back to article Googler mad over cop scrap

A Google engineer is promising to take legal action after he says he was knocked about by police. Ali Afshar, Google engineering manager and former CTO of Microlink, claims he was driving in Silicon Valley (he wouldn't name the city or police department) when he spotted a man in handcuffs surrounded by four police officers. …

  1. Gray
    Holmes

    A stacked deck

    He might keep in mind that US police have very strong and intractable unions; the trial prosecutor's career depends on police cooperation for any degree of career success; and typical trial judges are bound to honor the "system as it is" ... many are elected and dare not anger their constituent voters. There's a solid reason why police brutality and criminality is so deeply entrenched in the failed US system of justice.

    Other than that, I wish Mr. Afshar every success.

    PS: There's also a solid reason why most Americans no longer stop to render aid. Between the cops and the lawyers, it's a risky endeavor. Imagine the "Good Samaritan" beaten, arrested, and prosecuted for his efforts.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Headmaster

      Re: A stacked deck

      This isn't a criminal case though, it's civil. The drawbacks you cite won't apply. Civil judges don't really care to much about cops, there is no prosecutor and most civil juries give far less deference to police testimony than criminal juries. This is going to be about pain, reputational and emotional damage and inappropriate confinement.

      The only criminal issue at hand is the driving without a seatbelt ticket, which isn't really even criminal.

      1. Adam 52 Silver badge

        Re: A stacked deck

        At first glance the odds are against him. 4 vs 1 is going to make it tricky to get over the balance of probabilities line unless there's independent evidence, which the state has much greater powers of access to than a private citizen.

        There are plenty of people with a grudge willing to lie about the Police so he could get lots of witnesses but that plays both ways.

        Gaps in procedure are going to be an approach to cast doubt on the Police story. Usually known as "getting off on a technicality".

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          The problem he faces in a civil trial is different

          If the police force knows they're at fault, they'll offer to settle with him and he'll get a nice check. That check will be paid for by taxpayers in the locality where this happened, and nothing will happen to the officers involved. They won't even get a reprimand on their file. They'll continue being police officers, and acting the same way, because there have been and always will be zero repercussions for them.

          What needs to happen is that municipalities must begin to require the police working for them to carry liability insurance to cover settlements against them. Then bad cops end up having their insurance premiums jacked up and are forced to quit, and taxpayers aren't left footing the bill for bad cops. To the extent that problems with a few cops in a force affect the insurance rates for all cops on the force, the "thin blue line" will break down and cops will be more likely to inform on their fellows who are bad cops.

          The real problem with police in the US isn't the low single digit percentage of really bad/dirty cops who commit the sort of acts we keep reading about. It is the majority of otherwise good cops who will lie and cover up for their fellows, some because "brotherhood" and others because they know they will be retaliated against if they dare speak up.

  2. Sebastian A
    Joke

    Obviously guilty of "driving while non-white".

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      According to LinkedIn, he is not that brown, more of a case of driving while Muslim (especially if he showed a driving license).

      1. Adam 52 Silver badge

        According to the story he didn't show his driving licence before the assault, so can't be that.

        I really struggle to believe that they just set on him for no reason, there must be more to this than is in this article.

        1. kain preacher

          Look on you tube. If the cops think you are against them you are having going to have a bad day. Cops do not like being exposed.

          1. Adam 52 Silver badge

            I should have read the link first... Should know better than to trust El Reg reporting...

            He waded into the middle of an arrest without asking first. When told to piss off he did, and then came back. When they asked him for proof he really was a clinician he got all bolshy, and then they get aggressive.

            That makes much more sense.

        2. Sebastian A

          I am a great believer in hearing both sides of the story before deciding whose side I'm on but without seeing events firsthand I think it's going to be hard to get an accurate picture.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Calling Mr Kodogo....

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Land of the free and all that.

POST COMMENT House rules

Not a member of The Register? Create a new account here.

  • Enter your comment

  • Add an icon

Anonymous cowards cannot choose their icon