Atlanta cops who assaulted Spelman and Morehouse students fired, put on desk duty https://thegrio.com/2020/05/31/atlanta-cops-spelman-morehouse-students/ Messiah Young, 22, and Taniyah Pilgrim, 20, were pulled out of their car on live television after a 9 p.m. curfew was put into place in Atlanta. The Atlanta cops who tased and pulled Spelman and Morehouse students out of their car on live television have been fired and others put on desk duty. Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said Sunday that the video of the officers using “excessive force” against Messiah Young, 22, and Taniyah Pilgrim, 20, kept her up all night. The altercation took place after a 9 p.m. curfew was instituted by the mayor in response to the ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd and police brutality. Police stopped and surrounded the car the students were in at approximately 9:13 pm Saturday evening. In footage that was captured live by CBS 46, the car windows were broken and officers began an aggressive posture toward the HBCU students. They were assaulted, arrested, and taken into custody at the Fulton County Jail. He was charged with eluding/flee police and driving without a license. A GoFundMe was set up for their bail money by Samaiya Butler. It has thus far raised almost $100K and the funds will be going to Young’s family. The Georgia NAACP and the JUSTGeorgia Coalition also immediately organized to help. They used the #WeAreDoneDying to call attention to the fact that this state of emergency was jeopardizing more lives. “This uprising has been a result of the inabilities of elected officials to ensure proper judgment necessary to arrest, indict, and convict officers who repeatedly murder innocent, unarmed Black bodies,” they stated in a press release Sunday. “As if the global pandemic was not enough harm on the Black and Brown community, we now have to endure the pain and hurt from the grim displays of modern lynching going viral every week,” the release continued. Lance Bottoms responded to the outrage by announcing during a Sunday news conference that two of the officers involved in the incident had been fired. One had a tenure of 20 years on the force and the other 16. Three others who were involved have been taken off street duty pending review. The officers have not yet been identified.
There was more graphic video I saw on TV. It was quite dramatic. The cops involved were outright thugs. And some people wonder why all the protesting...
And the stupid excuse of curfew....there were hundreds of people around the area and the cops decided to destroy and raid this car? They have not learned anything... Go after looters maybe?
And they were quickly terminated, which at first glance seems to be the appropriate action given we don't know every detail. There is however a considerably more extensive problem with abuse of power than the narrative would have us believe. We hear this activity is limited to a "few" bad apples. It's quite apparent this attitude and behavior is far more pervasive than a limited few. Tough job in tough situations, especially riots, some of it understandable, most of it inexplicable. The problems are, as I have heard a few, nowhere near enough people say, local in nature. Mayors, city councils, police chiefs, other community activist types, all failing the public they serve. While the breakdown in government goes across all political stripes, it would be remiss not to point out that the worst of this failure happens in democratic strongholds with people who have been in power for extended periods of time.
It seems to be happening everywhere. The "democratic strongholds" are more heavily populated and, therefore, it is more likely that someone will capture the police acting badly on video. You think the police in Red states or zones are "nicer" as a group? Think about it.
I don't think they are "nicer" per say, they have less stress to deal with. Generally speaking, with very few exceptions, being a suburban or rural area cop is far less dangerous. In the large urban areas the danger and threat to life is always in their face. This requires a much better screening process, extensive and ongoing training, repeatedly doing psych evaluations, and a no excuses policy when one of them cross the line. All of this happens at the local level, probably could use some national guidelines set and good luck with that given we have a do nothing congress who can't come together on the simple things let alone this. The issue must be addressed locally. The federal government isn't coming to save the day regardless of who is in office.