The Sad State of Authority

Local authorities have begun to lose sight of what is truly important in their jobs. They have become power hungry, lacking good judgement and any sense of basic humanity. Nowhere does this seem more apparent than in the suburbian town of Liberty, Missouri which it seems is the origin of the almost weekly reports of misuse of police power. They commonly misuse non-lethal weapons, but even those who have fallen victim to these attacks would probably be even more outraged by the focus of this essay.

Late last year, two officers pulled over a car bearing improper tags. This is understandable and part of their duty. Further, drugs are often transported in such vehicles. The driver of this car was not engaged in such activity as the dashcam shows.

Upon exiting her vehicle, the driver explained thet she was pregnant and experiencing vaginal bleeding. She continued to state that she was on her way to seek emergency medical help. The dashcam shows her manner as being cooperative with the officers.

Instead of showing any semblance of compassion, one officer accused her of lying and said, "It's called a menstrual cycle!" Women reading this who are unaware of the details would probably become furious that any man should make such a snap judgement and rightly so. This anger would temper to stunned disbelief on learning that the officer in question is female. Indeed, men are afraid to even think such things in today's sexual harrassment sensitive society.

The driver was denied medical treatment by the officers and was arrested. She finished miscarrying in jail. The officers were placed on administrative leave pending investigation. The investigation is ongoing, made more difficult by the legal system's inability to decide what constitutes human life.

Recent events all but ensure that the officers will shortly return to duty. The public is told that the officers' fates rest solely with their police superiors. No one will be fooled into believing that a four page opinion written by a judge in support of the lady officer's actions that night will be ignored by them. On the contrary, it's just the excuse needed to pat these cruel officers on the back and call it a job well done.