Recently, there has been a lot of talk about the alleged use of excessive force or racial profiling by not only campus police but also the Fresno Police Department. This recent discussion was the result of a January 15 incident in which an FCC student named Michael Vazquez was pepper sprayed by campus police.
In my opinion, it is not true that Michael Vasquez refused to follow the officer’s instructions, thus becoming verbally abusive.
I do not believe it is true that he began to struggle with officers, according to their statements.
One other thing that makes one wonder is the fact that Mr. Vasquez hasn’t filed a complaint, even though several weeks have passed. If he was certain that the officer was in the wrong, why did he wait so long?
To some, this is a further example of police using excessive force. Vazquez says he refused to sit on the wet pavement and that the officer overreacted.
“Then he threw me on the ground,” Vazquez said. “He had all of his weight on me and I was on my stomach.”
But according to officers, Vazquez was being combative and resistant.
Some individuals, especially minorities, say that this is an example of police as a whole overreacting and abusing their power.
Another example of this has been the account of recent officer involved shootings. Some have said that police officers have overreacted, quick to pull the trigger. This past weekend, there were three shootings in the Fresno area.
On the other side, those involved in law enforcement point out that in each of those situations, officers reacted properly. They point out that the suspects were all found to be armed and had a history of violent behavior.
As for the Vasquez situation, some point out that the officers of which there were two, were dealing with three individuals: one of whom refused to follow officer instructions.
Police officers have always been faced with many on the job dangers, but recently, Fresno has witnessed many officers being shot and sometimes killed in the line of duty.
Often, in what should have been routine situations like traffic stops, there has been a feeling amongst criminals that it is better to kill the cop and have a chance of getting away then going to jail.
Another reason for this string of shootings is a result of gang members looking to gain acceptance into their groups.
Police officers are human and these kinds of incidents weigh on their minds when they confront complex situations. Many of them are married with close friends and family whom they would like to come home safely too.
When officers are in a situation where suspects outnumber them and one is refusing to cooperate, it puts them on edge. When one resists, they have to make a choice to use force such as pepper spraying or tasering, which are both very painful, but better than potentially deadly force.
I think some may have a natural distrust of law enforcement but they are there to keep us safe.
To me- this should give them the benefit of the doubt. Of course there are some bad cops but there are a lot more good ones. Unfortunately they don’t get the recognition that they truly deserve.