Thursday, September 02, 2010
G
 |
| The Enquirer/Will Velarde |
No felony charges for officer in park death. Even as he declined to seek felony charges against a Cincinnati police officer who drove his cruiser over a homeless woman and killed her, Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters said Thursday he doesn't believe Officer Marty Polk committed a crime. Because an Ohio State Patrol investigation into the July 27 death of Joann Burton, 48, concluded that Polk wasn't reckless at the time, Deters said his office cannot charge the officer with a felony. That means if Polk is charged, it will be for a misdemeanor and the city of Cincinnati would have to prosecute the case. "He was doing his job," Deters said of Polk. "He demonstrated immediate concern, immediate remorse. ... This is something Marty Polk is going to have to live with the rest of his life." news.cincinnat Should I be upset that there are no charges filed? Sure I am. If it was a common man like me or you this would have been prosecuted to the fullest. Obviously this is not a race issue because they are both black. I can only imagine if this was a white officer and a black victim. So what is it then, is it another sign of how the men in blue have a different set of standards than everyone else? I really hope that is not the case, this will just be another dividing factor between the citizens of Cincinnati and the police.
I really believe this was not a reckless behavior on the officers part. Everyone in Cincinnati knows that Washington Park is a haven for homeless people, why was the officer not aware that there could be homeless people sleeping all over the park. Especially if he saw a blanket laid out between two trees.
Something needs to be done about this. There has to be some kind of accountability for the officers action.
