Yep! You read the title correctly. The ACLU is pressing for a nationwide investigation on the militarization of police departments. You just KNOW where this is going, too, don't ya? First we'll hear how terrible it is that police departments are using tactics that protect them from harm. Then we'll hear how terrible it is that they're carrying military weapons that are a threat to a peaceful public. And then we'll hear howls of outrage when they're told to go piss up a rope.
Balko is hardly a liberal, and he's been beating this drum for years now. He has some valid points. Raids that hit the wrong house are generally not punished in any meaningful way. No one seems to try to learn from past mistakes. The asset forfeiture programs that fund a lot of departments and teams is horrendously abused. I'm waiting to read Balko's book when it comes out. Keep an open mind about it until you learn more. Check out the hastag #RaidOfTheDay, too.
Some transparency would be a good thing, publishing data that doesn't endanger operations or the safety of LEOs, e.g.,: how often and for what reasons they're deployed, what types of weapons they use, how often citizens are injured during SWAT raids, and how they're funded. More affiliates may join the effort in the coming weeks.
Here's another thought. Who else besides the ACLU could pull off this kind of study. Balko wrote his first report in 2001, when he was with the Cato Institute. what's been done since then? It would be political suicide for any other group to try this.
