[Peace-discuss] Fw: [police oversight] '10 Rules for Dealing with Police' seeks to teach constitutional rights

Thu Mar 25 13:46:22 CDT 2010

Good points, Laurie. Add the Mayor and Champaign City Council members to the list of invited viewers as well.  --Jenifer
--- On Thu, 3/25/10, Laurie Solomon <ls1000 at live.com> wrote:

From: Laurie Solomon <ls1000 at live.com>
Subject: [Peace-discuss] Fw: [police oversight] '10 Rules for Dealing with Police' seeks to teach constitutional rights
To: "BALDWIN RICKY" <baldwinricky at yahoo.com>, "Kessel Barbara" <barkes at gmail.com>, "peace-discuss" <peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net>, "ROSALES GIRALDO" <grosales at ad.uiuc.edu>, "sf-core" <sf-core at yahoogroups.com>, "Rent Todd" <terent at city.urbana.il.us>, "Finney R." <RT.Finney at ci.champaign.il.us>, "Dolinar Brian" <briandolinar at gmail.com>, "CARTER STEVE" <STEVE.CARTER at CI.CHAMPAIGN.IL.US>, "HOOKER JOSEPH" <joseph.hooker at ci.champaign.il.us>, "Walls Joan" <wallsja at ci.champaign.il.us>, "SCHWEIGHART JERRY" <jerryschweighart at ci.champaign.il.us>
Cc: "CUMPSTON COPE" <cumpston at uiuc.edu>, WillKyles at ci.champaign.il.us, "Dodds Marci" <marcidodds at ci.champaign.il.us>, "Imani Bazzell" <thinkandfeel at gmail.com>, "ELLIOTT CAROL" <CACELLIOTT at GMAIL.COM>, "Rosales Melodye" <melodye at nitrogendesign.com>, "BRUNO TOM" <tombruno at tombruno.com>, "FEINEN DEBORAH" <DeborahFrankFeinen at ci.champaign.il.us>, "Ladue Michael" <michaelladue at ci.champaign.il.us>, KarenFoster at ci.champaign.il.us
Date: Thursday, March 25, 2010, 12:58 PM

For what it is worth, I think that the contents of this 
article are of some merit and worth taking into consideration given the general 
validity of what is being said.  I would take the liberty of suggesting 
that it might be a good thing to obtain copies of the film mentioned and show it 
in the schools as well as community centers, churches, and other community 
facilities.

As a side note, I also think it might be of some use if 
it were shown to police recruits in the PTI and officers - particularly 
patrol officers and supervisory personnel - in the various law enforcement 
departments so as to make them aware of some of the "seen-but-unnoticed" 
practices and understandings that they might be employing in evaluating 
situations that result in inflaming already potentially contentious 
and volatile interactions and situations.  This might be a beneficial 
step in improving community relations.

From: kwa357 
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2010 11:42 AM
To: policeoversight at yahoogroups.com 

Subject: [police oversight] '10 Rules for Dealing with Police' seeks 
to teach constitutional rights

'10 Rules for Dealing with Police' seeks to teach constitutional 
rights

By DeNeen L. Brown
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, 
March 25, 2010; C02

The short film "10 Rules for Dealing With Police" 
opens with an unfortunate but common scene: A young black man in a little red 
car, rap music blasting, is driving down a gritty highway at night, minding his 
own business, thumping to a beat.

A police car pulls behind him. The man 
becomes agitated as he stops, muttering under his breath, "I am tired of this 
[expletive]. "

By the time the officer gets to his window and shines 
the flashlight, the man, having done nothing but switch lanes, is projecting 
much attitude. He rolls down his window halfway.

"Yeah, I know the 
drill," he says, this being the fourth time in a year he has been "pulled over 
for nothing."

"Excuse me?" the officer says.

The man grabs his 
registration out of his glove box.

"No need for the attitude, bro," the 
officer says. "I'm looking out for your safety and everyone else on this 
road."

The man mutters some obscenity.

The officer asks him to 
step out of the car.

In that instant, he has violated the film's rule No. 
1 for dealing with police.

"As soon as you opened your mouth, you failed 
the rule with your attitude," says narrator William "Billy" Murphy, a former 
Baltimore judge and defense attorney, best known for his role in "The 
Wire."

"10 Rules," a docudrama produced by the D.C. nonprofit Flex Your 
Rights, dispenses free legal advice with no-holds-barred dialogue. The 
producers, D.C. residents Steven Silverman, 33, and Scott Morgan, 30, created 
the film to help people in urban areas understand their constitutional 
rights.

"I realized the majority of people are confused and overwhelmed 
about how to handle a police encounter," Silverman says, standing in the lobby 
of the Cato Institute, the libertarian think tank where the film premiered 
Wednesday.

Upstairs there are sandwiches, spring water and soda in clear 
glasses for the policy wonks streaming in. This is what people in think tanks do 
in the middle of the day in the middle of the week in Washington: They take big, 
complicated issues, such as unintended consequences of everyday events, and turn 
them into products the rest of us can understand.

"Most people are 
constitutionally illiterate," says Silverman, a former Cato intern. "Most people 
will waive their rights entirely during a police encounter."

Silverman 
and Morgan, who studied criminal justice, plan to distribute DVDs to high 
schools, community groups, youth groups and churches. They spent two years 
making the film, which cost $110,000 and was funded in part by the Marijuana 
Policy Project. It was shot in Baltimore.

"Minorities are the audience," 
Morgan says. "It was important to us with this project because people of color 
are disproportionately targeted by police across the country." According the 
U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, minorities are more likely to be searched 
when arrested. The bureau's stats show that "stop and frisks" are occurring at 
record rates, Morgan says, particularly where minorities and low-income people 
live. He blamed "hard on crime" campaigns by politicians trying to get or stay 
elected.

Silverman says there are unintended consequences for not knowing 
the rules of what to do if stopped by police. "The term is racial targeting," 
Silverman says.

Neill Franklin, a retired Maryland state police officer, 
calls the film an important primer for educating police academies. "I'm a cop. 
I'm straight from the streets," Franklin says. "One of the things I always 
talked with police academy instructors about is to ensure we follow our oath, to 
serve and uphold the Constitution of the United States. Most people think what a 
great piece for kids and grown-ups, but I see it as a great tool for police 
academies."

The 40-minute film is straightforward. Murphy, the judge 
turned actor, is blunt in his advice. "There are lots of good police out there 
doing what needs to be done," he says. "And I don't need to tell you there are 
also a few too many cops who don't respect the basic rights of innocent 
people."

He tells the audience: "The smartest way to take the Fifth is to 
keep your mouth shut. You always have the right to remain silent."

Then 
he makes them repeat a lesson, like a teacher instructing a class: "Repeat after 
me, 'I don't consent to searches.' " And the audience repeats.

In the 
film, Murphy helps the man in the opening scene understand what happened when he 
was pulled over and how he made the situation worse by not following the 
rules.

"That cop profiled me," the man protests. "It's ridiculous. I go 
to school -- I'm not a gun trafficker."

Murphy: "I know how you feel, 
man. . . . You never know for sure what's going on in an officer's head. I hate 
to say it, but from what I hear it sounds like you broke the first rule of 
dealing with police: Always be calm and cool."

Carry the rules on a 
little white napkin if you have to, the producers say, but remember 
them:

1. Always be calm and cool.

2. You have the right to remain 
silent.

3. You have the right to refuse searches.

4. Don't get 
tricked into waiving your rights.

5. Determine if you're free to 
go.

6. Don't do anything illegal.

7. Don't run.

8. Never 
touch a cop.

9. Report misconduct: Be a good witness.

10. You 
don't have to let them in.

A spokesman for the D.C. police, who had not 
seen the film, said the rules are good rules to follow. "However," he said, "if 
you have nothing to hide and police are doing some kind of investigation, you 
should tell them whatever they need to know. Police are there to protect the 
society and the community in which we work."

Rewind the opening scene: 
This time a polite young man rolls down the window. The officer writes him a 
ticket for swerving between lanes. The man gets back into his little red car, 
drives off into the night. 

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