With the frenzy of alleged unruly or disorderly police that has recently appeared to take over the news, some people may feel an unfair bias against officers who are simply working to protect the public. In Georgia, local officers have been indicted on criminal charges for violating the civil rights of Hispanic individuals. If convicted, they could face lengthy prison time.
Two different officers have been indicted so far, and it is unclear if the former sheriff’s deputy that they were allegedly working with has been charged as well. Apparently, the suspected conspiracy went beyond simply illegally stopping Hispanic drivers. Once pulled over, the officers are said to have demanded that the drivers pay them or face being arrested or, even worse, possibly deported. At least one motorist affected has been identified, and he or she claims that they forked out $300 after being threatened with legal action.
Another motorist was allegedly detained for no reason. It is suspected that they may have planned to stage a robbery in that particular motorist’s home. The purported evidence that led to that claim remains unclear.
Unfortunately, it is not necessarily uncommon for police officers to be the subject of unfair bias from the public. No matter the opinion of these Georgia officers as individuals or as police officers protecting and serving the public, protecting their guaranteed presumption of innocence throughout the duration of their upcoming trial court process is paramount. Ultimately, they must not bear the burden of proof, as it will be up to the prosecution to prove that every aspect of the criminal charges is both true and valid beyond a reasonable doubt.
Source: infozine.com, “Georgia Residents Charged for Subjecting Hispanics to Unlawful Traffic Stops”, Oct. 25, 2014
