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SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief'

By TChris, Section Misconduct
Posted on Fri Dec 09, 2005 at 07:46:04 AM EST
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by TChris

The president of the San Francisco Police Officers Association explains that videos made for a police Christmas party were intended as “comic relief.”

The videos include scenes of uniformed and plainclothes officers mocking the homeless, women, Asians, African-Americans and gay men. In one segment, a mock scene has a black woman yelling after apparently having been hit by a patrol car.

The association president is “absolutely certain that none of the officers involved participated in the making of these comic parodies with the intent to disparage any individual or group.” Huh?

Van Jones of Bay Area PoliceWatch doesn’t see the humor:

"It's terrifying. The running over a homeless black woman. That's funny? It shows the contempt for people of color and women. That is the kind of frat-boy mentality encouraged in the Police Department."

While the association president gave a half-hearted apology, recognizing that the videos were offensive, he also complained that “every lefty in San Francisco is going to love this.” Really? Only liberals take offense when government employees mock the homeless and ridicule members of minority groups?

Lefties don’t “love” this kind of misconduct; they’d like to see it stop. That sentiment should be shared without regard to political leanings.

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    SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' | 35 comments (35 topical)
    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#1)
    by cpinva on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:48 PM EST
    TChris, you neglected to mention that these videos, repugnant though they be, were apparently not intended for public consumption. according to at least one participant, they were an inside joke. a poor joke i'll grant you, but one nonetheless. they weren't even intended for consumption by the entire police force, only those actually participating in them. it was only because one idiot decided to put them on his personal web site that they became public knowledge. let's be brutally honest, we all have our ugly side, regardless of how much we'd like to believe otherwise. for the most part, we manage to control it, at least while in public. i'm not sure many of us could withstand public scrutiny of our most private thoughts and comments. if we were all subject to public vilification, for our private thoughts, none of us could long survive, including you. as a rule, as long as we keep those thoughts private, and they don't interfere with our public lives and job performance, no one much cares. these guys just had the bad luck of trusting one of their own to keep it private. so far, i've yet to see or hear any evidence that they exhibited, on the job, any problems directly associated with what was in the videos. until such evidence does become available, i think it only fair to accept their explanation, that it was a stupid, inside, prank.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#2)
    by scarshapedstar on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:48 PM EST
    That wasn't their explanation. Their explanation was that nothing bad happened. Or, as they put it,
    “none of the officers involved participated in the making of these comic parodies with the intent to disparage any individual or group.”
    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#3)
    by scarshapedstar on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:48 PM EST
    I must admit, though, it's pretty tough for me to be offended by this. I mean, it sounds like this video would have been considered hilarious and appropriate if it starred Dave Chappelle as a cop doing his white-guy routine. Double standards... meh. Until I see it, I can't say if it was intended to be some kind of frat-boy malice, or a parody of negative stereotypes of police officers.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#4)
    by kdog on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:48 PM EST
    Police, like other citizens, have every right to have poor taste. As long as taxpayer funds aren't used, and the department doesn't endorse it, I see no problem.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#5)
    by roy on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    I've seen enough excerpts to say that yes, they really are offensive. And yes, there's a double standard when it comes to humor. That battle was fought in the 80's. Whitey lost. The First Amendment is going to come up at some point, but if public perception hurts the cops' ability to do their jobs, I suspect they can be canned. If they happened to make fun of straight white males, too, maybe that will be a defense.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#6)
    by kdog on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Then I side with the 1st Amendment. As far as I know, offensive speech is just as protected as pc speech. I like having the right to make a satirical film depicting policemen getting sodomized by nightsticks, so I have to allow policemen the right to make satirical films about running over homeless people. It's a two way street.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#7)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Tchris: When do you post your rant about the Chappelle show?

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#8)
    by Steven Sanderson on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    The problem, as I see it, with the video is that police officers hold a position of power and authority over others. Good taste, bad taste, or no taste, I believe it to be in the public interest to hold people invested with such power to the highest standards.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#9)
    by kdog on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Steven, To the highest standards of what? Taste? If the film was a documentary, that would be a different story. But it is obviously satire.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#10)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    cops blowing off steam...It might be offensive to some but it is cop locker room humor. The bad thing is it was put out in public (web site)and the Mayor and Police Chief had to get in front of the story when it got out. Good hard working police having some laughs (tasteless yes but they pay 500 million to Howard Stern so some people must like tasteless..and I'm one of them), and now some good honest police officers will lose their job and have their names and faces plastered all over the media. it shouldn't be that big of a deal.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#11)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    It certainly wasn't in the best of taste,but cops are just people performing a job. I don't think that they should be held to a higher standard when off duty than anyone else is. And, I agree that their biggest mistake was posting it on the web.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#12)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    A friend of mine is married to an ex-cop, and knowing his sense of humor, I'm not shocked by the contents of the videos in the least. It does seem like the city is coming down on the officers awfully hard... on the other hand, the people who made the videos were, um, naive if they thought people wouldn't get upset if the videos became public. It was incredibly poor judgement to make those videos (using work equipment, on work time), and it was incredibly poor judgement of that officer to post them online (which is how the whole story came out in the first place). And, like these folks say:
    "When you are given a police uniform and a badge, you can't be like everyone else and have this kind of politically incorrect humor," said Joseph McNamara, former police chief of San Jose and now a fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution. "When an entertainer like Chris Rock makes offensive comments, it's in a very different context," said Barry Chersky, an Oakland attorney who trains companies in sexual harassment prevention. "We can like or dislike Chris Rock's material, but he is not serving as the representative of a city charged with protecting all the citizens of the city."
    However, those who think everyone in San Francisco are humorless P.C. types may be interested to know that as of this moment, an SFGate poll shows that 67% think that the suspension of the officers is a "politically correct overreaction."

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#13)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Did everyone miss the fact that they did this while on duty??!?!? Taxpayers did pay for it. If it was a home video made with some friends, it wouldn't be an issue.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#14)
    by peacrevol on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Life's too short to be offended by this stuff. And I personally, would like to see anything that anybody thinks is funny b/c I like to laugh too. On duty...off duty...whatever. Making a video while on duty is not that big of a deal either b/c I suspect that everyone here has jacked around some at work too. I'm usually critical of cops...but not over issues like this that dont really matter.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#15)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    I haven't been following this closely, but if the videos were in fact created while the officers were on duty, then I think it would be problematic. However, I don't see that piece of information in the article linked. I'm not doubting that assertion--that would certainly explain the degree of outrage over the video--I just wasn't able to confirm that fact in the article linked in this post.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#16)
    by sarcastic unnamed one on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Anyone who's outraged over cops making videos while on duty (if they did) better stop blogging while at work.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#17)
    by kdog on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    If it was done while on duty, they should be reprimanded. The same as a cop who picks up his dry-cleaning while on duty...no more, no less. The news report I saw last night said it was done on their own time. But they certainly shouldn't be fired.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#18)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Making a video while on duty is not that big of a deal either b/c I suspect that everyone here has jacked around some at work too.
    If they did this on duty it is a big deal. If you work for a private organization and you screw off you answer to your supervisor, manager, stockholders, etc... If you work for the government you are on the taxpayer's dime and you answer to them. I don't know about anyone else, but I wouldn't want my hard earned tax dollars paying for this. If they were off duty when this was made, so be it. I agree with kdog in that, "police, like other citizens, have every right to have poor taste." I did see some of the video and it looked pretty funny! :-D

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#19)
    by Al on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    What is troubling is that any cop would find this amusing. It's not just a matter of poor taste. Cops have power: They are armed, they can arrest people, they can shoot people. When you give someone that much power, you want to be sure they are prepared to use it well. If a garbage collector is a racist pig, it doesn't really affect anyone. But if a policeman is, it does.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#20)
    by jen on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    veterinary assistant humor might not make many pet owner's laugh either. Or help anyone here work up an appetite. Doesn't mean we don't love animals with a passion, or do anything to see they aren't well cared for. Everyone needs to blow off steam. Maybe we don't want to know how our doctors or computer help desk people (or lawyers) find amusement.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#21)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    I haven't seen the video, but I have to say I'm a little worried by the number of people here who have justified it with the phrase, "blowing off steam." Wasn't that the initial party line of the righties in response to the Abu Ghraib photos? Just some young soldiers relieving stress by blowing off steam? Damned Arabs have no sense of humor?

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#22)
    by Johnny on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Does anyone who uses Chappelle's Show as an example even watch it? I mean, come on... His entire show is dedicated to poking fun at stereotypes of ALL races, ALL professions. It is NOT Andrew Dice Clay or Chris Rock. Sarc, your comment about bloggers blogging at work misses the mark by a matter of taxation. Public employees are ours to watchdog. Private employees? Their bosses should worry about that. I don't knwo about you guys, but if I used company time and resources to create hiarious videos showing me running over people, I might get canned. And rightfully so. Some people talk about the media de-sensitizing people to violence through over-exposure. Perhaps distributing these films en masse would serve to show how hilarious violence perpetrated by the cops really is, and all the over-reaction is just wasted breath. To think that cops think this is funny is disturbing to me. The Three Stooges it ain't.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#23)
    by kdog on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    Point taken Al. But making off-color offensive jokes doesn't automatically make you a racist. Police do have a great deal of power, and when that power is abused we should throw the book at them. This issue is not about an abuse of power, but simply poor taste.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#24)
    by kdog on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    If you want this cop(s) fired, find where they have abused their power in real life. If they really ran over a homeless guy, or made sexual advances during a traffic stop, I'd be the first to say fire their arse. But it's just a home-made movie.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#25)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:49 PM EST
    jim strain, How in the hell did you come up with that comparison!?!?!? Actual physical torture VS a video of cops goofing off not physically huting anyone is a stretch! A true apples to oranges comparison IMO.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#26)
    by Patrick on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    I htought the skit where the traffic cop pulled over the lady was hillarious! I think the reaction of the mayer and the Chief of Police go a long was in revealing the culture of that department's administrative policies. Thank God I don't work for SFPD.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#27)
    by Patrick on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    nice spelling job... Oh well

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#28)
    by kdog on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    They blew it with the music choice in that skit Pat. It would have been 10X funnier if they used a 70's porn soundtrack as opposed to Santana. As the saying goes...these cops shouldn't quit their day jobs...if they don't lose their day jobs first:)

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#29)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    It is a sign of how out of touch the police who made (and participated in) this video are -- given that it insults many of the people who live and work in San Francisco. One would have hoped that police would be more sensitive than to make fun of the people they are supposed to 'serve and protect.' 1. The cops who made the video were warned by police administration that the video was not OK -- and still put it up on a website. 2. You'd have to be STUPID to do race-based and anti-homeless humor in San Francisco and imagine that nobody would be offended (and that the press would never hear about it) -- particularly in a public agency like the police department. 3. 'Free speech' is not an issue since the video participants were photographed in their official capacaties -- in their offices, in police uniforms, in police cars. They should be ashamed.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#30)
    by Patrick on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    They should be ashamed.
    Perhaps, but not fired. Since no one in the police administration is making a big deal out of the "On-duty" aspect of this issue, I assume it's not that clear cut. The producer (cop)is a paid videographer for the dept and many of the skits were cuts from older videos. He is also a self-proclaimed bBerkeley liberal and father of bi-racial children. Even FLSA says cops get breaks during their duty day. Perhaps that's when they filmed the clips. K-dog, I dunno, it would have been funny either way, and it's a classic cop sterotype. I laughed out loud when she said, "I thought you don't give tickets to pretty women?" and he said, "You're right, so keep signing...." That's good stuff!

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#31)
    by Patrick on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    1. The cops who made the video were warned by police administration that the video was not OK -- and still put it up on a website.
    If this is true, Heather Fong was aware of the tape's existance before she claimed to be. Hmmmm...

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#32)
    by roy on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    3. 'Free speech' is not an issue since the video participants were photographed in their official capacaties -- in their offices, in police uniforms, in police cars.
    Eh? I just re-read 1A; it doesn't have any such exception. Government employees do, in practical terms, lose some free speech rights. But only to the extent that they can't use their speech to deprive others of protected rights. So a cop can't practice free speech in a manner that, say, deprives somebody of their right to due process. But he still has a right to free speech. He can say "I don't like cheese" and a policy of firing cops who say "I don't like cheese" would be unconstitutional because it's not content-neutral. I don't see anybody being deprived of their rights by the videos, so I say it's still protected speech. (warning: I am talking waaay outside my area of expertise)

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#33)
    by jen on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    Putting the video on a website was really a bright idea. Fun is fun. Stupidity is trouble.

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#34)
    by Patrick on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:06:50 PM EST
    Yup, what Jen said

    Re: SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' (none / 0) (#35)
    by Patrick on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:07:05 PM EST
    Since it probably won't be reported by the host of this site, I thought I'd add to the thread that yesterday, all 20 officers were exonerated of any wrong doing and reinstated. I imagine the issue of back pay will be addressed to the benefit of the officers. Heather Fong lost a lot of credibility, IMO

    SF Cops Enjoy 'Comic Relief' | 35 comments (35 topical)