Police accountability board

It is evident by the amount of criticism and push back from the various activists like ACLU and NAACP regarding the makeup and process of the police accountability boards that they have a hidden agenda. The board composition is representative of the population makeup for Anne Arundel County. The number of members and their backgrounds are adequate to provide a fair and impartial review of incidents. The board does not need investigative powers as that task could be easily abused and subject officers to undue hardship and criticism. The police agencies are already hampered from doing their job due to being put under microscopic scrutiny by individuals who do not have a clue what it is like to perform their daily duties.

What is needed is a “Suspect Accountability Board” that places a level of responsibility on a suspect for how the incident plays out — to examine whether the suspect fought the officer, had a weapon, obeyed the officers’ instructions, etc. These actions sometime require officers to use the various types of force to take the suspect into custody. We all know, but may not say out loud, that in some high-profile police involved incidents, had the suspect just followed police officers’ instruction, they would be alive today.

It is time to quit looking for someone else to blame for these type incidents. The scales of justice are balanced … they are not tipped in favor of the suspect! Would you rather you and your family be safe or SORRY? Think about it.

— Gary Hornbaker, Severn