Maybe we need a law making it a crime to illegally violate somebody's rights. Throw a couple of cops in prison for stunts like this, and we'd probably see a lot less abuse.
Otherwise upstanding policemen are being pushing into violating the law by their superiors. Make it a crime, and the police unions would help make these problems go away.
>Throw a couple of cops in prison for stunts like this, and we'd probably see a lot less abuse.
I think you'd see a variety of political arguments against this that would amount to such an action helping terrorism, those supporting it are trying to undermine America's security, or that placing the fear of prison over an officer's actions amongst the force would prevent them from doing their job properly.
>Otherwise upstanding policemen are being pushing into violating the law by their superiors
They already are in many ways. There were leaks from the NYPD where the officers involved exposed that they were subject to mandatory stop-and-frisk quotas and that racial profiling was highly used in doing so. Likewise, drug busts provide huge income to local police forces [1]. There is therefore an incentive to bend the law because it brings their force income, getting these busts looks good on an officer's record and having a cash flush precinct means there won't be any holding back on giving out overtime.
That's a cop out. In my city, the police have a specific list of things that they are and are not allowed to do with certain populations. Following those rules is difficult, because it means that they cannot intervene in many cases without following a particular protocol.
Police organizations are command & control organizations. Policemen follow orders. Give them a strong message and something to comply with, and they will do so.
The scary thing about recent developments with Federal law enforcement is that the command culture is accepting or demanding certain behavior. The ATF "Fast and Furious" debacle, various border issues, the DEA and FBI's construction of cases from illegally gathered information isn't a bunch of rogue agents -- it is leadership acting in contempt of the law.
If you hold the officers accountable, they will push back.
Otherwise upstanding policemen are being pushing into violating the law by their superiors. Make it a crime, and the police unions would help make these problems go away.