Jim Glennon’s recent article The Memphis Police, Tyre Nichols Incident: Raw Opinions drew massive response from around the country. Here is a random selection of some of what we heard.

Lt. Chris Harvey with the Brea (CA) wrote:

To me, this highlights the dangerous result of a lack of training, tactics, and fitness. They were out of control – probably because they felt they were losing control.

There were also certain points where it seemed like they were taunting him and purposely letting him get up or get free so they could keep hitting.  Maybe I’m wrong about their intent and they were just out of shape and tired.  But to see him be able to get to his feet during each encounter is disturbing.

Chief Robert W. McGee with the Queen City (TX) PD responded:

This is obviously a group of specially assigned officers who have been instructed to thwart crime and arrest offenders in a high crime area. But, even at that, this should never have escalated to the point of harm or death to anyone involved. It is also obvious that other complaints will come forward regarding the use of force by these officers or special units.

Does this mean all such units should be dissolved? NO! There is certainly a need for such units, but it is clear this unit’s supervision has not kept track of actions by its officers or has simply ignored such actions.

I have been in law enforcement for 50 years. I have noticed that as law enforcement has evolved, we are getting worse officers as applicants. The public image of a few bad officers has caused good officers to resign and seek employment in the private industries. Saying that all police have a mindset of wanting to mistreat people is a misnomer. I have worked with or supervised a few officers who had that attitude but once discovered, they were dismissed immediately.

This is not a white officer killing a black person, it is black on black. Therefore, they must lay the blame on the uniform. There always must be some excuse to accuse police of any race, creed or color of being white supremacist. Those who play this card would accuse Jesus Christ of being racist.

This is not a race issue. This is an issue of out-of-control officers who most likely had contact with this same person on other occasions or just simply treat every citizen this way.

I have never once gotten out of my bed and looked in the mirror to say, “I believe I will just go out and mistreat or kill someone today!” I do tell myself every time I place my shield on my chest that “I intend to come home today regardless of what it takes.”

Another thing that I have noticed in law enforcement, and many will disagree, is that the appearance of officers today tends to project a thuggish look due to the beards, tattoos, and paraphernalia that officers are being allowed to wear on duty.

Some of the emblems that are worn, such as the warrior patch and others, give people you encounter the idea that they are dealing with someone who is just looking for a chance to beat or harm you. This has changed so much over the years that it is frightening. I have found that these symbols are often worn by those who cannot handle themselves in a controversial situation and desire that the beards, patches, and tattoos broadcast the message, DON’T MESS WITH ME!

You can call for reform, more education, and better pay, but until the actual structure of the profession is fixed and leaders are allowed to discipline their offenders, nothing will change. State requirements has set such strict guidelines for terminating workers, it’s to the point that it is nearly impossible to get rid of a problem employee and if you do, they just go somewhere else.

Finally, Chiefs, Sheriffs and other law enforcement administrators have lost the ability to control their personnel and departments due to outside influences. Even a snake must have its head to control the rest of its body. Control needs to be given back to local entities and department heads to develop and train officers to be suited for that community. YOU CAN ONLY POLICE THE PUBLIC AS MUCH AS THE PUBLIC ALLOWS.  I learned this early on in my career. This is not taught anymore. The public is not being considered in decisions anymore, only the feelings of the “everyone gets a trophy”-type applicant who apply now. More laws can be passed, qualified immunity can be taken away, more degrees can be required but it is obvious that none of this has worked in the past.

In Texas, it has become so hard to hire a new officer that there are literally NO applicants. This is giving the bad officers the ability to be hired by other agencies simply to have a warm body on shift. In the past you could hire an officer, put them through a FTO program and cull out the misfits and bad people if they attend an academy within the first year. Now, the misfits and bad people go to a 6-month academy which should be culling the wrong persons, but in the name of education this is a failure. Free up agencies to hire and train and then send applicants to an academy. This will cull many of the bad officers.

Tax money is being spent on illegal aliens and border security that should be going back to these entities to hire and train qualified personnel. This should be given back to the local communities to attract applicants.

This situation should have never occurred. You should not lose your life over a reckless driver incident. But you also should COMPLY with an officer’s request. If it is an illegal request, then file a complaint and have it investigated by an outside agency.

My heart goes out to the Nichols family but also to the families of the officers who will now bear the blunt of this atrocity.

Officer Richard Heusted with Topeka (KS) PD commented:

Poor overall training in this case.  The officers’ ability to control a subject were awful.  If they could have just utilized a double cross-face, it would have ended any struggle before the camera even had a chance to pan over.  These departments have awful defensive tactics. I would put my department’s against anyone else’s.

Then, the lack of professionalism and accountability from them was appalling.  It’s clearly a training and culture issue at this department and many others.  From top to bottom.  And lastly, where is the supervision?  No sergeants anywhere for that matter.  Lack of command and control.

From Lt. Todd Spencer with Southampton Town Police in Hampton Bays, NY:

I have to echo your thoughts exactly when it comes to the control tactics. There were absolutely none used. Another thing you touched on was that the officers brought the chaos. We constantly talk about de-escalation. As I believe you have mentioned in previous articles, how about not escalating the situation? That’s exactly what these officers did. They escalated it and had no control of their emotions. Again, lack of training? Could be. And then there is the question of a solution. The solution is exceedingly simple yet will be nearly impossible to implement and vehemently resisted.

How about educating the public? Regardless of your thoughts regarding police behavior, follow their commands. The horrible but true old adage: comply and don’t die. If Tyre complied, it’s very unlikely he would have been subjected to the violence he received. This is not to excuse what the officers did in any way shape or form.  Cameras are everywhere and it seems as if there is no shortage of administrations looking to hang their cops out to dry in an effort to make the agency look better, which is evidenced by your survey showing that 90% of cops don’t feel supported.

There are legal avenues to pursue when police violate your civil rights and politicians and district attorneys are all too quick to hand out judgments and settlements, whether warranted or not.

Thank you for all of your insightful opinions on the things that matter most and to your continued efforts to educate both law enforcement and the public we serve.

Chief Ray Johnson with the Chesterfield (MO) PD wrote:

I thoroughly enjoyed your Raw Opinions commentary of January 29, 2023 on the Tyre Nichols incident.  It has become mandatory reading for my command staff here at the Chesterfield, MO Police Department, and it should be so for every police officer in the USA!!

I have no disagreement whatsoever with the content, and I believe it is right on target with what happened.  However, one additional aspect I would like to hear your take on is what roll, and to what extent, if any, do you feel the established “culture” of the department, and/or of the special “Scorpion” Unit, played in influencing the behavior of the involved officers. I strongly believe that “culture” in an agency will supersede training, officer capability, skill set, and policy/rules/regulations, in nearly every case.  However, not being familiar with the Memphis Police Department, I’m not suggesting it did or did not play a role. Wondered what your thoughts may be?

Patrol Captain Nate Card with the U.S. Forest Service in Bozeman, MT responded:

In 28 years of doing this gig I have never once been trained in police dogpiling.  The most I have ever been trained with, or actually worked with, in taking someone into custody was one other officer.  If we haven’t been taught it or trained with it, we probably shouldn’t be doing it.

Capt. John Reid with the Texas Justice Dept. commented:

I think we as a profession have become too reliant on Tasers and OC and police officers and departments think that is all the DT they need. It should be clear that is a mistake.

Several good points in this article, but I think the key is control tactics. I like that control tactics were separated from defensive tactics as they are very different things.

From Det. Jesse R. Cash, Jr. with Bernalillo Co. (NM) Sheriff’s Department:

This is clearly a case of horrible cops. From what I have read, watched, and listened to, the whole Scorpion Unit was out of control. They were strong-arming that area and known to just yank people out and assert their so-called “authority” in that neighborhood.

It looks like Tyre was targeted for being out late and met a so-called “profile” this unit used to stop people and search for weapons and drugs. This is not even getting into the horrible officer safety, situational awareness, and lack of proper/effective control techniques.

This is just my opinion and view: Those officers were thugs with badges. They displayed attitude and behaviors that are not representative of 99% of those wearing a badge.

Let’s not forget that the Chief herself does not have a great record. It appears there is some CYA going on with her response and, for lack of a better term, condoning of protest.

Attorney John Dolatowski from Daytona Beach, FL said:

The threshold question(s) are not why did he resist and why did he run? Those answers are simple for the most part: criminals do not obey the law, they run, they resist, and they fight. But if you do not realize this or are not trained and prepared to handle it, find something else to do!

I have spent 43 years in the criminal justice system as a police officer, prosecutor, and educator. I am tired of hearing the same old “a few bad apples” rationale because it is much more prevalent now and pervasive than the law enforcement community is willing to admit.

Chief Patrick Giddeons with the Warsaw (NC) PD wrote:

I’m a 21 year LE vet, firearms instructor, de-escalation instructor, so on and so on…I agree with your points in the article. I think you highlighted some areas we need to take a serious look at. I do, however, think more discussion has to occur about the societal standard for tolerating anarchical behavior. Like you said, “What we should be focusing on is the root cause.” The root cause being, in this case and nearly every single other officer use of force situation, is the suspect’s unwillingness to comply and his/her unlawful behavior. That should be our starting point. If you don’t start there, officers all over the country will see all the constructive criticism as an attack and don’t want to hear it.

If people will at least acknowledge that anarchial, unlawful, and noncompliant behavior is the true cause of these incidents, then our officers will be more willing to take a hard look at themselves. The priorities must be in order.

Have your own response? E-mail us at: editor@calibrepress.com