Losing
Faith in Our Police Officers
Things
have spiraled out of control in the past several years. Trust in public
servants has fallen severely and does not show a rebound in faith or confidence
this sentiment will ever return to its previous levels – ever. Today we lack
trust and faith in our cops and those who represent them in the community
whether it be their respective unions or other political groups. It is true
that more today than ever before police officers and the communities that they
serve are suffering from a credibility problem.
Following
those incidents where cops are indicted for all types of crimes ranging from
DUI and domestic violence to various felony crimes including homicides, makes
you aware that they are no longer the rarity in the news. It is no longer an
occasional incident where the police department was let down by one of their
own who went rogue. Sadly, prisons are being filled with those who chose to
betray their oath, their promise to protect and serve and uphold the values of their
profession. To be convicted of their individual crimes, they did more than just
squander their trust – they betrayed society.
As with
other professions generally held in high esteem, a police officer is more than
a public servant; he or she is a role model and a mobile sanctuary for our kids
to turn to when they need help. Consequently, police officers are held to a
higher standard of honesty, integrity, bravery and forthrightness, qualities
that lie at the heart of the public's trust in law enforcement. For a police
officer to lie undermines the very foundation of this trust.
The
idea that there are more good cops than bad cops could persuade some to regain
trust in the police. But to question for gaining back future credibility of the
department's depends on how many good officers will identify or work hard to
get rid of their bad ones. Good cops
being witness to a rogue cop and remaining silent is not only a mistake but a
criminal act in its own.
It also
ignores the fact that all police officers are required to participate in the
act of exposing the nefarious activities inside their respective departments. This
makes it hard to consider the fact that as a whole, the overwhelming majority
of police officers and civilian support staff in police agencies are honest,
conscientious and dedicated.
Losing
trust and faith is a natural affect of being wary of these criminals who break
the laws while in uniform and carrying a gun and badge. Logically we must do more to understand and
identify what makes the best police officers and support the good ones but
that’s hard to do when you don’t trust their supervisors or administration
knowing the fact they have ignored this criminality among their rank and file
for some time now.
I know that in order to
restore this trust and faith, we must not lose the belief there are good cops in
the vast majority of officers who every day demonstrate their commitment to the
community with their honesty, integrity, bravery and hard work.
It is always sad,
disappointing and, frankly, enraging when anyone who is placed in a position of
trust and is supposed to exemplify good sound judgment, moral turpitude and
honesty and then are found guilty of a crime that proves them to be violent, deceitful
and corrupt.
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