From Coast to Coast

There was a time in policing circles where being a cop in an agency like NYPD, LAPD, Chicago Police Department or any other large urban police department came with a sense of pride, and among your friends and neighbors you were considered to be your community’s finest. Not so much anymore.

A recent Los Angeles Times story details how the vice president of the Los Angeles Police union took to social media to post the following comment. “Go somewhere that respects the work you do and don’t have to beg for a great contract. Go somewhere that has a city council or city manager that openly acknowledges the great work you do, go somewhere that doesn’t have two or more city council members who hate you (no exaggeration).”

My initial reaction to reading this was that it’s about freaking time someone said what needs to be said. My only disagreement with the post was that she later deleted it. But why? She said after removing it that she stood by her words. Then why not say what you mean and mean what you say and leave it posted?

I have long maintained that it is the police unions, fraternal order of police organizations and Police Benevolence Associations that have to take the lead in pushing back on local governments that are not supporting police agencies the way they should be, and on top of that these officers for sure are not getting the support they need and deserve from their top brass as I detailed in my last column posted on this very site. The only way police unions are going to get the attention of city officials is to become more vocal and to not pull any punches. The LAPD union vice president articulated among the grievances of being a cop in L.A. are a ban on displaying the thin blue line flag and a lack of a great contract. I find it commonplace that city officials find no urgency in getting a contract offer to police unions on time like they do other city employee unions. In fact, the L.A. city council president said that he was hopeful that a proposed contract deal could be reached when the council returns from its summer break. Oh, how nice. We wouldn’t want to disrupt their summer recess just to get a new police contract done. This is an insult. It signals to the officer that this is not a priority for them. They vacation while officers grind it out in the heat and during the busiest time of the year with calls for service. The thin blue line flag ban came down from L.A. police chief Michael Moore. It was an act of capitulation by Moore to pressure from cop haters who call the flag a symbol of right-wing extremism. Moore knows that it is not, but then again, maybe he doesn’t know it is not.

I don’t blame the union vice president for hinting that LAPD cops consider leaving their department. Working for a large urban agency has become an impossible and thankless endeavor. LAPD is already hemorrhaging officers with a flood of retirements and resignations as are most large police departments in the aftermath of the defund the police movement and because of politically active state prosecutors who won’t charge repeat violent offenders but are quick to charge officers for actions caused through no fault of their own. These officers made this decision to leave on their own and in this anti-police environment, who would blame them?
Now onto the East Coast where New York City continues to disintegrate into chaos under Mayor Eric Adams.

Recently, New York City agreed to a nearly $14 million class action settlement with people arrested by NYPD officers in May of 2020 after the George Floyd incident. Over 1300 people were arrested at the time. News stories point out that what started out as peaceful protest in these cities devolved into rioting, looting, arson of businesses and public buildings. This is always the case. It starts out well-intentioned, but it eventually evolves into a riot. Police are expected to keep the peace and protect life and property. They have to use every reasonable tactic to accomplish this. Those include mass arrests, tear gas and the deployment of other less-than-lethal options. I don’t doubt that a few people not participating in looting and arson get caught up in the melee. How are the police in this chaos supposed to determine on a case-by-case basis who is doing what? It is mass pandemonium. The cops are being attacked and assaulted, are having rocks, bottles and other objects hurled at them. Some suffered significant injuries.

This settlement in New York City is not the first. Other cities with criminal-sympathizing and cop-hating elected officials have handed out cash settlements to rioters. In Philadelphia, they agreed to an over $9 million giveaway over allegations of “physical and emotional injuries” by police. What about the “physical and emotional injuries” suffered by police officers in these riots? Have these people thought about how suicide is now the leading cause of death for police and that no other profession is at crisis level for suicides due in part to the emotional strain of police work? And then there is Denver, Colorado, that has paid out nearly $4 million to settle protesters’ claims, and a jury awarded a $14 million verdict to settle protesters’ claims.

Folks, we have lost our minds. Cities capitulating to rioters is entering a very dark place on the subject of law and order. There should be no class action suits on this stuff, only individual claims where a person claiming harm has to present in court specific evidence of harm against a specific police officer. Smearing an entire agency leaves all the officers not involved bitter. They get no chance to defend their reputations. City officials could care less that the integrity of the police department will now come into question. Rioting has become a lawfully sanctioned activity in urban centers.

And one more thing. Where is the settlement for the businesses that were looted, with some completely destroyed as officers were given stand-down orders from police executives? It is estimated that $2 billion in property damage occurred nationally from the Black Lives Matter riots. What about the insurance deductibles that had to be covered by the business owner, and keep in mind that some policies didn’t include loss from riots? Where is the settlement for the business owners from these cities? And how about the officers who were injured and killed? Where is their settlement from the city for not providing them with the necessary equipment to quell a riot after the agencies were defunded?

Every time I think we have seen the worst in this war on cops, liberal city officials find a new low to take us to. This gives relevance to the saying that ethically, the elevator of liberal elected politicians has no bottom floor.

Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. is former Sheriff of Milwaukee Co, Wisconsin, President of America’s Sheriff LLC, President of Rise Up Wisconsin INC, Board member of the Crime Research Center, author of the book Cop Under Fire: Beyond Hashtags of Race Crime and Politics for a Better America. To learn more visit www.americassheriff.com