Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Something is Wrong With Law Enforcement

     Although saying that there are problems with law enforcement in my city may appear to be a huge understatement to some people, it is, nevertheless, true. Last night, a few of my friends and I went to a local neighborhood park in to enjoy the cool night air. As we were swinging, we suddenly saw police lights flashing. A police had pulled a car over for speeding. After a few exchanging words of how sorry we felt for the "victim," we saw the car drive off. Subsequently, the policeman also pulled away, only to turn back and return to the spot where he was hiding, watching for other lawbreakers. 
     This scene may seem completely mundane for some, but I must explain a little further. The neighborhood road where the police was idling has a rather low speed limit considering the speed at which a car could safely drive. The speed limit, I believe, is about 30 mph, whereas, at night with no one on the streets, it would be perfectly safe to drive 45 to 50 mph, if the police were absent. In fact, I must admit, I myself have sped on this road multiple times. However, on this particular night, the police were on the hunt, stalking their prey, attempting to fill their hungry stomachs (aka ticket quotas). Not five minutes after the police re-parked, he pulled out, turned on his lights, and pulled over his next victim. If this was not bad enough, soon, another police drives down the street and pulls into the hiding spot where the other police had been previously. Only a few minutes later, while the first police is still handing out his ticket, the other police pulls over another car driving the other direction. 
     Maybe it is just me, but I can't help but think that there are better things that these policemen could be doing on a weeknight than pulling over car after car in a middle-class neighborhood. These headlines, which appeared that night and the next day, make me wonder where our policemen truly are during violent incidences: "Man shot in face in East-side complex" and "Boy riding on hood of mother's car critically injured in fall." I know the police cannot be everywhere all the time, but maybe they should pick their battles more wisely. So where were the policemen when the article about the man who was shot was being written and published? They were pulling over middle-class neighborhood residents for going ten miles over the speed limit. So which offense is more serious? Shooting a man or speeding when you are the only car on the road? Apparently, the police think it is the latter. 

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