[Peace-discuss] (no subject)

[David Green]

Imagine living in a household where, after running a red light and leading police on a dangerous car chase, your family stands by your side and takes action to frame the police as the irresponsible ones.
 
On Oct. 24, Calvin Miller led police on a chase that ended with Miller fleeing his moving vehicle and hopping a fence to escape the police, who pulled him over for running a red light. When police caught up to Miller, they allegedly used excessive force — including spraying Miller with mace — to apprehend him.
 
The incident caused a stir in the community that came to a head at two Champaign City Council meetings, where public comment was tense and accusatory. Many people at the meetings wore buttons saying they stood with Calvin Miller.
Miller’s case is just one in a line of incidents that have strained the relationship between Champaign Police and the African-American community. The relationship reached a boiling point when police shot and killed teenage resident Kiwane Carrington in October 2009. Although the lawsuits stemming from the Carrington tragedy have been settled, residents say the black community largely still fears the authorities.
 
Miller’s father, Martel, has said his son fled the police because he fears them. There may be legitimate reasons for residents to fear the police, but the decision to lead police on a dangerous chase cannot be justified by a preconceived notion of the authorities. Because of his fear of the police, Miller put not only his life but the lives of bystanders and police in danger as well.
 
Miller’s family has claimed that Miller did not resist arrest and that the use of mace and physical force to put Miller in custody was unwarranted. That line of thinking is fatally flawed; by running a red light and leading police on a chase, Miller resisted arrest.
 
For this reason, the number of community members not in Miller’s family that have rallied around him and against the police is alarming. It’s a rash decision at best that frames the police as the bad guys in any and all circumstances.
 
Residents wearing their supportive buttons at the Oct. 25 council meeting did so without seeing the footage of the chase. The video shows Miller running from police after abandoning his moving vehicle. The arrest was not shown, but Miller had already resisted arrest. It’s hard to say whether the situation necessitated the use of mace, but it seems logical that police would use force to secure a person who had already tried to evade them.
 
The situation has devolved into a race-relations issue, and that is unfair. Using mace on a suspect is not evidence enough of racial discrimination, and framing this particular incident as such is putting emotion before logic and will only work to further divide the black community and the police.
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