My friend, long-time civil rights attorney, Jorge Gonzalez, is one of those who’s been getting multiple calls from people injured on May Day. Like the rest of the city, Jorge was dismayed by what happened in MacArthur park and so decided to write the following letter to Chief Bratton. I figured the rest of you might find it of interest, so I asked Jorge for permission to post it here:
Open Letter to Chief Bill Bratton:
I’ve made a nice living for the past twenty years as an attorney suing various municipalities and counties for the malfeasance of their police officers. What I have learned is enough to fill a book. But the problem I see goes beyond written policy, training, or tactical issues. It has to do with leadership, or more precisely, the lack thereof. It has to do with the culture which is deeply embedded in many police departments, not just the L.A.P.D.
Two examples best explain what I mean. When I left the juvenile court Friday morning after successfully arguing that a 14 year old should be released to his family despite serious charges brought against him after being seriously injured by the police at the May 1 rally in MacArthur Park, an attorney informed me he overheard the bailiff (a deputy sheriff) mutter under his breath “I wonder what he did to deserve that?” despite knowing nothing about the circumstances of the case.
And, several years ago an otherwise very likable and intelligent young man whom I had known a long time became a sheriff deputy, and at a party one night he wanted me to tell him about some of my cases. I described a case then pending involving not only brutality by officers, but also their concomitant falsification of the events in the police report. He let out a deep laugh and shrieked almost joyfully “They pencil-fucked him,” as he simultaneously made a movement with his hands as if holding a pencil with one hand and inserting it in and out of a person’s anus.
This is the culture that continues to spawn police misconduct and the abuse of authority. It is my belief that the attitudes reflected by these examples is a learned behavior, instilled within generally good individuals, shared and promoted within a secret society as part of the camaraderie and fellowship.
When you figure out how to change these cultural attitudes and beliefs which are rampant within your department, you will make great headway in preventing brutality the likes of which we observed last week, and you’ll obtain my confidence in your leadership for another term.
Sincerely,
Jorge Gonzalez
Attorney at Law
No offense, but your friend is an idiot or a deceiver–albeit, a successful idiot or deceiver.
His first example was a question from an officer–not an accusation; and, the question revealed that the officer, from his experience, only suspected that there was more to the story than what was on the surface. Then, your friend criticized him for not knowing anything about the case, which didn’t matter.
His second example was a statement from an officer who was possibly “playing to the crowd,” and who, guess what, knew nothing about the case or the people involved–the very thing that the attorney said was wrong in the first example.
Those were somewhat contradictory and, might I add, very minor examples of condemnation.
The attorney adds that this conduct is instilled within individuals by the department. Perhaps, he doesn’t know the inherent flaws in all humans–even those he defends. Is he able to give us some examples of where this training to abuse takes place–unless, he knows nothing about it, in which case he is talking about something that he doesn’t know anything about, which we know is wrong in his mind from the first example?
Celeste, he’s just a lawyer trying to make a fast buck and a name for himself. Don’t give him any more credence than that.
I believe, “I wonder what he did to deserve that?” could be best characterized as a rhetorical question, Woody. The person asking already had the answer in mind and was making a comment about assumed culpability.
“He let out a deep laugh and shrieked almost joyfully …” That sheriff’s deputy is a jerk. Or, perhaps, in more generous terms, a nice example of arrested psycho-social development.
Still, pretty lame examples.
Human Nature 101
In nearly every domestic disturbance I have had the unfortunate luck to be somehow involved in or to witness, I have noticed that the two sides rarely tell the same story.
At work, on trivial technical issues, we often have a disagreement over how some complex system works or was implemented.
We look up the trivia together and the loser announces “I AM THE LIARâ€Â. We take this joking in good fun; because we recognize that we are fallible human beings with different recollections or understanding of the facts.
In policing and prosecution the presentation or slanting of facts become part of the game. The police after being burned on numerous busts find out that a slanted version of the facts seems to get a dramatically better result.
The police are going to throw everything they can against any rock throwing youth, because otherwise they will look bad for over-reacting on May 1.
Of course, if some kid hit YOU with a large rock for FUN, you might be incensed and cry HATE CRIME and your story might be slanted.