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The 3 Myths Of Law Enforcement
by A. Shemonia
1) WE SERVE AND PROTECT
When was the last time you saw this painted on the side of any police car? I havent seen this motto on a cop car since the 80s and cops rarely say it anymore. But these days they often say things like If it wasnt for us there would be total chaos and anarchy on the streets. When I hear this comment I think of the LA riots and how quick the cops fled the riot area, leaving the taxpayers on their own to protect themselves, or I picture the cowardly cops at Columbine High cowering behind their squad cars while Harris and Klebold slaughtered numerous innocent children inside the school, and then ended the rampage on their own terms.
This myth is created to help perpetuate the dependency society has for police. It is logistically impossible for police to protect individual members in society. Police departments around the world do not have the resources to act as personal bodyguards for everyone. And most citizens dont have the resources to afford a public, much less a private bodyguard. So the problem of protection falls upon the individual. A gun, a dead bolt lock, and a security system for home and car is a far more effective deterrent then some tax-consuming copster. Case in point: in 1977 the number of burglaries was just over 3 million. By 1996 this crime was down by 2 ½ million (World Almanac 1999, page 889). This reduction in burglary had nothing to with the police, as all other crimes have shown a steady increase over the same period of time. Taxpayers simply got smart and figured out they had better place a gun under the pillow, put solid dead bolts on their doors and install alarms in their homes, because Mr. Policeman cant protect them.
Funny thing about rapist and robbers they never bother to notify their prospective victims or the police as to when and where they are going to commit a crime. The potential criminal in most instances has the element of surprise, no one can predict when and where a crime will occur. The cop usually shows up after the crime has occurred. It is only a myth that the police can protect you.
2) WE ARE A DETERENT TO CRIME
Sounds a bit like the first myth. The cop will explain that when he has apprehended the bad guy, and put him/her away in jail where they belong, crime will be greatly reduced. The state and federal prison population for 1980 was over 300,000, by 1994 the number was just over 1 million and by 1997 the number was nearly 1.2 million. It cost about $30,000 to keep a con in minimum security for one year and about $50,000 to keep him in a maximum security cell, and this does not include the cost of building the prison. You would think the cop to be correct with all these so-called evil doers now in prison, crime should be at an all time low in this country and we could start laying off some of these tax-consumer cops. Sorry, think again.
Although throwing a particular convict in prison is in fact an immediate deterrent for that individual, the overall crime rate has steadily increased in proportion to the population. Crime can only be properly studied by looking at a 20 year time frame and in fact crime has remained at a constant rate throughout man's history, with or with out an organized police force.
In 1977 over 10 million crimes were committed. By 1996 the number increased to nearly 13 ½ million. From 77 to 96 violent crime increased from just over 1 million to over 1.6 million, property crimes from nearly 10 million to well over 11 ½ million, rape 63 ½ thousand in 77 to over 95 ½ thousand in 96, and robbery up from just over 400 thousand to nearly 550 thousand in 96. So much for deterrence. (World Almanac 1999, page 889 & 890 ) (Seeking Justice 1994, The Edna McConnell Clark Foundation).
3. OUR JOB IS DANGEROUS, WE LAY OUR LIVES ON THE LINE EVERYDAY
This one goes beyond myth, this is a flat out lie. Police work is one of the safest jobs around. I know if I where a cop I would be real safe driving around with a M16, a 12 GA pump shotgun, a 45 ACP, a baton, pepper spray, restraint devices, a belt full of ammo and a small paramilitary gang to back me up in case of trouble. From 1970 to 1979 cops killed over 3,000 citizens many of whom were innocent people. Innocent people like Ishmiel Mena in Denver, Fenton Crookshank of Loveland, Dan Smith of Ft. Morgan the list goes on and on. The fact is cops kill 3 citizens for every cop that gets killed. The workmens compensation rate for police is a mere $5 per $100, the rate for electricians is about $45 per $100, and for carpenters it is $50 per $100. There is a reason for this. When a cop does get shot its because they shot themselves. In 1996, 45 cops died as result of gun accidents while on duty.
~A. Shemonia
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