I am troubled by the number of Vermont law enforcement members who seem to think the law doesn’t apply to them. Qualified immunity doesn’t help, but I think the quality of applicants and training bear equal blame for the number of police and sheriff complaints and criminal charges we see almost daily.
A law enforcer should have basic values that include respect for all civilians, fairness, and (seems too obvious to state) honesty! Respect for all civilians includes girlfriends, past and present, wives, people of color, and people new to our country, not necessarily in that order, though we’ve read of domestic abuse, rape and kidnapping of female partners by men in uniform paid to enforce the law.
We’ve read as well about theft, serious traffic violations, alcohol and drug abuse, and even shootings that did not involve arresting a person commiting a crime.
I’m afraid that the “few bad apples” excuse no longer cuts it. The barrel is starting to rot, and you won’t attract positive, serious candidates having those core values to forces where the “bad apples” call the shots and are allowed to bully those who don’t go along. We know of “good cops” leaving the force due to harassment and intimidation by the bullies with a badge.
We civilians have been trained to afford the (mostly) men in blue automatic respect and deference. I know that’s how I deal with them, and I’ve never had a personal negative experience. But white middle and upper classes rarely have encounters with police.
As a teacher in Vermont, I was not only expected to be highly trained, but to be respectful of my students as well as their parents, a posture often not reciprocated. Shouldn’t we expect the same treatment from law enforcers? The same standard for honesty and integrity?
I know teachers were indignant when another teacher violated the code of ethics — rarely the law. Shouldn’t those good cops likewise be angry and actively police themselves to root out, not protect, the bad apples?
Diane Alberts
Rutland
