from Streetsblog Capitol Hill by Angie Schmitt
Tim Nelson was fighting for his life after being hit by a semi truck driver while jogging in West Seattle in late October. As he was rushed to the hospital with a broken back, six snapped ribs, and a fractured skill, a dash cam in a Seattle police cruiser captured this video, which has been making the rounds.
Network blog Systematic Failure said the scene is reminiscent of “a bad episode of Reno-911.” It includes this exchange:
Officer 1 ‘That’s why you drive a car!’
Officer 2 ‘Yeah, don’t try to jog to work, you dumb f***!’
It’s obviously disappointing to see police behaving so unprofessionally and with apparent bias toward someone who doesn’t get around in a car. And it’s sure to strike a nerve with anyone who’s read about sloppy police investigations into traffic crashes that kill pedestrians or cyclists.
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https://streetsblog.net/2011/12/22/seattle-police-mock-dumb-f-jogger-hit-by-semi-truck/oldId.20111226110226646
I don’t condone police officers actions, nor try to explain them. We have to be careful of lambasting the ones that are trying to protect. After years on the force each individual comes up with a coping mechanism to the carnage they see. In addition the job includes long boring work at odd times of the day, To expect our police to be professional and courteous at every minute is a bit ridiculous we have to remember police are humans that make dumb decisions.