I have read and reread the timeline of the murders of two police officers in Brooklyn by Mr. Brinsley.
At 5:48am of the day of the murder the Baltimore police know about the shooting of his girlfriend, know he has her cell phone, and start pinging his movements. From the pinging they track him as he gets on the bus to NYC at 6:35am, and still get a signal as the bus arrives in NYC over 4 hours later. The cell phone locates him on a subway to Brooklyn. At noon he discards the phone some 6 hours from his original crime.
In the meantime the Baltimore police call the NYC police some 7 hours later. A description of the suspect arrives by fax at a Brooklyn precinct 3 minutes after the policemen are killed. They are informed too late of the dangerous profile of the killer.
Many questions come to mind along with what are the real lessons to be learned. Was this incident racist in any manner? Do the police departments involved bear some responsibility? Is turning your back while in uniform insubordination and cause for discipline? Just what do these police officers perceive as “anti police”? Should the Mayor, the Police Commissioner, and police reps sit down behind closed doors, and figure out and iron out what are the issues that divide all the players in this tragic affair?
This incident should be fully investigated to stall any further frustrations, anger, and hatred no matter who is at fault. Do others here have any input to what seems to me as the wrong lessons about to be learned to everyone’s detriment.
Left out of your time line is the shooter’s posts to social media declaring his intent and his procurement of the weapon and ammunition.
It was probably racially motivated.
For two NYPD officers being murdered? No.
The mayor holds no place in the department’s chain of command. So, no.
The mayor, whose family receives around the clock protection from scores of various NYPD personnel, went on national TV to declare he teaches his children that because they’re bi-racial they should fear the NYPD. That’s certainly not “pro-police.”
As to your last question, an apology by the mayor would be a good start in repairing the damage he’s caused.
Most of what you said, I agree with. There is no way to tie this incident with cases of police brutality beyond the fact that the murderer claimed them as motivation.
Yet at the end say that the mayor “teaches his children that because they’re bi-racial they should fear the NYPD. That’s certainly not ‘pro-police.’ ” Yet it’s pro-reality. The numbers are inarguable, and I don’t want a mayor who apologizes for understanding reality.
He, his wife, and his children are never without NYPD protection. His kids are surrounded at all times by detail officers who are putting their lives on the line to protect them. That’s the reality the mayor failed to understand.
Even black NYPD officers are victimized:
while being ferried to his exclusive high school in an armored SUV being driven by his NYPD protection detail. The detail he has been “trained” to fear by his parents.
The information you’ve provided is interesting, and a sad reflection on our society. Tangential to de Blasio’s hypocrisy and incendiary rhetoric, though.
Tangential to de Blasio’s what?
Why must I be force on BMG to read such unsubstantiated nonsense?
And actual grownups do their jobs without expecting special considerations or a get out of criticism free card.
The NYPD was traumatized by 9/11 and then enjoyed a long run of overcompensation.
But they have a checkered history of corruption, inept racial killings and arrogance. This mess is disgraceful and the tantrums are disgusting.
The shooter had priors in Brooklyn and ignored all his probation requirements but no one seems to have followed up. Those poor cops were partly killed by NYC Justice system sloth and incompetence probably aggravated by shrinking budgets and staff stress because we have to give rich assholes tax breaks and shrink government.
that the perpetrator was allowed to travel freely knowing where he was for 8 hours after he committed a crime with a gun. There was no contact between departments until it was too late. This incident needs investigation why police in Brooklyn were not warned and why he was not safely apprehended before he had a chance to harm anyone else.
There’s been considerable reporting on that investigation.
but no investigation of the large lapse of time. I would think the police themselves would wonder they did not give a quicker heads up to the NYC police.
Sure, NOW there may be little chance of his having too much trouble with cops, but those chances were almost certainly higher before his father became the Mayor.
Technically, the Mayor is the ultimate superior to all the police department. Legally, the cops may have a first amendment case, but I think they are being awfully petty and thin-skinned. If DeBlasio in any way disciplines them, though, HE will be the one to appear thin-skinned.
This argument that the mayor should apologize for being honest about the police and his concerns for the safety of his son is beyond the pale.
There are a few additional unethical arguments being put forward by methuenprogressive. These are mostly unethical in how they are arguments against accountability, progress, empathy, or responsibility:
* People should not be able to criticize or question the actions of those whose job it is to protect them (whose employers are the taxpayers and citizenry)
* People shouldn’t speak out against injustices if themselves and their family members are not likely to face these injustices
* Public employees (the police) should not have to conduct themselves honorably while wearing their uniforms if they are offended
“The NY Police Union’s Vile War with Mayor De Blasio”
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/12/21/the-ny-police-union-s-vile-war-with-mayor-de-blasio.html
Here’s a piece from the gray lady about a trial for fraudulent arrests. It was back in 2011.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/02/nyregion/brooklyn-detective-convicted-of-planting-drugs-on-innocent-people.html?_r=0
Under Rudy “Verb-Noun-9/11” Giuliani and probably under Bloomberg there was a policy of requiring ‘Arrest Quotas”…. Arrest quotas!!??!!
What were they thinking, that crime is like a production process?
And the main implement used in pursuing this arrest quota charade was the stop and frisk stunts that DiBlasio opposed.
No cop shop in its right mind is going to pursue quotas for arrests. That’s something you find in crooked third world shitholes. No cop shop in its right mind is going to go out of its way to routinely antagonize constituents, especially on a racial basis.
Arrests are cumbersome and expensive and strain the justice system. I love my own city PD here in Cambridge. They are required to have some sociology course credits and are exemplary. Their whole approach is to see an arrest as a sanction of last resort.
When was the last time a Boston cop engaged in this nonsense?
This post dates back to the Skip Gates mess back in 2009, but things haven’t changed much, except that the CPD tends to avoid high-profile targets nowadays.
…and while Boston Police don’t have the same reputation as their Cambridge counterparts for harassing black students and professionals for the hell of it, they tend to go overboard on stop-and-frisk.
Greater Boston is by no means exempt from “this nonsense”.
But the other one could use some work.
It’s loaded with crap code that makes it a handful to read. If a web person doesn’t have enough pride to turn out good content, it doesn’t help their cause.
I live in Inman Square and the CPD has a boundless opportunity to profile its little heart out every Saturday morning at 2:05am when a wave of dance drunks hits the street with fights, drag racing, loud assholes and whatnot. There was even a bit of gun play a few weeks ago.
CPD shows up, but mainly tries to get the crowd moving along. I’ve had to call them to help shoo a paranoid schizophrenic wino off of my building steps.
Once again they have a perfect chance to engage in overboard stops and frisks but really, they’d rather just get Max on his way.
The Gates problem was instigated by some busybody idiot neighbor who called CPD and if they have a fault there it would be putting too much credence in meddlesome idiot complaint callers while lacking a bit of common sense.
That is a very important thing to understand about Cambridge, it is chock full of neurotic meddlesome ditz busy bodies who will call the CPD about things like unknown black people.
I can’t speak for the rest of the region beyond assuming that it probably is a drag and more to the point, we haven’t had any Michael Brown or Eric Garner style killings in a while. If you have a date on the last one, it would be great.