As per my book, The Peace Prescription, available on Amazon, all violence is terrible and most of it is preventable.

In the USA there are about 450,000 police officers, and there are about 1000 fatal shootings by police each year. That means that at least 449,000, or nearly 99.8% of police officers in America do not kill anyone for any reason during each year.

Is it reasonable to believe that every single killing by a police officer is improper? Or, is it reasonable to believe that none of them are ever improper killings? I don’t see how either of the above can be true. Police are human, and all humans make mistakes, and it’s hard to believe that every police officer is immune from prejudice or various types of emotional or mental instability, such as stress in their personal lives.

But it is apparently a fact that not one American police officer was convicted of an improper killing in either 2014 or 2015!!! And, I believe none has been convicted so far in 2016 either. It’s so hard to believe that not one such event has occurred. If just one such police officer could be identified and convicted and actually be sent to prison, that could go a long way in calming down the obvious and widespread belief that such improper and criminal behavior, whether directed at the black population or against anyone, will always go unpunished, and therefore will only get worse over time. Now you add the rediculous, vicious murders of police officers, probably none of whom have ever killed anyone, and you have a firestorm of senseless violence brewing and threatening all of America, regardless of race or occupation.

If you are, or know, a District Attorney, or others involved in our criminal justice system, push for even one such case of criminal justice aimed at an improper killing by a police officer. Set an example that shows everyone in America that such crimes will not be tolerated or go unpunished. And, everyone in the black and white and all racial and ethnic communities should push for less violence by everyone. Violence only leads to more violence. Nothing is solved. Everything is made worse.

No justice, no peace! More violence, no peace! More justice and less violence, more peace!!!

Please feel free to post your remarks about this blog. And, thanks for your checking out this blog.
Your friendly problem solver,
Dr. Ed Marshall