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Jury says Mississippi cops who went to the wrong address were justified in killing the man who lived there (www.newstimes.com)

submitted 1 year ago by DougHolland@lemmy.world to c/thepoliceproblem@lemmy.world

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The case was notable in part because the city of Southaven had previously argued that Lopez had no civil rights to violate because the Mexican man was living in the United States illegally and faced deportation orders and criminal charges for illegally possessing guns.

A judge rejected that argument in 2020, finding constitutional rights apply to “all persons.”

Because, you know, that's what the Constitution says.

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[-] krigo666@lemmy.world 44 points 1 year ago

I'm European and even I know that the U.S. Constitution's Bill of Rights applies to EVERYONE in U.S. territory, independently of being citizens or not.

[-] DougHolland@lemmy.world 25 points 1 year ago

If it didn't, no-one overseas would even imagine a vacation to America, where they'd have no rights.

[-] OberonSwanson@sh.itjust.works 13 points 1 year ago

It can’t be surprising most Americans have never read the Constitution, let alone it’s applying to everyone in the country, citizen or not.

But, I’m American, where personal ignorance is something to be prideful of.

[-] gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works 10 points 1 year ago

In theory, yes.

In practice: depends where the court is, who the judge is, who the DA is, who’s in the police department that arrested you, and - most importantly - the color of your skin. Also, sometimes, which imaginary friend you believe in, and which side you voted for in the last election.

[-] snooggums@kbin.social 44 points 1 year ago

You would think that after all the mistakes that cops make which result in death and injury the public would stop giving them the benefit of the doubt.

[-] wintermute_oregon@lemm.ee 31 points 1 year ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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[-] Elliott@lemmy.world 20 points 1 year ago

Wife came downstairs and they fired 15 rounds at her. No hits.

[-] wintermute_oregon@lemm.ee 14 points 1 year ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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[-] Letstakealook@lemm.ee 10 points 1 year ago

I'm a gun owner and I've gotten into quite a few disagreements with other gun owners over the mag dump issue. A few caveats, the people in talking about are generally right- wing and don't know my political beliefs and I've generally had more actual training than they have.

You see this behavior from cops all the time, but the legal reality for an armed citizen does not look favorable. You are responsible for every bullet that's discharged from your firearm. If someone breaks into your home and you dump the mag (7-16 rounds for most pistols) the prosecution will highlight this fact and the jury likely won't look favorably on that behavior.

Beyond the legal implications, it is highly irresponsible behavior in a populated area. Regardless of training, firing in rapid succession decreases accuracy and increases the likelihood of not only missing your target, but striking an unintended individual. This demonstrates an individual who is not in control of their emotions, is reckless, and an unsafe gun owner.

The fact that cops are permitted to do this is unacceptable and demonstrates that the cops who do this are completely unsuitable to the job.

[-] Elliott@lemmy.world 8 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Laws are for you and I.... Unless I'm a cop and then they're just for you.

[-] Letstakealook@lemm.ee 8 points 1 year ago

They claim he had a gun. The evidence suggests otherwise. Not only was he shot in the back of the head from a distance of six feet, the gun on the scene was more than six feet away from the body and did not have his fingerprints or DNA on it. They executed this man's dog and then him we fled for his life. Of course, there's no video and they accept the cops word over the physical evidence, a benefit none of us would receive.

this post was submitted on 18 Sep 2023

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THE POLICE PROBLEM

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The police problem is that police are policed by the police. Cops are accountable only to other cops, which is no accountability at all.

99.9999% of police brutality, corruption, and misconduct is never investigated, never punished, never makes the news, so it's not on this page.

When cops are caught breaking the law, they're investigated by other cops. Details are kept quiet, the officers' names are withheld from public knowledge, and what info is eventually released is only what police choose to release — often nothing at all.

When police are fired — which is all too rare — they leave with 'law enforcement experience' and can easily find work in another police department nearby. It's called "Wandering Cops."

When police testify under oath, they lie so frequently that cops themselves have a joking term for it: "testilying." Yet it's almost unheard of for police to be punished or prosecuted for perjury.

Cops can and do get away with lawlessness, because cops protect other cops. If they don't, they aren't cops for long.

The legal doctrine of "qualified immunity" renders police officers invulnerable to lawsuits for almost anything they do. In practice, getting past 'qualified immunity' is so unlikely, it makes headlines when it happens.

All this is a path to a police state.

In a free society, police must always be under serious and skeptical public oversight, with non-cops and non-cronies in charge, issuing genuine punishment when warranted.

Police who break the law must be prosecuted like anyone else, promptly fired if guilty, and barred from ever working in law-enforcement again.

That's the solution.

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