It will certainly be necessary, though I have no doubt that police will double down, find new ways to abuse the poor and powerless. What’s needed is a complete overhaul of policing in this country because policing itself is the problem. It exacerbates crime and escalates violence. Good people become cops for good reasons, but the entire system is broken beyond repair. Just a few thoughts on what can change: more social workers responding with cops — and being the first to interact with people in many situations. Fewer armed cops. In fact, police can be trained to patrol safely unarmed, at least in most situations. Armed backup can always be called in. Police discipline needs to be taken out of the hands of the police. In fact special prosecutors (perhaps at the state level) should be assigned to police cases rather than using the regular prosecutors who interact with cops on a daily basis. Regularly review police reports and check them against video, especially in cases of death. Severe fines for the entire department when reports do not match reality. Yes, this requires a complete revisioning of what policing is, but what we have does not make us a better society.
It will certainly be necessary, though I have no doubt that police will double down, find new ways to abuse the poor and powerless. What’s needed is a complete overhaul of policing in this country because policing itself is the problem. It exacerbates crime and escalates violence. Good people become cops for good reasons, but the entire system is broken beyond repair. Just a few thoughts on what can change: more social workers responding with cops — and being the first to interact with people in many situations. Fewer armed cops. In fact, police can be trained to patrol safely unarmed, at least in most situations. Armed backup can always be called in. Police discipline needs to be taken out of the hands of the police. In fact special prosecutors (perhaps at the state level) should be assigned to police cases rather than using the regular prosecutors who interact with cops on a daily basis. Regularly review police reports and check them against video, especially in cases of death. Severe fines for the entire department when reports do not match reality. Yes, this requires a complete revisioning of what policing is, but what we have does not make us a better society.