SNIP It seems that they just don't like cops that don't know the laws that they sworn to protect. and then the cops make up laws because they don't know the actual laws....am i right?
You're in the ballpark. But, it goes a little deeper.
The problem isn't that some cops don't know the laws, the problem is that some cops are willing to seize citizens in violation of their 4th Amendment rights. If there is no law against OC, then the cop cannot possibly have RAS for a detention for mere OC. Basically, if the cop does not know to a cold moral certainty that OC is illegal, he has no business seizing an OCer for mere OC. If he is not sure, then he cannot possibly
know he has authority to seize someone. What on god's green earth were these cops doing seizing another human being--an American citizen of all things--unless they knew to a complete certainty they had authority to make the seizure. Do you see the subtle difference? Police do not need to know the law. All they need to know is that
they are unsure or don't know the law. They can always look it up or call a magistrate before making the contact.
Another angle on this is repetition. Are we really to believe that those cops just woke up that morning and made the one and only illegal seizure of their career? Are we really to believe that was the only time they ever violated someone's rights?
No right is held more sacred, or is more carefully guarded, by the common law than the right of every individual to the possession and control of his own person, free from all restraint or interference of others, unless by clear and unquestionable authority of law. Union Pacific Rail Co. vs Botsford as quoted in Terry v Ohio.
No right. More sacred. Free of
all restraint. Even from
all interference. Unless by
clear and unquestionable authority of law.
The Terry court could have omitted that quote. They could have watered it down. They could have written something else. But, no. There it sits in the very opinion police use as their authority to detain people.
We also have Justice Brandeis from
Olmstead: "[T]he protections guaranteed...include ...the right to be left alone -- the most comprehensive of rights and the right most valued by civilized men. (emphasis by Citizen)
So, there you have it. Violations of the most sacred and valued right. By people who themselves are supposedly American citizens.
But, it goes still deeper. The Blue Wall of Silence. Where even "good" cops protect other cops by silence and "looking the other way." Essentially, we are asked to believe that these heroes-in-blue are willing to "serve and protect" against street criminals, but suddenly they are unable to protect us against rights-violator cops. They are the one's in the best position to do something effective about the rights-violator cops.
