The Criminal Jigsaw Puzzle
The different pieces we must put together to create a better tomorrow.
Writing this is uncomfortable. Even a hint of consideration former Officer Chauvin should be exonerated is enough to be on a rioter’s hit list. Granted, I think I did a decent job keeping my whereabouts private, but someone could look my name up, see a picture, and point me out whenever I’m in public. This is what Taboo Topic is about, however. I want to bring perspectives many have but are too afraid or don’t have a platform to voice in the same manner. The publication might be small, but I will regardless use this for the betterment of mankind. I will put on different hats in this article and attempt to tie everything together. Follow along.
Criminal Justice
I don’t consider myself a cop. By federal government standards sure, but it’s farcical compared to those in blue. Those men and women answer calls in much more dire circumstances, see more action, and experience abhorrent crime scenes. Those first responders are more likely pull a trigger in one day as opposed to my six years with the federal government. I am only going to put this hat on, because I have a basic knowledge of this world and have gone through the use of force training.
For those who have not seen the body cam footage of the police officer, you should before reading further. Some scenes will be hard to watch. That’s my disclaimer. Assuming you watched the full video, here’s some things I noticed.
George Floyd’s state of paranoia: From the time he made contact with the police officer, you can see and hear the sense of fear. One can contribute to his past history with the police, the drugs he was on, and potentially his upbringing as many people from the black community grow up being taught to fear the police. When he gets into the car, you can add his alleged claustrophobia to his state of fear.
The officers’ demeanor: You could see from the start how causal the officers were when they approached George Floyd’s vehicle. They answered a call concerning George giving the store a counterfeit bill. Compared to some of the calls these officers probably get, this was petty. Their demeanor started to change into frustration when George was being incompliant.
George Floyd’s communication after arrest: Throughout his conversation with the officers, he continually argued he did nothing wrong, consistently apologized, alluded to his past history with cops, and insisted he was being compliant, despite his actions. At times he pleaded for accommodations such as, “please don’t leave me,” for the sake of his state of mind. And before Officer Chauvin put his knee on his neck, George stated he couldn’t breathe as they were trying to get him in the vehicle.
The officers notice signs of impairment: You can hear in their dialogue with George Floyd, asking questions if he was on something. They noticed foaming of the mouth on their way to the car. George did not appear in control of himself nor his fears.
The officers’ attempt to accommodate George Floyd: Up until those nine minutes when Officer Chauvin had his knee on George, the officers did their best to take his safety into consideration. The mounting frustration of George not being compliant and arguing with the police, didn’t deter them from trying to ensure him safety was a priority. One of the officer’s even offered to roll the window down of the patrol car they were trying to get him into.
The public’s interaction: The crowd was vocal throughout. The conversation started towards George, as one man told him, “you can’t win,” as he was resisting to enter the vehicle. The conversation shifted towards the police once Officer Chauvin had his knee on George’s neck. There were pleas for his wellbeing, “check his pulse,” and accusations of depravity, “he’s enjoying this.”
Nine minutes: After George Floyd stop moving, the pressure on his neck continued. The police officers around were trying to set up their cordons to keep the boundaries from them and the public. The time they checked his pulse and administered CPR, appeared to be a delayed response.
This is if you were to only look at the footage. The entirety. This may be unpopular, but I can sympathize with most of the actions taken by the cops. George was argumentative, incompliant, and with his size the use of force applied on the neck made sense. The man was not choking, contrary to popular belief. Shortness of breath, yes; however, that is the main point of using this technique- a technique the Minneapolis police department trained on. And given Officer Chauvin’s tenure, it makes sense his instinct was to resort to this tactic. Be mindful: use of force training is not universal either. Simply, the tactics applied in one state, may not be legal in another. The parts I am objecting are when the police first makes contact with the subject, lack of communication when he’s on the ground, and the continuation of pressure on the neck. Despite his state of mind, George was harmless. A pain, but not a threat.
I did not understand the fear factor for the officer to pull his gun in the beginning of their interaction. Speaking in hindsight, but that was unnecessary.
I’ve dealt with my fair share of impaired individuals; communication is vital. Once George was on the ground, the officers should have continued the dialogue. Play for the camera and crowd. Show everyone you don’t want to keep the man on the ground. Negotiate with him. Find a compromise for both parties, perhaps agree on letting him sit on the ground while the ambulance arrives. He’s harmless.
The health and safety of a subject is the police officer’s responsibility from the moment they’re in their custody. George becoming motionless and his utter silence should have indicated it was time to get off him. Check his pulse and apply CPR if necessary. There was none of that. First aide application was too little too late.
A badge doesn’t shield a police officer from accountability. It is not fair what the media is doing to our first responders in blue, but there must be an acknowledgement of failure. Officer Chauvin’s actions earned him to be put on trial.
Racial Implications
This is going to be relatively short, but the media keeps bringing us back here. Last summer we were lead to believe this was an example of white supremacy, an example of how corrupt the people in blue were actively seeking to kill black Americans. Nobody could escape these talks. People in the minority community used this to talk about how we ourselves are victims to racism. White people needed to use their “privilege” to end racism. Apologize for the existence of racism. “Silence is violence.”
I have a good friend who wrote a post on Facebook about how she felt being white caused people of color oppression. Her post disheartened me. The gaslighting reached a breaking point, as I could not idly stand by watching one race get finger pointed for all of society’s ills. And if anybody called out racism from someone in the minority community, the past was the justification of the prejudice. Anyone who called out the violence occurring in our cities was deemed racist. The death of George Floyd became an excuse for everyone to become a victim even if you had no relation to him. Allow me to provide light to the distortion.
The death of George Floyd had nothing to do with race. It is not evidence of white supremacy.
Data does not support the narrative police are actively seeking to kill lives. The numbers overall dropped in 2020 from 1095 to 1065 out of a 330 million population. To put things in perspective, roughly 40k died last year from car accidents. The number of killings in certain groups did increase, but one can attribute to the riots as an explanation, particularly the black (seven more than 2019, 241) and Hispanic community (11 more than 2019, 169). However, other groups of color saw a decrease in shootings with the police as well. When you dived numbers, such as 241 by 44 million and 169 by 61 million, it doesn’t support the notion people of color are victims of police killings on a large scale. The media present their numbers by dividing the total number of killings per race by the total number among all for the year, equating to staggering percentages.
White people are not the only ones capable of being racist. Dare I say, it is worse in minority communities than it is in rural and suburban America COMBINED. It never gets called out it, because if you do you’re labeled a “sellout” (my case) or it gets dismissed due to your skin color (white). If this glosses over, it grows like a cancer. If you want to be courageous and improve race relations, call it out when nobody else is. Be mindful that as long as sin exists, racism will always be around. We do the best we can.
People of minority heritage have a dark history too. EVERYONE has the right to be proud of their heritage regardless of its past despite this. There is NO need for anybody to apologize for something they took no part in. History is not absolute.
Someone’s ethnicity/race is not a shield from any sense of accountability. If you commit acts of evil, such as destroying livelihoods, you have every right to be prosecuted to the highest extent of the law. Equality means equal accountability, not creating a protective class.
We have to overlook George Floyd’s skin color to consider he played a role in his death. It is a possibility, despite the questionable decision to keep the knee on the neck after becoming motionless, Officer Chauvin’s actions would have not mattered. The autopsy revealed his was overdosing and was infected with COVID, a virus which attack the lungs. Picture if George were white with the same scenario occurring, how different and impartial would you be with the given information? There is no reason to invalidate someone’s opinion because of their race. That includes someone white with a bias towards the police.
Moving forward
The biggest mistake Americans commit is making the predicament and solutions exclusive. Obviously, this is a complex issue. Personally, I think the facts side with the prosecutor. The nine minutes are damning enough, but Chauvin’s police chief, supervisor, dispatcher throwing him under the bus along with Chauvin’s willingness to plead manslaughter, is enough to convict him. Third-degree murder is a possibility, but unlikely. I do caution everyone to be mindful of the likelihood Officer Chauvin will be exonerated based on the information provided. It’s a real probability.
Neither George Floyd and Officer Chauvin are men to be role modeled. The reality is we live in a culture which nobody wants to take responsibility. People would rather be a victim, create their protected class than admit any responsibility. The irony is that people on both ends want accountability. One side is saying people shouldn’t use a profession as shield from accountability, while the other end express race shouldn’t be used as one either. Guess what? BOTH are correct. On the police end, there should be a reevaluation of how much power they should have to govern among the people. On the other end, we have to evaluate how serious are we in wanting equality. Is the having “the talk” in the black community doing more harm than good? Teaching children the world is against them, because of a history the new generation had no involvement in? The issue is too complex to tell one side to shut up. One cannot survive without the other. If people are serious about wanting accountability, then why are we fighting? Accountability is a societal problem. Forget ‘Black Lives Matter,’ ‘Back the Blue,’ or any other hashtag that puts ourselves into a box. Accountability matters. What do you think?
Author’s Note: Anything underlined is a link for you to click on if desired. Readers are encouraged to educated themselves and seek other sources for information.