When Police Kill: Who Can Protect Us from the Protectors?

Who Can Protect Us from the Protectors?
By Gil Villagrán, MSW

The New Year’s shot in the back by a BART police officer that killed 22-year-old Oscar Grant re- ignited judgments that some police seek any provocation to beat, arrest—even kill marginalized youth and people of color.

“Too many cops are out-of-control cowboys inflicting street punishment on those they think need an attitude adjustment,” the words of a 23-year-old Latino studying to be a special ed teacher. He is just what our community needs: enthusiastic, educated young adults committed to educate the next generation of Americans. He related that he’s seen police behaving badly—cursing, threatening, beating, and arresting Latino youth and adults all his life. “I hate that I fear cops, but I have seen too much to trust them—even if I needed one, I wouldn’t call them.”

Our city manager, mayor and council, but especially Chief Davis: please note this statement from a young adult one who any parent would be proud to call their son. He states he does not hate police officers, but believes them to be in his words, “armed thugs” rather than peace officers.

As a former gang prevention social worker, I worked with San Jose police all of my professional life. I regularly called on officers to investigate family violence, transport abused women and children to shelters, to co-lead workshops on gang violence. I attended training retreats with police officers—and after hours we drank beer and played pool at a country tavern. I have friends and family members in law enforcement. Police are the same as civilians, only more so. They can be well tempered, moral, kind-hearted, professional and sometimes great at de-escalating potentially violent situations. And like all of us, under stressful situations, police officers can react inappropriately.


However, unlike most of us, police are trained to knock down, restrain, and inflict great pain upon a person. With their weapons, they can break bones, crack skulls, rupture organs, taser and shoot to kill. Officers’ training and field manual prescribes when and how to use force. Supervision and appropriate consequences are critical to ensure force occurs only when necessary. Yet critical supervision is not always effective to ensure public safety under color of authority.

Command and Internal Affairs units have a disturbing record of protecting police officers. These problems are not endemic to San Jose. In 1995 twelve San Francisco officers beat, kicked, and pepper sprayed Aaron Williams, leaving him in a pool of blood, as he died 30 minutes later. Officer Marc Anaya’s boot print imprinted on Williams’ cheek. Anaya previously served in Oakland, where he shot a man nine times, reloading his weapon to shoot again. Some may recall Oakland’s infamous “Riders,” officers who beat and framed (planting drugs) on dozens of African-American young men who flunked their “attitude test” of failing to show proper respect for them. Their training officer, Frank “Choker” Vasquez, lived up to his proud nickname. It took an FBI investigation and judge to retire the Oakland Riders, reversing 100 convictions.

Oakland’s present Chief of Internal Affairs, Ed Poulson, was suspended last week after revelations that nine years ago, during the Riders’ reign of injustice, he beat a suspect, kicking him in the ribs. A month later, pneumonia caused by a collapsed lung pierced by broken ribs, led to death. Poulson ordered subordinate officers to lie about the beating. Some did, others reported the beating. Internal Affairs called for his firing, but he was only suspended for two weeks. When he was to be appointed Chief of Internal Affairs last year, officers with knowledge of the beating and his interference with that investigation warned the present chief, to no avail, so they alerted the FBI, who led to the suspension.

Last week San Jose police officer Joseph Paolini tasered a woman outside a downtown club. When her husband came to her aid and/or to confront the officer, he shot him in the face. We cannot pre- judge the behavior of the woman, her husband or the officer. However, the expected pattern of human behavior is that any husband, family member, adult male would likely come to the aid of a woman being tasered. Certainly some inebriated individuals do behave badly, but do they need to be tasered, shot in the face? Was anyone’s life in danger that a taser and a gun needed to be discharged?