Cops Still Lie

The New York Times published an op-ed by Michelle Alexander, author of "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness,” entitled Why Cops Lie.  The Times has touched this subject numerous times, as have I, even bringing the term testilying to the public.

Ordinarily, I wouldn't post about something unless I can add some value to it, but this op-ed is so good on its own that despite my inability to add anything worthwhile, I feel compelled to spread the word as far as possible. This is the conclusion:

The natural tendency to lie makes quota systems and financial incentives that reward the police for the sheer numbers of people stopped, frisked or arrested especially dangerous. One lie can destroy a life, resulting in the loss of employment, a prison term and relegation to permanent second-class status. The fact that our legal system has become so tolerant of police lying indicates how corrupted our criminal justice system has become by declarations of war, “get tough” mantras, and a seemingly insatiable appetite for locking up and locking out the poorest and darkest among us.

And, no, I’m not crazy for thinking so.

Read how she got there.  And, no, Michelle, you are most assuredly not crazy for thinking so. 

It's necessary that this reality continue to be pounded into the minds of a denying public until either the practice stops or people realize that this is how the system works.

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Source: http://blog.simplejustice.us/2013/02/03/cops-still-lie.aspx?ref=rss

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