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Either the police officer acted stupidly in arresting Mr. Gates, or he didn't.
It seems to me that a man's home is his castle, and that a man should have the right to disorderly conduct within the confines of his own home. Hell, he should be allowed to dance the Macarena in the nude, if he so chooses.
In any case, the prosecuting attorney dropped the charges. Either the police officer acted stupidly, in malfeasance of duty, or else the prosecuting attorney is guilty of nonfeasance of duty.
Mr. Obama thinks that the whole thing can be settled over a beer. I'm not satisfied with that outcome. Somebody ought to appear before a judge and be ordered to pay a fine.
It need not be a big fine. I'd be happy with a $5 fine. But a judge needs to decide who was in the wrong. I tend to think it was the cop, but as long as a judge is presented with all the facts, and he renders a judgment, I'll go with whatever he says.
Other Bloggers On Related Topics:
acted stupidly - Cambridge Mass - Henry Louis Gates - police
Comments
five dollar fine
I think the prosecuting attorney came the closest of all involved in making the 'right', (maybe I should say correct), decision. Since we will never have 'all' the facts, no judge will ever be able to render the decision as to who was wrong. Besides, I don't think even a judge would be allowed to fine everybody who acted unwisely here, they all did to some degree. While this whole thing may not be a 'true tempest in a teapot', trying to decide who was in the wrong, without deciding they all were, is a waste of time.
Yes, this does bring out issues that need to be addressed; but, they needed to be addressed before this incident too. With what little I know about the incident, one can easily see racial issues, authoritarian issues, nosy neighbor issues, and a certain amount of 'I know I'm right, so I can act stupidly' issues. Since a judge probably is not allowed to fine all who were involved, this would include those who 'have made hay' with this incident, what better remedy than sweep this particular incident under the rug. Then, the bigger issues can be more openly discussed, rather than trying to make this some kind of 'defining case'.
I caught part of Lawrence
I caught part of Lawrence O'Donnell on TV last night. If O'Donnell is correct regarding MA law and what is in the police report , the cop is in the wrong and his report proves it.
O'Donnell claims that, according to his report, the officer says he arrested Gates because he was yelling. According to O'Donnell, yelling does not constitute "disorderly conduct" in MA.
I also disgusted with the incorrect information floating around about the person who reported the incident to the police.
Gates may be a pompous ass (I have no idea) ; he may have overreacted (I don't know how the cop approached him). However, he did show his ID which proved he lived in the house and that should have been the end of it. Unfortunately for the cop, he pulled his "I am the law" attitude on a prominent member of the community instead of some regular Joe.