Cop Under Fire

by David Clarke

  Has the Left demanded the medical community reform its ways? Black LIES Matter? The attorney general? Have you seen protestors block traffic and make signs? Weren’t some of those people black? Don’t more people die in this manner than at the hands of bad cops? Of course. The government in the United States gets few things right, but one of them is policing.

  Sometimes people accuse me of being bombastic or over the top. For example, when I say Obama hates cops, people usually interrupt me and say, “You don’t really believe that, do you?” I’m here to tell you that I don’t speak carelessly. Facts back up everything I say.

  And here’s just one fact that tells me Obama hates cops.

  Earlier in this chapter, I told you about the assassination of New York Police Department Officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos. The police in Baltimore were alerted to a possible threat coming to Manhattan, but the officers didn’t receive the notice before they were gunned down. After their murders, cop supporters proposed the Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu National Blue Alert Act of 2015—a nationwide alert system similar to an Amber Alert. While the Amber Alert notifies people of missing children, the National Blue Alert signals police of possibly dangerous threats to law enforcement. This instantaneous relay of information could help save lives.

  In a rare show of nonpartisan support, the legislation sailed through both houses of Congress on a voice vote. The Obama administration signed the bill into law on May 19, 2015—just six months after Liu and Ramos were killed. So how has the new process worked? Has it saved lives?

  No. Even though it was signed into law more than a year ago, it has not been enacted. Why?

  Twenty-seven states have already implemented a similar system, yet the federal government’s implementation has languished in a sea of bureaucratic red tape. The Obama Justice Department bureaucrats say they haven’t implemented the program because they can’t figure out which office of the Department of Justice should implement it.

  Really?

  Now, let’s do a thought experiment. What if this proposal had to do with punishing officers for their bias against black Americans? How long would it have taken the president to put that into place? He wouldn’t have waited for it to pass through Congress before mandatory enactment. It would’ve been an executive order.

  The Obama administration has not made the full implementation an absolute priority because no one there cares about police officers. Obama is a cop hater, someone who will not act to save lives even when a widely supported, uncontroversial bill comes across his desk.

  It’s inexcusable.

  Why I Fight for Police Officers

  Recently, I was in Washington, DC, and I did what I always try to do when I’m in the nation’s capital. I stopped by the 400 block of East Street NW where the National Law Enforcement Memorial honors law enforcement officers who’ve made the ultimate sacrifice. The grounds are kept nicer than a golf course, with thick, plush grass, trees, and ten thousand daffodils that bloom in the spring. The center plaza features a bronze medallion with a blue shield that has a red rose draped across it. The two entrances leading to the walls of remembrance are adorned with four powerful groupings of bronze statues—an adult lion protecting its cubs—symbolizing the protective role of law enforcement officers. Under each statue is a quote that points to the valor of the officers who have died.

  It is not how these officers died that made them heroes, it is how they lived.

  —Vivian Eney Cross, Survivor

  In valor there is hope.

  —Tacitus

  The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.

  —Proverbs 28:1

  Carved on these walls is the story of America, of a continuing quest to preserve both democracy and decency, and to protect a national treasure that we call the American dream.

  —President George H. W. Bush

  I stood there by myself, looking at the massive, curving blue-gray marble walls. Twenty thousand names are etched into those two walls, beginning with the first known officer death in 1791. Regrettably, new names are added each spring. Too many names on the cold walls.

  Those walls talk to me. I hear them whispering the names of people with whom I’ve worked, the names of people from Wisconsin who’ve paid that sacrifice. The names of fathers and mothers. Sons and daughters.

  There but for the grace of God go I.

  Silence. Deafening, chilling, grief-inducing silence.

  When I talk to surviving family members, I think of those walls. When I look at a spouse of a fallen officer, I think of my spouse. When I talk to the siblings, my heart breaks. What must they think as this profession is tarred and feathered?

  That’s why I decided to fight back. Someone needs to stand up and push back against this false narrative about the American police officer. I don’t speak for every officer, but after thirty-eight years, I can and will speak for this profession.

  That’s my mission right now, and I won’t stop until this subversive, anarchist, hateful movement dies the ideological death it deserves. Police officers have the overwhelming support of the communities. Changing us into something we’re not will get cops and civilians killed.

  Stand with me. I’ll do the heavy lifting. I’m a fighter. I’ll fight to the death if I have to. It’s the only way I know.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I NEVER KNEW how many people it takes to write a book. I happened to undertake this book project while Donald J. Trump was running for president and had the honor of going around the country to emphasize the “law and order” aspect of his campaign. That couldn’t have happened without many people surrounding me and helping me make life work during that busy time of life.

  First, I’d like to thank my talented and tenacious writer, Nancy French, as well as the people at Worthy Publishing. All of them helped shape my thoughts into something that could actually be put between two covers and placed on the shelf: Byron Williamson, Jeana Ledbetter, Kyle Olund, Betty Woodmancy, Dale Wilsterman, Leeanna Nelson, Nicole Pavlas, Caroline Green, Bart Dawson, Ramona Wilkes, David Howell, and Susan Thomas. I’d also like to thank my literary agent D.J. Snell for his constant support.

  Second, I’d like to thank Eric O’Keefe for having a vision for this book and helping make it happen.

  Third, I’d like to thank my parents, who understood the value of an education and poured what little money they had into providing me with a solid educational base. They knew that in a sometimes unfair and unjust world I would have to be doubly-prepared to overcome obstacles. You were always there for me—checking up on me when I was trying to get away with stuff, taking my shoes during the nights to remove the temptation to sneak out, teaching me responsibility and patriotism as I grew from a kid into a man. I don’t say this to you directly in real life, so let me take the opportunity to do it here: this book is a testimony to your good parenting, your selfless provision, and your love.

  Fourth, I’d like to thank my executive assistant, Dawn Colla. A proofreader extraordinaire, she has been with me every step of the way. She has a way of detecting mistakes I’ve never seen, even after having read it three or four times. I’ve told her she should have been an English teacher, but I’m really glad she wasn’t. I’m not sure how I could’ve done my job without her by my side.

  Last but not least I want to thank my wife, Julie. You have been a steadying force during the writing of this book, just as you’ve ben throughout our whole marriage. Your patience, love, and encouragement have allowed me to accomplish things I otherwise would only be able to dream of. You epitomize the saying “Beside every man who accomplishes great things in life stands a woman who deserves sainthood.” I can only hope to return to you in your endeavors what you have done in mine.

  NOTES

  Chapter 1

  1. http://secondrangerinfantrycompany.com/preface.htm

  2. Rick Atkinson, The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943–1944. Vol. 2, The Liberation Trilogy (New York: H
enry Holt, 2007), 7635.

  Chapter 2

  1. Kurt Chandler, “The New Black Power,” July 25, 2003 (milwaukeemag.com).

  2. Georgia Pabst, “Bloomberg’s PAC enters Milwaukee County sheriff’s race,” August 8, 2014 (jsonline.com).

  Chapter 3

  1. Thomas Frank, “High-speed police chases have killed thousands of innocent bystanders,” July 30, 2015 (usatoday.com).

  2. G. P. Alpert, U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, Pursuit Management Task Force Report (Washington, DC, 1998), found here: http://www.realpolice.net/articles/police-pursuits/high-speed-police-pursuits-dangers-dynamics-and-risk-reduction.html.

  3. Jessica Guynn, “Meet the woman who coined #BlackLivesMatter,” March 4, 2015 (usatoday.com).

  4. Jay Caspian Kang, “Our Demand Is Simple: Stop Killing Us,” May 4, 2015 (nytimes.com).

  5. Guynn, “Meet the woman who coined #BlackLivesMatter.”

  6. Garza, “A Herstory of the #BlackLivesMatter Movement,” October 7, 2014 (thefeministwire.com).

  7. Michael Walsh, “The myth of the killer-cop ‘epidemic,’” January 2, 2016 (nypost.com).

  8. Kimberly Kindy, Marc Fisher, Julie Tate, and Jennifer Jenkins, “A Year of Reckoning: Police Fatally Shoot Nearly 1,000,” December 26, 2015 (washingtonpost.com).

  9. David French, “The Numbers Are In: Black Lives Matter Is Wrong about Police,” December 29, 2015 (nationalreview.com).

  10. Walsh, “The myth of the killer-cop ‘epidemic,’” (nypost.com).

  11. Bill Kauffman, “Freedom Now II: Interview with Clarence Thomas,” November 1987 (reason.com).

  12. Dustin Block and Jeff Wilford, “Excessive force used after high-speed chase, local NAACP leader alleges,” January 10, 2003 (journaltimes.com).

  Chapter 4

  1. http://county.milwaukee.gov/ImageLibrary/Groups/cntySheriff/sheriffnews/2013-New/081913Abelerunsfromhisresponsi.pdf

  2. Final Report: A Focused Review of the Milwaukee County Correctional Center-South; National Institute of Corrections; Technical Assistance #10J1013; December 20, 2009; Jeffrey A. Schwartz.

  3. Raquel Rutledge, “Hold the jelly—or the bread,” May 2, 2008 (jsonline.com).

  4. Ibid.

  5. Ibid.

  6. Jim Stingl, “Breaking Nutraloaf out of the big house—to my house,” January 19, 2003 (jsonline.com).

  7. http://wi.findacase.com/research/wfrmDocViewer.aspx/xq/fac.20120813_0000700.EWI.htm/qx

  8. Ibid.

  9. Eliza Barclay, “Food As Punishment: Giving U.S. Inmates ‘The Loaf’ Persists,” January 2, 2014 (npr.org).

  10. Jeffrey Toobin, “The Milwaukee Experiment,” May 11, 2015 (newyorker.com).

  11. Ibid.

  12. http://www4.uwm.edu/eti/2013/BlackImprisonment.pdf

  13. Jeremy Diamond, “Bill Clinton concedes role in mass incarceration,” May 7, 2015 (cnn.com).

  14. Aviva Shen, “Hillary Clinton Says She Agrees Her Role in Mass Incarceration Was a Mistake,” March 6, 2016 (thinkprogress.org).

  15. “Remarks by the President at the NAACP Conference,” July 14, 2015 (whitehouse.gov).

  16. Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (New York: The New Press, 2012), 11.

  17. http://www.manhattan-institute.org/sites/default/files/IB-HM-0716.pdf

  18. Ibid.

  19. “Remarks by the President at the NAACP Conference, July 14, 2015 (whitehouse.gov).

  20. https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/download/10-19-15-mac-donald-testimony

  Chapter 5

  1. https://archive.org/details/americanslavecod00lcgood

  2. http://literacy.rice.edu/thirty-million-word-gap

  3. Ibid.

  4. “Parenting in America,” December 17, 2015 (pewsocialtrends.org).

  5. Lawrence J. Fedewa, “FEDEWA: American schools are failing!” June 1, 2014 (washingtontimes.com).

  6. http://mps.milwaukee.k12.wi.us/en/District/About-MPS/Departments/Office-of-Finance/Budget--Finance.htm

  7. Timothy Benson, “About Charter Schools, the NAACP Is Simply Wrong,” August 26, 2016 (nationalreview.com).

  8. Dr. Julian Vasquez Heilig, “Breaking News: @NAACP calls for national moratorium on charters,” July 29, 2016 (cloakinginequity.com).

  9. Benson, “About Charter Schools.”

  10. Thomas Sowell, “The Role of ‘Educators,’” January 8, 2013 (nationalreview.com).

  Chapter 6

  1. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/326700-full-transcript-zimmerman.html

  2. Rich Lowry, “A Morality Tale That Failed,” July 12, 2013 (nationalreview.com).

  3. Richard Luscombe, “George Zimmerman prosecutors have proved his innocence, says lawyer,” July 12, 2013 (theguardian.com).

  4. https://donate.naacp.org/news/entry/naacp-petition-to-doj-reaches-1.5-million-signatures

  5. Dave Boyer, “Obama says police training needed to reduce their racial ‘bias,’” January 22, 2015 (washingtontimes.com).

  6. Jon Campbell, “Smuggled, Untaxed Cigarettes Are Everywhere in New York City,” April 7, 2015 (villagevoice.com).

  7. Jack Dunphy, “Officers Did Not Use Excessive Force in Arresting Garner,” December 5, 2014 (nationalreview.com).

  Chapter 7

  1. Erik Eckholm and Matt Apuzzo, “Darren Wilson Is Cleared of Rights Violations in Ferguson Shooting,” March 4, 2015 (nytimes.com).

  2. John Bacon, “Darren Wilson: Ferguson made me unemployable,” August 4, 2015 (usatoday.com).

  3. http://blacklivesmatter.com/guiding-principles/

  4. Garza, “A Herstory of the #BlackLivesMatter Movement,” (thefeministwire.com).

  5. John Perazzo, “The Profound Racism of ‘Black Lives Matter,’” June 1, 2015 (frontpagemag.com).

  6. Opal Tometi, “Black Future Month: Examining the Current State of Black Lives and Envisioning Where We Go from Here,” February 1, 2015 (huffingtonpost.com).

  7. https://policy.m4bl.org/end-war-on-black-people/

  8. https://policy.m4bl.org/reparations/

  9. Ibid.

  10. Ibid.

  11. Ibid.

  Chapter 8

  1. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=980DE7DF133AEF3BBC4D52DFB0668382679EDE&legacy=true

  2. “Ex-Black Panther convicted of murder,” March 9, 2002 (cnn.com).

  3. Details about the funeral service taken from https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=348&dat=20000322&id=uptOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=6UQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5391,7671388&hl=en

  4. David Firestone, “Ex-Black Militant Gets Life for Murdering Deputy,” March 14, 2002 (nytimes.com).

  5. “Man indicted for 1971 cop killing,” July 14, 2002 (onlineathens.com).

  6. Philip Messing, “NYPD Nabs Man Sought in ’71 Atlanta Cop Slay,” July 17, 2002 (nypost.com).

  7. “Police Union: Keep Men Locked Up in 1971 Murders of NYPD Officers,” January 23, 2014 (newyork.cbslocal.com).

  8. David French, “Black Lives Matter: Radicals Using Moderates to Help Tear America Apart,” July 11, 2016 (nationalreview.com).

  9. Matt Wilstein, “The 5 Biggest Revelations from GQ’s Don Lemon Profile,” April 21, 2015 (mediaite.com).

  Chapter 9

  1. Ed Morrissey, “Video: Milwaukee County sheriff’s PSA on self-protection,” January 26, 2013 (hotair.com).

  2. Linda Greenhouse, “Justices Rule Police Do Not Have a Constitutional Duty to Protect Someone,” June 28, 2005 (nytimes.com).

  3. Peter Kasler, “Police Have No Duty to Protect Individuals,” 1992 (firearmsandliberty.com).

  4. Guns, Murders, and the Constitution (Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy, 1990).

  5. Both George Washington and Samuel Adams quotes: Steve Straub, “Famous Pro-Gun ‘Quotes’ the Founding Fathers Never Actually Said,” (thefederalistpapers.org).

  6. https://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/exercise

  7. http://foundersquotes.com/founding-fathers-quote/the-constitutions-
of-most-of-our-states-assert-that-all-power-is-inherent-in-the-people/

  8. See Carrying Concealed Weapons, 15 Va L. Reg. 391, 391-92 (1909).

  9. Martin Luther King Jr., Stride Toward Freedom (Boston: Beacon Press, 1958), 86.

  10. Charles C. W. Cooke, “Do Black People Have Equal Gun Rights?” October 25, 2014 (nytimes.com).

  11. https://www.scribd.com/document/50079133/Collected-Works-of-Mahatma-Gandhi-Vol-008

  12. Christopher Ingraham, “The shocking difference in how blacks and whites are killed by guns,” December 18, 2015 (washingtonpost.com).

  Chapter 10

  1. Cheryl Wetzstein, “Census: More first-time mothers give birth out of wedlock,” July 8, 2014 (washingtontimes.com).

  2. Louis Jacobson, “CNN’s Don Lemon says more than 72 percent of African-American births are out of wedlock,” July 29, 2013 (politifact.com).

  3. Tommy Christopher, “Tweetnado: MSNBC’s Goldie Taylor Calls Don Lemon a ‘Turn Coat Mofo,’” July 27, 2013 (mediaite.com).

  4. Annie Lowrey, “Can Marriage Cure Poverty?” February 4, 2014 (nytimes.com).

  5. Robert Rector and Rachel Sheffield, “The War on Poverty After 50 Years,” September 15, 2014 (heritage.org).

  6. Roland Warren, “The Important Lesson the ‘Roots’ Miniseries Taught Me About Fatherhood,” September 12, 2016 (sixseeds.patheos.com).

  7. http://www.gphistorical.org/mlk/mlkspeech/mlk-gp-speech.pdf

  Chapter 11

  1. http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data2/circs/7th/081515p.pdf

  2. Ibid.

  3. Barronelle Stutzman, “Why a friend is suing me: the Arlene’s Flowers story,” November 12, 2015 (seattletimes.com).

  4. “ACLU file suit for gay couple discriminated against by florist,” April 18, 2013 (aclu-wa.org).

  5. David French, “Thanks to SCOTUS, Vicious Anti-Christian State Action Is Legal in the Ninth Circuit,” June 28, 2016 (nationalreview.com).

  6. Ibid.

  7. Cheryl Wetzstein, “Ex-fire chief Kelvin Cochran wrongful-firing case to proceed,” December 16, 2015 (washingtontimes.com).