Bullies in Blue
It seems necessary to look at certain institutions of narcissists and psychopaths to dispel their illusions and pop the bubble of cognitive dissonance, preventing people from seeing them as they truly are—evil. In this article, I’m going to look at law enforcement in America, specifically the men and women who make up the police force.
Before I get into the thick of it, I want to clarify something. I don’t hate all police, nor do I believe that all police officers are bad or evil people. I agree that most are good people, but they are overshadowed by the demons among them. What I do believe, however, is that an overwhelming number of police officers in the United States are violent narcissists with no legitimate systems of checks and balances to keep them in line. The excellent police officers are either too nervous or impotent to take on their brothers and sisters in uniform. I don’t blame them, per se, but they are a piece of the significant problem.
Some Background
Some who read this article, and disagree with my conclusions, might paint me as an anti-police heretic with no real experience in understanding the plight of police officers in America. While I would never presume to know what it’s like to be a police officer, I do have a lot of experience being around police in my family and with my professional work experience. Next to that, I also have eyes, ears, and a relatively decent grasp of understanding complex thought and reason.
In my family, my grandfather, both uncles, and my father were all police officers. If you’ve read any of my articles on mental health, you’ll know that my father is also an abusive narcissist with a hair-trigger temper and a deficit of emotional intelligence. I remember hearing stories my father would tell when I was younger about how much he loved fighting with people, and whenever his department had a call they knew would turn violent, they’d call him to knock some heads together. Call me crazy, but I don’t see that as normal or healthy behavior.
As a counterintelligence analyst, I worked alongside federal law enforcement in D.C. and encountered many of the same issues that I’ve highlighted below.
Education
While conducting the research for this article, one of the major areas that stuck out to me regarding police officer training is how so few police agencies require any education above a high school diploma or GED equivalent. While the primary information I worked with is from a 2017 study, it is one of the largest and most comprehensive studies I came across during my searches.
Here’s what I found:
The vast majority of police agencies (81.5%) require only a high school diploma to be hired. A much smaller percentage (6.6%) require some college credits, a 2-year degree (10.5%), or a 4-year degree (1.3%).
As the minimum education requirements are usually mandated by state authority, most follow that standard. Only about 13% of agencies deviate from the standard to require more education for their officers.
I understand that being more educated does not necessarily mean that you are more intelligent or mature than other people. Still, the statistics on this specific subject are vitally important to my point. In the article “College for cops? Studies show it helps their behavior, stress levels,” Dr. Ronald Kimberling, Ph.D. explains—
“In a study of disciplinary cases against Florida officers, the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) noted that ‘Officers with only high school educations were the subjects of 75 percent of all disciplinary actions. Officers with four-year degrees accounted for 11 percent of such actions.’ Since approximately 30 percent of officers have achieved four-year college degrees, the results of the Florida study appear to provide strong evidence that higher education correlates with good behavior. A separate study found that officers with undergraduate degrees performed on par with officers who had 10 years of additional experience.”
With the information and knowledge that police with higher levels of education are far less likely to face disciplinary actions and are more likely to perform their duties with good behavior, it's a violation of community standards and ethics to allow undereducated officers to prow the streets unchecked.
Another critical piece to my argument about the lack of education for police officers is the comparison of hours needed to be certified as a police officer versus other professions. For example, in Virginia, police officers must have a minimum of 800 hours of training to be certified, while cosmetologists must have 1,000 hours. I find it strange and bizarre that someone who has a gun and is legally protected under qualified immunity when they kill people needs 200 fewer hours than someone who cuts people’s hair.
In California, police officers are required to have a minimum of 664 hours of training to become certified law enforcement professionals, while an interior designer needs to have 1,872 hours. An interior designer is a person that styles a house, and police officers are people who are charged with upholding the law and being public servants. If you aren’t seeing the picture at this point, then I’m not sure you ever will.
I advocate for more education for police officers because I think going through a training program and getting a degree gives someone many great opportunities, including learning different perspectives and cultures, meeting people not from your hometown (provided you leave), time management, attention to detail, etc. Going to school, especially higher education can be arduous work.
I did an accelerated graduate degree in business and completed the coursework in nine months. It kicked my ass. But going through the experience taught me the fundamentals of my field of study and gave me invaluable lessons to carry on into my future career. If you pluck a fresh eighteen-year-old guy or gal right out of high school who still has another seven years to go with their mental development and give them a gun and tell them they ARE the law, what exactly do you expect other than an immature catastrophe?
Behavior
As mentioned above, the mental development of the brain is complete in the mid-twenties to the mid-thirties. This means police officers under twenty-five still have an undeveloped prefrontal cortex (PFC). As described in my book, “The Psychology of Collapsing,” the PFC is responsible for the cognitive control function, or in simpler terms—the part of the brain that influences cognitive flexibility, prospective (things to be performed in the future) memory, attention, and impulse inhibition.
The vital part of this information is to understand that people under the age of twenty-five (it depends on the person) have a lower level of cognitive control of their actions. If you’ve heard the phrase “out of their mind” to describe someone who is apoplectic with rage, it’s an accurate statement because when you get angry, your prefrontal cortex enlarges and decreases your ability to make a good decision. If you’ve ever said something hurtful in the heat of an argument, this is the reason (or you're just an asshole—which is still relevant). Now imagine that same response for someone whose PFC is still not even fully developed. It is one of many reasons why police behavior is sometimes inexplicably horrible.
The first example is a situation still fresh in some of our minds: the savage beating death of Tyre Nichols at the hands of five Memphis, Tennessee, police officers. The murderers that beat that poor man so severely that he died three days later are Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills, Jr., Emmitt Martin III, and Justin Smith. I’m writing their names so everyone can know the names of evil cowards. There is a video of the horrific beating, but I won’t be linking it in this article.
Recruiting for police has gotten so bad that many police agencies will hire just about anyone who turns in an application. Before the murder of Nichols, the Memphis police were offering bonuses of up to $15,000 and a $10,000 relocation allowance while removing requirements for the candidates to have either college credits, military service, or previous police work. Additionally, the department received waivers to hire applicants with criminal records. One recruiter for the department, speaking on conditions of anonymity, even said most of their applications were coming from fast food workers from Mcdonald's and Dunkin.
This begs the question—is it really about upholding the law and creating safe environments, or is it about having a warm untrained body in a uniform? Some larger departments, and even smaller ones, are working with budgets over a million dollars. Shouldn’t it be time to get some quality candidates for vacant positions? If the departments are having issues recruiting those quality candidates, might it be because of a police culture issue and not a candidate issue?
Other examples of bad police behavior:
New York police department pays $121 Million for Police Misconduct, the Most in 5 Years.
Capitol Audits investigating police officers violating the first amendment.
The case of ex-police officer Daniel Holtzclaw who raped women by telling them he’d arrest them if they didn’t comply…he got 263 years in prison.
A former officer caught in a sex trafficking sting. One of many example cases.
The Tennessee police department that was all sleeping with one over-friendly married female officer.
13 Baltimore City police officers were brought down on allegations that included robbing citizens, stealing and selling drugs, falsifying reports, and overtime and trying to cover it all up.
I could honestly spend all day finding examples of police misconduct, but this is enough for now.
Psychological Aptitude
I created an excel spreadsheet (that you can view here) as I conducted my investigation because it’s the easiest way for me to aggregate a large number of different categories of information and then do some statistics to find answers. I could have relied on someone else’s understanding of the data, but I wanted to be able to point to specific information. The information I included on my sheet includes state, age, education level, training hours, polygraph, and psychological examination. For the conditions, I have all 50 United States as well as the District of Columbia.
Here are some major points of discussion:
Age: 13 out of 51 (25%) only required the police applicant to be 18 years old to begin training and working. 34 out of 51 (67%) required the applicant to be 21 years of age. 2 (4%) required applicants to be 19, and 2 (4%) required 20.
Polygraph: 42 out of 51 (82%) do not require their applicants to have a polygraph examination before beginning training or work.
Psychological exam: 26 out of 51 (51%) do not require any psychological assessment to be passed before a candidate can begin training or work.
The key takeaway from this information is that over half of the states in the country do not require any psychological evaluation of someone given a gun and told to be the stewards of the law. It’s no wonder we have so many out-of-control cops and no one willing to stand up and put an end to this insanity.
Additionally, 82% do not require a polygraph for their candidates. I’ve been polygraphed, and it really isn’t that bad as long as you’re not a deceptive person. Telling the truth is actually one of the easiest things you can do, and a polygraph (while I’ll admit it is not always 100% accurate) is still an excellent way to sort out those who should not be wearing a badge.
I firmly believe that anyone considering becoming a police officer in the United States must undergo psychological and polygraphical examinations to ensure they are morally and ethically responsible enough to protect the public and uphold the law. The most important trait to look for in these examinations is anyone exhibiting any of the characteristics commonly found in those with Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). Any day I have the opportunity to expose or piss off a narcissist is a good day. Narcs are not compatible with life in law enforcement or in a cooperative society.
Police officers who exhibit NPD traits act out those traits through excessive use of force, abuse of power, substance abuse, theft, deception, and insubordination toward superiors. One of the best examples of police officers exposing themselves as narcissists is police officer Breanna Straus from the Washington Federal Way Police Department (FDWP). Check out the video below. To make it easier, I’ll also post the transcript of what she said so it’s perfectly clear.
“PSA to everyone out there. I’m speaking for myself, but I’m probably speaking for a large majority of other officers out there. If we’re driving on the freeway in our police car, get the fuck out of the way. Get the fuck out of the way. If you merge, and we follow behind you, and we merge too, you’re probably in trouble. Best way to find that out is get the fuck out of the way. I can go 90 miles per hour. You can’t. You can’t do that. So get the fuck out of the way. If us officers stay behind you long enough, we can find a reason to pull you over. So you might as well get the fuck out of the way. Super simple. That’s all. You’re welcome.” — Ofc. Breanna Straus.
If you were wondering, that is what a narcissistic cop looks like. If I was the chief of that department, she would have been out on her ass so fast her head would spin, and I’d make it my professional goal to make sure she never wears a badge again, but guess what her punishment was—She was suspended for 10 hours. The FDWP is a complete joke and should have its certification as a law enforcement agency revoked with prejudice.
This example of incompetence and covering for a narc cop is a perfect summation of the premise of this article. Rogue cops are allowed to roam the streets, preying on innocent people because they feel protected in their actions. As a society, we cannot go on like this. The break is coming and won’t be a good situation for those who violated the public's trust.
Final Thoughts
You should know that I have no ill will towards law enforcement. Actually, the opposite is true. I care so much for my community that I’ll risk reputational harm to bring these facts and truths to the forefront of the discussion. If you didn't like what I have to say, then cool. You're entitled to your opinion, and I respect your right to dissent.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t offer some solutions. I’ve taken time to consider both sides of this discussion to come to a common sense understanding of what policing needs to look like in America.
Here’s what I suggest:
All police officers should have a four-year degree with a specific focus on sociology, criminology, psychology, or any other degree that seems understandable for the profession. They should be compensated appropriately for their education level.
A psychological/mental health expert team should be hired by every single law enforcement agency. Not only should these professionals be on the front lines with the officers to aid in mental health-related emergencies, but they should also be utilized by the department to have accurate and up-to-date psychological assessments of all officers in the department.
The minimum age I’d like to see enforced for police is 23, with a mandatory two-year probationary period to further assess their mental acuity and aptitude for the rigors of the job.
There should be a civilian in the higher levels of the chain of command who can advise the chief concerning human resources, legal, business, etc.
Narcissists among the law enforcement ranks should be removed and barred from being police officers ever again. This will be quite a process, but it’s necessary. You can’t just cut off a piece of cancer and hope it goes away. You need to remove the tumor in its entirety.
A polygraph and rigorous psychological examination should be mandatory for everyone that hopes to be a police officer. Any current police officers should also be examined to see if they are still fit to carry out their sworn duties.
Qualified immunity should be abolished because bad police officers should be held accountable for their unconstitutional and abhorrent actions.
This is just the beginning, but a revamping of the law enforcement system in America would create a stronger sense of community and, with it, security. No longer would people be terrified to be pulled over by a narc cop on a power trip just looking to cause trouble. No longer would innocent people be killed at the hands of psychopathic cops who have no concept of empathy or human decency.
The good law enforcement officers will finally have their profession back. Still, it’s going to be up to them to carry on a legacy of transparency, understanding, professionalism, knowledge, and service to the community. Rooting out the rot of bad officers will make room for better officers to take their place and change how the greater society sees them. This will be their opportunity to fundamentally change a broken institution. I pray these events come to fruition, but it will take a lot more than a few people talking about it for anything meaningful to be done. So speak up and be the change.