Trump’s Latest Move Just Made It Easier for Bad Cops to Get Away With Everything
President Trump's new executive order is a dream for corrupt police officers and a nightmare for liberty.
President Donald Trump just took yet another action that will make it easier for law enforcement to abuse civilians without fear of consequences.
The president issued an executive order on Tuesday ostensibly aimed at “empowering State and local law enforcement to firmly police dangerous criminal behavior and protect innocent citizens.
For starters, the executive order states that “The Attorney General shall take all appropriate action to create a mechanism to provide legal resources and indemnification to law enforcement officers who unjustly incur expenses and liabilities for actions taken during the performance of their official duties to enforce the law.”
This would “include the use of private-sector pro bono assistance for such law enforcement officers.”
Remember when I wrote about how the Trump administration is using executive orders to coerce law firms into providing free legal assistance to causes the president supports?
Well, here it is, ladies and gentlemen!
Next, the Attorney General will provide “best practices” to law enforcement agencies when it comes to combating crime. It will “expand access and improve the quality of training available to State and local law enforcement,” “increase pay and benefits for law enforcement officers,” “strengthen and expand legal protections for law enforcement officers,” “seek enhanced sentences for crimes against law enforcement officers,” and provide several other perks.
Next, Trump’s executive order will boost the militarization of law enforcement, as if having cops rolling around in tanks and other armored vehicles armed with fully automatic weapons isn’t already enough.
Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the heads of agencies as appropriate, shall increase the provision of excess military and national security assets in local jurisdictions to assist State and local law enforcement.
The administration will also target State and local officials who “willfully and unlawfully direct the obstruction of criminal law, including by directly and unlawfully prohibiting law enforcement officers from carrying out duties necessary for public safety and law enforcement.”
Finally, Homeland Security Task Forces (HSTFs) that were established by a previous executive order will also participate in carrying out this executive order.
Some of this sounds great on the surface. But, it will only result in more of a police state than we already have.
Militarized policing has led to several Constitutional rights violations ever since it began in the 1960s, thanks to Daryl F. Gates. These include excessive force, escalated conflicts, and the alienation of citizens from law enforcement.
Law enforcement was never meant to function as a military apparatus. Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams, invented by Gates, were only used in extreme situations such as active shooter incidents, hostage rescue, terrorism, and others.
Nowadays, over 90 percent of a SWAT team’s operations involve targeting people for using or selling drugs. The War on Drugs has been instrumental in expanding the scope of the police state – and government control.
It is also worth noting that most local and state law enforcement agencies are already heavily militarized. Author Radley Balko in his book, “Rise of the Warrior Cop” notes:
By 1995, 89 percent of American cities with 50,000 or more people had at least one SWAT team, double the percentage from 1980. Among smaller cities (populations between 25,000 and 50,000), 65 percent had a SWAT team by 1995, a 157 percent increase over ten years. Nearly 20 percent of all police officers in these towns served on the SWAT team, a phenomenon that Kraska dubbed ‘the militarization of Mayberry.’ By 1995, combining these figures for cities and towns, 77 percent of all American cities with over 25,000 people had a SWAT team.
The executive order also mandates reviewing and possibly rescinding existing federal consent decrees, agreements between the federal government and local authorities found to have engaged in persistent Constitutional rights violations. In fact, Trump began doing this before issuing this executive order, as I covered here.
This means even the most egregious abusers of authority won’t face accountability when they victimize the public. If these agencies are shown to be corrupt, the Trump administration won’t lift a finger to stop them.
Police reform will essentially go out the window.
Another sticking point is the administration’s nebulous definition of “obstruction of criminal law.” How does one define whether an official is actively obstructing law enforcement? In some cases, it might be obvious. But in others, not so much.
It’s not unreasonable to speculate that the administration will use this provision to crack down on local or state law enforcement agencies that are attempting to reform their own police departments. If they are not sufficiently tough on crime for the White House’s tastes, they could face consequences.
This ambiguity allows for potential political weaponization, threatening local autonomy and democratic accountability. Local leaders advocating police reform or oversight could become targets of federal prosecution simply for imposing necessary accountability measures.
Moreover, offering more protection for police officers who already enjoy qualified immunity and indemnification will only protect corrupt officials. In fact, in cases where a judge might deny qualified immunity for officers accused of wrongdoing, the officers typically don’t come out of pocket if they are sued because their police department will cover the cost.
Crime is certainly an issue. Over the past five years, we have seen startling increases in violent and property crimes. While the rate is starting to decline in some places – the numbers remain far too high. Clearly, something must be done. Some type of law enforcement must exist.
But President Trump’s executive order isn’t the answer. Empowering men with guns and badges to avoid accountability won’t keep people safe. In fact, it will only make the situation worse.
Americans were never meant to live under a police state. Law enforcement was never meant to include paramilitary units busting down people’s doors for drugs.
The truth is that police should face the same level of accountability we expect from city council members or other local and state officials. Police officers are government officials endowed with the ability to violate our rights when they deem it necessary. In light of this, they should be strictly scrutinized and held accountable when they abuse this authority. Otherwise, we risk relinquishing liberty in favor of the illusion of security.