Lion in Winter

I think this is perhaps an insightful remark from an interview with someone who knew George Floyd.

""I think this thing has grown into something more than George Floyd," he added, speaking of the protests. "I think you're watching frustration that America has with America [itself].""

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52871936

Jsmth321

Same in Canada. Canada has and continues to treat the First Nations horrible and they are pushing back more and more, earlier this year there were big protests and blockades, rail was halted for weeks, mostly peaceful though, but some arrests were made.

The US of course also hasn't treated their native american populations well either, but US tribes do see to have more sovereignty and ability to self govern than Canada allows.

Lion in Winter

Up to a point. Remember the Standing Rock protests?

Kooky.

For those mentioning Australia, it was heartening to see a mob-organised BLM march took place yesterday in Perth. I can provide link to some great photos if anyone wants it.

Lion in Winter

Sure. The more inter-connected people are on these issues the better off we will be I think.

Kooky.

Don't know the photographer, link provided by somebody who was there
Hmm perhaps I can't link? Look up on FB: Simon Stevens - photography

Jerseygirl

Well...Surprise, Surprise...all the body cams on all 4 cops were turned off.

Hmmmmm...were they turned off or was the evidence too damming to be revealed?

Lion in Winter

I've never been able to link from FB either. Found him. Pasted a couple here.

tumbleweedly

That Derek the killer cop is a psychopath and his cop mates know what he is and are scared of him so they covered for him.

I would have pushed the cop off for kneeling on a dog's neck even though I'm a 70 year old lady. So those pathetic onlookers should be arrested for compliance in the crime.

What a sad day when cops behave so badly. It doesn't even matter if George resisted arrest or not, no living thing deserves to have their neck squashed for 8 minutes, everybody knows strangling is a killing method.

Lion in Winter

Indeed. I pulled these from somewhere else - words from two well-known black men, both dead now and speaking from an earlier time:

James Baldwin: “Who is looting whom? Grabbing off the TV set? He doesn’t really want the TV set. He’s saying screw you…He wants to let you know he’s there…The mass media-television and all the major news agencies – endlessly use that word “looter.” On television you always see Black hands reaching in, you know. And so the American public concludes that these savages are trying to steal everything from us, and no one has seriously tried to get where the trouble is. After all, you’re accusing a captive population who has been robbed of everything of looting. I think it’s obscene.”

Martin Luther King, Jr: “It is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative then to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard.”

moneypenny20

Is that considered a crime that means the officers concerned can be reprimanded and it be placed on their file (in any case, not this one specifically)?

Jerseygirl

there are certain circumstances when I believe it is OK to turn the body cams off...this was not one of them.

Jsmth321

I can't find anything that say's its a crime to turn off or fail to turn them on, but seems in 2018 Minneapolis Police revised their policy on it.

"Officers will be required to switch on their recording devices well before arriving on the scene of an emergency, with the new policy requiring activation at least two blocks away from the "service location." If dispatched to a location less than two blocks away, officers must activate their cameras immediately."

"Under the new policy, officers who violate the rules would face discipline — ranging from a 40-hour suspension for failing to activate their cameras as required to termination for prematurely turning the devices off, particularly in cases involving use of force."

https://www.startribune.com/in-minne...ced/478766113/


There are certainly times when recording wouldn't be appropriate so probably have to leave some discretion on the officers part, but police departments need to really get tough on cops who break the public trust and fail to have their cameras on when they should be on. In this case, all those body cams should have I would think be on, seems all the officers did break department policy in that regard, but can't find anything that says its illegal to do so.


Cops in Vancouver as far as I know don't really wear body cameras, its not as big an issue here, cops behave for the most part, but I wouldn't want to be recorded say in my home if I needed police assistance and would prefer the police to not have the camera on, or in the event of a medical or mental health emergency, not really appropriate to be recording in such cases.

Former Lancastrian

Found this from a 2018 article and I have no idea if it has been updated

Officers will be required to switch on their recording devices well before arriving on the scene of an emergency, with the new policy requiring activation at least two blocks away from the "service location." If dispatched to a location less than two blocks away, officers must activate their cameras immediately.
Under the new policy, officers who violate the rules would face discipline — ranging from a 40-hour suspension for failing to activate their cameras as required to termination for prematurely turning the devices off, particularly in cases involving use of force.
​​​​​​
https://www.startribune.com/in-minne...ced/478766113/

I guess it comes down to an interpretation of what an emergency is.

When I started typing JSmiths comment wasn't visible and I am a one fingered typist ​​​​​​​

moneypenny20

I was pulled over a couple of months ago accused of driving erratically - I wasn't - anyway he had, or said he had, his body cam recording for that.