This Has To Stop

from Furious Nads

I have to come back to the Chasse death already because I need to come back to the officers involved.

In previous instances of officer-involved deaths, much discussion ensued from official corners about training of officers, and various re-examinations of that training inevitably followed. But we need to be clear on something now.

This isn't about training. It's about common sense, and common human decency.

These officers should not need training of any kind whatsoever to have known it might have been a good idea to actually tell the paramedics that James Chasse had been having trouble breathing.

These officers should not need training of any kind whatsoever to have thought that maybe their best and safest bet was to make sure James Chasse got to a hospital. Hell, that would have been the right course of action just from the standpoint of covering their own asses.

These officers should not need training of any kind whatsoever to have understood that no matter the circumstances, once they have someone in custody, their job is to protect and to serve that person, and that means thinking first of their health and well-being, not thinking first of getting that person to booking and moving on with their day.

This isn't about training. It's about being human.

Addendum: Briefly, to return to the apparent failure to inform paramedics of Chasse's observed condition prior to the paramedics' arrival. That alone should qualify this case for at least consideration of criminally negligent homicide, defined by ORS 163.145 as being "when, with criminal negligence, the person causes the death of another person".

ORS 161.085 defines "criminal negligence" as meaning "that a person fails to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the result will occur or that the circumstance exists. The risk must be of such nature and degree that the failure to be aware of it constitutes a gross deviation from the standard of care that a reasonable person would observe in the situation."