To: The Illinois State House, The Illinois State Senate, and Governor J.B. Pritzker
Non-lethal weapons for police on Patrol
In the United States we have an average of 400 killings a year by police. Whether these killings are justified or unjustified would need to be reviewed in a case by case scenario. But a fact that can not be ignored is the numbers.
In England the average amount of citizens killed by police is 2. In 2012, police officers in England did not kill anyone.
The major difference between the United States and England is that police officers on patrol in England do not carry lethal firearms. In the United States they do.
Many arguments can be posed against only allowing American police to be armed with non lethal firearms. One of these arguments is that the population is bigger. Therefore, a bigger population means a bigger death rate. However, an even stronger argument relies once again on the numbers; that proportionally, American citizens are 100 times more likely to be killed by a police officer than English citizens.
These are the numbers when compared to England, but there are other countries around the world that do not allow their patrol officers to carry lethal firearms and the comparison is similar to that of England.
If something is not working in our community and in our country, it is not un-American to look at our practices and see how they are not working and change them so that they work better. In fact, the opposite is true. It is the root of the melting pot culture that is America, to look at the best and most effective practices used around the world and employ them ourselves, even if it is a practice used by another country. There is no shame in saying what we are doing is wrong, but there is shame in continuing forward with a plan that doesn't work well.
This is a petition that recommends any state or states in the USA, to adopt the practices of England and arm our patrol officers with non lethal weapons, for example tasers, rubber bullets, bean bags, pepper spray, etc. and to only use lethal weapons when necessary by having a branch of the police force comparable to England's Authorized Firearms Officers (AFO) who have have patrolling ARV's (Armed Response Vehicles), available to respond to spontaneous incidents, enter besieged premises, or attend incidents where lethal firearms might be needed.
Side note: This would require the actions of legislators who trust in the math of the statistics that are available and have been presented. Trusting in proven data is, unfortunately all to often, considered an act of bravado and not of common sense, common sense should require little bravery at all. So please make what is now the brave choice to value the lives of our citizens, even if they are caught in the act of a crime. Our sentences should be delivered in court rooms, not on the streets. Our police officers do not want to have to live with having taken a life either when it could have been prevented. This petition is for everyone.
Websites cited for the research in this petition:
http://www.policeone.com/use-of-force/articles/7489476-Fergusons-6-top-use-of-force-questions-A-cops-response/
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/local-cops-kill-400-people-year-report-article-1.1904876
http://thedailybanter.com/2014/08/uk-police-stop-someone-knife/
http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/police-in-england-and-wales-went-two-years-without-fatally-shooting-someone/
http://fullymyelinated.wordpress.com/2014/08/26/us-vs-uk-police-shootings-edition/
and wikipedia.
In England the average amount of citizens killed by police is 2. In 2012, police officers in England did not kill anyone.
The major difference between the United States and England is that police officers on patrol in England do not carry lethal firearms. In the United States they do.
Many arguments can be posed against only allowing American police to be armed with non lethal firearms. One of these arguments is that the population is bigger. Therefore, a bigger population means a bigger death rate. However, an even stronger argument relies once again on the numbers; that proportionally, American citizens are 100 times more likely to be killed by a police officer than English citizens.
These are the numbers when compared to England, but there are other countries around the world that do not allow their patrol officers to carry lethal firearms and the comparison is similar to that of England.
If something is not working in our community and in our country, it is not un-American to look at our practices and see how they are not working and change them so that they work better. In fact, the opposite is true. It is the root of the melting pot culture that is America, to look at the best and most effective practices used around the world and employ them ourselves, even if it is a practice used by another country. There is no shame in saying what we are doing is wrong, but there is shame in continuing forward with a plan that doesn't work well.
This is a petition that recommends any state or states in the USA, to adopt the practices of England and arm our patrol officers with non lethal weapons, for example tasers, rubber bullets, bean bags, pepper spray, etc. and to only use lethal weapons when necessary by having a branch of the police force comparable to England's Authorized Firearms Officers (AFO) who have have patrolling ARV's (Armed Response Vehicles), available to respond to spontaneous incidents, enter besieged premises, or attend incidents where lethal firearms might be needed.
Side note: This would require the actions of legislators who trust in the math of the statistics that are available and have been presented. Trusting in proven data is, unfortunately all to often, considered an act of bravado and not of common sense, common sense should require little bravery at all. So please make what is now the brave choice to value the lives of our citizens, even if they are caught in the act of a crime. Our sentences should be delivered in court rooms, not on the streets. Our police officers do not want to have to live with having taken a life either when it could have been prevented. This petition is for everyone.
Websites cited for the research in this petition:
http://www.policeone.com/use-of-force/articles/7489476-Fergusons-6-top-use-of-force-questions-A-cops-response/
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/local-cops-kill-400-people-year-report-article-1.1904876
http://thedailybanter.com/2014/08/uk-police-stop-someone-knife/
http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/police-in-england-and-wales-went-two-years-without-fatally-shooting-someone/
http://fullymyelinated.wordpress.com/2014/08/26/us-vs-uk-police-shootings-edition/
and wikipedia.
Why is this important?
I am starting this petition to save lives and to make the country safer and more just for my daughter and myself and everyone. This is my home. I don't want to have to move to England, where I don't have to worry about as much gun violence. This is a fight to make our homeland a better place without running to a gated community or suburbs or a safer city.