I think any awards for police misbehavior should come, in significant degree at least, from their retirement fund- or from insurance each officer is required to carry.
The former would give all other officers a reason to self-police less disciplined officers and the latter would soon make insurance rates so high an officer with self-control issues would soon be unemployable because he/she couldn't afford the premiums on liability insurance.
Why should citizens pay for misbehavior by employees over whom they have absolutely no control?
So the officers and department get away without admitting any wrongdoing? Costing taxpayer time and money to ultimately come to a large settlement and they just…go on business as usual? One of these guys still works in our city, which is highly disturbing. If they did nothing wrong, then why was there a $1.95m payout? It’s extremely disappointing how little community outreach (or soul searching…) the department has done in the wake of this violent assault on an innocent member of our community. There are many unanswered questions about this, not least of which is “when will this happen again?”
A question comes to mind as to how much the city pays for liability insurance. Last year it was $580,760 and this year it's 733,435. That's a pretty big jump!
Enough money for police training is essential. If an officer isn't trained to recognize the difference between a health problem and drunkenness these events will happen.
What a nightmare for everyone involved in this incident. This had to have been difficult for the officers trying to do the “right thing” for public safety, but also horrible for the “suspected drunk” driver. More training for the officers may have helped them to determine how best to handle the situation.
Thank goodness for the insurance coverage as far as our city finances.
If it was such a nightmare for the officers involved, why didn’t they apologize when the truth came out? He had no alcohol in his blood when tested, and the hospital told the cops that he was a type one diabetic. Etc. etc. etc..
He was swerving all over the road, didn’t stop when the police turned on their lights. Continued weaving, unable to keep the truck in its lane, final crashing into a ditch all with his 6-year-old daughter in the car! He wasn’t coherent enough of his own daughter safety to pull over? He wasn’t coherent enough, of the people, families, children walking along Main St that he likely would have killed them had he drifted just a little farther? Pure luck he crashed into a ditch before hurting his daughter or the public. And he wasn’t coherent enough, that if he just pulled over when the police turned their lights on, this all would have been treated as a medical emergency, no harm no foul.
So you’re the police officer seeing all this play out, and when you confront the driver, he is uncooperative, which now today we know the reason, but at that moment all you have is an uncooperative person who actions demonstrated no concern for the public or his daughter. Why would the police officers not think they have to take forceful action?
Note the case was settled, so we don't know what a jury having heard all the evidence would have decided. Maybe the officers response was excessive, but Callaghan sure isn't blameless. He knows he has a condition that if he doesn't manage puts his life, his kids life and the public at risk. And he didn't manage it this time. And he'll profit from it now
The city and the insurance company took the easy way out. Maybe the cheapest way out. But that doesn't really answer who (or who's) at fault and what can be done better in the future.
I think any awards for police misbehavior should come, in significant degree at least, from their retirement fund- or from insurance each officer is required to carry.
The former would give all other officers a reason to self-police less disciplined officers and the latter would soon make insurance rates so high an officer with self-control issues would soon be unemployable because he/she couldn't afford the premiums on liability insurance.
Why should citizens pay for misbehavior by employees over whom they have absolutely no control?
So the officers and department get away without admitting any wrongdoing? Costing taxpayer time and money to ultimately come to a large settlement and they just…go on business as usual? One of these guys still works in our city, which is highly disturbing. If they did nothing wrong, then why was there a $1.95m payout? It’s extremely disappointing how little community outreach (or soul searching…) the department has done in the wake of this violent assault on an innocent member of our community. There are many unanswered questions about this, not least of which is “when will this happen again?”
A question comes to mind as to how much the city pays for liability insurance. Last year it was $580,760 and this year it's 733,435. That's a pretty big jump!
Enough money for police training is essential. If an officer isn't trained to recognize the difference between a health problem and drunkenness these events will happen.
What a nightmare for everyone involved in this incident. This had to have been difficult for the officers trying to do the “right thing” for public safety, but also horrible for the “suspected drunk” driver. More training for the officers may have helped them to determine how best to handle the situation.
Thank goodness for the insurance coverage as far as our city finances.
If it was such a nightmare for the officers involved, why didn’t they apologize when the truth came out? He had no alcohol in his blood when tested, and the hospital told the cops that he was a type one diabetic. Etc. etc. etc..
Pretty messed up stuff. I thought we paid for better quality, better educated police officers.
He was swerving all over the road, didn’t stop when the police turned on their lights. Continued weaving, unable to keep the truck in its lane, final crashing into a ditch all with his 6-year-old daughter in the car! He wasn’t coherent enough of his own daughter safety to pull over? He wasn’t coherent enough, of the people, families, children walking along Main St that he likely would have killed them had he drifted just a little farther? Pure luck he crashed into a ditch before hurting his daughter or the public. And he wasn’t coherent enough, that if he just pulled over when the police turned their lights on, this all would have been treated as a medical emergency, no harm no foul.
So you’re the police officer seeing all this play out, and when you confront the driver, he is uncooperative, which now today we know the reason, but at that moment all you have is an uncooperative person who actions demonstrated no concern for the public or his daughter. Why would the police officers not think they have to take forceful action?
Note the case was settled, so we don't know what a jury having heard all the evidence would have decided. Maybe the officers response was excessive, but Callaghan sure isn't blameless. He knows he has a condition that if he doesn't manage puts his life, his kids life and the public at risk. And he didn't manage it this time. And he'll profit from it now
The city and the insurance company took the easy way out. Maybe the cheapest way out. But that doesn't really answer who (or who's) at fault and what can be done better in the future.