"The Fresno Police Department launches an internal investigation after a video...shows two officers beating a homeless man during an arrest...two Fresno Police officers, seen here repeatedly punching 52-year-old Glen Beaty, a homeless man, who police say resisted arrest."
These situations present themselves to us in life, and it is our duty as citizens of the US and human beings to look at them analytically and objectively.
I was quick to jump to conclusions, yell at the television about police brutality, and consider it shameful to be a Fresnan on a day like this. But thought it better to at least examine what we know (or at least, what we're being told):
A homeless man was being put under arrest for a felony warrant (for what, I can't say). The video begins with the two arresting officers holding the man on the ground and as they go to put handcuffs on him, one officer delivers several closed fist blows to the head. The video does not show anything prior to the incident, so what prompted the officer to beat the man is unclear. According to Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer, "One of the officers was punched by the suspect in the arm. The officer had his badge ripped off of his shirt. There was also an attempt to jab the officer in the arm with a pen that the suspect had taken from the officer’s shirt."
Things to consider:
1. First and foremost, the police have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. They are constantly placed in harm's way. I don't think anyone would disagree with an officer using force if their own lives or safety are in danger. In this case, I am unaware if such a situation presented itself.
2. The main job of the police in a case like this is to arrest, take into custody, and remove from society those individuals who are SUSPECTED of breaking the law. That is all. They do not carry out punishment, certainly not before any sort of determination regarding innocence or guilt. As such, they cannot be allowed to use excessive force, by that I mean beyond what is necessary to neutralize a dangerous situation, on someone SUSPECTED of committing a crime. In this case, I am unaware of what the crime this man is suspected of nor can I say, based on what I've seen, whether blows to the head were required to neutralize the situation.
3. The police chief claims the man has a history of violence with three previous incidents with the police, including resisting arrest. Given this situation, he says, the force used may not have been excessive.
From what I can gather (please remember, we DON'T have the full clinical picture here, just shadows of truth) it appeared the man was already subdued and almost in cuffs when the officer went to the blows to the head. The video does not show the man resisting and it appears the officer may have gone overboard with his reaction. I must warn against the use of the 3-prior-incidents argument for or against the police. You can only react to what's happening now, not in times previous.
Our society cannot condone excessive physical force against the individual by any force, be it police, military, or other law-enforcement agencies. If you believe anything this country is founded on, you have to believe that all are innocent until proven guilty, AND WE MUST TREAT THEM AS SUCH. I hate to use this quote from a recent episode of 24, but truly it is the rules that make us better. It's the fact that we rise above the inhuman brutality of others that makes us a great society.
No human should live in fear of the police. They should respect them for the job that they do and the danger that comes along with that job. But we cannot just give in to overt acts of brutality, under the guise of safety. Should the investigation show that excessive force was used on this man, I hope that not only FPD, but society as a whole would stand firm against these practices, and that those responsible be held accountable.
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