Alan: As America finally grapples with the longstanding horror of widespread police brutality, many conservatives fault newfound eagerness to criticize, saying it jeopardizes police by making them second-guess themselves.
Much more fundamentally, I suspect good cops' tolerance of bad cops is how police brutality got out of control in the first place.
If police want to be as safe as possible, the good ones will upbraid the brutes, supplying no-nonsense ultimatums to"cut it out..." or... all cops will run whatever risk might be associated with "outside" investigation, public outrage and burdensome, uncompromising scrutiny.
There's Never Been A Safer Time For Cops Nor A More Dangerous Time For Criminals
"Bad Black People." Why Bill O'Reilly Is Wrong Even When He's Right
"Bad Black People." Why Bill O'Reilly Is Wrong Even When He's Right
Diane Rehm Guest Gets To The Nub Of Police Violence And How Easily It's Prevented
Alabama Police Officer Arrested Over
Severe Injuries To Indian Man
"I found that Officer Eric Parker's actions did not meet the high standards and expectations of the Madison City Police Department," Chief of Police Larry Muncey said after an investigation. He added that he is recommending Parker be fired.
Parker, who the department says is a training officer who had a trainee riding with him at the time of last week's incident, turned himself in to police yesterday; he faces a charge of third-degree assault, Muncey, said, adding that the FBI is conducting a parallel inquiry into any possible federal infractions.
The case has drawn attention both because of the circumstances and due to video footage of the incident captured by a dashboard camera. That footage, released Thursday, shows that Parker sent Patel to the ground in such a way that for a brief instant, Patel was completely airborne — until his head and upper body hit the ground.
Patel had recently come from India to help care for his infant grandson; he was stopped by police on the morning of Feb. 6, after a neighbor called to report what they saw as a suspicious figure. When police approached Patel, who speaks little English, he was unable to answer their questions about what he was doing in the area.
According to local news site AL.com, Patel's son, Chirag, is an engineer who recently bought a home in Madison, a town about 10 miles west of Huntsville. The family has filed a federal lawsuit over the incident, saying police used excessive force and had no reason to stop the elder Patel.
"This is a good neighborhood. I didn't expect anything to happen," Chirag Patel told AL.com earlier this week.
In a statement released Thursday, Muncey said, "I sincerely apologize to Mr. Patel, his family and our community...our desire is to exceed everyone's expectations."
A GoFundMe account set up in Patel's name has raised more than $50,000 since it was created two days ago. The call for help notes the family's lawsuit and medical bills.
Audio released by the police department includes the phone call that sent officers to check on Patel. In it, the caller says he's seen the same man walking in the neighborhood for a second day.
Describing him, the caller says, "He's a skinny black guy, he's got a toboggan on; he's really skinny. And I've lived here four years. I've never seen him before."
The man adds that he's on his way to work and is nervous about leaving his wife at home with the man standing across the street.
"I'd like somebody to talk to him," he says.
Parker then responded to the police dispatcher's call.
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