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View Full Version : Remember this famous pepper spray photo from the Occupy protests? The verdict is in......




paulbot24
08-11-2013, 12:25 AM
http://i.huffpost.com/gen/411593/LIZ-NICHOLS-OCCUPY-PORTLAND-PEPPER-SPRAY.jpg

When you think about things like police brutality and excessive force, what kind of images come to mind? If you've been on here a while, I bet many things come to mind. Occasionally somebody happens to have a camera or takes video of it when it happens, which is all anybody can hope for if they are on the receiving end of the abuses and they want the police to be held responsible. Well, that and hopefully you survive too, and you just might, since killing you will probably require lots of forms to be filled out and paperwork to vanish. Even when pictures and videos surface, the cops still usually find a way to justify their actions in court and to the public, since it makes many people uncomfortable to consider the possibility that the police are not who they like to believe they are. They need to believe the police are honest because if they can't trust the police.......However, there are those rare moments when the abuse caught on film is so egregiously indisputable, you just know heads are going to roll. You might remember this famous picture from the Occupy protests. The protestor's name is Liz Nichols. The picture was taken by a photographer from their local newspaper The Oregonian. Once it hit the internet, people were (finally) shocked. It's about time right? It was such a blatant example of excessive force in so many ways, it didn't matter what people personally thought of the whole Occupy thing, which is probably why it was so effective. You knew heads were going to roll when this went to court. Probably a decent settlement too right? Wrong. You might think police using excessive force or brutality is something that just can't or wouldn't ever happen to you? Or you might think that if they pulled shit like this on you, you would make damn sure the assholes are fired and are unable to afford their military-grade SWAT armored vehicles they've been salivating over this year. Consider this: Even if a photographer of your local newspaper happens to snap a picture of you getting pepper sprayed in the mouth by a sea of jackboot thugs, and it makes the local news, and then goes absolutely viral on the internet.....don't count on your fellow Mundanes to rule in your favor against the police. Yep, the cops will be getting those SWAT vehicles after all. In fact, those same cops, after perhaps a month of suspension with pay are probably riding around in it right now. The link to the article is below.

Jury Verdict: Not guilty of excessive force
Total damages awarded to Liz Nichols: $0
Case Closed.

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2013/08/post_354.html

dillo
08-11-2013, 01:00 AM
reading the comments on that sight is even more depressing than the verdict

paulbot24
08-11-2013, 01:16 AM
I didn't even see the comments. NoScript (http://noscript.net/), a firefox plugin can be a serious blessing. It blocks them along with ad junk unless you want to see them. Then you can specify what you will allow. Sometimes the comments are more interesting than the article, other times you find yourself on Huffington Post....:cool: