Hum
By glazou on Thursday 30 July 2009, 14:05 - Bushisms - Permalink
I am european. I am european and I don't understand exactly why the two cops who ran a NCIC background check on Obama are suspended. Can someone with a light or strong US law background try to explain me please ?
Comments
I can't say for certain, because it comes down to Georgia state laws, Dekalb County ordinances (if any) and police procedures. My hunch, such as it is, is that it's considered a waste of resources to run a background check on someone you have no reason to request one for.
From a political point of view, it could also be considered to be digging for dirt, and law enforcement is -- in theory -- at least supposed to be politically neutral. (How this squares with county sheriffs typically being elected is beyond me.)
You didn't ask, but I'll say anyway that "the secret service was notified" is a typical response when a person attempts to gain access of any kind to the president. Reporter requesting an interview, dimwit on the 'net saying he wished the guy was dead, "long-lost cousin" showing up out of the blue, you name it. No malicious intent is implied by the secret service being called. Mentioning it in the article, however, can be cast either as the cops targeting the guy or as the president's protectors being overly-zealous. Given that this is Georgia we're talking about, I'm guessing the TV station's viewers will tend to infer the latter.
bah c'est exactement comme en france, un flic n'a pas le droit (théorique) d'ouvrir des fiches qui ne sont pas directement liées à une enquète en cours. bien sûr il y a eu des abus, bien sûr il y a eu des affaires, mais depuis quelques temps ça s'est calmé (en france).
apparemment c'est la même chose aux US
Errata:
s/in theory -- at least/in theory at least --/
Addendum:
The lines tend to blur for celebrities, whose lives are considerably more public than the average person's, but an unauthorized background check may also be considered an invasion of privacy by law enforcement. A background check is far more of an in-depth search than just looking for a criminal record like they might do with a person suspected of a crime.
And on preview, this is pretty much what fabbv added.
On a eu dans le même style, les employés de banque qui ne se sont pas gênés, il y a quelques années, de regarder le(s) compte(s) en banque de notre président afin de satisfaire une curiosité mal placée. Raté les comptes des ... célébrités.. sont surveillés. Qui a dit mouchards ?
Ca ne me choque pas plus que ça, ces policiers n'étaient visiblement pas très respectueux de la déontologie. S'ils s'amusent à ça avec le président, ils peuvent aussi le faire avec des tiers avec qui ils ont eu une embrouille à titre personnel (voisin par ex) ou autre.