Not going to make this too long, as it’s quite late.
We, as a community, emphasive the mistakes of law enforcement officers, much too often. With this being said, every citizen who is arrested believes it’s false. Regardless of the circumstances. I was once a Law Enforcement Officer who struggled weekly with investigations, that never lead anywhere, however, wasted a lot of time.
Each and every Law Enforcement Officer spends hours completing six tiers with POST, then more time with Department Training and even entry-level academy to get into the department. To expect proficiency when you’re dealing with kids teaching kids, is quite impossible.
Surely, False Arrests are quite big and should be taken seriously within Department Command. However, Firestone does not offer any Criminal Justice Training. You tell them what laws are and how to act as a LEO, but you don’t teach them to interpret and how to read laws, which ultimately becomes their greatest weaknesses.
Furthermore, there will be instances of false arrest in every law enforcement officers career in this state, regardless of who you are. What separates those punished and those who are not, is the person filing a complaint.
To remove a certification that someone spends hours obtaining, is quite absurd for an accidental instance. Rather than taking easy way out, as department commands much too often do, why not teach the individual to do better and work on from it. Coach the individual to do better and work as a community to back each-other up.
Stop waiting for that one slip up on a guys bad day - focus on helping them improve.
