Blue Lives Matter: “Fed Up” Police Begin Rallying Behind Their Own Post-George Floyd Scrutiny

Now, "fed up" police and police unions are saying enough is enough!

Fox News has more details on the unity that is beginning to spready among police forces:

Americans reacted with disgust when a video rippled through the nation showing police officers in Buffalo shoving a 75-year-old man to the pavement, which caused blood to come out of his head. Politicians sprang into action, with Gov. Andrew Cuomo encouraging the firing of the two officers and potential criminal charges, saying the video made him “sick to my stomach." The next day, the district attorney filed second-degree assault charges against the officers.

But at the Buffalo police union, officers felt their two colleagues were unfairly punished and fell victim to political winds after George Floyd's death. To protest their disgust with the swift discipline, 57 fellow Buffalo officers resigned from the special riot unit. Hundreds of supporters, including off-duty police, firefighters and law enforcement officers from neighboring communities, crowded outside the courthouse where the two officers were arraigned June 6 and erupted in cheers for the men.

The police union president called the courthouse turnout "tremendous" and unlike anything he's ever seen in 19 years of policing to protest the "politically motivated attack on these officers."

"This administration left them to hang out to dry horribly," John Evans, president of the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association, told Fox News. "We just want to keep their spirits up ... so they know that we are behind them 100 percent. We're going to remain with them to the end here. It's really shameful that our administration has not come out to support these officers."

The stark contrast of reactions illustrates the wedge right now between many politicians and protesters who call the cops involved in the recent spate of excessive force incidents criminals and the law enforcement unions who say if individuals just complied with orders, police wouldn't be in a position to use force.

Officers and unions around the country have widely condemned ex-Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin for kneeling on the neck of Floyd for nearly nine minutes despite him calling out "I can't breathe." But in the face of political protests across the nation and rising anti-police sentiment, police unions, like the one in Buffalo, have banded together and stood by their fellow officers who are facing fresh allegations of misconduct in other cases.

In Atlanta, police officers have called out sick in waves after two officers were criminally charged in connection to the June 12 fatal shooting of Rayshard Brooks. Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard Jr. charged Garrett Rolfe, who was fired after killing Brooks last week, with felony murder, which could potentially lead to the death penalty, among numerous other counts. A second officer, Devin Brosnan, is facing three charges, including aggravated assault.

The Atlanta police union president Jason Segura panned the charges as politically motivated since Howard is in the midst of a tight election race and criminal investigation for misappropriation of funds. And officers are walking off the job and calling in sick because they are at their "wits' end."  Segura said officers are puzzled by the lack of due process for the two officers and feel the mayor and city council are throwing them under the bus.

"The morale is terrible," Vince Champion, the southeast regional director for the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, told Fox 5 Atlanta in confirming the walkouts in the wake of the criminal charges. "It's the worst day in law enforcement in the city of Atlanta that's ever been."

In Minneapolis, where Chauvin and three other officers were fired in connection with Floyd's death, police union president Lt. Bob Kroll sent a letter, as reported by the Star Tribune, to his members saying the four police officers were terminated without "due process" and the union will "fight for their jobs." He commended the police officers for their outstanding work and blasted the media for failing to report on Floyd's "violent criminal history." (Black Lives Matter supporters have been protesting the Minneapolis union and demanding Kroll resign.)

This reaction is not a new phenomenon, reflecting a “brotherhood” mentality that’s been in place for decades, with unions and the rank-and-file often standing by fellow officers accused of misconduct – frustrating efforts by officials, especially now, to enforce discipline as they scramble to address brutality and racism allegations. But that show of support can also amplify simmering criticism of that process, such as in Georgia where Howard has faced accusations beyond the union of overstepping with a felony murder charge.

Meanwhile, police chiefs, local leaders and politicians from both sides the aisle are calling out unions as an obstacle to reforms and protector of bad cops. That tough criticism has made the bonds of unity among an already tight-knit group of officers even stronger.

"Police officers are fed up," Evans, the Buffalo union president, said. "There's no support coming out of our [local] administration for our members and ... that appears to be countrywide. They're attempting to implement these reforms without any negotiation and without consideration to the police officers."

Evans described the mood right now among officers as reaching "a boiling point" because they are all suffering for Chauvin's actions. "We're being blamed for the actions of one police officer," he said.

Law enforcement is critical in order to maintain a peaceful and civil society.

Crime began to decrease in the 90s, which is associated with an increase of police funding and police forces across the nation.

If the attacks against law enforcement continue to go unchecked, then no one will want to join police forces.

In the long run, this could result in more crime.

In Atlanta, there are reports that police staged a "sick leave" protest after an officer was accused of felony murder.

The officer shot and killed Rayshard Brooks, who stole a taser gun off the officer's body and shot it at him.

These sick leave protests are also known as "blue flu."

Several reports suggest that Atlanta was severely under-policed during the protest.

The Times has more details:

Police officers “fed up” over the decision to charge one of their former colleagues with murder have failed to show up for their shifts in Atlanta, a union spokesman has said.

Atlanta Police Department reported a “higher than usual number” of officers calling in to say they would not come to work after one of their number was charged with murder for shooting a black man named Rayshard Brooks, who had resisted arrest and was fleeing with another officer’s Taser.

Security camera footage showed Mr Brooks firing the Taser wildly behind him as he ran and a white officer named Garrett Rolfe, shooting him in the back. Mr Rolfe, 27, faces life imprisonment and the possibility of the death penalty.

Local Fox 5 Atlanta confirms that more police are calling in sick than usual:

An Atlanta Police Department roll call sheet shows over a dozen sick-out calls following the charges against a former APD officer in the shooting death of Rayshard Brooks.

The APD reported an "unusually high number of call-outs" following the charges against former officer Garret Rolfe and Officer Devin Brosnan connected to the deadly shooting of Brooks last Friday night.

Saturday, FOX 5 obtained a roll call sheet from a trusted source showing a total of 18 sick-out calls.

Some of the "no shows" were actually officers from other zones who were called in to help.

Friday night, sources told FOX 5 homicide detectives were having to respond to all routine 911 calls because the officers who normally responded to the calls failed to show up.

Speaking to FOX 5's Portia Bruner, retired DeKalb County Police Major K.D. Johnson said he's been hearing from officers nonstop since Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard announced charges against Rolfe and Brosnan.

"The police officers are like you are damned if you do, damned if you don't. I have heard that there have been some call outs and some refusing to respond to calls," said Johnson, who worked for DeKalb County for 25 years.

While APD has not confirmed the roll call sheet, a spokesperson on Friday did say they've had a higher than usual number of sick calls, but said on Twitter that the department has "enough resources to maintain operations & remain able to respond to incidents."

Just like our military, policemen and women need to know that we stand behind them!

They cannot fear for their lives and their reputation as they do their jobs to protect ALL citizens from danger!