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David Codrea

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Can corrupt government legitimately decide who it allows to keep and bear arms?

• December 2nd, 2010 1:00 pm ET

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“46 Prince George's County officers suspended or on administrative duty,” The Washington Post headline informs us.

The three Prince George's County police officers arrested as part of the sweeping federal investigation into corruption in the county represent only a fraction of those accused of wrongdoing, according to police officials and internal department records.

Bear in mind:

[T]hree of these cases are known to have a direct relationship to the federal probe that led to the arrest this month of County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D).

Charges against “at least 10 of the suspended officers… include driving while intoxicated, assault and drug possession…”
Then there are “nine others...suspected of criminal wrongdoing that includes sexual assault and theft,” and “[a]t least seven officers are either suspended or on administrative duty because of an allegation of excessive use of force…”
It’s no surprise for those of us who follow such things.  Prince George’s County law enforcers have made recurring appearances over the years in the “Only Ones” Files at my online journal, The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance.  Consider these incidents:

• One of Prince George’s finest, with a history of abusive and violent behavior shoots unarmed deliverymen.  The department’s initial reaction is to consider how the victims can be charged with assault.
• Another pulled a gun on a real estate appraiser.
• A prisoner died from strangulation. We further learn “There have been several problems recently at the county jail, including a former police corporal convicted of murdering a man who was found with a handcuffs key. The county's director of corrections was fired in early June when four handguns went missing from the jail armory."
• They killed the pets of “innocent victims” and did not apologize because “officers felt threatened.”
• One of their lieutenants racked up four DUIs, a cruiser, a hit-and-run, a…
• Here’s one where they weren’t at fault. Home invaders posed as police.  How is someone to know, particularly with the way this gang conducts itself?
• PGC sheriff’s deputies forced their way into a woman’s apartment and pepper sprayed her to serve a warrant on a suspect who was not there.   And even though her rights were violated, it was all within “protocol.”
• Then there's this: "More than 20 guns seized by a state-run firearms task force in Prince George's County are unaccounted for, and investigators believe that one of the weapons was used in the shooting of an off-duty police officer late last year…”

Understand that these are glimpses based on infrequent and random story tips—as with the “Only Ones” Files in general, I don’t go looking for them, so it’s reasonable to assume a dedicated effort would show this merely scratches the surface.
Here are some other excessive force and other incidents to consider.  Then consider this: The Prince George’s County Police Department has1,683 employees that includes 1,420 sworn officers.  How many companies have you worked for of comparable size that exhibited this level of outright criminality?
This protection racket is what the citizenry is forced to shell out over $250M a year for? And the brass is complaining about cuts?
This is not “just a few bad apples,” as the ubiquitous police [state] apologists would have us believe. For every one exposed, there’s an entire support system of co-workers, superiors and subordinates who witness attitudes,  behaviors and actions every day and keep silent, going along to get along, to protect their own place at the table and/or activities. And as the Johnson case, and before that the case of Baltimore Mayor Against [Your] Guns Sheila Jackson demonstrate, it’s not just the police.  The entire system is corrupt and appears to be more a criminal enterprise than a government—but I repeat myself.
Then keep in mind that Maryland is a “may issue” state requiring an approved “good and substantial reason” to obtain a handgun carry permit (see Dave Workman’s related column), so they have the option of saying “No.” Even the purchase of handguns or a so-called “assault weapon” is subject to a seven-day “waiting period” for the police approval process.