Sunday, December 07, 2014

Tru'Merica: "License to Kill"

US Person, aka "El Macho" opined earlier that the law on the state's use of force against citizens is biased in favor of the police. That is no more true than in twenty states that have passed so-called "stand your ground" statutes that alter the common-law provision a person should first retreat if possible when confronted with grievous bodily harm. Also, states like Missouri have passed statutes making deadly force acceptable to effect an arrest if an officer "reasonably believes" deadly force is necessary to accomplish the task. It is the wiggle words "reasonably believes"--a subjective standard--that allowed a Ferguson cop to shoot and kill a man who had already surrendered to arrest without legal consequences. No mini-cam technology will change this result if the applicable legal standards are not returned to a practical balance between individual civil rights and society's maintenance of law and order. This video by Australia's Journeyman Pictures examines 'Merica's license to kill issued to cops and security guards in what some victims see as a return to the wild, wild west: