Column 2- When Police Officers aren't the good guys....

Ryan Moats was not running from the cops. Though the Houston Texans failed to pull over immediately after being chased by a squad car for running a red light, Moats was not running from anyone. Instead, he and his family were speeding toward the Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano, where Moat’s mother-in-law was dying. Moats made it to the Medical Center’s parking lot before pulling over and emerging with his hands held up, pleading with the officer to allow him to see his mother-in-law before it was too late.
(Police Video) http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4017382
Moats was threatened by Dallas police officer Robert Powell, 25. Powell used phrases such as “I can screw you over” and “Your attitude will dictate everything that happens.”
At one point, the same tape that caught Powell’s threatening remarks also caught his reaction when Moat’s wife, Tamishia got out of the SUV and proceeded to rush into the hospital. Ignoring Powell’s comments to stay inside the vehicle, Tamishia yelled “Excuse me, my mother is dying- do you understand?” Moats continued to plea with the officer, crying out “She has seconds man, then she’s gone!” At one point during the video from the squad car, a nurse even came out, verifying that Moat’s mother-in-law was dying, and a Plano officer also pleaded with Powell, requesting the release of Moats to visit the dying patient. To this, Powell responded “All right, I’m almost done.” Powell did not immediately release Moats, however, and by the time Powell issued Moats a ticket for running the red light, his mother-in-law had passed away. “I just held her hand,” Moats said to a reporter. “But she was already gone.” Moats never got to say goodbye to his dying mother-in-law. He never got to hold her hand in the final moments before she succumbed to breast cancer. Instead, Moats was threatened by a Dallas Police officer while an important family member lay dying.
After the incident, Moats said he had waited until there was no traffic to pass the red light, which is also shown clearly on the police tape. Moats also expressed that he would not have minded getting a ticket in the hospital, after he was allowed to say goodbye to his mother-in-law. “I don’t know what he was thinking,” Moats told KRLD-FM. “Basically, I was just very shocked… I even said I can’t believe this is happening.” Moats added, “He should lose his job”. Dallas police chief David Kunkle said upon reviewing the police tape that both Moats and his wife “exercised extraordinary patience, restraint in dealing with the behavior of our officer”. Kunkle also commented “At no time did Mr. Moats identify himself as an NFL football player or expect any kind of special consideration. He handled himself very, very well.” Powell resigned and Moats and his wife even accepted the apologies of him as well as the Dallas police department, but Moats lost a moment in his life which he says he can never get back.
When a situation such as this occurs, we have to seriously contemplate the shortcomings of our law enforcement. There should never be a situation in which an individual is unable to say goodbye to a dying family member due to hindrance from an entity which has promised to “protect and serve”. After hearing a story such as this, we have to wonder how many times officers abuse power or prevent those in dire need from getting where they need to be. It is unacceptable to be producing police officers who behave in the manner in which Powell behaved during the encounter with Moats. It is vital to support our law enforcement, but it is even more important for the system to ensure they are not producing corrupt officers. It may be time to re-evaluate certain aspects of police training, such as empathy training and protocol under special circumstances. That way, no one will ever miss out on a chance to say goodbye to a family member due to an officer again.