Chris Dorner Hunt Illustrates Law Enforcement Run Amok

Christopher Dorner is/was an evil man (as of this writing, it is unconfirmed whether the body found in the cabin’s remains was his or not).  While there are plenty who dispute this, you will not find me among them.  Regardless of his motivations, he initiated force upon innocent people.  He didn’t do anything in this mess that is the least bit redeemable in my opinion.  However, California law enforcement has plenty to be ashamed about as well.

Dorner’s initial claim was that he was fired as part of a police abuse cover-up.  With the history of the Los Angeles Police Department, he may well be right on that count.  The truth is, the LAPD has a history of police abuse which was brought into the national spotlight after the beating given to Rodney King in the early 1990’s.

What followed the start of Dorner’s rampage was something else entirely.

For those who haven’t seen the news, let’s start with police officers opening fire on a pickup truck that was driving in the neighborhood of an officer on Dorner’s kill list.  The vehicle was traveling without headlights in the wee hours of the morning, sparking concerns that it was Dorner.  Officers opened fire.  Their target?  Two women who were delivering newspapers.  They kept their headlights off to keep from waking up folks in the neighborhood.

The incident was followed by another shooting where officers say they believed they spotted Dorner.  Again, they opened fire.  This time, the person on the other end of the gunfire was a white man in a completely different truck than Dorner.  Why does him being a white man matter?  Because Dorner was black.  Neither the vehicle nor the driver looked particularly like Dorner.

These incidents, coupled with allegations that the fire that may have finally claimed Dorner may have been started by law enforcement in the first place, have some asking whether or not police are responsible for their actions like private citizens are.  Had you or I fired shots at a vehicle that we though may contain someone who is a threat to us, we would be hauled off to jail faster than we could say “due process”.  The truth is, we would deserve it.  Jeopardizing the lives of innocent people by shooting at them on the mere possibility of a threat violates the very heart of the non-aggression principle most libertarians ascribe to.  In fact, this is as nonpartisan an issue as you will find, as both liberals and conservatives tend to believe the use of force must fall into certain parameters first.

However, law enforcement has played by a different set of rules.  In most cases, their rules are more restrictive than those of every day folks.  You and I, for example, aren’t required to identify ourselves to a home invader, nor are we required to tell that invader to drop their weapon before we can use lethal force.  However, we are required to make sure that someone is an actual threat before firing.  Police in California apparently operate on a different level than mere mortals like you or I.

While I am glad to know that Chris Dorner’s reign of terror is at an end, my concern is that the reign of terror at the hands of police is only just beginning.

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