BBC News – Police officer suspended after airport kicking video

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That video was brutal, I had to stop it at the face kick and the head stomp. How much anger does someone have to hold in to act this way?

The job – or obligation – of police officers is to be able to diffuse chaotic, violent and tense situations *without* resorting to actions like these. This police officer failed at that, and it is 100% appropriate for him to be suspended.

Very concerned by how this is instantly being viewed through an identity lens though. One thing that having a multicultural society inevitably entails is that members of one demographic are going to have horrible things done to them by members of another demographic, and this would be true even in the absence of all racial prejudice.

Was the police officer in question racist? I have no idea – possibly… but it could also merely be an example of bad policing and piss poor self control; the kind that warrants suspension, as has happened.

But the immediate framing of this as being not simply a disgraceful attack on a subdued and compliant individual, but rather an attack on a demographic is completely unsustainable.

No demographic gets to get away without anything bad being done to one of its members. In fact, horrible things happen to individual members of all demographics every day, and frequently by members of other demographics.

If the immediate reaction to every instance of this is protests and riots, society as a whole will grind to complete halt, and nothing but anger, resentment and acrimony will fill the air indefinitely.

That’s like the default cop. Job specs are minimum wage and no entry requirements, who do you think this attracts?

People trying to justify this behaviour by saying his colleagues were previously assaulted. Even the police statement reads as such.

If you or I assaulted someone for revenge, guess what, it’s still assault.

PC Boot ought to know better.

From what I understand of the situation:

He is armed police, he was asked to assist because the situation turned violent.

Prior to attending His colleague was attacked, and badly too, so that situation has therefore escalated to violence which means he has to go in hot.

He’s also armed police, meaning he’s entering a violent physical confrontation armed and one in which he too could be attacked and have his own gun turned on him or the public.

Based on the above he has to intervene and assist knowing he could be overcome and his weapons taken. He doesn’t know if he’s alone physically or whether his officer colleagues are able to assist – so he goes in kicking.

For me and based on the above, he did what he had to do given the facts above, and he employed he limited clips we have seen of this are halfway through the incident.

Sorry folks, I’m with the police on this one ATM, but then again I’d like to see all footage for a better understanding, and ongoing violent exchanges reflect his situation and the risks to him.

The footage looks bad yes, but it also looks selective too at this stage for the public to consume, which makes this worse for the police PR right now, and great for the (media/press) clocks.

The more pressing question to ask is why those arrested attacked the police in the first place.