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This is an article from the Marshall Project. It discusses the disturbing situations wherein seniors with dementia are often injured by police during arrests. There is a short video of a senior who is clearly too feeble to swing a cat much less harm an abled body police officer, yet he was tased from behind and fell face forward onto the hard ground. Clearly this was an excessive use of force. I fear for anyone who himself/herself or a loved one might end up in this situation.
The police lack the needed skills in all aspects. Compared to other Western nations the police training in the US is extremely poor and insufficient. They are only trained
how to shoot to kill, in any situation.
They don't understand dementia or other psychiatric issues. They don't understand that people might have medical problems that change their behavior. But then, how often seniors are arrested?
I have often thought that the "arrest process" for most if not all police officers is an invitation to physical abuse anyway. There is an argument that people who are attracted to that profession are abusive in general.
Years ago I knew a woman whose partner was a career police officer. Before he developed serious heart disease that made him take a desk job, he worked many years as a patrolman. I recall him talking about a partner he had who was unnecessarily and excessively abusive toward arrestees--he gave us a number of horrifying examples.
This abusive officer lived in an upstairs apartment in an old building, and his widows looked out over a car park where there was a dumpster. Homeless cats visited the dumpster regularly searching for food. My friend's partner, call him Matt, said his partner use to sharp shoot the poor cats from his windows for no other reason than he enjoyed it. I asked Matt why he did not turn in this sadist, and Matt replied, "he is my partner and has my back in dangerous situations. For example, we often have to ascend a staircase in a dangerous project building in the total darkness back to back. I have to rely on him for my own safety, so I cannot turn him in."
Police often have to go to no-go or near no-go areas where in broad daylight they would hurly bricks and other projectiles at police motors, so police would not even want to get out of their motors to help someone who called-in an emergency situation, so I took the point, but if it had been me, I would never have stayed in a job like that.
And I am happy that there are people who DO stay in that job.
Although I was not a sworn officer, I worked in law enforcement for 25 years. I won’t comment on many of your other statements, because I don’t want to get banned from C-D.
The police lack the needed skills in all aspects. Compared to other Western nations the police training in the US is extremely poor and insufficient. They are only trained
how to shoot to kill, in any situation.
They don't understand dementia or other psychiatric issues. They don't understand that people might have medical problems that change their behavior. But then, how often seniors are arrested?
That is such an egregious disrespectful claim that it staggers the imagination. If you really think that such is the case, perhaps you need to spend some time with a law enforcement officer to get over what amounts to racism towards police in the US. If I had said something similar about any minority, your reaction would be swift and punitive.
There was a case here a little while back where an ex-service member who lived in an apartment went off-the-rails - with a gun. All of the other residents in other apartments were at risk of being killed. The responding officers were at EXTREME risk of being killed. Negotiation can only go so far, and only from within safe bounds. As my mate has said: "When we (police) interacted with mental health professionals, the individual had been subdued, often medicated, and would often present as a normal person. None of them wanted to come out on calls. None of them ever saw exactly what was happening at the time. It was 'Let me know when he is in custody and I'll come around to the jail or hospital tomorrow.'" Often, the ivory towered professional would be responsible for setting that individual right back out on the street.
A simple priority of any police officer is to not get killed unnecessarily and not allow situations where innocent bystanders get injured or killed. They are trained on that. It is only within the past couple of years that governments have even considered funding for training in mental health and hiring people with that type of background. If you want to play blame games, then you need to recognize police as victims in these situations as well.
When a person has what appears to be a weapon and refuses orders to drop it, they are a threat to others; any sudden movement may result in their death - dementia or not, senior or not, mental illness or not. People with mental issues and dementia and intoxication regularly get in cars and drive into things, killing themselves. Simply put, lack of judgment when in some situations is deadly to those people. Protecting others from their actions is a tough job where the uninformed love to criticize split second decisions because of their own personal agendas.
Location: Formerly Pleasanton Ca, now in Marietta Ga
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Quote:
Originally Posted by elnina
The police lack the needed skills in all aspects. Compared to other Western nations the police training in the US is extremely poor and insufficient. They are only trained
how to shoot to kill, in any situation.
They don't understand dementia or other psychiatric issues. They don't understand that people might have medical problems that change their behavior. But then, how often seniors are arrested?
so you are saying the police are better in Mexico or Columbia. I think too much responsibility is place on the police. They are human.
On the other hand, what if I was out of it, they were facing me,and they knew my record. Would you want them to go hand to hand with me........or just play it safe, stun me, and get me in a room where they hold all the mobility cards? I am an audacious vampirelle and will use ANY WEAPON at my disposal.
After all, in my prime, I could go from standing with my hands chain, not hinge, handcuffed behind me to down, roll, back to standing with them infront of me in under 30 seconds.
A year or so ago, on the news was a story of a elderly woman lady with dementia, who weighed all of 95# and could wear a toilet paper tube on her wrist as a bracelet, out lost, disoriented and thinking about getting food or something for her family. I think it was Texas.
The details are fuzzy, she might have even walked into Walmart and walked out, not paying if course.
(Hmm this might be a different case, as I said fuzzy..old phartz memory)
Anyway, she was trying to walk home and an officer stopped her. She didn't know her name of course, and when he blocked her, shed turn the other way, saying 'ive got to get home, home'.
When he asked where she lived, of course she didn't know.
I think her grabbed her arm, yanking HARD, which dislocated it, and I don't know if he tazed or not, but did tackle her look a football player, causing injuries to her face, breaking ribs, etc.
It was horrific to watch.
I agree with the post on page one, that "ruff and rugged ready to rumble types to the job...as an officer. I could be wrong.
I do know about the day 1 of training they are taught to "gain control of the situation as quickly as they can".
Because, quite simply, ' if you lose control it all goes south QUICKLY '.
WE DO have to respectful of the fact THEY don't know who is who, what drugs (illegal and meds, or lack thereof) they might be on, what weapons they may have, or how they're going to react to the officers presence.
Along this vein, they may act first, subdue any and all people involved... and they will ask questions later.
So, they have to act rather quickly, be alert for anything, and think in split seconds.
So while they overreacted and we're forceful beyond necessary, they still can be mild manner when they may face real danger and a risk to their lives.
The police lack the needed skills in all aspects. Compared to other Western nations the police training in the US is extremely poor and insufficient. They are only trained
how to shoot to kill, in any situation.
They don't understand dementia or other psychiatric issues. They don't understand that people might have medical problems that change their behavior. But then, how often seniors are arrested?
That is an irresponsible and incorrect post. Police do not receive medical training but they are trained to deal with emotionally disturbed persons. I was a police officer and ultimately became a federal agent who frequently traveled abroad. US police, as a whole, are as well trained as any other country.
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