By Jonathan Perreira, Staff Writer
On the night of September 15, a young woman in Brooklyn was hanging out with her friend. Detectives were doing an undercover drug bust at the time, and met with the teens. The woman was arrested, brought to a nearby park for questioning, and then was returned to her friend.
The woman immediately claimed that she was raped, and was brought to the hospital to be treated. Doctors confirmed that there were signs of sexual assault. Since news broke out regarding this story, the detectives were put on modified duty, but are in complete shock, claiming the sex was consensual.
Let’s submit to rape culture for only a moment and try to convince ourselves that maybe the woman, in the face of drug charges, offered to perform sexual acts on the detectives in order to be freed. Although handcuffed, she would theoretically be consenting, right? Would that make the cops any less terrible? In this scenario, two detectives on the job couldn’t keep it in their pants and made unprofessional fools out of themselves.
Tax dollars are spent, at best, on incompetent and gross cops, or at worst, literal rapists. I want to say that I’m surprised that these cops were put on modified duty instead of being suspended, considering doctors confirmed the signs of assault and force. Does this incident continue the narrative of how police are often held above the law only because they’re supposed to enforce it? And if internal investigations often lead to injustice, must the United States invent a new institution that enforces the law on police? What is this, Police 2: Electric Boogaloo? This is ridiculous. It’s important to note that this incident doesn’t represent the entirety of the police population, but the police population isn’t close to cured from crime. Whether it be the disproportionate killing of black Americans, the rape cases, or the collaboration in drug-related crimes, the police are seemingly capable of getting away with anything. For whatever they commit, they can prevent law enforcement from prosecuting them. The Brooklyn Police Department stated that the investigation would be ongoing, but we’re only left guessing as to where it’ll go. The American sentiment that someone is proven innocent until guilty is a great force in legalities, but extremely poor in a business. The detectives should absolutely be suspended considering the accusations and evidence against them, and if by some event there is undeniable proof that the young woman consented, then they can return to their jobs. Otherwise, there are suspected active rapists roaming New York City. That’s not news, but these rapists are also police officers.
The name and image of the woman is left out of this article due to respect. She has said that her life is “shattered,” and the best we can do to help her and other rape victims is to show our vocal support. I salute her bravery in reporting and treating it immediately, as often our patriarchal culture holds women and men back from filing rape cases. But this woman is not letting those police get away with anything, and we could all learn from that.