QUIS CUSTODIET IPSOS CUSTODES
Means "Who Polices the Police?"

From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

Chicago cop accused of anti-gay fracas

Named as defendants in the lawsuit filed on behalf of Kelly Fuery, 36, Debra Sciortino, 32, and Nicole Tomaskovic, 25, were the police department, officer William Szura and two state troopers.

According to the lawsuit, a vehicle driven by Fuery came upon a car moving at 30 mph on Interstate 55 after the June 24 parade. Fuery beeped her horn, and Szura responded by slamming on his brakes, speeding up and switching lanes, making it impossible for Fuery to pass, the lawsuit said.

Fuery was forced to the shoulder, where Szura screamed words such as "dyke" and spit at her, according to the lawsuit. The women claim he stuck a gun in Fuery's abdomen, "causing her to fear for her life."

When Sciortino tried to step in, Szura shoved her, and she fell, the lawsuit said. When Tomaskovic drove up in another car and tried to help, Szura placed her in a chokehold, according to the suit.

A few minutes later, two state troopers arrived. When Szura identified himself as a police officer, the three women were arrested and charged with battery. The battery charges are pending, Kurtz said.

Click here for the rest.

I think it would be unfair to say that as a general rule cops are homophobic. Indeed, in some situations quite the reverse is true: there are definitely a few police departments that have some fairly progressive policies about gay people, in terms of both employment and dealing with the public. On the other hand, many police departments do not have such policies.

Still, this strikes me as being more about an individual cop's homophobia than about cop culture having an anti-gay bias. The problem, then, with cop culture in this case is the whole I'm-right-and-superior-because-I'm-a-cop sensibility that permeates police society from coast to coast. That is, in some ways I feel like I was taking a risk a few years back by putting a bumper sticker on my car that says "ATTACK IRAQ? NO!" These days such a message might get me pulled over in Jena or Vidor, but probably not in Houston or New Orleans. But that's the point: I have a perfect right to express any political message I want, and cops just have to fucking deal with that. Indeed, they have to protect me if anybody else wants to fuck with me about it. Nonetheless, cops have been notorious over the years for harassing people with whom they disagree on various political issues.

That really ought not to be their mission, and I'm sure they're very aware of that. But when you have a badge and gun, and think you're an elite member of society...well, I guess the latter trumps the former. Goddamned shame.

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