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Social and Behavioral Sciences

Christopher C. Cooper Dr.

2009

Civil Rights

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

Broken U.S. Police Culture And Lack Of Police Temperament Explain The Infamous Gates-Crowley Encounter, Christopher C. Cooper Jul 2009

Broken U.S. Police Culture And Lack Of Police Temperament Explain The Infamous Gates-Crowley Encounter, Christopher C. Cooper

Christopher C. Cooper Dr.

Any knowledgeable cop can tell you that Dr. Gates was moments away from being tasered or shot. And, that but for Henry Louis Gates’ friendship with the president of the U.S., he would have been just another statistic. When a citizen dares to disagree with an officer—he or she goes to jail. Astonishingly, the prosecutor and the judge and the whole criminal justice system accept the officer’s false account of events and probable cause. And, it happens again and again, but perhaps not anymore---maybe now with less frequency because of an encounter between a small-city cop and a renowned university …


Yes Virginia, There Is A Police Code Of Silence: Prosecuting Police Officers And The Police Subculture, Christopher C. Cooper Mar 2009

Yes Virginia, There Is A Police Code Of Silence: Prosecuting Police Officers And The Police Subculture, Christopher C. Cooper

Christopher C. Cooper Dr.

Successfully prosecuting police officers for police malfeasance represents formidable challenges. These challenges are not impenetrable. Prosecutor attention to the secrets of the Code of Silence, many of which are on public display, thanks to generous leaks, is an absolute necessity. This author has encountered and interacted with prosecutors as a Police Officer (in particular as a policeman in Washington D.C. [Metropolitan Police]) and as a Plaintiff’s attorney. The one thing that he noticed as a cop and continues to notice (now as a practicing civil rights attorney) about attorneys who defend or prosecute police officers is that most attorneys have …