Are the nation's police officers a bunch of congenital liars?

Question

Has the Drug War Created an Officer Liars' Club?
By Joseph D. McNamara

>> "I've come to believe that hundreds of thousands of law-enforcement officers commit felony perjury every year testifying about drug arrests." <<

http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/DEBATE/mcn/mcn6.htm

Although the article is from the mid-1990s, is it possible that much has changed since then? Police scandals still make headlines but how many are covered up of just flat out ignored?

Who polices the police?

How can the means justify the end if those who are supposed to uphold the law are violating it? Does that help or hurt public trust and respect?

Answer 1

I believe that a vast majority of narotics police officer lie to get busts, convictions, to confiscate drugs, to illegally search, to illegally obtain confessions. Many officers think they are above the law, therefore the end justifies the means.
Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of excellent law enforcement officers out there making our communities safer places. It is just the bad ones get all the press coverage.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

You have to laugh when you hear someone say something like "the police have never helped me."

Maybe you are right, they are all out to get you, every cop knows your name and have your picture and they are looking for you.

Sure there are bad cops, I beleive that the good ones far outnumber the bad ones. As for planting drugs, I'm sure it happens sometimes, but I am also sure that there are plenty of people out there that already have the drugs on them so a plant is not needed. Being a police officer is one of the most thankless jobs I can think of. They are paid low wages, can't eat in most restaurants (spit in food), and put up with the great conspiracy theories. I was a copy for about 8 years and now have moved on to other things but I know that I never planted nor did I know of anyone planting evidence.

As for the profiling I have a story about that. I once was travelling at 60mph, yes in a 55 zone, at about 11pm and a car was going the opposite direction on the divided highway. The car was a normal looking sedan, don't remember the make, but nothing that stood out. It was going 78mph. I turned around and pulled the car over and when I got to the window thsi woman started screaming that I pulled her over because she was black and that she was tired of the discrimination. As I said, it was 11pm and our closing speed was 138mph, how teh heck could I know what color her skin was?

Answer 4

Uh ... no.

First, consider the source - and the date of your source. When this article came out (10+ years ago) it was greatly debated and the estimates of "hundreds of thousands" was soundly refuted simply due to the lack of so many prosecutions!

As someone who used to work in a non-sworn capacity for Joseph McNamara, and who still maintains a great deal of respect for the man, I cannot speak ill of him. However, he went off the deep end on a couple of issues in the mid 1990s.

For those who believe that all cops are liars, this will be "proof" of a vast police conspiracy in their mind as it comes from the former Chief of Police of Kansas City and then San Jose Police Departments. For those that do not buy into it, we will not be convinced.

Simply put, no one will be swayed by any responses posted here as those who post are likely to have their minds made up one way or the other when they post. As one who is on the inside, I can say that I have not seen this as a problem in California.

- Carl

Answer 5

all major police departments have a internal affairs department which investigates complaints of misconduct by police officers. also the district attorney may investigate and pick up charges against a corrupt cop. police officers are hired from the general public, they are human beings. some officers are nice, some are not. some officers lie some do not. some like meatloaf, some don't. get my point ? it has been my experience that the vast majority of police officers are honest people. some officers become jaded and bitter from seeing good arrests go down the toilet on technicalities. most officers will however resist the temptation to lie under oath, if for no other reason than it could cost them their career and their lively-hoods.

Answer 6

Dont expect a positive answer from the fools in the force, cause they all protect eachother and its everyone else who is wrong. i swear some little boys when they were little woke up one day, and decided his penis was just tooooo tiny, and said "mom, when i grow up i wanna be a cop!" all disrespect intended to all those po's that are in it for pride, and selfish reasons. I mean no wrong to the good guys who really do try to protect and serve, not bust people and try to "make a deal" by having people snitch out peeps they know just to get a gold star for the week. But nice job fellow americans for being such great employees of washington's.

Answer 7

You better wake up! We are living in a police state, most police treat citizens as the enemy. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. I am 56 years old and The past 25 years I know nobody personally that was ever helped by the police, to the contrary, they have been harassed and bullied, profiled and shot at.
We do need policeman, I do not know the answer to the problem . Perhaps if some more were punished for their crimes against citizens we could all breath a sigh of relief for a change.

Answer 8

First let me say that I don't know where the author of the article on the link you provided got his information, but it is totally incorrect. He seems to be stating opinion rather than fact.

I have been taught, not only in the police academy, but by virtually every officer that I have ever worked with, to do anything but lie on a witness stand. It would be much more beneficial to let someone off of a charge than to have your credibility shot for your entire career, which is what would happen if you told a lie on the stand.

Small time drug dealers and users are arrested mainly as a way to get to the big time drug dealers and traffickers. Usually these cases never go to trial as the arrestees are entered into pre-trial agreements in exchange for their cooperation with police. It's sort of like catching a small fish to use as bait for the larger fish.

Actually few of the arrests of big drug dealers actually go to trial. I have been working for about seven years, and have never testified in a jury trial on a drug case, despite nemerous drug arrests. I know narcotics officers that have been working longer than I and have made far more drug arrests than I that have never testified in but few drug cases. Even a lot of our cases that go federal are plead before trial.

The author would have you believe that officers are so hard pressed to make drug arrests that they are willing to resort to anything to do so. That is so far removed from the truth. Drugs are so prevalent in our society, that police do not have to resort to illegal searches, planting evidence, lying, or entapment to make drug arrests. Even the most inept officer can find drugs and make drug arrests legally.

Answer 9

Always check your sources before considering their legitimacy.

Dr Joseph McNamara is one who promotes the legalization of drugs and therefore will...obviously...use this type of tactic to bring discredit upon the law enforcement profession.

Additionally, in contrast to McNamara, I would no longer refer to the drug issue as a "war" on drugs, but more appropriately as a "cancer on society." In other words...dope is killing the people of this nation!

By legalizing illicit drugs you will increase a burden upon society and the taxpayers to support those who go beyond their physical and mental limits to continue their addiction.

The Controlled Substances Act provides five "schedules" of which specific drugs are placed upon their 1) medical use; 2) potential for abuse; and 3) potential of addiction. The act was established through US laws and International treaties. The people who established the act were professionals in the medical and legal fields not some "run of the mill" pro-drug advocate.

Just with your one quote from McNamara he states "I'VE come to believe..." which means he bases his belief on his own opinion and not specific incidents or statistics or PROOF that officers in the "hundreds of thousands" lie on the witness stand.

There are only about 700,000 officers including civilian law enforcement administrative support in the US on a federal, state, county, and municipal level. To say that many officers are "crooked" is absurd and just plain nonsense.

This is the type of rumor and innuendo gets spread around tarnishing those badges who maintain the highest levels of honesty, integrity, and professionalism. It gets spread around because biased and self serving "opinions" from people like McNamara thrive upon the ignorance of his listeners.

You hear more stories about bad law enforcement because that's what makes the media money. Compare all the GOOD stories to the bad. Bad stories obviously don't gain as much attention,...unless you see stories like the officer pulling the man from the burning vehicle...that occur on a more regular basis.

To use the same rationale as McNamara, I've seen more quack pro-drug advocates that hold PHD's with the sole agenda of bringing their name into the public eye for personal agendas than I have bad officers!

Best wishes!

Answer 10

As for your source its corrupt .Now to answer your Q police lie to get convictions . They plant drugs into cars when ever they have cause to . Im not saying thats any kind of right , But it goes way farther than just drugs look at the case of the fellow in new york unarmed shot 50 times on his wedding day do you think that any of them (cops ) will ever be held accountable . No . Time and time again youll see that people all over this country will be killed by police officers and in most cases it will be justified , but there are cases of murders by police just because they wanted to ,because they were scared , or because someone hired them to yes that happens to . Or because they didnt like the color of your skin , there are beat downs because they felt you disrespected them or made a smart remark to them as they cuffed you usually saying hey wheres dinner first ! as they frisk you will promote a beat down