By: Sam Winiarski
![Picture](/uploads/6/9/1/3/69135561/8773937.png?505)
Democracy is a system of government in which all the people of a state or polity are involved in making decisions about its affairs, typically by voting. Some keys to a successful democracy are decentralization of government, participation of voters, separation of church and state, protection of human rights, and the balance of power. There are over a million law enforcement officers across the United States. Up until September, there were 776 people killed by police officers. Compared to the number of law enforcement officers in the country this is a relatively low number of deaths. Although the number of deaths shooting incidents are somewhat low, over the past seven years, only 41 on-duty policemen have been charged with murder or manslaughter(3). Of the 776 estimated police killings in the first eight months in 2015, 161 were unarmed(2). If this number is around the same for each of the past seven years then more than 41 police officers should be prosecuted. In 2013, there were 458 police killings that were considered “justifiable.”(7) If there were over 700 killings in 2015 the number will probably be close in 2013. So, if there are a few hundred killings that weren’t justifiable, then how are more police officers not convicted. Even if some are accidents, too many law enforcement officers are being given too much power to operate under. Also, the number of exactly how many police killings there has been is a mystery. The government is trying to focus on the conduct of police officers, and more importantly, they’re encounters with minorities. Although white people make up more than half the population that are killed by the police, a much larger percentage of black and hispanic people are killed unarmed than white people. Special prosecutors are clearly needed to fairly investigate these crimes that police officers are committing. Less shootings by the police might even be a result from special prosecutors convicting police officers that killed a civilian.
Whether or not police officers are tried for killings isn’t the only issue. It’s also a problem whether or not they’re tried fairly. Police officers and the district attorney office work very closely together constantly and people in the district attorney office are the ones who currently prosecute police officers for killings. Another reason district attorneys might not fairly investigate police killings is because many district attorneys get funding from the police when they’re running for district attorney. For example, in Nassau County the three law enforcement unions have endorsed a district attorney candidate, Kate Murray, in her campaign for district attorney(4). If she gets into office because of the police’s endorsement she probably won’t want to put a police officer behind bars for killings a civilian. Furthermore, about 85% of investigators are former police officers. This could easily result in an unfair trial for the police officer in question. According to Jeff Rosen, the Santa Clara County District Attorney, police officers are frequently charged for crimes they commit such as sexual assault or fraud, but these cases are very different from a police officer shooting a civilian(1). They could claim it was an accident or that it was necessary to protect innocent civilians. It is hard to tell whether it might’ve been necessary. Although, in other cases, such as the Eric Garner case, where a video showed an officer putting Eric Garner in a chokehold, it should be plain and simple. This police officer clearly didn’t need to choke the man to death even if he had done things against the law before. The officer who put Eric Garner in a chokehold wasn’t even charged for doing so. He didn’t go to jail and he didn’t have to pay a dime. The taxpayers of New York are paying for this officer's crime(6). If a special prosecutor investigated his case he might be behind bars like he deserves. Too many police officers are avoiding charges for killing a civilian, they need to be tried fairly by a special prosecutor.
This issue with shootings committed by police officers and them not being charged even if what they did can’t be justified, is something that doesn’t fit into a successful democracy. This is giving police officers more power than what is needed to do their job. More officers need to be investigated fairly after they’ve killed a citizen. Without a fair investigation the police aren’t having their power limited and sharing power is very important to democracy. The checks and balances of power in government is one of the most important principles because without that a division of government can almost run the government. This consequence may only be a concern at the level of federal government, but power still shouldn’t be concentrated too much in one branch of government, even if the branch is as small as a city or state police officer. Special prosecutors will check to police’s power to ensure that their power isn’t abused. Therefore, special prosecutors are essential to investigate shooting that police officers have committed.
Works Cited:
(1) Rosen, Jeff. “The Role of Prosecutors in Officer-Involved Shootings.” The Role of
Prosecutors in Officer-Involved Shootings. January 2015. Web. 8 January 2016.
(2) “776 People Killed By Police So Far in 2015, 161 Of Them Unarmed.” MintPress News. 1
September 2015. Web. 8 January 2016.
(3) “Police Rarely Criminally Charged for On-Duty Shootings.” Wall Street Journal. Web. 8
January 2016.
(4) San Antonio, Bill. “County police unions endorse Murray for district attorney.” The Island
Now. Web. 8 January 2016.
(5) "Black Americans Killed by Police Twice as Likely to Be Unarmed as White People." The
Guardian. Web. 8 Jan. 2016.
(6) Lee, Jaeah. “Exclusive: The cop who choked Eric Garner to death won't have to pay a dime
in damages.” Mother Jones. 22 January 2015. Web. 8 January 2016.
(8) Contoro, Steve. “Are deaths from police shootings the highest in 20 years?.” Politifact.
Tampa Bay Times. 3 December 2014. Web. 8 January 2016.
(1) Rosen, Jeff. “The Role of Prosecutors in Officer-Involved Shootings.” The Role of
Prosecutors in Officer-Involved Shootings. January 2015. Web. 8 January 2016.
(2) “776 People Killed By Police So Far in 2015, 161 Of Them Unarmed.” MintPress News. 1
September 2015. Web. 8 January 2016.
(3) “Police Rarely Criminally Charged for On-Duty Shootings.” Wall Street Journal. Web. 8
January 2016.
(4) San Antonio, Bill. “County police unions endorse Murray for district attorney.” The Island
Now. Web. 8 January 2016.
(5) "Black Americans Killed by Police Twice as Likely to Be Unarmed as White People." The
Guardian. Web. 8 Jan. 2016.
(6) Lee, Jaeah. “Exclusive: The cop who choked Eric Garner to death won't have to pay a dime
in damages.” Mother Jones. 22 January 2015. Web. 8 January 2016.
(8) Contoro, Steve. “Are deaths from police shootings the highest in 20 years?.” Politifact.
Tampa Bay Times. 3 December 2014. Web. 8 January 2016.