officers - The Black Vault

Hand in hand
-three years and I have dealt with
officers from 12 police agencies. In that
time, I have handled dozens of cases in
which my clients told me of outrageous
police brutality. The best they can
expect, if their injuries are serious, is to
have their cases dismissed, often after
several days in jail and perhaps loss of
their job. Often enough, only the charge
of a~saulting the officer will be .dropped,
in exchange for a guilty plea to the
underlying charge. Of course, my clients
have the option of fighting the case, but
to do that they almost always must
remain itt custody. Judges are reluctant
to release someone accused of attacking
a police officer.
If the victim perseveres, he is
entitled to a :Hearjng in which
the judge reviews the disciplinary
history of the accused officer.
But in order for there-to be a
history of brutality, complaints
must have been registered with,
yes, the police department responsible
for the brutality.
The good, the bad and the
ugly of society are represented
in the ranks of law enforcement,
and being a police officer is a
tough, often dangerous job. Still,
the vast majority of officers
never behave as those officers
did; they are as outraged as the
rest of us by the King affair. But
can you expect them to snitch on
-their brethren? Would you want
one of your colleagues to be
responsible for your life ·as a
back-up officer i£ you had reported
him for violence· and he
despised you for it? Would you
report someone who may have
saved your life in the past?
The police must be policed.
What this takes is civilian review
and civilian governance
for every department. Injured
·and harassed citizens must have
access to a fair tribunal so they
r can report intimidation without fear of
' reprisal or further intimidation. This
means a permanent, jndependent, elected
citizen review board with disciplin- ·
ary powers, not just a free-wheeling
blue-ribbon appointed commission: The
board must have free access to evidence,
including police audio tapes.
Fair and neutral review of police
actions will restore the honor and integrity
of tP,e majority of officers and will
save millions of tax dollars that we'll
otherwise keep paying out in settlements
to brutality victims who somehow
prove their cases.
Debra Carrillo was_ a police officer and
deputy marshal in 0ra1l{Je County for five
years !lnd has been a pilhlic defender since
1988.