Several cops in Raleigh, NC are the subject of an internal affairs investigation for their involvement with a representative of the world’s oldest profession.
Internal affairs investigators used GPS tracking devices and hidden cameras to uncover the activity, which involved sex with a prostitute who frequents Bragg Street in downtown Raleigh, the sources said.
Speaking on the condition that they not be identified, the sources said the Raleigh Police Department’s Internal Affairs Unit raided the Southeast District Substation on Crosslink Road over the weekend and that several officers there were told to turn in their guns, badges and patrol cars.
Of course, the law that governs everyone else also applies to cops, right? Oops. I guess not:
Wake County District Attorney Colon Willoughby said his office is aware of the investigation and that criminal charges did not seem likely. He declined to say why or to discuss the matter further.
Well, these are probably just a bunch of young rookies who made a mistake, right? Oops. I guess not:
One of the names tied to the investigation, sources said, is Raleigh police Sgt. Rick Armstrong, who is the president of the Raleigh Police Protective Association, a professional association that represents the interests of police officers.
Armstrong, who also is a member of the state Law Enforcement Training and Standards Commission, said Tuesday that he could not speak about the matter, on the advice of the Raleigh Police Department’s Internal Affairs Bureau.
Well, surely some honest cops came forward and management acted quickly to put an immediate end to the activity just as they would if the culprits were ordinary citizens, right? Oops. I guess not:
In a statement Tuesday afternoon, Police Chief Harry Dolan did not address the specific allegations but acknowledged a “comprehensive” internal investigation into “improper conduct” stemming from a police officer’s complaint in late 2009.
Well, at a very minimum, an outraged city government must be demanding that the officers be publicly identified as is the case for anyone else caught with a prostitute and charged under the relevant criminal statutes making clear to the public that police are not above the laws they hold everyone else accountable to, right? Oops. I guess not:
Mayor Pro-Tem Mary-Ann Baldwin, who chairs the city’s Law and Public Safety Committee, said such incidents “reflect poorly” on the police department but that police officers generally do an excellent job.
“Anytime you have something like this you want a quick resolution and I would imagine our residents who would be impacted by this expect that,” she said.
So, after secretly studying the matter for over a year, now that it’s public they are suddenly in favor for a “quick resolution”. My guess is that, had it not been for the unidentified “sources”, the city would have been quite content if this story never saw the light of day.
So what happens now, Chief Dolan?
“When all the available facts are present, appropriate decisions will be made concerning any personnel action that should be taken pursuant to departmental policy in response to administrative violations.”
Ohhhhhh! I see. When ordinary people go to a hooker to get laid, it’s a crime against the public morals where they get their picture in the paper, pay big money for a lawyer, end up being fined and probably spend some time in jail, and (in some states) get their car seized. But when a cop does it, it’s an “administrative violation”.
Can we say “cover up”? Can we say “blue wall of silence”?
