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Baltimore police were stealing drugs from Baltimore dealers and selling the stolen drugs to dealers in Philadelphia. Hard to believe actions like that were tak

Baltimore police were stealing drugs from Baltimore dealers and selling the stolen drugs to dealers in Philadelphia. Hard to believe actions like that were taking place in the U.S. Sounds like something straight out of a Narcos episode.

jdavis703 9y ago
This has been going on for decades, across the country. See also the Rampart Scandal [0] and the Allen v. City of Oakland [1] case in which cops in LA and Oakland respectively, robbed, beat kidnapped and otherwise victimized citizens. I hate to think what happens in small cities and towns where this stuff is even harder to report. 0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rampart_scandal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rampart_scandal 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_v._City_of_Oakland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_v._City_of_Oakland
- nkurz 9y ago
  I hate to think what happens in small cities and towns where this stuff is even harder to report. I'm not sure. I'm more familiar with the small town side of society, and I'd guess that it's much easier to hide this sort of behavior in a larger city. There's much less anonymity in a small town, and keeping this sort of behavior going would require "buy in" from the entire police force rather than just a nucleus of corrupt officers. So while the small town police force might be more likely to abuse civil forfeiture against out-of-town drivers, I'd be surprised if this level of corruption targeting residents would be possible in a smaller department.
  - dragontamer 9y ago
    A larger town / city has organized groups of lawyers who primarily exist to defend you from police abuses. To take Baltimore as an example: https://civilrights.baltimorecity.gov/civilian-review-board https://civilrights.baltimorecity.gov/civilian-review-board There is the civilian review board, paid for by city taxes, who do nothing but review cases of police abuse and take said officers to court. That's how stories like the parent story become widely known. So the question is: would you rather live in Baltimore, where these things are reported AND there are powers that can help you with these problems... or would you rather be in Small Town America where the Sheriff is the de-facto ruler and you ain't got nuthing against him? --------- Anyway, the main issue with Baltimore cops is that they're grossly underpaid. If they live 30 minutes away in a slightly richer area, they can get a higher-paycheck, AND get higher-respect from the community. Baltimore cops are in a tough spot right now. Morale is low, paychecks are low, and everyone sees them as villains (especially after "The Wire"). Why be a Baltimore cop when suburbia is safer, pays better, and earns more respect? As such, the cops who stay in Baltimore are usually the ones who can't leave for whatever reason. "Good Cops" go elsewhere, there's basically a "brain drain" on decent cops in Baltimore, and I'm unsure how the city is supposed to move forward.
    - nkurz 9y ago
      So the question is: would you rather live in Baltimore, where these things are reported AND there are powers that can help you with these problems... or would you rather be in Small Town America where the Sheriff is the de-facto ruler and you ain't got nuthing against him? Personally, I much prefer my chances in small town America. I'm currently living in the Bay Area, but planning to move to somewhere much smaller. I may be naive, but I have much less fear of systematic corruption of the authorities in smaller towns. Alternatively, as a white male, I may be correct in my personal assessment despite the non-universality of the answer. I'm not sure how one would go about definitively answering the question of whether the unreported cases of abuse in small towns are more prevalent than the reported plus unreported abuses in the larger cities. But I don't think it should involve "correcting" for the on-the-job differences between rural and city officers. Even if the brain drain and low morale help to explain why the remaining officers are more likely to be abusive, as a citizen I'd still probably be wise avoid those places and prefer locations with more content officers.
  - darpa_escapee 9y ago
    Being a cop in a small town means you can beat your wife, kids or others with impunity.
optimalsolver 9y ago
Or an episode of The Wire.
acchow 9y ago
Training Day
patmcc 9y ago
>>Hard to believe actions like that were taking place in the U.S. Is it? I'm a Canadian and everything I hear about the US police terrifies me - SWATing leading to innocent people being killed, unarmed black men being shot, no-knock warrants, civil forfeiture, the impossibility of convicting police for just about anything. If the worst thing they were doing was selling drugs that'd be an improvement as far as I can tell.
- leesalminen 9y ago
  Has anyone been charged with the false report of the scissors hijab attack?
  - schwap 9y ago
    No. What possible reason would they have for charging a child?
    - astebbin 9y ago
      To play devil’s advocate for a moment: children are often coached by parents in cases like this. Remember “balloon boy,” who hid in the garage per his dad’s instruction so the family could get their 15 minutes of fame? That said, kids like to make things up too, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what happened here.
      - cgag 9y ago
        Was it a hoax though? https://youtu.be/QWhUvm8SunY https://youtu.be/QWhUvm8SunY
        always_good 9y ago
        Wow, great vid. The follow up from Heene himself is pretty convincing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Axgyj7g5XZY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Axgyj7g5XZY
    - 9y ago
ransom1538 9y ago
Cases like these tend to involve narcotics officers. Since they work undercover, don't wear body cams, and don't checkin with their station as often as a beat cop. AND that is where the money is.
justonepost 9y ago
It’s actually the exact plot of the shield (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shield https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shield) which is based on a true story. So, not surprising.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
empath75 9y ago
It happens everywhere in the us. Don’t think Baltimore is an exception. The drug war has been a catastrophe.
jrs95 9y ago
How high up did this sort of thing go, though? It seems like in more corrupt places, this sort of thing basically goes all the way to the top and the entire department is engaged in this kind of activity. Whereas here we have small groups of individuals exploiting their position in this way and hiding it from people above them. Although, if it actually is basically the same, I guess it shouldn't be particularly surprising given that the conditions many are living in are pretty "third world".
dade_ 9y ago
Or The Wire...
BurningFrog 9y ago
> Hard to believe actions like that were taking place in the U.S. This is nothing new. These things get exposed quite frequently, and surely happen far more often. The reason you haven't heard about it is that just doesn't get widely reported when it happens.
King-Aaron 9y ago
> Hard to believe actions like that were taking place in the U.S. Interestingly, there's a globally-recognised phrase - "Only in America". This honestly seems like exactly the sort of corruption I'd expect to hear about in the US... There's just so much negative press about your government and police that a lot of people wouldn't expect it anywhere other than America.
- refurb 9y ago
  You need to stop listening to mass media so much. When I lived in Canada there were stories of police corruption, unwarranted beatings and racism. If you think this is an "only in America" issue you're being incredibly naive.
  - King-Aaron 9y ago
    I disagree - I don't watch any. However, it's a very widely-used phrase, which is what I'm commenting on. It means something is so ridiculous, it could only happen in America. It's like when you see people buying a rifle in Walmart - Only in America. Or when they're getting a one-gallon cup of Coke from McDonalds, or drive away from a fuel bowser with the hose still plugged in etc etc. These things can happen elsewhere, for sure, but it's an extremely well-known and common comment to make.
    - nathanasmith 9y ago
      >it could only happen in America is an extremely well-known and common comment to make. Why not? Everybody else is making it. Besides, it gives the commenter that oh so delicious smug sense of unearned superiority. Besides, everybody else is doing it. Except.. >It's like when you see people buying a rifle in Walmart - Only in America. People buy rifles in all kinds of stores all over the world so why would Walmart be any kind of exception? >Or when they're getting a one-gallon cup of Coke from McDonalds, This literally does not exist. >or drive away from a fuel bowser with the hose still plugged in People do this anywhere they are allowed to pump their own gas. FWIW in my 40 years, I've seen the aftermath of this exactly once. To respond to your other comment: >I disagree - I don't watch any [mass media]. This honestly seems like exactly the sort of corruption I'd expect to hear about in the US... Except according to the corruption perception index, the US is less corrupt than most European countries[0] including the likes of France, Portugal and Ireland, and far less corrupt than the vast majority of countries in the world. You claim to not be watching the media but you're getting your false information from somewhere so maybe turn that off too. [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_Perceptions_Index https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_Perceptions_Index

jdavis703 9y ago

This has been going on for decades, across the country. See also the Rampart Scandal [0] and the Allen v. City of Oakland [1] case in which cops in LA and Oakland respectively, robbed, beat kidnapped and otherwise victimized citizens. I hate to think what happens in small cities and towns where this stuff is even harder to report. 0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rampart_scandal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rampart_scandal 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_v._City_of_Oakland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_v._City_of_Oakland

nkurz 9y ago
I hate to think what happens in small cities and towns where this stuff is even harder to report. I'm not sure. I'm more familiar with the small town side of society, and I'd guess that it's much easier to hide this sort of behavior in a larger city. There's much less anonymity in a small town, and keeping this sort of behavior going would require "buy in" from the entire police force rather than just a nucleus of corrupt officers. So while the small town police force might be more likely to abuse civil forfeiture against out-of-town drivers, I'd be surprised if this level of corruption targeting residents would be possible in a smaller department.
- dragontamer 9y ago
  A larger town / city has organized groups of lawyers who primarily exist to defend you from police abuses. To take Baltimore as an example: https://civilrights.baltimorecity.gov/civilian-review-board https://civilrights.baltimorecity.gov/civilian-review-board There is the civilian review board, paid for by city taxes, who do nothing but review cases of police abuse and take said officers to court. That's how stories like the parent story become widely known. So the question is: would you rather live in Baltimore, where these things are reported AND there are powers that can help you with these problems... or would you rather be in Small Town America where the Sheriff is the de-facto ruler and you ain't got nuthing against him? --------- Anyway, the main issue with Baltimore cops is that they're grossly underpaid. If they live 30 minutes away in a slightly richer area, they can get a higher-paycheck, AND get higher-respect from the community. Baltimore cops are in a tough spot right now. Morale is low, paychecks are low, and everyone sees them as villains (especially after "The Wire"). Why be a Baltimore cop when suburbia is safer, pays better, and earns more respect? As such, the cops who stay in Baltimore are usually the ones who can't leave for whatever reason. "Good Cops" go elsewhere, there's basically a "brain drain" on decent cops in Baltimore, and I'm unsure how the city is supposed to move forward.
  - nkurz 9y ago
    So the question is: would you rather live in Baltimore, where these things are reported AND there are powers that can help you with these problems... or would you rather be in Small Town America where the Sheriff is the de-facto ruler and you ain't got nuthing against him? Personally, I much prefer my chances in small town America. I'm currently living in the Bay Area, but planning to move to somewhere much smaller. I may be naive, but I have much less fear of systematic corruption of the authorities in smaller towns. Alternatively, as a white male, I may be correct in my personal assessment despite the non-universality of the answer. I'm not sure how one would go about definitively answering the question of whether the unreported cases of abuse in small towns are more prevalent than the reported plus unreported abuses in the larger cities. But I don't think it should involve "correcting" for the on-the-job differences between rural and city officers. Even if the brain drain and low morale help to explain why the remaining officers are more likely to be abusive, as a citizen I'd still probably be wise avoid those places and prefer locations with more content officers.
- darpa_escapee 9y ago
  Being a cop in a small town means you can beat your wife, kids or others with impunity.

optimalsolver 9y ago

Or an episode of The Wire.

acchow 9y ago

Training Day

patmcc 9y ago

>>Hard to believe actions like that were taking place in the U.S. Is it? I'm a Canadian and everything I hear about the US police terrifies me - SWATing leading to innocent people being killed, unarmed black men being shot, no-knock warrants, civil forfeiture, the impossibility of convicting police for just about anything. If the worst thing they were doing was selling drugs that'd be an improvement as far as I can tell.

leesalminen 9y ago
Has anyone been charged with the false report of the scissors hijab attack?
- schwap 9y ago
  No. What possible reason would they have for charging a child?
  - astebbin 9y ago
    To play devil’s advocate for a moment: children are often coached by parents in cases like this. Remember “balloon boy,” who hid in the garage per his dad’s instruction so the family could get their 15 minutes of fame? That said, kids like to make things up too, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what happened here.
    - cgag 9y ago
      Was it a hoax though? https://youtu.be/QWhUvm8SunY https://youtu.be/QWhUvm8SunY
      - always_good 9y ago
        Wow, great vid. The follow up from Heene himself is pretty convincing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Axgyj7g5XZY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Axgyj7g5XZY
  - 9y ago

ransom1538 9y ago

Cases like these tend to involve narcotics officers. Since they work undercover, don't wear body cams, and don't checkin with their station as often as a beat cop. AND that is where the money is.

justonepost 9y ago

It’s actually the exact plot of the shield (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shield https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shield) which is based on a true story. So, not surprising.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

empath75 9y ago

It happens everywhere in the us. Don’t think Baltimore is an exception. The drug war has been a catastrophe.

jrs95 9y ago

How high up did this sort of thing go, though? It seems like in more corrupt places, this sort of thing basically goes all the way to the top and the entire department is engaged in this kind of activity. Whereas here we have small groups of individuals exploiting their position in this way and hiding it from people above them. Although, if it actually is basically the same, I guess it shouldn't be particularly surprising given that the conditions many are living in are pretty "third world".

dade_ 9y ago

Or The Wire...

BurningFrog 9y ago

> Hard to believe actions like that were taking place in the U.S. This is nothing new. These things get exposed quite frequently, and surely happen far more often. The reason you haven't heard about it is that just doesn't get widely reported when it happens.

King-Aaron 9y ago

> Hard to believe actions like that were taking place in the U.S. Interestingly, there's a globally-recognised phrase - "Only in America". This honestly seems like exactly the sort of corruption I'd expect to hear about in the US... There's just so much negative press about your government and police that a lot of people wouldn't expect it anywhere other than America.

refurb 9y ago
You need to stop listening to mass media so much. When I lived in Canada there were stories of police corruption, unwarranted beatings and racism. If you think this is an "only in America" issue you're being incredibly naive.
- King-Aaron 9y ago
  I disagree - I don't watch any. However, it's a very widely-used phrase, which is what I'm commenting on. It means something is so ridiculous, it could only happen in America. It's like when you see people buying a rifle in Walmart - Only in America. Or when they're getting a one-gallon cup of Coke from McDonalds, or drive away from a fuel bowser with the hose still plugged in etc etc. These things can happen elsewhere, for sure, but it's an extremely well-known and common comment to make.
  - nathanasmith 9y ago
    >it could only happen in America is an extremely well-known and common comment to make. Why not? Everybody else is making it. Besides, it gives the commenter that oh so delicious smug sense of unearned superiority. Besides, everybody else is doing it. Except.. >It's like when you see people buying a rifle in Walmart - Only in America. People buy rifles in all kinds of stores all over the world so why would Walmart be any kind of exception? >Or when they're getting a one-gallon cup of Coke from McDonalds, This literally does not exist. >or drive away from a fuel bowser with the hose still plugged in People do this anywhere they are allowed to pump their own gas. FWIW in my 40 years, I've seen the aftermath of this exactly once. To respond to your other comment: >I disagree - I don't watch any [mass media]. This honestly seems like exactly the sort of corruption I'd expect to hear about in the US... Except according to the corruption perception index, the US is less corrupt than most European countries[0] including the likes of France, Portugal and Ireland, and far less corrupt than the vast majority of countries in the world. You claim to not be watching the media but you're getting your false information from somewhere so maybe turn that off too. [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_Perceptions_Index https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_Perceptions_Index