I support McKinney Police Officer Eric Casebolt
I have not said much regarding the incident in McKinney Texas with the *pool party* and the accusations of racism and Police Abuse. I have sat back and watched as the *keyboard warriors*, the experts in all things to do with Law Enforcement, showed the world that they really don’t know much about Law Enforcement, and even less about humans, the stress they operate under or what it means to reach a *breaking point*.
Corporal Eric Casebolt, given the intensity and stress level of the last 2 calls he responded to, should not have been on the street at that particular point in time, there is NO WAY he could have been at 100% in his personal job readiness or mental state given what he had just responded to.
Casebolt was NOT crazy, he was terribly stressed, and his superiors failed to see that and in doing so, failed Casebolt.
He had already been called to two suicide calls that Friday — one involved having to console the wife of a man who had just ended his life. During the second call, he managed to talk a teenage girl off her parents’ roof. SOURCE
Some say that is no excuse but I am not trying to make excuses, you see, in MY opinion the McKinney Police Department, the Chief of the McKinney Police, Greg Conley, and the city itself were intent on throwing Eric Casebolt *under the bus* in an effort to maintain the peace with the *race baiters* and to be as politically correct as possible.
In my not so humble opinion Corporal Eric Casebolt should have already been on paid administrative leave following the back to back suicide calls, much like an Officer does when involved in an on-duty shooting. The stress of a call where someone has just died a violent death, or one where you have in some way stopped another person from committing an act that would bring on a serious injury or violent death, especially when these events occur back to back, can cause ANYONE, regardless of their skill, level of job training or years on the job to have a bit of a breakdown.
Sometimes a breakdown occurs immediately, as it appears to have done with Corporal Eric Casebolt, or it can manifest itself in some degree of Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome, possibly in the private life of the Officer or, more than likely, in a future highly stressful situation in the line of duty.
I am sincerely of the opinion that Eric Casebolt was severely let down by the response from his Department to the mental state and extreme level of stress that he was suffering. The man needed HELP, not condemnation.
No one knows, no citizen can possibly know, what an Officer may have just faced, and it WILL affect the thoughts and performance of an Officer. You can’t just go *10-8* and turn OFF what just happened when it was a life and/or death situation. I don’t care who you are or how strong and bad-ass you think you may be, you have to take time to decompress.
Anti-Police critics say “He should be better than that and he should have better control of his emotions” and so forth and so on.
To those people I say this; try holding a dying child in your arms, helping any way you can because you’re the 1st one there and you already know that there’s nothing you can do other than be the last comforting human touch that child will ever know, or witness the carnage of a family wiped out in a horrendous traffic accident and then get back to me about emotions and controlling them so well as you claim Police Officers should be doing.
Go out in the real world, get OFF the keyboard and go TRY to live through, and WITH the things our Officers, and Fire Fighters have to do and what they see on a daily basis.
Personally, I am glad these folks handle the stress as well as they do.
And as one comment I saw on social media stated so well; the teenagers could have followed the officer’s orders and none of this would have happened.
Well damn, imagine that. Common sense could have saved the day!
Fred,
First, I agree with your assessment that the officer in question (Eric Casebolt) in all likelihood suffered from some degree of PTSD.
Second, I agree with your contention that the McKinney powers that be threw him under the bus.
Third, I would add that if I were in that kind of situation (not suffering from PTSD at all) and an angry teenager came around behind me with his hand behind his back I would also likely draw my sidearm. Notice that officer Casebolt kept it at low ready and did not cover any of the perpetrators with it. Also, when he knew that there was help dealing with the young men who were blindsiding him, he reholstered it. Remember that one of the symptoms of PTSD is “hyper vigilance.” I do not doubt for a moment that officer Casebolt saw the young man’s hand in his peripheral vision and responded to the perceived threat.
Like you, I’m not defending officer Casebolt’s actions, but after two suicide calls back to back the man should have been in counseling, not on another highly charged call.
Keep your powder dry
It seems the Chief of Police threw him under the bus real fast before all the facts were known.
The news keeps pointing out he was dealing with teenagers. For some reason they fail to mention that teenagers were doing a lot of the rioting and looting in Ferguson and Baltimore. Also, that girl he put on the ground was not hurt or injured in any way.
Here’s an interview with a black radio hose who lives in the subdivision and witnessed the incident and he supports the police. This man is now getting death threats along with other residents.
http://conservativetribune.com/black-radio-host-mckinney/
Also, here’s a black “minister” who’s calling for ISIS type attacks against police and whites. In the second video here, Conservative talk show hose, David Webb, takes on this “minister”.
http://libertynews.com/2015/06/video-usis-in-wake-of-mckinney-pool-party-incident-black-tx-rev-threatens-isis-style-terror-attacks/
I’m BETTING (just short of a guarantee) that if McKinney still had their former chief (Kowalski sp?), Officer Casebolt would still be an employee. MEN (in Chief’s Positions) are HARD to find these days! Although, I think Grapevine has showed they have one…
You have pretty much covered it Fred. As I posted earlier, Chief’s are hirelings . They parrot what ever the city tells them and endeavor to keep the status-quo and their jobs. I also support Ofc. Casebolt.
I wasn’t aware that he had been on back-to-back suicide calls prior to this. I agree, he should at least have taken the rest of the week off.
Considering the racial tensions and the propensity of second guessing and trial by media, I am, frankly, surprised there are any officers willing to place their careers on the line by responding to ANY call without an Internal Investigator right by his side, so each move can be cleared ahead of time. Perhaps each officer should also be issued a lawyer and a keyboard warrior, so that each and every decision can be vetted, discussed, and covered prior to any actions being taken? Would it be possible for the mother of these little angels to accompany the officers also? Of course, that’s with the full cooperation of these rising young scholars who never do nuffin wrong, and will certainly stand by and wait while all the discussion and decisions are made.
Four points:
1. His Chief already threw him under the bus.
2. Because of that, he already resigned.
3. He himself “admitted” he was over the top when, IMO, he was not.
4. This will be the NEW issue LE will have to deal with: objections and complaints, on video, when officers even clear leather.
Given sufficient time, officers will, in the future, depending on how departments support or deny them, begin to hesitate when the issue of deadly force of defense arises. There was a time when CHP would not touch their shotguns, in the late 60s and early 70s, because to break the seal of the shotgun required a report. Hence the weapons were not used.
This has the potential to become a huge issue depending on where the media and the population decides to take it.
I am SO glad I am retiring in less than a month.
BZ
Further, were you aware that hackers already placed his full name, address and phone number in the public domain, on Twitter?
BZ
Yeah, I am… He and his family are in hiding now because of death threats…
I already sent the Police Department in McKinney Texas an email re officer Casebolt-told them they should be ashamed of themselves for throwing him under the bus-most especially prior to any investigation of the facts. Like Ferguson, like New York and like Cleveland-had the public obeyed the lawful order of a Police Officer they would be alive and McKinney never would have made the news. Why blame the officer for doing his job-and those 2 guys behind him-how did he know they didn’t have a knife or a gun? It is all Political incorrect Bullshit
And, for your readers and followers-go on the web and look up the town of McKinney Texas-there is a link to the Police Department
Most “lay persons” will never understand what the everyday Police Officer has to deal with on a daily basis.some days it’s quite others you may have 5 calls pending in your sector, it’s those crazy days that will come up and bite you on the butt.
I do not condone what happened, but instead of finding out “WHY” it happened, the Chief, and the City tossed Cpl Casebolt out on an Island to fend for himself to either swim or sink in the deep waters of the abyss.
I do not agree with the Chiefs actions not at all….but I can understand it. I sat
behind desk with a Chiefs badge for 8 years having to make similar decisions.
It’s agonizing to have to let someone go for you don’t take pleasure in turning someone’s life upside down… but I never let anyone go without having all of the details, regardless of how long it took, you owe to the “OFFICER” and to his family and to all involved.
This is a shitty situation no matter how you slice pie…
Sgt. Joe Friday says it best..
https://youtu.be/J3hiR9H7amo
I DO “condone” what happened. The officer did nothing wrong. Taken in totality, his response was warranted. He was by himself at the point of the video. You might check this updated information coming out now about the “community party.”
http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2015/06/07/video-emerges-of-violence-at-innocent-pool-party-in-mckinney-texas/
If anyone thought I would keep my force holstered when there was a chance, due just to numbers only, of being overwhelmed and/or possibly disarmed, they would be wrong. I have utilized and watched Tasers be completely USELESS against some persons, who have simply pulled out the barbs and tossed the wires.
BZ
I’ve been following this and agree. What a revoltin’ development. It used to be that to obey an officer of the law was rule number one. Rule number two was when you thought the officer was wrong, see rule number one. My observation of younger generations nowadays is that most aren’t taught basic manners. There is no respect for anyone, even their parents (or parent). Being tried by the media, especially the smart phone media is causing a lot of grief and will likely cause more as time goes on. I have no problem with Cpl. Casebolt drawing his sidearm because if he can’t protect himself first then he can’t protect anyone else. Those kids could have tried a Michael Brown and succseded in grabbing his Glock from behind. I wonder how that video would have played.
So, stress and *losing it* doesn’t matter or isn’t supposed to happen? And just WHO is making this thing worse? There was NO insult made nor intended, it’s called taking care of the troops, it’s called psychological evaluation, you don’t let an Officer that was just involved in a shooting stay on the street for a day or 2, why subject an Officer that has just dealt with 2 suicide calls, back to back, stay on the street at that particular time?
Maybe you didn’t know that about taking an Officer off the street temporarily after a shooting.. Maybe you’ve never been a Cop… Maybe you’re SUPERMAN and nothing gets to you…
In any case, this will be the only comment you will make here, trust me… On this blog I am SUPERMAN..
I suggest that all that read Fred’s excellent BLOG send an email to the McKinney Police Department and to their city Government at
http://mckinneytexas.org/
I have… They need to wake up before they experience a massive case of *Blue Flu*…
On the news tonight…
[QUOTE]
A Florida high school principal, who defended the Texas police officer at the center of that infamous pool melee, has become the latest victim of radical speech police hell-bent on trying to silence public discourse.
Alberto Iber lost his job as the principal at North Miami Senior High School after he wrote a comment about the McKinney, Texas incident on the Miami Herald’s website.
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“He did nothing wrong,” Iber wrote. “He was afraid for his life. I commend him for his actions.”
Three sentences. Sixteen words. Sixty-two characters.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools released a statement on June 10 announcing that Mr. Iber had been removed from his position at the high school and reassigned to an administrative position.
“If you’re running a majority black school and you say a remark such as that people will not respect you,” a student told NBC News in Miami.
Councilman Alix Desulme, who identifies himself as a Haitian-American, was among those who condemned the former principal – and said he was “appalled.”
“For him to make such a comment is insensitive to the community,” he told the Miami Herald.
Are the councilman and the superintendent suggesting the principal had an obligation to condemn the Texas police officer? Would the principal still have a job had he done so?
Was Mr. Iber removed from his job because he defended a police officer or was he removed because he defended a white police officer?
The school district told me the superintendent would have no further comments on the matter. And his silence is damning.
[/QUOTE]
These kids don’t know what “respect” means.
They never have had to learn.
Im getting tired of adults think they can do whatever the hell they want and also teaching their kids the same crap. why the hell you people these days not think they need to listen to an officer!? why the hell does anyone tell the people the REAL reason for problems like this is cause people think they can do whatever the hell they want!??! Police officers cant trust ANYONE these days cause if one feels the officer is wrong that makes it ok to ignore him!?!?! If you think you have been wrong then you file a freaking complaint AFTER the incident!!! Why the hell does the Justice Department and White House and so on only try to please the majority instead of supporting the ones that put their lives on the line everyday?!!?? If one were to do what an officer instructs then there wouldnt be a need to show force to take control of whatever is going on!!!!! Why the hell should anyone put their life on the line everyday when they cant get any damn support!?!? Im sick of this crap!!!!! All things like this say is who cares if a cop is killed!!! What if one of those kids had a gun and killed the officer??? Oh wait no one cares if a cop is killed and if that had happened we wouldn’t even be talking about this right now!!! Its not global warming that myself and the few of us left with common sense, its global stupid!!! Its sad that something so simple as DONT BE STUPID cant be done!