Cop tases handcuffed 9-year-old girl
Cops have an impossibly difficult job. It’s part of their job to face danger. They need to be able to respond with force if they’re to survive. And, of course, they’re human and sometimes make mistakes.
But I still have a knee-jerk reaction against tales of police brutality. And, knowing I have this knee-jerk reaction, I make a conscious effort to cut cops some slack and look at the details.
If I’d heard just that a cop had tased a 9-year-old, I’d be asking myself “Was she armed?” Clearly an armed 9-year-old can endanger a grown man.
If I’d heard just that a cop had tased an unarmed 9-year-old, I’d be asking myself “Were there extenuating circumstances?” I figure any cop that feels endangered by an unarmed 9-year-old ought to find a new line of work. But if an enraged 9-year-old wildly charged a cop in a tense situation, for instance, if the cop had been breaking up an episode of domestic violence, and the cop tased the child, well, I would consider the whole situation regrettable, and I’d ultimately be more relieved that the cop had managed to respond with non-lethal force than upset by the use of force.
But a handcuffed 9-year-old? What extenuating circumstance could cover this one? She had sharp fangs?
If this story is true, and the newspaper article suggests that the facts are not in question, then I hope this asshole is fired, disgraced, and convicted.
(Via Unknown News)
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