After watching that frightening and sad video of a lady bartender being badly beaten by an off duty cop, I have another that more accurately reflects just who are the men and women of the Chicago Police Department. You will see some early 1970s and before rare images of Chicago policewomen at work.
Star Prosecution Witness, Rachel Jeantel Sanford, FL —Yes, the George Zimmerman trial here has thousands of African-Americans getting ready for some serious bloodletting. I don’t want to make idle and dire predictions but this nation has never been so divided and racially sensitive. Our African-American President took sides on this case at the very beginning. That ratified a George Zimmerman guilty verdict in the minds of millions. There’s just one little problem, and that is the murder case should have never been filed. It was filed purely for political reasons despite the fact that it was a simple justifiable homicide. Zimmerman was on the block watch lookout program and followed a suspicious Trayvon Martin after he used an improper entrance to a gated community. Zimmerman was acting as the eyes and ears of the Sanford Police Department. Martin did not like being followed and knew that he could easily beat up the out-of-shape...
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Nice montage. Although Abbate deserves a fair trial free of public speculation (like anyone accused of a violent crime) it is difficult to think of any mitigating circumstances that would justify his pummeling of a woman less than half his weight, unless it is the psychological pressure of a job that also has one of the highest suicide rates in the nation. I hope he gets the help he needs.
Fortunately Abbate is not the face of the Chicago PD, or of law enforcement in general. The only thing that separates this story from similar stories that occur every day (besides the voyeuristic tendency to sensationalize anything caught on tape) is the fact that the public holds officials in law enforcement to a higher standard. Abbate's behavior is a rare exception to the vast majority of officers who do their jobs well without making the headlines.
Is Abbate a rarity? Guess it depends on how frequently a rarity can occur. While his attack was not typical, I don't think it should be characterized as rare, either. Paul, thanks for covering it.