Don’t dare “speed” – or run your car with a headlight burned out. The “highest court in the land” has ruled it’s a capital offense.
That’s right. Summary roadside execution by cop – who has been anointed judge, jury and executioner.
At least, for all practical purposes.
Here’s the skinny:
About a month ago, The Unelected Nine who get to decree what is – and isn’t – “legal” (and that’s that) “ruled” (a most appropriate term) that if a motorist flees from a cop, the cops may legally execute him. (News story here.)
Oh, it’s not put in such baldfaced and honest English. Remember, we’re dealing with lawyers – the worst sort, too. Trained in parsing and pettifoggery; masters of ukase.
The “case” at issue was Plumhoff vs. Rickard.
Back in ’04, a Memphis cop named Vance Plumhoff tried to pull over a white Honda driven by the now-deceased (via-Plumhoff) Rickard for the egregious offense of driving with one headlight out. Rickard attempted to flee – a not unreasonable act these days, given forced enemas and anal probes (also ruled “constitutional” by The Nine), planting of “drugs” and trumping up of evidence, wood shampoos, Tazerings and much worse besides.
A chase ensued. Eventually, Rickard’s car was cornered – and even though all that had transpired thus far was some illegal “speeding” (by both parties, it’s important to point out), when Rickard “refused to surrender” Plumhoff fired a gun at him three times.
This somehow frightened Rickard, who for weird, unfathomable reasons probably imagined his life to be in danger. Prodded by an even stronger surge of Fear, he hit the gas and attempted to get away – whereupon Plumhoff emptied his semi-automatic pistol’s magazine (12 more shots) into the bodies of both Rickard and his passenger, both of whom were thus rendered immediately “compliant” and very dead. Of a piece with the summary execution of Miriam Carey, who was gunned down in living color (and with her baby – perhaps Obama’s baby? – in the passenger seat) just a hop skip and a jump away from the den of the Nine. 
Postmortem, Rickard’s daughter sued Scharfuhrer (sergeant) Plumhoff for using excessive force (ya think?) and the The Nine “ruled” not so. Scharfuhrer Plumhoff acted “reasonably.”
Herewith the “reasoning” of Spokesmen of The Nine, America’s very own Roland Freisler, Samuel Alito:
“It is beyond serious dispute that Rickard’s flight posed a grave public safety risk, and here the police acted reasonably in using deadly force to end that risk.”
(Italics added.)
Now, that may indeed seem “reasonable” – until you parse it some.
What constitutes a “grave public safety risk”? Pretty much whatever the cop says – no, believes – it is.
Remember, we live in the Era of Officer Safety. Anything much more than a light breath (or surly comment) directed a cop’s way constitutes – in their minds – a “threat” to their “safety.” More like a challenge to their authority – which is the real issue we’re dealing with.
And the true reason behind the increasingly common lethal responses to such challenges.
In this case, no one was harmed. Except for Rickard, who was murdered. According to Alito, et al, the possibility (however theoretical) that “someone” – not an actual person (unless it’s a cop) – might have gotten hurt constitutes sufficient justification to kill the non-uniformed.
That’s reading between the legalese.
I’m being a tad hysterical? No cop – no court – would ever trot out such an unreasonable interpretation? Allow me to trot out, in reply, that in my own state of Virginia (and several others) it is “reckless” driving – by definition, under the law – to drive a mere 80 MPH. Even when the posted limit is 70, as it is on many Virginia highways.
It is entirely at the cop’s discretion, but legally-speaking, he can tag anyone who is caught doing 80 or more with the “reckless” driving thing. Even though it’s palpably ridiculous and more than a little unfair. The hapless victim faces the possibility of immediate arrest and caging (at the cop’s discretion) and the certainty of a mandatory court appearance at which he will be all but tarred-and-feathered if he didn’t bring along (and pay exorbitantly for) another lawyer to quibble with the lawyers predatorily opposing him (i.e., the prosecutor and judge). In my state, a “reckless” driving conviction entails six DMV demerit points and huge fines as well as the strong likelihood of several months’ suspension of permission to drive on the King’s Highways, along with the absolute certainty of being bled white for years by the insurance mafia, whose “policies” one is obliged to purchase – or else.
The costs associated with “reckless” driving – almost any traffic charge, these days – not to mention the very real threat to our “safety” posed by the praetorians – makes it tempting to hit the gas and make for the next exit ramp, then hide in the bushes or something. Only now – per Alito & co. – you have “escalated” the situation and constitute a “grave public safety risk.”
Open season!
Of course, it is never considered (well, by the courts) a “grave public safety risk” for the state’s praetorians to let loose a fusillade of gunfire in public. Apparently, it is impossible for anyone to be accidentally shot as a result. The state’s praetorians always hit what they’re shooting at. Right? And – what the hell – if they do hit someone, it’s ok . . . so long as the someone is merely another mundane. Like Rickard’s hapless passenger, for instance. She bought the ticket – and took the ride.
Judge Dredd is no longer a comic book character. His signature line – “I am the law!” – is now our officially approved reality.
Throw it in the Woods?
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My favorite part of all this? The “few bad apples” argument. Of course if there were in fact any good cops we would be able to hear them loud and clear when they objected to the pussification of their departments with these aberrant girly psychos who are so frightened in the line of duty that they draw down on kittens (North Ridgeville, Ohio) and demanded the firing and felony prosecution of these brave public servants. Do you hear anything of the sort? I never have. Where are all these good apples who can scarcely bear the shame and mortification of having as co-workers thugs, liars, cretins, and murderers? Anyone? Anyone?
Dear Paula,
“The “few bad apples” argument… Where are all these good apples who can scarcely bear the shame and mortification of having as co-workers thugs, liars, cretins, and murderers? ”
Absolutely right!
The reality is the not “a few bad apples.” The reality is “a few good apples — if any.”
The few good apples are so few, so rare, that when they blow the whistle on the many bad apples, they get marked for death.
If they survive attempts by the many bad apples to whack him, they become historic figures like Frank Serpico of the NYPD.
Frank Serpico was the first police officer in the history of the New York City Police Department to step forward to report and subsequently testify openly about widespread, systemic corruption payoffs amounting to millions of dollars.[8]
Frank Serpico retired on June 15, 1972, one month after receiving the New York City Police Department’s highest honor, the Medal of Honor. There was no ceremony; according to Serpico, it was simply handed to him over the desk “like a pack of cigarettes”.[9]
Among police officers, his actions are still controversial,[13]
Just wait until more departments have “surplus” military equipment. A local department recently received an armored personal carrier. What they would use it for, I see no legitimate need for it. I know departments around the country are receiving military equipment like it.
So instead of selling it to a military hardware collector (or a scrap yard) to recover some of our tax dollars from it, they give it to a police department to do god knows what with it. Just fueling it will cost taxpayers a fortune.
Even out here in The Woods – in my rural one stop-light town – they got a “Homeland Security Grant” – and Hut! Hut! Hut! equipment to better deal with “the enemies of freedom.”
That’s us, of course.
Once you pull over for a cop, you give away your rights to be left in peace if you’re not immediately endangering someone.
In this case though, the cop didn’t bother trying to shoot out the tyres with his remaining rounds. I wonder if that was actually argued in court. They can’t get any money out of the guy now.
That case should be appealed and overturned, as a last resort is to take anyone’s life.
Down here in Oz, it’s nowhere near that bad yet, but it’s always best to say passively to the cop:
“I don’t consent to anything you say, especially as there’s no victim you can produce excepting myself and my rights. This will likely end with you drawing your weapon for no life threatening reason. Oh.. and you’re being recorded.”
Then get back in your car and decide either to wait or drive away.
Depends on the cop, but I only drove away once so far. Feck I was so angry and I bet he could sense it through my clenched teeth. He didn’t follow, but a week later the fine did in their usual unmarked envelope. So I sent it back unopened, in my usual manner – return to sender, please remove from mailing list.
These stories are why I’m not sad in the least when I hear about a cop getting killed. They’ve dealt so much death to innocent people in the name of “the law”, that it’s nice to know God balances things out a little bit.
edit:
A chase ensued. Eventually, Rickard’s car was cornered – and even though all that had transpired thus far was some illegal “speeding” (by both parties, it’s important to point out), when Rickard “refused to surrender” Plumhoff fired a gun at him three
trims.trims.edit:
It is entirely at the cop’s discretion, but legally-speaking, he can tag anyone who is caught doing 80 or more with the “reckless” driving thing. Even though it’s palpably ridiculous and more than a little unfair. The hapless victim faces the possibility [of] immediate arrest and caging (at the cop’s discretion) and the certainty of a mandatory court appearance at which he will be all but tarred-and-feathered if he didn’t bring along (and pay exorbitantly for) another lawyer to quibble with the lawyers predatorily opposing him (i.e., the prosecutor and judge). [could use paragraph break here]
In my state, a “reckless” driving conviction entails six DMV demerit points and huge fines as well as the strong likelihood of several months’ suspension of permission to drive on the King’[s] Highways, along with the certainty of being bled white for years by the insurance mafia, whose “policies” one is obliged to purchase – or else.
—– my response —–
Welcome to life under non-market conditions. Ready to learn how to live using only free market solutions yet?
Ready for self-ownership, and for getting what you pay(exchange value) for?
Weary of getting whatever they want to give you? However good and hard they feel like giving it to you?
“The state reserves the right to kill you because of an overdue library book.”
-Lew Rockwell.
A few weeks ago I visited a nearby national park, and got the 3rd degree from the gatekeeper because my papers weren’t to his liking. I mentioned this to someone in idle chit-chat. Turns out this person I was taking to was formerly a US Marshal. He relayed the story of how he extradited someone from Washington state to Wyoming for trial. Free flight on ConAir and everything. The charge? Fishing (in a national park or BLM land, don’t recall which), in a lore-only pond with worms. $350 later the defendant asked how he was going to get back to WA. The judge told him that wasn’t the state’s problem and sent him on his way. If you’ve ever been to Wyoming, you’ll know that it’s not as simple as hailing a cab to the airport to leave the place, even in Cheyenne.
Glad you got away from Mr. Marshal without any battle scars yourself…
Too bad Mr. Marshal has no conscience, you could’ve avoided the whole conversation, and the world would be a better place from one fewer marshal Enforcer.
Exactly. Had I known who’s side he was on I never would have brought it up. He thought the whole story was hilarious. I couldn’t get away fast enough.
Its crap like that which makes me hang my head in shame because of the agency my sibling is employed in. Lets just say the acronym matches that of the former German special police.
Eric – I think maybe it’s time for some run flat tires on the Zed and new and improved “street armor” inserts in my riding jackets. Maybe a Kevlar helmet with bullet proof visor? Better yet, now that all bets are off just pull over like a good little sheep and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQbHnLSasfQ
The Supreme Court includes judges “favorable to absorption by Great Britain” (Congressional Record, August 19, 1940, entry by Montana Congressman Jacob Thorkelson). Over the years Supreme Court justices have included members of the following dubious organizations—Masonic Lodge—Skull & Bones Society of Yale—Rhodes Scholars—and by far the worst—Pilgrims of United States (the source of 95% of our national troubles). Sandra Day O’ Connor and William Rehnquist were Pilgrims Society members. Very likely there’s one on the court at this time however, the Society does not release rosters into public view, and leaked lists are very tough to come by. Your website form is not working. http://www.silverstealers.net
Hi Charles,
Hey, could you provide some details regarding: “Your website form is not working. ”
How so?
red white and blue used to be the colors of freedom. Now they are the colors of the lights of the cop pulling you over
Hi Joe,
That’s a great line; mind if I borrow it sometime?
Yeah man, I believe a comedian (don’t know who) said that. Its bad out here in CA too. A while ago I went to my son’s school for an award thing and there was a chp at an intersection parked. I kinda rolled the stop sign as I didn’t see him until it was too late. Luckily we are rural here and we all know each other so he didn’t harass me. But at the award thing he came in and took the mike and told the crowd about how they were going to be patrolling the school area more, speeding, stopping, blah blah. The worst part? (get ready to vomit) the crowd applauded him when he finished!! God help us.
Dear jjb,
Eric is going to borrow.
I’m going to steal it outright!
PS: “That’s a bingo!”
From TFA: “The chase reached 100 miles per hour”.
Why is 100mph special? It’s 161kph, not so special now. What if the chase only reached 99mph would that make it different? Such cloveric nonsense. Cops drive a 100, 120mph just because they can do so without punishment.
On another note…
The police in this country have officially adopted the mentality of ‘look what you made me do’. This is how the hired help justifies what they do. They transfer the responsibility to the victim. If the victim didn’t do X then the cop wouldn’t do Y. And there’s no limit to this. The X keeps becoming lesser and lesser things. But the bulk of the compliant population just goes along with it, because it won’t happen to them. Just submit and obey and nothing bad will happen. Except submitting and obeying, being what that entails. Use the word of your choice, but the one word it isn’t, is free.
If you look in the literature for “battered women” (And men, and children) – those EXACT words will be found. “Look what you made me do!”
Yet whenever we turn it around, it’s used against US.
So, break in the door at 3:30 AM, flash-bangs, 1 million candle flashlights all over the place, maybe shooting (esp. if family has a dog) – if we respond by shooting, which strikes me as what ANY RATIONAL HUMAN would do when faced with an attacking army? It’s no defense, “LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO! (You didn’t ID as cops, you just blew up my world and expected me to roll over and pee myself.)”
OTOH, for THEM? “You walked away from me, so I tazered you. LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO! (Now I need to fill out paperwork, and take a paid staycation on a desk.)” Or, “You hit me when I grabbed you from behind! YOU assaulted ME! So I DEFENDED MYSELF against your UNREASONABLE assault and broke your bones, then pepper sprayed you until I ruptured your eyeball! LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO! (Roll paperwork and staycation again.)”
We are guilty no matter what we do, and I just read and believe I posted about the portabler backscatter XRay devices ready to be deployed… (http://www.thedailysheeple.com/a-room-with-a-view_062014 and follow the link to http://thedailycoin.org/).
I’d rather go down killing them than die on my knees. Might be a bit passive – I don’t have guns, so I need to get close first; a knife in the neck or the back is effective…
@Brentp & Jean, I think you have it nailed.
Americans as a group now have learned behavior “battered wife syndrome.” And the black robed ones are the marriage counselors.
What happened when battered wife Lorena Bobbit had enough?
John Wayne Bobbitt and Lorena Bobbitt were an American couple, married on June 18, 1989, whose abusive relationship gained worldwide notoriety for an incident in 1993 when she severed his penis with a knife.
BRENT, “The police in this country have officially adopted the mentality of ‘look what you made me do’. This is how the hired help justifies what they do. They transfer the responsibility to the victim.”
I remember reading years ago that Himmler would attend cocktail parties and would garner sympathy amongst the guests by using this same argument: “I bear the horrible burden of having to make such hard decisions. If only people would submit to our grand plan none of this would be necessary.”
Dear SB,
‘look what you made me do’
Funny, because that is exactly what many psychopaths in film and TV depictions of serial killers say when their victims refuse to “cooperate.”
Eric:
“And – what the hell – if they do hit someone, it’s ok . . . so long as the someone is merely another mundane. “
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/05/nyregion/unarmed-man-is-charged-with-wounding-bystanders-shot-by-police-near-times-square.html
If the police shoot at you, and hit someone else – EVEN IF YOU ARE UNARMED – it’s YOUR fault, and YOU will be charged.
I knwo people don’t like me saying this sort of thing, but: THE REVOLUTION CAN’T HAPPEN SOON ENOUGH.
And to be honest, I have no certainty I’ll survive, but it can’t get worse with open warfare. They’ll just piss off more people who were in the Clover camp previously… Wake up more people.
Won’t be a “peaceful” thing, though, like Russia was (note the quotes around “peaceful.”)
But can’t really get worse… The home of the Revolution, and you almost need to bend over and spread ’em just to get on the T (subway). WTF?
And the pace is accelerating….
Also for review: http://www.thedailysheeple.com/the-u-s-supreme-court-is-marching-in-lockstep-with-the-police-state_062014
I mis-spoke on this:
“I have no certainty I’ll survive,”
More like, I’m fairly certain I WON’T survive. Just so we’re clear…
The essence of revolution is centralized power. Engels knew this early, and reminded us of it for years. There is nothing more centralizing than a revolution. Every revolution in history has moved towards the centralization of power, including the American Revolution.
Gary North – Why There Will Be No Revolution
Further proof:
http://www.thedailysheeple.com/a-room-with-a-view_062014
Portable backscatter XRay devices. We’ll be scanned in real time, ALL the time.
I’m ready to get on board with Agenda 21. Animals like our fellow shitizens (not people) don’t deserve to live. Like cows being milked, they’re perfectly fine shoving their head into the locking trough on promise of “food” (Not even food for cows) and having machines hooked to their udders, rectum, et alia… And they just moo complacently….
Be a better world without them.