Police are exploiting a law to hide the names of officers who have done all sorts of horrible things. It’s called “Marsy’s Law,” but who the law is actually supposed to help shows how despicable they’re being.
Marsy’s Law has made the rounds in several states as an effort to help victims of crime. Supporters claim the law helps by giving them more rights than what’s currently on the books – like anonymity – but it’s not that simple.
Victims’ rights advocates have opposed the law because it complicates and undermines due process. But there’s another problem – it muddies who gets to claim to be a victim and who doesn’t. Authorities with a lot of power are using this law to protect themselves in devious ways!
Police officers are using the law to claim victim status in use-of-force cases where they allege the suspect was an aggressor. Officers have killed people, then used the law to hide their names because they “feared for their safety” and claim THEY were the victims! Ultimately, this law is dangerous.
In addition to fogging up the already complicated, racist criminal justice system, Marsy’s Law deters accountability. By giving officers a hiding place when they brutalize or kill, and allowing them to claim victimhood, policing further enshrines injustice as the norm.