in los angeles, a dystopian convergence occurred. the police department became the “thought” and “no thought” police all at once.
the lapd issued a “community alert” which provided that “if you are being robbed, do not resist the robbery suspects; cooperate and comply with their demands. be a good witness.”
the orwellian “area safety bulletin” was a community alert notification due increased area violent street robberies. should the alert been entitled “area danger bulletin?”
the los angeles police department gave true but foolish advice. they are announcing to criminals that the lapd is on their side and they are going to make their lives easier. their friend, the lapd, had told the residents to “cooperate and comply” with robber’s demands.
the ramifications of this suggestion is horrifying. criminals, if they have cooperation and compliance from their victims, will now think start adding more “demands.” this bulletin is aligned with the limiting of shoplifting prosecutions and arrests under a certain dollar amount. it simply encouraged more shoplifting, more brazen shoplifting, and organized crime.
thus, while the advice given may be common sense, it is simply not something that the police department should in an official capacity “instruct” individuals to do. the department is essentially green lighting criminal conduct. worse, in my opinion, they are now co-conspirators to the crime.
sadly, the area safety bulletin, did not alert the public of a true danger in their area, their county district attorney. he is viewed by many as pro-criminal. his prosecution record is both disgraceful and controversial.
victim cooperation, thus, will undoubtedly led to either no or lighter sentencing should they get caught. played out, criminal defense attorneys in these robbery cases, can claim either innocence or leniency. “hell, i just came up to them and they just gave me the stuff” could be a winning statement. thus, an attorney could argue that, in fact, there was no crime or that it was de minimus in nature.
in sum, a los angeles residents are now caught up in a kafkaesque scenario. the police department, district attorney, and criminals are now all acting in concert to deprive them of their life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.
in sum, criminals weigh the risks when they decide to commit a crime. at a recent seminar i attended, a retired county sheriff, on the issue of the “three strikes” law, commented that career criminals possessed far more knowledge than him as to whether a particular crime would place them in jeopardy. as a result, they altered their conduct. the lapd’s bulletin does the exact opposite. it encourages crime and offers criminal’s comfort.
be well!!
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