There are hundreds of thousands of good cops in the US, but there are are also a number of officers who should never have been allowed to have authority over others. Cops keep making the news because of the poor decisions of a few members of the fraternity, and it only casts them in a worse light with the public. The most recent example isn’t any different.
A newspaper photographer in Ohio was shot this week by a sheriff’s deputy who apparently thought that the report’s camera and tripod were in fact a firearm. What’s worse is that the officer apparently fired without any warning or confirming his suspicions.
Newspaper Photographer Shot
It all began around 10 p.m. on Monday when Andy Grimm was on his way to take pictures of some lightning in the area. Along the way to his spot, Grimm passed a traffic stop and decided to get out and take some photos for the paper.
“He said he got out, parked under a light in plain view of the deputy, with a press pass around his neck,” said his father Dale Grimm. “He was setting up his camera, and he heard pops.”
Clark County Sheriff’s Deputy Jake Shaw apparently assumed the worst, which is not a good mindset for someone who is supposed to uphold the interests of the public. Apparently thinking that Grimm was setting up a high caliber sniper rifle like Mark Wahlberg in Shooter, Shaw quickly pulled out his service weapon and fired a number of shots at Grimm, striking him once on his side.
Grimm phoned his father in the ambulance during his ride to the hospital, where he is expected to make a full recovery. Grimm said he knows the officer who shot him and believes he’s a good cop that made a bad decision. The Grimm family said they don’t want Shaw to lose his job over the incident, but his actions suggest that he may not be cut out for this line of work.
We work with a number of great police officers in our line of work, and it takes a lot of courage to willingly enter the profession, but there needs to be a better screening process for weeding out both new recruits and veteran officers who may not be the best fit for the profession. This is true for every profession, but considering the power and authority police officers have over public citizens, there should be a more comprehensive screening process in play so “shoot first ask questions later” officers aren’t out endangering the public.
