Radley Balko has an article up about the exclusive use of the passive voice in police reports on an officer-involved shooting (OIS).
When it's not an OIS, it's all active voice: "So-and-so shot such-and-such." Subject, verb, predicate.
But when an officer is involved, it's all passive voice: "Shots were fired," "a shooting occurred," or my personal favorite, "the gun discharged." No subject, barely a predicate; no description of who bears any responsibility.
That darn trigger-pulling phantom afflicts the "highly trained professional" praetorians A LOT! You're so right RoFo . . . justified by virtue of "consistent with dept. protocols", as if a manual on sociopathic behavior compiled by and for the sociopathic Halloween-costumed caste, justifies sociopaths by default.
Radley Balko has an article up about the exclusive use of the passive voice in police reports on an officer-involved shooting (OIS).
ReplyDeleteWhen it's not an OIS, it's all active voice: "So-and-so shot such-and-such." Subject, verb, predicate.
But when an officer is involved, it's all passive voice: "Shots were fired," "a shooting occurred," or my personal favorite, "the gun discharged." No subject, barely a predicate; no description of who bears any responsibility.
"This case is presently under investigation and when the investigation is complete we will update with a full report."
ReplyDeleteDon't bother, we already know what it will say. The officer was fully justified in shooting someones child.
That darn trigger-pulling phantom afflicts the "highly trained professional" praetorians A LOT!
ReplyDeleteYou're so right RoFo . . . justified by virtue of "consistent with dept. protocols", as if a manual on sociopathic behavior compiled by and for the sociopathic Halloween-costumed caste, justifies sociopaths by default.
another episode from the "jihad on dogs"?
ReplyDeletethose police guns just cannot abide any
canines.