This month it is the story from California where totally innocent people were shot by police during the manhunt for Christopher Dorner. There is no greater responsibility for a police officer than his/her use of deadly force. If they get that wrong, the less important tasks hardly matter. Alas, there is a tendency for departments to back up questionable conduct–perhaps out of fear of lawsuits. But if the officer did exercise lousy judgment in the incident, and he is not relieved of duty (or charged), what do you say to the next victim?
The runner-up comes from Bozeman, Montana. At first, the complaint was about excessive force by certain officers. Then, in response to that complaint, the police went back and intentionally altered an audio tape–deleting the portions they did not want the judge and jury to hear. If civilians engaged in conduct like that, the government would call it obstruction of justice, spoliation of evidence, and possibly perjury.
Worst of the Month – February 2013 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net