I think I am ready for my straight jacket now. My size is a 48 R. Thank you.
Check this video out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1k-wMFiYs8
Pretty disgusting, isn’t it? Several things do come to mind.
#1- I cannot be sure but I think I’ve seen this before.
#2- What the hell was the Hillsborough County Police Department thinking?
Naturally we have no audio of the video that brings the incident before our very eyes, but it is pretty brutal. I kept waiting and waiting on this video to share what the police department had said in its defense, but there was none.
Nonetheless, within a fraction of a second of watching this video footage I was seeing red. I felt that this was an injustice and was crying for their blood to be spilled in retribution of the poor treatment of this quadriplegic man. My mind boiled over as I shared this link on Facebook and within a few short minutes found that it had been re-posted over and over and over again.
Several dozen people had the same instant reaction that I had. But I was not going to stay and read each individual comment and I left for the evening.
When I had returned home, I found that some people had done their homework over this incident.
Turns out that this happened in Tampa, Florida in 2008. And it wasn’t something that had happened recently in which I had originally thought. Which is why it was in the back of my mind that I might have seen this before. I was probably right the first time. (Did you notice the date in which the video was posted? Me neither!)
Suddenly my rage from a few hours before was gone. I was still not happy that it happened to begin with.
It did raise more questions.
#1- What happened to this man?
#2- Did these negligent people lose their jobs?
#3- Why couldn’t they (as well as other police departments) have handled this better?
I am very aware that law enforcment people on the inside must definitely take every precaution when handling someone who is being processed for jail. For all they knew, it could have been someone who was “faking” a disability. (Although I really don’t know of any scumbags would want to do something hideous and deplorable like that.)
I understand the caution they must take because had this man been faking, it could have put a lot of people in jeopardy. Bottom line here was, that he was not faking. He is a quadriplegic, did I mention that ALREADY??
Dumping this man from his wheelchair was not the answer though! He sustained broken ribs on account of this encounter. Certainly there are better ways for police to handle people in their jails. As a person who lives with a physical disability and uses a wheelchair, if this had happened to me then you could be assured that Hell would have broken loose.
But it didn’t. And I still firmly stand in my beliefs that something like this should NEVER happen.
The facts are that this case seems to be in the rear view mirror of the Hillsborough County Police Department. As well as the man to which this had happened.
So I sit here, embarassed. Knowing that I had allowed my blood pressure to skyrocket and causing many others to react in the same way as I had. But what is done, is done.
If you want to know what was the end result of this case read the article below.
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/aug/12/122250/9-present-former-deputies-found-negligent-handling/
Dambreaker 