First of all, this kind of thing happening on any scale is something to worry about. Second, considering that we know there are instances of it, we're faced wi

First of all, this kind of thing happening on any scale is something to worry about. Second, considering that we know there are instances of it, we're faced with a question. Which is more likely? 1. The officer(s) in question suddenly and for no discernible reason completely snapped and committed actions they knew were immoral and illegal and which they had been trained and conditioned by the culture of their department never to do under any circumstances, or 2. The officer(s) in question were trained and worked their entire careers in a culture in which abuse of authority was routine, accepted and unquestioned, to such a degree that they felt it was the natural course of things and that no significant consequences would fall on them. Time and again, investigation of corrupt and abusive police departments has turned up evidence for case (2) and not for case (1). We should be assuming case (2) unless and until we see significant evidence otherwise.