A few years ago, local law enforcement officers went to my Godson's home about 1:30 a.m. following a bad lead. They claimed "exigent circumstances" from an incident that happened in the neighborhood some fifteen hours before. Someone gave the police a very vague description of the suspect, which fit half the neighborhood.
My boy was a touring, Christian musician, who literally never got into trouble. He very rarely even left the yard except to go to his private school, rehearsals and the churches and bands he played for. He was about 16 at the time. He had a 15-year-old brother and an older brother who was 33. Their mother had gone to work for her night shift job. There was also a guest visiting the family from out of town with two young children.
The officers surrounded the house and then entered the house and every bedroom. They had guns drawn on everyone in the home, including the two children who were both under five years old. The 33-year-old was awakened by the room light being turned on. He was a Type 1 diabetic, developmentally delayed and mostly deaf. Thank God he did not reach for his hearing aid lying on the table near his bed. The officer in his room could have shot and killed him, supposing he was reaching for a weapon; and he would have never even known why.
Nothing about the incident was valid. I worked in law enforcement myself. Even after I left my department, I kept my hand in security and bodyguard services for over forty years and obtained a bachelor degree in criminal justice. I know that unfortunate things do happen. Officer safety is no less important than those calling out for your help. As a society, we have to do better. We cannot serve and protect our communities while acting unseemly under color of authority.
This is my intervention. Let's start here....