One thing you have to remember is that when things escalate to "Hands on", Officers have to use the techniques that they were trained in. Cops are trained to strike with a closed fist, not to bitch slap offenders. In fact, had he slapped her the union would most likely not be supporting him as they are.

yeah, and i agree with kevin that he should have used pepper spray or a taser if he had them.

BUT,
i still agree with this. too many women want to fight like a man with a man, but want to be treated like a woman. i think it was absolutely stupid on the girls' part to resist so much. it gets you nowhere. i mean, did they think that he'd back down and be like "i'm watching you" and just drive away? smh.

I'll keep that in mind the next time a public school teacher forgets all the training and policies and chokes the shit out of a badass student. It ain't no fun if the homies can't have none.

There was nothing "like a man" about what that teenager was doing. She isn't scrawny but she damn sure wasn't on the level of that male cop.

Her stupidity is amazing but I certainly hope people aren't advocating police simply respond based on people's stupidity or to prove a "fight a man, get hit by a man" point instead of just tasering an aggressor (versus beating with a baton when deemed unnecessary, punching, etc.). It's a slippery slope and when we get to the point of no return, people better not act like they don't know how we got there.

I still wonder why he didn't use pepper spray unless he didn't have any.

Cops are trained to consider levels of confrontation. Excessive force complaints are a part of their world too.

A palm-heel strike to the chin or torso..., wrist/elbow joint manipulation, leg sweep/take down (any of this could have been done just as easily as a punch for trained law enforcement).

We're all second guessing here, but the officer knew this wasn't a lethal force situation (as evidenced by the fact the he didn't draw down on her). If he had it to do over again, he'd probably have done something other than what he did. l just think it would have been better had a closed fist to the face not been option # 1.

In an actual "confrontation" situation, I'd have no issue with the officer striking an assailant, be it man or woman. A knife or gun in the hand of a woman is just as lethal as in the hand of a man.

You do what you have to to go home at end of the day.

Would you rather be punched in the jaw or tasered??

Yeah, but he didn't forget his training. He could have done other things, but he didn't go beyond what his training allowed. Your example is completely out of context, but thanks for keeping the thread lively! :p

I'd honestly rather be punched in the jaw. It's rare, but people have died from being tasered.

You're welcome. ;)

@ WinniBug: That made me think of "don't taser me, bro" and laugh.

Don't punch me bro!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0WTcTzN96s

i'd forgotten about that 15-year-old girl they beat up in the jail cell last year. i'd be trying to get paid. a ton of money. like Starbucks money.

Heh...I think we may have another Youtube sensation on our hands.

Well, I can speak for myself and tell you that I don't give a $#!# about what color he is and she is.

As for the parties taking it too far, that blame is all on her shoulders. She was the only one escalating the situation.

He didn't hit her because she was jaywalking. He hit her to immobilize her so he could slap some handcuffs on her...AFTER she was verbally and physically aggressive toward him. His reaction to the jaywalking was to issue her a ticket; her reaction to the consequences of getting a ticket for breaking the law (jaywalking across a very busy street) was to argue and push him.

Add Falcon Punch to the list.

I live in Seattle...When this happened, I wrote 3 long blogs. I get my hair done down in that area.

You have to know the area. Why are the kids crossing the street. The school requesting the SPD to stop the kids from crossing the busy non-crosswalked street with a foot over pass.

1) The kids jaywalk, crossing an ultra busy section to get to their City Metro Buses and a Convenience store to buy junk food.

2) That footbridge is made mostly out of metal. If you live in Seattle, rain occurs 10 months out of the year, making that footbridge slippery. By the time you slip and slide breaking your leg on it, you've missed your bus in busy traffic.

That's the anthropology of the situation.

What happened: 1) the Cop was well within his rights. What he did wrong was not subdue the suspect fast enough who was not the girl punched... You have less than 5 seconds to successfully subdue a suspect in these kinds of situations. He took too long. That's police techniques. Yes, I do know how to take down someone.

2) The girl hit the cop, but her punch did not land on him. She missed her target. Whereas, the cop's punch landed. *shrugs*

3) The girl has now apologize as a placation to not have Seattlites lose their minds. The police officer accepted the apology. James Kelly of the Urban League -who I know personally- negotiated that deal.

Personally, I fault the school and the higher ups of SPD for setting up this catastrophe...Basically, not giving a isht about people and only thinking about CYAing their way out of culpability.