Are there Lessons We Can Learn About Police and Grand Juries?

A NYC grand jury has refused to indict a white police officer for the choke hold death of a black man who resisted arrest. Many blacks see this as another Ferguson situation. It’s not clear that this is a racial incident. Mr. Garner’s death and the grand jury’s failure to indict him seems to prove several things: (1) It’s dangerous for an individual to resist arrest; (2). Police officers are jittery; (3) Grand juries give police officers enormous latitude to perform their jobs. Although the presence of so many police officers raises the question of excessive force, unless you have been trained as a law enforcement officer, it is difficult to assess what the officer should have done.  We know that the officer didn’t pull his gun or beat Mr. Garner with a bully stick.  Would it have been better to taser him? Given the reports about Mr. Garner’s health, it’s impossible to know if one form of restraint would have been better than another. In any event, few of us would want the job of police officer.