A couple of days ago I posted about the maddening video of an Uber driver being chewed out by an NYPD officer.
Here’s how the person who uploaded the video (the UberX passenger) described the situation:
Police abuse of Uber driver in New York City. In an unmarked car, the policeman was allegedly attempting to park without using his blinker at a green light. (His reverse lights weren’t on. Likely double parked without hazards on.) The Uber driver pulled around and gestured that he should use his blinker, casually and non-offensively, and kept driving us. The policeman aggressively pulls up behind us and this is what happens.
The good news is that according to The Verge, the officer, Patrick Cherry, has been stripped of his badge and gun, and removed from the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, which he was part of.
Unfortunately this doesn’t seem to be the first time the officer has been accused of verbal abuse. Via DNAinfo:
Cherry won’t be fired because verbal abuse of a civilian is not considered a fireable offense, sources said.
This would not be the first complaint against Cherry for verbal abuse, sources said.
The detective, who has about 15 years on the force, has had about 10 complaints against him, some of which involve verbally abusing civilians, sources familiar with his record said.
The outcome of those complaints is unknown.
Bottom line
As sickening as the officer’s actions were and as much as the world nowadays is scary, it’s sort of refreshing that we live in a day and age where everyone has a camera. Which is bad news for power-hungry jerks like this guy.
It just blows my mind that there are people that treat other humans this way…
Unfortunately this is a huge issue with police. A lot of children say they want to be cops when they grow up, but by the time they are entering the work force, they do not think the average pay is worth the stressful and dangerous work - and they’re right. The only people who still want to be cops are generally weak, emotionally fragile, men or women with unhealthy power obsessions, and will do anything...
Unfortunately this is a huge issue with police. A lot of children say they want to be cops when they grow up, but by the time they are entering the work force, they do not think the average pay is worth the stressful and dangerous work - and they’re right. The only people who still want to be cops are generally weak, emotionally fragile, men or women with unhealthy power obsessions, and will do anything to feel like a big, dominant, person. Even those who are healthy, decent people that still want to get into law enforcement end up becoming detectives in better divisions or work in the technological, administrative, or scientific fields alongside law enforcement which gives them better pay, and the same benefits as police, except for the gun and authority. Those who want to be street cops, field fbi, etc., are those who crave power and the authority and gun to back it up.
Most cops - not a small percentage - are losers and weak people like this. That’s why they often use too much force, often escalate situations in the hopes of justifying force, and regularly abuse their power and act like goofs. Most people who act like the typical cop would have their ass kicked back down to earth, but their authority and gun prevents this natural sociological calibration to take place. This guy in the video would have been choked out and slapped after waking up, then made to apologize if he did this to anyone with half the balls I have - and I’m no tough guy - if he wasn’t police. Anyone with a bit of muscle and some courage would do it - and that isn’t that rare.
Unfortunately, no one really brings this issue up, and the pop-culture mainstream view on police is that they are racist and should be defunded. This is product of poor education and logical reasoning skills present in teachers and young people. In reality, racism is not an issue, and the statistics show this. The call to defund the police also comes from the most ignorant people in the world, as this is the exact opposite of what is needed. Police need higher pay and higher requirement thresholds. Police are often uneducated, cowards, and mentally fragile. They only need to pass an awfully simple written test and a harder physical test to become cops. If employment required routine psychological examinations / therapy, demonstrated courage, intelligence and knowledge, and superior interpersonal skills we would instantly have better police. The difference would be enormous, and they would become welcome pillars of society instead of public nuisances like rats.
Of course, these strict requirements would mean most police would not make the cut, and we would have an overwhelming shortage. If their pay was increased significantly, in addition to great benefits, this may attract positive members of society. The issue with policing is not overfunding, it’s underfunding, funds going to the wrong places, and piss-poor job requirements.
Of course, the biggest media giants, news stations, and social media platforms are run by AND for the privileged, inner city, irrational, aimless, pampered, and outrageously ignorant loud minority with little regular life experience or knowledge in any fundamental area of life. This prevents real discussion of these issues as Twitter and Reddit users, who get their information from Salon, Buzzfeed, MSNBC, celebrities, and other users cannot understand nuance, and need to distill subjects down to black and white or good vs evil, to make it more simple. These platforms are often created for the common user but bought out by the elite who share the similar privilege, lack of life experiences, and below average intelligence, since most elites are not self made but trust fund babies with a long history of family wealth. They are then molded to support and promote the same immature views and theories, and drive away the average and above average majority.
One of the only social media platforms that isn’t overwhelmingly idiots is YouTube, as it offers more than just immature opinions as content and real entertainment. Even on YouTube, after being bought by Google they have banned anything they consider “hate” or “harmful conspiracy” which is vague enough to remove any meaningful discussion if they need to. General intelligent discussion can find loopholes so long as it doesn’t become too popular and still exist on the platform. This is why the average YouTube user eclipses Twitter or Reddit users in logic and reason even with the massive over-representation of children. This is why news and media channels encourage discussion on Reddit or Twitter but often disable commenting on YouTube. Recently, they just increased the censorship of opinion of YouTube by disabling the down-vote button, as it would reveal the majority of people disagree with something if it was 95% downvotes and 5% up, even if the comments are disabled.
All of this goes to show you, even on a platform for video entertainment, the limited social interaction is a threat to those who want to keep discussion basic, ignorant, and immature. They push platforms that they have managed to completely change and filled with useful idiots that have the same immature and out of touch views. Until we can have an intelligent discussion revolving around policing, things will never change, and likely get worse. We need to reinvest in police and overhaul the requirements for the gun and badge. There are plenty of people who will watch this video and need to dumb the narrative down to “angry racist white cop berates poor brown man”, and those people don’t deserve to have their opinion taken seriously. There is a serious problem with policing and it comes down to the type of people drawn to such a job, and the ease in which it can be obtained. The answer isn’t less police, and less pay will make the issue 100x worse. The answer is more emotionally healthy and strong police.
I went to high school with Patrick cherry and our 35th reunion is coming up. I was wondering what happened to that kid because he was unhinged and mean in high school. Sure enough he didn’t disappoint. Karma caught up to him
Not to interrupt your stay paradise but have you seen the video with the weak apology from the "Bad Cop /Uber"
http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/New-York-NYC-NYPD-Taxi-Driver-Uber-Cop-Video-Tirade-NYC-Detective-298585531.html
I doubt the douchebag gets demoted, and above poster was probably right, may have only SAID they did. It's sad it takes NATIONAL attention to have anything happen..and even then the unions know after a "cooling off period" where nobody is looking they'll "correct the situation" i.e. reinstate his former rank and pay, etc...totally bullsh!t.
Plus, there are TWELVE other complaints....THAT WE KNOW ABOUT. How many people were too scared to come forward for fear...
I doubt the douchebag gets demoted, and above poster was probably right, may have only SAID they did. It's sad it takes NATIONAL attention to have anything happen..and even then the unions know after a "cooling off period" where nobody is looking they'll "correct the situation" i.e. reinstate his former rank and pay, etc...totally bullsh!t.
Plus, there are TWELVE other complaints....THAT WE KNOW ABOUT. How many people were too scared to come forward for fear of repercussions from a crazed d-bag of a cop?? An Uber or Lyft, etc driver can LOSE THEIR JOB b/c of the power b.s. this a**clown seems to routinely use/abuse. HE, on the other hand, has his union and a LOOOOOONG history of the Blue Wall protecting him and letting him go about his business.
@Mike(Mtn out of molehill) is most likely an officer or similar. That blue wall is VERY high. It just goes to show, even other cops think that's fine, at how bad our police is for people to speak up like it's no big thing. Anger management is the least Cherry should be subjected to.
The Uber driver should have reported the incident and then when they questioned Cherry about it and he lied and said nothing happened, then present the video evidence and maybe he gets fired for lying.
"If that is sickening then you best stay out of the Middle East and Africa as you’ll be in a coma after what is happening there………."
Great point! If it's worse elsewhere, then we shouldn't pay attention to it in NY. Thank you for adding such rich, relevant, and on point perspective to the conversation.
Your broad-brush painting of the ME and Africa are educational as well; now I know to avoid the ME and Africa.
If that is sickening then you best stay out of the Middle East and Africa as you'll be in a coma after what is happening there..........it's all relative.........the jerk got demoted....end of story........
Let's you know what the standards for the NYPD are. This is a minor incident, compared to many of their other WAY more notorious incidents.
No way the rank and file get this way if the leaders don't allow it.
Just one example of sodomy from NYPD.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prospect_Park_alleged_police_sodomy_incident
A HUGE KUDOS to the passenger in this incident. Without him, the mentally deranged officer would have walked away from this as he has done dozens of times before. Mike (mountain out of a molehill) you're SO VERY WRONG to think this guy is entitled to abuse an innocent person this way. Are you just like him? The driver made a polite gesture that he should use his signal and that's for the SAFETY of...
A HUGE KUDOS to the passenger in this incident. Without him, the mentally deranged officer would have walked away from this as he has done dozens of times before. Mike (mountain out of a molehill) you're SO VERY WRONG to think this guy is entitled to abuse an innocent person this way. Are you just like him? The driver made a polite gesture that he should use his signal and that's for the SAFETY of everyone involved. THEN the idiot cop berates him, threatens to handcuff and lock him up? My guess is this jerk goes home and beats his wife and kids - if anyone was stupid enough to marry him.
So sad that the union will probably stand behind him and he'll get the proverbial slap on the wrist.
Oh, but if only this story were true. I live in NYC. No cop get "their badge and gun taken away and demoted" for anything less than a felony conviction. NYC government just doesn't work this quickly or this efficiently. It takes years of administrative hearings to get demoted. More than likely, he was given a few days off on administrative leave (with pay, of course) and they just SAID he was demoted to appease...
Oh, but if only this story were true. I live in NYC. No cop get "their badge and gun taken away and demoted" for anything less than a felony conviction. NYC government just doesn't work this quickly or this efficiently. It takes years of administrative hearings to get demoted. More than likely, he was given a few days off on administrative leave (with pay, of course) and they just SAID he was demoted to appease the outrage.
NOTHING WILL HAPPEN TO HIM. sorry, that's just how NYC works. (or doesn't work!)
5 more years and he gets his 20 ... that just account for 3 more complaints, I am sure he can manage that ....
My hat's off to the guys who had the guts and good thinking to videotape this on their smart phone. Without this evidence, the event would have gone unnoticed, but now its on the national news. Demotion, if it sticks, gives me some faith in the system. More importantly, the example this sets for all the other officers with personalities like him (hopefully, they are in a small minority) should make them think first before...
My hat's off to the guys who had the guts and good thinking to videotape this on their smart phone. Without this evidence, the event would have gone unnoticed, but now its on the national news. Demotion, if it sticks, gives me some faith in the system. More importantly, the example this sets for all the other officers with personalities like him (hopefully, they are in a small minority) should make them think first before acting like this. Law enforcement is a needed and noble profession, but it carries a duty to serve and respect the law abiding public too. Unfortunately, bad apples can get into any profession, but with all the previous complaints, he should have been demoted or fired years ago. At the very least Cherry has needed anger management therapy for some time. Unions began in the early 20th century to help members from being unfairly taken advantage of. Unfortunately, too many unions have become defenders of members who misbehave, instead of doing what's right for both their members and for society. I agree with Richard that the way Cherry acted was dangerous and unacceptable. If he cannot control his anger, he has no business carrying a firearm or being in a life or death situation where a professional with cool head is needed. Let's hope the media stays on top of this.
This may be the "4 minute tirade" of a 15 year career but it proves that this officer has some emotional issues he needs to deal with IMMEDIATELY. We are all human and deal with anger in various ways. The manner in which he responded is dangerous and unacceptable.
@Mike - The dude was working in an office, not patrolling the inner city on foot. He's no more entitled to scream at civilians in his official capacity than I am. There's little justification for putting cops on such a pedestal.
I don't 100% disagree with the "the guy is allowed to have one bad day" line. My problem with that claim though is that people who throw it around offer no evidence that...
@Mike - The dude was working in an office, not patrolling the inner city on foot. He's no more entitled to scream at civilians in his official capacity than I am. There's little justification for putting cops on such a pedestal.
I don't 100% disagree with the "the guy is allowed to have one bad day" line. My problem with that claim though is that people who throw it around offer no evidence that the abuser is more likely to have had a one-off event versus having his typical behavior come to light. It seems much more likely to me that someone behaving like this probably does so quite a lot, and in this case we actually know that to be true courtesy of all of the other complaints.
If linked article is correct, his punishment - if any - hasn't been decided yet:
"The most severe penalty Cherry would face, sources said, would be the loss of 20 to 30 vacation days or about a month's pay. Sources said at Cherry's pay grade, that would amount to about $10,000."
@ Ivan Y -- That article was as of yesterday. The newer one indicates that he has been demoted.
@”mountain out of a mole hill!” Mike:
I hope you are one of those "morons" someday who is subjected to this type of abuse. You moron.
BOOOOOOOOOOO!!! The punishment isn't anywhere near harsh enough. I say let him keep his job, with demotion... BUT take a substantial amount away from his pension.
Yet another reason why I hate unions... and I say that having worked in unions before.
I always find it sad that those who believe in closed shop union laws, and say this is the only way to ensure fair pay and treatment of workers seem to clam up in these situations.....
who thinks "Mike" is really Officer Cherry?
@ mike - How would you feel if YOU were at the receiving end of this verbal abuse?
@"mountain out of a mole hill!" Mike:
To you it seems like a molehill. To the Uber driver, who was not only verbally abused and insulted, but also threatened with arrest, it is far more than a molehill. His very livelihood was at stake. There is absolutely no excuse for Officer Cherry's behavior. None whatsoever. Your defense of his actions is just laughable. We entrust the police with our safety. ANY police officer who abuses...
@"mountain out of a mole hill!" Mike:
To you it seems like a molehill. To the Uber driver, who was not only verbally abused and insulted, but also threatened with arrest, it is far more than a molehill. His very livelihood was at stake. There is absolutely no excuse for Officer Cherry's behavior. None whatsoever. Your defense of his actions is just laughable. We entrust the police with our safety. ANY police officer who abuses that trust is not doing his job and should be fired.
"Cherry won’t be fired because verbal abuse of a civilian is not considered a fireable offense "
And that is precisely what is wrong with the police in America these days. It's OUR tax dollars that are paying for the services of the police. I don't remember ever agreeing to allow people who work for us to treat us in this manner. We citizens deserve better from our police, and we need to demand better.
sorry Mike, but this guy has 12 CCRB complaints dating back to 2001. this isn't a guy who had a bad day and lost it. this is a bad apple who needs to be pruned from the tree.
also, the news is reporting det. cherry is 38?? sheesh if that's true i feel bad for him. he looks in his 50s. maybe another line of work is in order.
@mike it is thinking like that... which is why all these idiots behave the way they do... YOU and all these idiots are in no way superior than any other person walking the street and therefore.. he was not in a position to behave the way he did.. I do not care what he does or did.. no one forced him to do the job he does,
Unfortunately, his union will make sure he sees no real punishment. Same old story.
This cop deals with morons everyday like this, then he has a bad day and decides to take action on it...what is the big deal. Civilians have absolutely no idea of what goes on through one full tour of being a cop. How about those 15 years he has served? It takes a four minute tirade to destroy his service to this city? We (the general public) want to be treated like we are all still in elementary school...mountain out of a mole hill!
This would seem like an OK outcome but I would guess the Union is going to file a grievance in this case and I would be surprised if this demotion sticks.
One standard for them, and one standard for us
Quote: "Cherry won’t be fired because verbal abuse of a civilian is not considered a fireable offense, sources said."
In the private sector almost always an employee would get fired for this. But when you have a monopoly on your industry (legalized force), you are the only game in town, nobody competes with you, you get this.
Who watches the watchmen? What if they can no longer be trusted?