When I heard what Terry Robinson had done, I knew what kind of bravery this took. But I still wondered what the end game would be. A number of intersecting issues started flying around in my head – rogue cops, retaliation, prison recidivism, snitching, local control, transparency, etc.
Robinson, young and black, recorded two St. Louis cops on his cell phone allegedly pressuring him to come up with someone to plant a gun on or else they’d arrest him and charge him with gun possession.
This is not a new method of policing. Whether it’s called framing or free casing, it’s an old practice by police in black and brown communities. Common examples are the use of throw-away guns, planted drugs, and false testimonies to obtain an arrest and conviction.
The consequences are devastating for black men like Robinson, their families and our community. This practice by urban police departments is a significant contributor to the ballooning mass incarceration in this country as well as the high recidivism rate for Missouri prisons.
When I have to reframe the No Snitching Campaign, this is what I’m referring to. It has little to do with black folks helping police to solve crimes in our neighborhood and has everything to do with police allegedly fighting crime by breaking the law and violating the rights of citizens. The use of this kind of snitching is a re-occurring theme in wrongful conviction cases.
Robinson claims the same two officers have been harassing him for weeks. Why him, you ask? Robinson is on probation. Should he violate that probation, he will go to jail for up to nine years. He’s vulnerable, and allegedly these cops are exploiting it.
“Your nine years are going to seem like four times more.” That’s what you hear someone Robinson claims to be a female cop threatening him on the recording.
Black men who face real or trumped-up charges, or who are on probation for those real or trumped-up charges, are targets for the kind of intimidation Robinson says he faced. In order to lessen their charges or to avoid free casing, they must cooperate with the illegal efforts of the police.
My advice to Robinson is to stay strong and live up to the promise he made to his mother. After a brush with the law, he promised to get this life on track and has enrolled in a GED class. His exposure of this alleged wicked police practice took a heap of courage. Our city needs to be grateful to him for bringing the police department into accountability.
My advice to Police Chief Sam Dotson is to end this alleged despicable practice by members of his force. This is key to building trust between what is seen as an occupying force and a captive community that has little respect for the public servants who are sworn to “serve and protect.”
KMOV’s report on Robinson: http://www.kmov.com/news/local/Man-films-local-officers-attempt-to-intimidate-him-under-false-pretences-249957921.html.
