Los Angeles
Cop faces no consequences for forever crippling innocent man: A societal lesson
- February 8th, 2011 12:03 pm PT
As someone who monitors police misconduct stories on a regular basis, I was surprised that I had not even heard of the tragic story of Christopher Harris of Seattle Washington. Since I, who follow and write regularly on the 'police state' nationally had not even heard of it, I assume that many others have not heard of it either. This story deserves a recap, as well as an underlying comment on the role of police.
On May 10, 2009, 29 year old Christopoher Harris was in his hometown of Seattle one night when men in dark fatigues started chasing him. He ran towards a more populated and well lit area, and ended up on a sidewalk right outside a movie theatre.
What Harris most likely did not realize is that the men chasing him were Seattle Sheriff officers. Like many cops today, they were dressed in dark commando type outfits. Here is the video of King County Sheriff's Deputy Matthew Paul slamming into Christopher Harris like a linebacker, launching Harris headfirst into a concrete wall. Harris is immediately slumped and lifeless, never to recover. The video was caught by the movie theatre surveillance camera. The police department and prosecutor found that officer officer Paul did absolutely nothing wrong, and he is still on the job.
SeattlePI.com, which has extensive coverage of the incident, reported how the foot pursuit began:
"The deputies heard a Seattle police report of a disturbance at a nearby convenience store and headed towards it. They then continued down an alley, believing those involved in the convenience store incident had gone that way."
Washington State law gives police officers immunity in such cases where "good faith" on the officer's part is involved. Section RCW 9A.16.040, Justifiable homicide or use of deadly force by public officer, peace officer, person aiding, states, in part, "A public officer or peace officer shall not be held criminally liable for using deadly force without malice and with a good faith belief that such act is justifiable.."
Seattle Weekly has an article and photograph of Harris as he is today, lifeless in bed with tubes and machines attached to him. Harris is unable to talk, walk, move, and has permanent brain damage. His wife and family sued the police for excessive force, for money to help take care of Harris for the rest of his life. A week after the civil trial began, the officer who caused the injuries was due to testify, but never did; King County opted to settled the case for $10 million.
Such cases belie the commonly parroted line that "police are here to protect you" and "keep you safe". That is utter nonsense. As I have constantly pointed out, police nationwide are not legally obligated to protect anyone whatsoever. This is not my opinion; this is what the police departments nationwide have argued themselves in court, nearly every time they are sued civilly for failing to protect someone; and their arguement is successful, even upheld in the U.S. Supreme Court. I covered this topic more extensively in my 2010 article 'Obama propagates myth that police 'duty' is to 'keep Americans safe', and more recently in my (humorously titled) Why aren't "gun-free dining" women in the kitchen where they belong?
People must comprehend and understand the truth about the police today. Police are not necessarily bad people individually. But law enforcement in general is taught, demonstratively, that the people are their enemy, and the bill of rights is no longer adhered to in most cases. Police are taught that Constitutionalists and libertarians, those who actually have a correct view of government, are dangerous fringe extremists. This is proven by the countless police training manuals and Homeland Security policy papers that have been leaked over the years nationwide. Our God given liberties are under attack, and while it is important that the people respect the legitimate authority of police, it is also important that society stop having a grovelling, subservient attitude towards government servants.
You can start by resisting traffic tickets, which are admitted largely for revenue, and demand your due process by pleading not guilty. I recently encouraged my neice to fight a seat belt ticket, and she beat it. That happy diddy will be published later today. When I say to respect the legitimate authority of police, I mean there is a smart way of standing up for your rights, without getting arrested, beaten, or killed. You can indeed hold law enforcement accountable to the state law and U.S. Constitution. One example of this is my case of the Texas State Troopers, who recently admitted wrongdoing to me in writing shortly after after I filed an official complaint. So many alternative and conspiracy websites these days offer a hopeless, helpless, 'victim mentality' outlook, like there is nothing we can do. This is absolute nonsense. Learn how to stand up for your rights. And as this tragic Seattle story illustrates, avoid cops at all costs, if possible.
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Martin Hill is a Catholic paleoconservative and civil rights advocate. His work has been featured on LewRockwell.com, WhatReallyHappened, Infowars, PrisonPlanet, WorldNetDaily, National Motorists Association, KNBC4, and many others. You can view a full archive of his articles at LibertyFight.com.
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