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So, Montreal police getting egg on their face. They arrested a guy, but they also beat him when he was facing down on the ground before they got to him. The whole thing is on security camera footage. Link with video to see for yourself: http://montreal.ctvnews.ca/brutal-trois-rivieres-arrest-caught-on-surveillance-video-1.1167510

There is no defense to this IMO. He was ON THE GROUND face down before they even approached. I hope they all get fired, as well as charged with assault.

That being said, there will be another mis-carriage of justice IMO here: he'll get off his original crime. That's something I've never understood in criminal justice: just because your rights were violated with illegal search, brutal arrest, etc, why does that excuse your crimes? You still did it. Prosecute more people, not just different people.

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Eriol said:

That being said, there will be another mis-carriage of justice IMO here: he'll get off his original crime. That's something I've never understood in criminal justice: just because your rights were violated with illegal search, brutal arrest, etc, why does that excuse your crimes? You still did it. Prosecute more people, not just different people.

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They do this to discourage police departments from breaking the law to apprehend a criminal. Otherwise, an officer may be encouraged to apprehend a criminal in a non legal fashion and face some (undoubtedly light) consequences, but the police still get what they want.

I'm sure he was a threat while he was face-down on the ground. You know.

Just imagine, if these police didn't have such small egos and god complexes, a freaking armed robber WOULD DO HIS TIME! Personality screening my ass.

Not to defend the cops' actions, but they have a tough job. People are out to hurt/kill them frequently. Perhaps we don't know what led up to this incident. Sometimes, some jackasses deserve a beat-down, IMO.

drawn_inward said:

Not to defend the cops' actions, but they have a tough job. People are out to hurt/kill them frequently. Perhaps we don't know what led up to this incident. Sometimes, some jackasses deserve a beat-down, IMO.

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So not to defend the actions of the cops but they were probably completely justified in a no holds barred beatdown of an unresisting man?

drawn_inward said:

Not to defend the cops' actions, but they have a tough job. People are out to hurt/kill them frequently. Perhaps we don't know what led up to this incident. Sometimes, some jackasses deserve a beat-down, IMO.

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While I understand what you're saying, I can't think of anything that would justify assaulting a suspect already lying on the ground. While the police officers in question may have been provoked in some fashion, their job demands they rise above that and uphold the law. It's a major part of being a peace keeper. So I can't give these guys a pass.

Tress said:

While I understand what you're saying, I can't think of anything that would justify assaulting a suspect already lying on the ground. While the police officers in question may have been provoked in some fashion, their job demands they rise above that and uphold the law. It's a major part of being a peace keeper. So I can't give these guys a pass.

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I certainly wouldn't give them a pass. I just don't care for the vilification of cops. I'm not saying that's what you or anyone else is doing in the thread. My dad was a cop, and I have friends that are/were cops. It's not a job that I would ever want to do. I know cops aren't supposed to be like Judge Dredd, but one should know that it's a bad idea to run from the cops or pick a fight with one.

I don't vilify cops (I think my posting history proves that, unlike Charlie's) but this was beyond egregious. This wasn't a struggle, it wasn't a confrontation. The guy was face-down, spread-out with his hands and arms all the way out (not one of those "one arm under him with a weapon" type that is possible), and the first thing the cop does coming up to him is kick him in the gut, and then a lot more beating afterward with the other 3. The video is in the link, and it's beyond clear.

I'm vilifying THESE cops, not all. Most I actually think are really good, it's these ones who need to be thrown in prison. The dual tragedy here IMO is that it'll be "oh poor armed robber" and such, and that these 4 will be put up that all cops are bad. I don't think that at all, and the cops in Canada (at least most of them) generally have a pretty good reputation. I weep for all the extra suspicion this will put on good people. About the only good thing to come out of it is that 4 bad cops will never get to do it again (hopefully).

Those cops need to burn. Their betrayal of the public trust is unforgivable.

As usual, my only response is, "Ugh"