“And then there’s the revelation that the supervisor of the [Gun Trace Task Force] instructed officers to carry a toy gun just in case they found themselves ‘in a jam’ and needed to plant one. When one of the officers, Marcus Taylor, was arrested, officials couldn’t figure out why he had a toy gun in his glove compartment.” – Baltimore Cops Kept Toy Guns to Plant Just in Case They Shot an Unarmed Person [via theroot.com]
Not surprised.
Oh, wow. That department needs to be gutted. Goes to show the caliber of person they are hiring for that job if those people can in good conscience plant evidence to rid themselves of trouble caused by their own negligence. I have no plans to visit Baltimore. This has not changed.
Easier to clean house when the morons self identify. Search em and terminate the ones with toy guns.
The problem is less about officer corruption, and more about a government that is unwilling to police itself.
The Union isn’t going to stand for that. And the money they give the democrats will keep it that way.
Police officers are the only group that can LIE to elicit false confessions, utilizing “bad cop good cop” routines, badgering suspects, making them uncomfortable for long periods of time, getting them to admit to falsehoods, just to get away from the incessant questioning.
Police officers are the only group that can murder someone by falsely claiming that “they feared for their lives”, have 48 to 72 hours to “get their stories straight”, and have a union lawyer and compliant prosecutor-steered “grand jury” absolve them of responsibility.
Police demand immediate compliance (Israeli-style)–with two or three cops issuing and yelling out conflicting commands, it is easy to see how a person under police control could lose his life for merely attempting to follow conflicting directions.
The solutions are to abolish their official “immunity”, get rid of police unions, take any awards for police misconduct out of their pension funds–not from insurance or the taxpayers, require them to purchase an insurance company bond at their own expense–no bond=no job, and establish a database of former cops who should NEVER be allowed to hold another police job. Dash and body cams that cannot be disabled or turned off should be a part of the deal.
Haven’t the forces of progressivism learned anything from the former Soviet Union? Standard NKVD/KGB practise was keep the subject awake for three or four days and they’ll confess to anything.
All those BAD POLICE issues you bring up [even the silly ones] are NOT POLICY in any police department here in America. Are there bad cops? SURE. They need to be taken down immediately.
Are there Liberals with several college degrees without a lick of common sense? YUP.
Systemic corruption is always a “top down” phenomenon. Crooked government employees don’t last long unless the behavior is condoned, or even encouraged, by management. It starts with an elected official and oozes down through the ranks like so much puss from an abscess.
This sort of thing won’t stop until
a) Good people run for office, and
b) The voters consider character important enough to elect them.
Good people have better things to do than run for office. We need to take power away from government so that any abuses will be so minor that it won’t affect anyone. There are no “better angels” that will rule over us. The power hungry and corrupt will always want to rule over others.
“Good people have better things to do than run for office.”
Congratulations. You just edged out Rochelle Hathaway for the award for most ignorant comment of the week. You have three choices:
1) Democratically elected governments managed by good people
2) Dictatorships run by tyrannical despots
3) Anarchy (which never lasts long and is generally replaced with #2
You decide.
Truer words have never been written. The solution is not the pipe dream of a better government, but no government at all.
I don’t think that matters when the entire system can so easily support and shield someone who can say if you don’t play ball you might just wake up dead in the near future.
Nope…This what happens when the US Constitutional-Bill of Rights are “reasoned away” through legalese, Liberal politicians, and lawyers working for Big Government….The modus operandi of The EU NWO/ Globalism/ One-World 🌎 Global Governance, and it’s Paramilitarized Police Commandos…We the People need to set things set in government and in the law enforcement community…Or our country will look more and more everyday like a 3rd world version of Mexico, San Salvador, Nicaragua, Venezuela, etc….
Just so long as the officers make it home safe at night – that’s the important thing.
Not by planting a drop gun however. That is trying to make a bad shoot look legal.
He’s being sarcastic. That’s the typical police-unionist thing to say.
What did you expect. Here in Florida in place of toy guns police in questionable shootings are trying to invoke the stand your ground law. Here is just one of the cases where they are trying to have the case against them thrown out.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/officer-files-defense-claim-shooting-death-52450272
This is just another inevitable result of authoritarianism. Electing “good” people won’t fix this, because they will be in the same position – tasked with committing violence against peaceful people while having the “authority” to kill and the opportunity to avoid the consequences.
The “corruption” is spread throughout every person and institution controlled by the non-voluntary government. That control is the whole reason for the existence of such governments, and central to individuals and corporations wanting to use that government to control others themselves.
The desire/lust/compulsion to control the lives and property of others is the ROOT of all evil; all corruption, all aggression and theft. Playing musical chairs with the government employees won’t ever change that.
No Mama, it was just a few bad eggs that gave the Stasi and their masters a bad name;-)
+1000 🙂
Lately I have had to commute part time to Baltimore since Mid December. Overall, the town is not as bad reports seem. The Police do seem in Furguson Effect mode however.
Many nights, I could drive for hours & rarely find any on patrol in many areas. No, scratch that. The University of Baltimore cops actually seem busy. Are they corrupt? Every department has some level of it. The drop gun thing is kind of old school bad cop stuff. I’ll keep it in mind next car stop…..
Not surprised. Even worse than telling someone that if they shoot a guy outside their home to drag him inside before they call the cops. A throw down gun, toy or not, is a sure ticket to jail, unless the entire police department and prosecutor’s office is corrupt or incompetent
Did you read the comments below the story?
Very educational to someone who has never lived in or even near a ghetto (to be politically un-correct).
A view into the thinking of POC.
And 5/7 officers in the picture were black. Go figure.
So, if you shoot a COP, throw down a toy gun and say he was threatening to shoot you and plant a toy gun?
Or use a GLOCK, and switch barrels with him and say that he shot himself.
/sarc (if needed)
A throw down toy gun is So So Stupid! A cop carried back up knife that’s thrown down is so much easier to do and easier to explain away with plausible deniability if cop gets caught with it. And a throw down knife is still deadly force that backfills and justifies the shooting.
Dirty cop should go to jail if for nothing else criminal stupidity.
Anyone stupid enough to think about carrying a drop anything in this day and age is stupid enough to do it… well, stupidly.
I guess it is some sort of testimony to the personal character of Baltimore Police Officers that individuals would choose to follow this kind of directive instead of refusing. So, a Black Cop shoots a Black suspect dead, discovers the suspect was unarmed and plants a toy gun on the him to “justify” the killing…oh, the dark, dark irony!
This report makes me despair that a large enough percentage of the American population has become so morally bankrupt that there is no rational way to save the American Constitutional Republic. “Ja wohl! Ich werde gehorchen, mein Demokratenführer !!”
I’m suddenly reminded of this clip from The Wire.
(Profanity ahoy, for those at work).
Hmmm…my son lives a scant 10miles drom this mess. He tells me it’s no big deal…like Chiraq😏
In addition to the complete moral failure of the system and the individuals in it, this also necessitates that the morally devoid cops shoot to kill, not just to stop a perceived threat. Knowing that he is committing a crime, the cop will make sure that he is the only witness alive.
My my my, haven’t cops have come a long way since the time when drop guns were real because cops weren’t allowed to kill someone who was carrying a toy.
I know you have to kind of laugh. People here somehow think that drop guns something new. I would be willing to bet that police as a whole are less corrupt now then they have ever been.
Ever watch LA Confidential? Classic throwaway gun scene. Are cops less corrupt? Mebbe but I live near Chiraq so I hear about bad cops all the time…
When I lived in New Orleans in the 1970s, the NOPD were considered the most corrupt police force in the nation. The NOPD was famous for giving a beat down to drunks when they could get away with it-until they beat a drunk Swedish seaman to death; they robbed him and dumped his body on the freeway, claiming that he must have been mugged–until the security cams showed the seaman under arrest and being taken out of the French Quarter. I remember when a sheriff’s deputy from across the river in Gretna was finally convicted of murder for a bad shoot where he planted a drop gun. The dead kid’s dad was finally able to trace the drop gun, which had been taken out of a pile of guns that were supposed to be melted down and put in the deputy’s trunk for that very purpose. Everyone believed it was a common practice.
Folks should read Bill Jordans bio No Second Place Winner. Describes dropping guns back now 80 or 90 yrs ago….
A toy gun for a throwdown is actually quite smart. The toy guns are visually quite convincing and since you can just buy them over the counter, there is no registration or paper trail to get you in trouble.
Not sure it seems smart to this guy now.
Well, it’s Baltimore. The police just need room to destroy [your constititional rights].
Mommas should look into 4GW. This could end if councils and mayors were held personally responsible, ifykwim.
And the amazing thing is he would have gotten away with it if he bought a hi-point or Taurus through a second hand sale (That’s only 60-80 dollars more than a reasonably realistic toy gun. It’s not like there are that many police involved shootings) and put that in his glovebox instead. Plenty of reasons to explain why you have a real gun in your glovebox.
Of course this is the black city that blacks burned down because they were mad about how blacks were treated. I don’t expect smart people to live there.
Or better yet, just stop a known gang-banger, search him, find his gun, and then say, “alright buddy, here’s what’s up. Either, I take this gun and let you go, and we both forget this happened. Or I take this gun, book it into evidence, arrest you, and you get charged for it. What’s it gonna be?” I can’t imagine this would be difficult, especially in a city like Baltimore. Not exactly a shortage of thugs….
That is actually the way it has been done for decades. EVERY police department “looks the other way” at the acquisition of “throwdown” weapons…
If I were going to throw a dart hoping to hit corruption I would look to “special units” (drugs, guns) in big cities like Baltimore or the most rural (2-3 cops) departments.
That sounds about right
Frankly I’m not surprised,Baltimore one of those S holes the president was refering to.
Actually, Baltimore is kinda quiet really. And rather clean.
You’re in the wrong part of Baltimore for this article then.
Hang on, hang on, look at the source. The Root? Really? Read the source story and tell me there isn’t an agenda behind it. This smells take.
40 years ago, I worked in a gun store where the owner kept a box of, broken RG’s, Clerk’s, and other pot metal wrecks, in the back. They were not in the A&D books, and we used them for parts. Any friendly local cop that,
expressed a desire for a “throw down”, could pick something out of the box, for free.
i personally am a huge fan of the one tactic they were employing:
1. roll up all hot n heavy in squad cars on a crowd of individuals
2. chase down and take into custody anybody that attempts to flee the scene
“ANYBODY THAT RUNS…IS A VC!!!
ANYBODY THAT STANDS STILL…IS A *WELL DISCIPLINED* VC!!!”
At the risk of alienating some police officers and their supporters, the “Black Lives Matter” movement DOES have a point, being “the canary in the coal mine”, although some of the examples of police shootings that they promote as “unjustified” actually were “justifiable”.
Blacks and Whites have totally different attitudes toward police…Blacks look at police as “occupiers” and “oppressors” while Whites look at police as “protectors”, despite the fact that MORE Whites are unjustifiably murdered by police than Blacks. Add to the fact, that innocent Blacks ARE rousted by police with much greater frequency, utilizing “stop and frisk” procedures, which are allowed in many jurisdictions; one can easily see that their resentment is justified.
The problem arises when a “critical mass” of citizens starts to act against what they see as police brutality. It will not help the situation when “good” police officers are attacked, as those who are aggrieved will see only the uniform, and not the police officer wearing it.
“Blowback” is something that ALL police departments should be concerned about as it will affect ALL of their police officers, as well as all of us citizens, not just the “bad apples”.
TRUST of the community toward police officers must be EARNED, not demanded, as some police departments expect. Demanding instant and immediate “compliance” based on fear NEVER works, is counterproductive, and is responsible for the unnecessary, unjustified murders of citizens by police officers. Blaming police shootings on an “adrenaline rush” is never an excuse. “Poor training” is also never an excuse.
What is needed is a “Bill of Rights” that police officers will adhere to, when interacting with citizens, as police power is extensive and almost unlimited, and is easily abused:
1. We will treat all citizens with respect; we expect to receive the same respect in return
2. We will not enforce blatantly unconstitutional laws and statutes
3. We will not abide by department and political citation “ticket quotas” when enforcing traffic laws
4. We will not execute warrants at night or with SWAT teams unless immediate loss of life is evident
5. We will not enforce CPS and building code violations as they are administrative in nature
6. We will treat mentally challenged citizens with care utilizing specially trained officers
7. We will adhere to and abide by ALL laws that are expected of ordinary citizens–no police “carve outs”
8. We will not use “professional courtesy” to avoid sanctions for unlawful behavior by police officers
9. We will utilize the use of body and dash cams 100% of the time
10. We consider ourselves to be a part of the community; there is no place for an “us vs. them” attitude
11. You are our employer; we will take all complaints seriously and act on them with deliberate speed
Of course, most police departments and officers will object to some of the suggestions in the “Bill of Rights”, but that is to be expected.
Here are changes that can help reduce police-induced violence:
1. Get rid of police unions. Police unions (fraternities) protect the guilty, and are responsible for the massive whitewashing of questionable police behavior that is presently being committed.
2. Eliminate both “absolute” and “qualified” immunity for all public officials. This includes, prosecutors and judges, police and firefighters, code enforcement and child protective services officials, and others who deal with the citizenry. The threat of being sued personally would encourage them to behave themselves. Require police officers to be “bonded” by an insurance company, with their own funds. No bond= no job. You can bet that insurance companies would be more diligent in weeding out the “bad apples” than our present system…
3. Any public funds disbursed to citizens as a result of police misconduct should come out of police pension funds–NOT from the taxpayers.
4. Regular drug-testing of police officers as well as incident-based drug testing should take place whenever an officer is involved in a violent situation with a citizen–no exceptions.
5. Testing for steroid use should be a part of the drug testing program. You know damn well, many police officers “bulk up” with the “help” of steroids. Steroids also affect users mentally as well, making them more aggressive. The potential for abuse of citizens increases greatly with steroid use.
6. Internal affairs should only be used for disagreements between individual officers–NOT for investigations involving citizen abuse. State-level investigations should be mandatory for all suspected abuses involving citizens.
7. Prosecutors should be charged with malfeasance IF any evidence implicating police officer misconduct is not presented to the grand jury.
8. A national or state-by-state database of abusive individuals who should NEVER be allowed to perform police work should be established–a “blacklist” of abusive (former) police officers. As it stands now an abusive police officer can get a job with another department, continuing the abusive behavior.
9. Most people are unaware that police have special “rules” that prohibit them from being questioned from 48 to 72 hours. This allows them to “get their stories straight” and makes it easier to “cover up” bad police behavior. Police must be subject to the same laws as civilians.
10. All police should be required to wear bodycams and utilize dashcams that cannot be turned off. Any police officers who causes a dash or body cam to be turned off should be summarily fired–no excuses. Today’s body and dash cams are reliable enough to withstand harsh treatment. Body and dashcam footage should be uploaded to a public channel “on the cloud” for public perusal.
11. All interrogations must be video and audio recorded. Police should be prohibited from lying or fabricating stories in order to get suspects to confess. False confessions ARE a problem in many departments. Unknown to most people, police can lie with impunity while civilians can be charged with lying to police…fair? I think not…
12. Any legislation passed that restricts the rights of ordinary citizens, such as firearms magazine capacity limits, types of weapons allowed, or restrictive concealed-carry laws should apply equally to police. No special exemptions to be given to police. Laws must be equally applied.
13 “Asset forfeiture” is a form of “legalized robbery under color of law” and must be abolished. We must return to Constitutional principles when it comes to “crimefighting”. The so-called “war on drugs” is actually a “war on the citizenry” and has had an extremely corrosive effect on the Constitutional principles that our country is (supposed to be) founded on.
14. “No-knock” raids must be abolished as they put both police and (especially citizens) in harms way. Even the Nazis “knocked on the door” before gaining entry.
15. SWAT teams must be reigned in on their “dynamic entry techniques”. Utilizing SWAT teams for routine situations is dangerous to both police and citizens. Smashing everything in sight “just because they can”, blaming it on an “adrenaline rush” must end. There is NEVER a reason for destroying property.
16. The “21 foot rule” must be modified or abolished. American police training assumes that ANYONE that gets within 21 feet of a police officer and is deemed a threat, even a non-life-threatening situation is “fair game” for the use of lethal force. Persons with rakes, sticks, knives, or even their fists have been executed, even when non-lethal means would have been more appropriate. Police hide behind the “21 foot rule” in order to justify questionable police shootings. Their “excuse”, when brought before a prosecutor or grand jury is “that is the way they are trained”. THAT has to change. Police have a greater responsibility NOT to use deadly force against those that they could easily subdue by other means.
17. Clear and concise “rules of engagement” must be established for ALL American law enforcement personnel. Any deviation from these rules must be severely punished. It is interesting to note that American military veterans in combat zones operate under more restrictive “rules of engagement” than American “law enforcement”. In fact, American “law enforcement” operates under NO “rules of engagement”. They have total “carte blanche” to destroy whoever they want. THAT has to change…
Police work is not inherently dangerous…there are many other professions that are much more dangerous.
A little “Andy Taylor” could go a long way in allaying fears that citizens have of police.
That being said, I have no problem with the majority of police officers who do their job in a fair, conscientious manner…however, it is time to call to task those police officers who only “protect and serve” themselves.
A citizen that uses deadly force, even justifiably, will be immediately handcuffed and arrested, until the situation is “sorted out”. He will most likely be “detained” in a holding cell at the police station until the prosecutor makes a decision whether to prosecute. Questioning by police will most certainly be forceful and immediate, with police interrogators purposely trying to “trip up” the citizen by attempting to elicit contradictory statements–standard police interrogation tactics.
A police officer in an identical situation will NOT be handcuffed or arrested. The police officer will be afforded a union attorney and will have 72 hours in which to “get his story straight”. In addition, a police-friendly prosecutor will most likely hesitate to prefer charges, as “they are on the same team”. Most likely an extended taxpayer-paid “vacation” (administrative leave) will result.
Not so for the ordinary citizen.
Double standard?
You bet…
When Trump was talking about not letting people from sh**holes into America, he was talking about Baltimore…
Hey Baltimore, how’s that liberal gun control working out for ya? About like a 3rd world country, right?
The entire state of Maryland is one big disaster, kept afloat by Annapolis and also the counties that provide bedroom communities for people that work in DC. If it wasn’t for trillions of taxpayer dollars being siphoned from the rest of the country into DC over the decades, Maryland would be like West Virginia’s poorer cousin with ghettos.
Its interesting how a government that wants your guns also has a totally corrupt police force.