For grieving families like those of Sean Bell, a 23-year-old black man gunned down by police on the day of his bachelor party, it’s hard to say if justice is elusive or just illusory. With his assailants now acquitted of all charges, this story — one of an unarmed black man gunned down by unaccountable law enforcement members — has tragically become all too familiar.
At his bachelor party Nov. 25, 2006, Mr. Bell and two friends headed for their car after departing from the Kalua Cabaret, a nightclub under investigation for prostitution. After Mr. Bell ran into an undercover officer and an unmarked NYPD minivan, five plainclothes police officers opened fire. Fifty rounds were fired, hitting the car 21 times. One officer went through two full magazines.
While the cops claim they were concerned with a possible violent threat made by one of Mr. Bell’s companions, no weapon was found in his car. The cops, not in uniform, approached the vehicle with their weapons drawn, giving Mr. Bell reason to believe he was being carjacked and likely accounting for his knee-jerk car maneuvers. Although they conflicted with police accounts, witnesses claim the cops did not identify themselves and started shooting without warning.
Mr. Bell’s autopsy showed he was hit four times in the neck and torso. His two companions, one in critical and the other in stable condition, were shot three and 19 times respectively. Police had them handcuffed to their hospital beds.
The murders sparked widespread outrage and protest. Three of the five assailants were indicted by a Queens grand jury. Fearing the reaction of community members, they waved their right to a jury and submitted to a bench trial. They were acquitted on all counts.
This case, however unbearably tragic, is merely the most recent drop of blood in the overflowing bucket of victims of police violence. Amadou Diallo, Ousmane Zongo and Frank Jude Jr. are other unfortunate names that have achieved fame for the same reason as Mr. Bell.
As if to compensate for the obvious racial element involved in the case, much has been made of the fact that Mr. Bell’s assailants were themselves not white. In truth, all this shows is the culture of racism endemic to police departments across the country is strong enough to infect officers of all races. If you are black and even remotely suspicious-looking, the potential for abuse is empirically staggering, regardless of the race of your assailant.
The Sean Bell murder is also significant in its demonstration of the limits of achieving justice through the courts. If the assailants were not police officers, it’s hard to imagine a circumstance in which they would not have received harsh sentences. Cops are de facto above the law in many cases, allowing even their worst behavior to rampage unchecked. In this context, various forms of community surveillance of law enforcement — “policing the police” — are not only desirable but necessary in keeping a check on their abuses.
Of course, the problem is not necessarily with individual police officers — most of whom likely have decent aims — but with the institution itself. In its service to elite interests, police departments clearly have a double standard in the way they deal with poor and minority communities. Current problems with law enforcement need to be corrected at a fundamental and systemic level if the worst abuse is to be mitigated.
Meanwhile, for Sean Bell’s fianc?e and two young daughters, there is still the possibility of achieving something resembling justice through a civil lawsuit. For now, it is more than harrowing to know his killers will be back working the streets again, armed and commanding.
Kyle Szarzynski ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in Spanish and history.
