Teenage Level Accountability

"Teenage Level Accountability"

I saw an article today in which someone pointed out something that I've pointed out - and been to all appearances alone in pointing out - for years.

That middle aged policemen should be held to the same standards as teenage soldiers overseas.

The article was about a policeman who was found "not guilty" of murder, even though he had shot to death some unarmed white guy after five minutes of making him do a bunch of weird circus tricks in the hallway of a hotel.

The writer made mention of the fact that he'd seen Al Qaida terrorists treated with more dignity and decency while being apprehended in war zones. The writer mentioned that we do in fact have "rules of engagement" for our teen soldiers, but none apparently for cops.

I know from my own service that the Air Force Security Police could not - and do not - get away with what I see in the non-military world. And would anyone claim that the danger is less for policeman on a 20,000 person base than a 10,000 person town?

At 17, I was in the United States Armed Forces Police Academy for the police forces of the Air Force and Marines. I graduated shortly after I turned 18, on the 16th of December, 1986. So pretty soon, it will have been 31 years since I left the Academy.

But I still remember the Rules of Force. And I can say calmly and dispassionately and with no malice towards any particular cop or cops in general that I see them violated each day in the news.

Civilian police are simply not held to the same standard - or any where near - as teen cops in the military. Or teen soldiers dealing with militants, insurgents and terrorists.

The writer of the article I saw pointed out most of all that "fear" - a fear that police can legitimately feel - is not an end all be all excuse for shooting first and never having it questioned later.

Fear can be felt - yes. But they are trained and paid to deal with this kind of thing, and paid far better than Privates in the Army are.

This is NOT an attack against the good and decent policeman out there, however many many or few the individual reader of this feels there are. Those good and decent policeman in many cases voluntarily DO hold themselves to the high standards of a soldier in a war, because they are moral, and because they signed up to aid people, not to exercise power trips.

It is a plea, though. That all people, including the good cops, start to realize that having a touch more accountability - even that minimal amount we expect of 17 to 21 year old kids - should apply to those civilians (and yes, cops are civilians) at home.

"To serve and protect". Good cops make that mean something. Every day. It's time for they, and the rest of us, to not shy away from expecting a touch up of accountability.