

Phoenix -- While in recent weeks it has become all too apparent to the public that police are rarely held accountable for their actions. This case highlights exactly why many citizens dislike cops and the public as a whole is losing respect for them at a rapid rate.



A video circulating on Facebook shows a power tripping cop abusing a teenager for not respecting his “authority.”



After being called out on a noise complaint, this officer decided to use his perceived authority to bully a 16-year-old kid. Prior to the video beginning, it is alleged that the officer stuck his fingers in the kids mouth.



As the video begins you hear the officer commanding the kid to "Stand right here!"



The teenager had not moved from where he had been standing since the video began, but was being commanded to do so as a means of control by the cop.



"Your gonna stand where I tell you to," said the officer.



The officer wasn't trying to make sure the situation stayed under control but was simply attempting to intimidate the kid. The officer obviously had no fear of the kid doing something to him or attempting to escape, but rather was using his position in an attempt to bully and show the kid who had "authority" in their interaction.



These types of actions by cops are exactly why much of the general public has such a strong disdain for law enforcement.



The power-tripping officer then decides to take it up a notch and commands the kid to sit as if he were a dog.

"Sit on the ground now! You are not listening to me... Sit!" When the teen refuses, the cop grabs his wrists, at which point the man videotaping asks if he is being arrested.



The officer responds,

"He will be shortly. His conduct his is borderline disorderly. So every time I tell him to do something and he does the opposite, I will maintain the control here." Think about that for a minute.



He doesn't say that the kid is doing anything even remotely criminal, simply that he is acting "borderline disorderly."



There is no such offense as "borderline disorderly conduct," so in essence the officers feelings are hurt but there is nothing illegal happening.



And yet in the next frame the officer takes the kid, with his arms restrained behind his back, and slams him face first into the sidewalk.



Keep in mind that if a parent did this their own child they would without a doubt be charged with child abuse.



If this is how you treat the public, then expect the public to have no respect for you or your perceived authority. When those in a position of power aggress against others unnecessarily, it eventually creates a dynamic whereby it becomes inevitable that people will begin to push back.



If you can't control a situation without having to bully, intimidate, harass or abuse a citizen, especially a child, perhaps you are not suited to be a law enforcement officer. The authoritarian display shown by this officer only serves as a reminder of why more and more citizens no longer have any faith in the police.







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Jay Syrmopoulos is an investigative journalist, freethinker, researcher, and ardent opponent of authoritarianism. He is currently a graduate student at University of Denver pursuing a masters in Global Affairs. Jay’s work has previously been published on BenSwann.com and WeAreChange.org. You can follow him on Twitter @sirmetropolis, on Facebook at Sir Metropolis and now on tsu.







