Max Chantha | October 21, 2015
NEW YORK – The NYPD’s beloved ‘Stop and Frisk’ tactic transformed into ‘Stop and Break’ this April.
Though they didn’t get away with it this time, no one was held criminally responsible for this abuse – except for the pockets of the New York taxpayer.
Thabo Sefolosha, a prominent player on the Atlanta Hawks, had his leg broken earlier this year when NYPD officers were responding to the stabbing of his fellow player.
Cops pushed him to the ground when they said he was ignoring orders and resisting arrest, both accusations that would later be proven unequivocally false.
Sefolosha was forced to miss out on the remainder of the season due to his injury, and is now rightly asking for compensation for detriments to his body, his image, and his career.
Though he is now playing again, he believes his performance, especially his dunking, will be affected for the rest of his life.
The injured player’s performance on both the basketball and legal court will undoubtedly be enjoyable to watch.
He legal case is sound considering his leg was broken during an arrest for which he was charged with obstructing government administration, disorderly conduct, and resisting arrest – all charges that he would be found innocent of.
Despite being offered a plea deal by the D.A., Sefolosha maintained his innocence after taking his case to trial, and was subsequently vindicated.
While this all sounds like another hilarious detriment to the broken, corrupt, and typically racist behemoth that is the NYPD, it is soured by the fact that taxpayers will likely be footing the bill for the police’s idiocy of Sefolosha is successful in his lawsuit.
Police accountability would inarguably skyrocket if any compensation or reparation a victim gained from a lawsuit or other legal proceeding came out of the pockets of the guilty officers themselves.
With the presidential election coming up, it is unfortunate that no candidates have broached the subjective of new and innovative ways to hold our law enforcement professionals to a higher standard.
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Max Chantha is a writer and investigative journalist interested in covering incidences of government injustice, at home and abroad. He is a current university student studying Global Studies and Professional Writing. Check out Max Chantha: An Independent Blog for more of his work.