted as Interference With Public Duties, rather than any type of assault or Resisting Arrest/Search.

Yes, at 56, I was starting to age-out, anyway, but with proper support, from command and the DA, I could have lasted another year; perhaps a few more. (“Normal” retirement was age 55, or 30 years of service, based upon the stats, but there was no mandated retirement age, and our retirement plan reached a sensible max at 40 years.)

To be clear, I continued to patrol actively for burglars, and violent felons, until the end. Even Democrats dislike burglars and robbers.

[farscott]

I don't know if this is the same thing, but the NY Times had a long article (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/12/magazine/baltimore-tragedy-crime.html) on Sunday about what's going on in Baltimore.

Thanks for the link. That article was fascinating, especially the portion that Baltimore had crime trending down when combining the NYC "no broken windows" policy with senior police leadership actually from Baltimore. The comments about the focus on dice games and the criminals understanding that the PD was willing and able to do what was needed illustrated the difference between the home-grown leadership and the imports from places like Oakland, CA. Like real estate, it appears some crime prevention is all about "location, location, location".