When Cops Rape ... and Nothing Happens

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/when-cops-rape-and-nothing-happens



When 20-year-old Sarah Smith got into an accident with a motorcyclist in 2008, it was nothing but bad news—she was driving with a suspended license. It got worse. When police showed up, officer Adam Skweres took Smith aside and implied that he could either make it look like the accident was her fault or give the other party a ticket. It depended on whether she’d agree to perform unspecified sexual favors. Skweres also threatened that if she told anyone, he’d “make sure you never walk, talk, or speak again,” and looked at his gun. That scared her enough that she immediately reported what he’d done to the police, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Another four years passed before the department arrested Skweres and suspended him without pay, and then only because he tried to rape a woman while on duty. By that time, Smith had moved out of the city for fear of running into him again. Three other women told stories similar to Smith’s, and on March 11 Skewers pleaded guilty to bribery, indecent assault, and other charges.

Stories of cops propositioning, harassing, and sexually assaulting women turn up every week around the country. February 18 saw the arrest of Houston officer Victor Chris for allegedly telling two women he would tear up their traffic tickets in exchange for sexual favors, according to the Houston Chronicle. Police chargedSergio Alvarez, an officer from West Sacramento, California, on February 25 with allegedly kidnapping and raping six women while on duty. On March 1, Denver cop Hector Paez got eight years in prison for driving a woman he’d arrested to a secluded spot and forcing her to perform oral sex.

“Police sexual misconduct is common, and anyone who maintains it isn’t doesn’t get it,” says retired Seattle police chief Norm Stamper, author of the book Breaking Rank.

[Heidi]

1. Kick!

And mornin', sunshine!

[xchrom]

2. good morning, Dah-ling

[Heidi]

4. Miss Sharon certainly looks fetching this morning, doesn't she?

The finger waves are to die for!

[xchrom]

5. love her! -- and she looks fab

in that pic

[Laelth]

3. Sadly, this kind of vile behavior is quite common. k&r for exposure. n/t

-Laelth

[Heidi]

6. I'm stunned that the "It's just a few bad apples" crowd isn't here yet.

I believe the police in general could drum these "rogue" cops out easily and early -- if they really wanted to.

[Laelth]

7. As an attorney, I am aware of a good number of these kinds of events.

As you can imagine, the victims rarely report these incidents. They sometimes have warrants for their arrest that make them fear reporting. They also fear retaliation and usually lack the ability to up and move in order to escape retaliation. Cops often do this kind of thing when they're alone in their patrol cars (and the smart ones don't brag to their peers about it), so it's hard for the good cops (sometimes) to identify the bad ones. Even once identified, cops tend to be very loyal to other cops. Good cops rightly fear retaliation from their peers for reporting such incidents.

It's a very complicated problem, and there is no easy solution, but I think awareness is the first step. Thus my k&r. I'd also like to see a lot more female police officers, but that's a very different topic.

-Laelth

[Logical]

8. They don't want to because of the shit they would get. n-t