How can you avoid a criminal record after driving drunk and assaulting innocent people? Easy, become a cop. In a recent news article, Chad Skelton discusses an instance of 'disgraceful' drunken antics by two Ridge Meadows RCMP officers. Last May around 3am, RCMP Const. Hughson and Frazer left a Maple Ridge bar in truck while being "highly intoxicated." Soon after, they spotted a man, Colin Frederick, walking home quietly. They stopped their truck and proceeded to physically assault Frederick stating they were "police with power." In addition, later that night the two off-duty intoxicated officers stopped another man riding his bike. As a result, they claimed he wasn't wearing a helmet so they threw bike about fifteen down the road.
Although both officers were eventually charged, both avoided registering criminal records. In other words, their punishment was the loss of 10 days pay and simply to attend an alteranative measures program.
My Critique
This is a perfect example of cops who think they are above the law. These two men are obviously power-hungry because if I get drunk, I don't drive around and beat people up. This incident reminds me of the cops in the recent movie: Superbad. Furthermore, this type of police dilinguence is absolutely inappropriate and embarrassing to the Police forces across Canada. The worst part is the preferential treatment by the courts to make the officers didn't get criminal records. What does that imply about our political and judicial systems? Or, in other words, how far can cops bend the system to justify their crimes? Does the law not apply to all citizens?
Advocacy of the Devil
Yes, these off-duty officers were in the wrong and deserve some form of punishment. However, giving them criminal records doesn't solve anything. If anything, it shows a lack of confidence in our policing systems. In all fairness, police are only human.
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