Failed On Too Many Levels

Status
Not open for further replies.
The first that I ever heard of survivors guilt (long before we ever heard of
PTSD...) was when I read The Onion Field by Joseph Wambaugh. It was an account of a true story about two young officers taken at gunpoint. One was killed- the other fled and survived.

Very bad things happened to the one that survived...

This is a different situation entirely but the outcome for the officer that failed his duty that day at Parkland (no matter how these current charges shake out...) isn’t likely be anything to look forward to at all. I’ll be very interested to see whether their union supports the accused....
 
For those of you writing about police duty to protect, that came from a Supreme Court decision interpreting a federal civil rights statute, DeShaney v. Winnebago Cty. This was a tort suit that dealt with alleged violation of civil rights by a government "under color of authority" under 42 U.S. 1983. The Court of Appeals decision was dealing with D.C. and its police department which is not precedent for state actions in Florida.

Florida may have state laws that apply liability including criminal charges that do not have to follow this std. as states are allowed to impose more liability and/or criminal actions than required by this federal statute. Caselaw regarding qualified immunity for leos might be different in FL for all I know as well.
 
I'm not going to re-hash stuff I've spoken about previously - but simply add to it that on the day in question... there was a single officer assigned to Parkland - and that usually "school resource officers" are hardly fit young officers dying for an opportunity to prove themselves. Instead the kind of officers chosen for that type of assignment are the least pro-active types on any agency (serious understatement...) and usually the type of officer that's just marking time towards the end of an un-distinguished career.

Meh, I think the charges are appropriate. This sounds like the outset of the first Gulf War when some of the 'soldiers' blubbered that they didn't join the Army to fight, they wanted GI Bill money for college! You shouldn't make us go to fight! That is what armies exist for, to fight wars and kill the enemy. If a guy just wants to milk the clock and suck at the government teat until he can get a full pension, s/he must accept the possibility that there's a chance, however remote, that one will be expected to do their job. They must also accept that abrogation of their responsibility may carry consequences.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top