SUMMARY:
Hannah Fossier, a cashier at Victoria's Secret in Southlake, Texas, was accused of driving while intoxicated (DWI) when conversing with police officers after crashing her car in March. Because she failed the field sobriety test, the officers demanded she accompany them to the hospital to undergo a blood test to confirm their suspicions. Fossier refused to have her blood drawn, but told the officers that she was willing to take a Breathalyzer test. The officers told her that they do not "do Breathalyzer", and that they're "going to the hospital for blood". Fossier repeatedly expressed her objections to a blood test for reasons not mentioned. Not taking "no" for an answer, even after at least ten objections to the test, the officers physically restrained her and tased her twice to coerce her into following through with the blood test. Per the article, a warrant is required in Texas to draw blood from a refusing motorist, and Chief James Brandon has withheld the information regarding if the two officers carried a warrant to take blood from Fossier. She later explains about the incident, "I had bruises from where they held me down... I never gave them permission to take my blood". One of the officers was later demoted, and the other was suspended for a day. A trial for Fossier is still pending as well.
ANALYSIS:
I believe this article was written to highlight another example of unnecessary police brutality incidents, and question the methods of law enforcement. I have heard, and I'm sure that many others have also, about the many unnecessary police brutality incidents being covered in the general media. It's a big issue that I think should be proactively addressed as a society. The article calls into question the extent of law enforcements authority and the rights of a citizen under suspicion. Why did they feel the need to use physical means to address the situation? Couldn't they have just charged her with failure to cooperate with the authorities? I understand that it may seem to them that she was potentially guilty and fearful of being caught, but maybe there was another reason that Fossier avoided the blood test such as having phobia about needles, as many people do! On the other hand, it could also be possible that she was avoiding discovery of other illegal substances in her blood. Either way, it seems as though the police officers took the situation too far, suggesting that there needs to be a clear procedure for handling a situation similar to this. If a warrant really is required to enforce blood testing, the officers definitely overstepped their authority, and deserve to be reprimanded and face consequences.
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/headlines/20160911-southlake-officers-disciplined-after-using-taser-on-dwi-suspect-before-blood-drawn.ece
To me polices overuse of force has gotten to appoint where I can't take it anymore. If someone says no, then that means no and people should respect that. I know she might of been drunk but, there was no point of using that much force on a her.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your thoughts and concerns about what our law enforcement has become. It's very scary to think that nobody really cares what other think about your well being and who you are and where you come from. People need to be more careful of their actions and what they say. - Skyler Tepedino
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