Change Is Good

Police Chief Art Acevedo of Austin is now enforcing excessive force policies which many officers were violating with little or no consequences. Loopholes and exploitation have allowed officers to remain on the force after violating not only policy but the people whom they assault. I agree with the author of this article. It is about time that someone takes action to put an end to use of excessive force by the city police department. A group of officers can subdue a single 18 year old without the use of a taser gun or a 60 year old woman without shooting a flash bang, two situations which I personally know about. There must be a problem with a city administration that allows public employees like this to abuse power and let them keep their jobs. The article says that allegations were made against former police chiefs who may have played favorites, giving less punishment to officers they knew and more punishment to those they did not know, who committed the same violation. A change to raise the standard for officers is needed. Violating officers should not be allowed to remain on the force. Hopefully, Acevedo’s plan to clearly spell out the consequences of violation will help correct the problem. Also, consistent punishment for violators is a good idea so that abusive officers are not allowed to slip through the cracks. The author’s example of Gary Griffin is good because it states that not only did this misconduct cause pain and misfortune for Joseph Cruz, but it also cost the city of Austin a $55,000 settlement. His audience, the local Austin community can plainly see that, in more ways than one, we cannot afford for these abuses to continue.