Ever heard of police officers “testilying” in court? “Testilying” is the cynical euphemism that cops use for testifying falsely in order to secure convictions against people whom they believe to be guilty. But there is obviously another word for it: police perjury. “Testilying” is rationalized as somehow justified because the cop’s goal is to make sure that the bad guy gets convicted. The cop lies so that the suspect does not get off on a technicality. But it’s unmistakably police perjury, and the so-called technicalities are our constitutional protections against government persecution.
A survey of prosecutors, judges and defense attorneys in Chicago concludes that cops commit police perjury on the witness stand about 20% of the time. Almost all of the police officers questioned in another study admit that fellow officers commit perjury – sometimes rarely, sometimes routinely, but most everyone is doing it. Yet, cops are almost never called out on police perjury, much less disciplined, fired, or prosecuted. San Francisco’s former Police Commissioner Peter Keane described the rampant frequency of police perjury: “[P]erjury in court to justify illegal dope searches is commonplace. One of the dirty little not-so-secret secrets of the criminal justice system is undercover narcotics officers intentionally lying under oath. It is a perversion of the American justice system that strikes directly at the rule of law. Yet it is the routine way of doing business in courtrooms everywhere in America.”
As Commissioner Keane references, often the perjury happens in the mundane cases – the drug busts and the gun possession cases – where cops blatantly lie in order to retroactively justify their search after they found something illegal. Even then, police perjury is deeply troubling because it masks the fact that police are conducting illegal searches in the first place. If they can just lie to justify the searches after the fact, it gives them license to search without proper cause, targeting people based on race or youth. This contributes to the systemic racism and discrimination in the criminal justice system. And once the wink and nod become the legal system’s response to frequent police perjury the entire system breaks down. We see corrupt cops framing innocent people and the colleagues of abusive cops blatantly lying to justify police shootings. And, far too often in our cases at Loevy & Loevy, we see actual criminals walk free while innocent people go to prison based on lies and manufactured evidence by the police.
A brutal piece in the Huffington Post compares cops’ lies to the videos of the corresponding violent police encounter with the suspect to show how the culture of lying fosters abusive policing. The article juxtaposes reports like: “The shackles accidentally hit one of her arms” with a video of the incident that shows two cops beating a 16-year-old girl senseless. The video corresponding to the report of “a physical altercation ensued” is disturbing to watch. And, of course, no one can forget the contrast between South Carolina Officer Michael Slager’s report that he “felt threatened and reached for his department-issued firearm and fired his weapon” with the video showing him repeatedly shooting a fleeing Walter Scott in the back.
Understanding the routine lies told by cops is the key to understanding why the problem of police violence is not going away. When you understand that police perjury is the accepted norm, it makes sense how a Chicago Police Department officer can gun down Laquan McDonald, while all of the fellow officers at the scene lie about the circumstances to make the shooting appear justified. Every time that a cop lies and he isn’t disciplined, the culture of police violence gains further support within the ranks. Every time the justice system plays along with the not-so-secret secret of rampant police perjury it contributes to the culture of violence.
Yes, Hamblen Tn county deputies lie also. I am a 55 year old victim of abuse and misconduct of false affidavits. I went to a local market to get some cigarettes, 8 tenths of a mile from my home on april 6th 2015 approximately 11:35 pm. I walked in and there were two deputies seated inside, eating pizza. I walked to the counter and asked for a pack of marlboro in the box. The store owner said were closed. Closed, I asked, he said yeah, were closed, so, I said ok and walked out to get in my car and started driving back home. I drove approximately 3 tenths of a mile when I noticed some blue lights coming out of the market parking lot. I continued to drive home and proceeded to turn on to the road where I lived about 500 feet away. The deputy turned in behind me and got close behind me and then turned on his siren. I turned into my driveway within 300 feet or so. The deputies parked on the road in front of my house. I switched off my car and was taking my seatbelt off when my door flew open. They dragged me out of my car and slammed me to the ground crushing my ribs. I could not breath because they were on top of me. They let me up and then arrested me for felony evading arrest, resisting arrest and DUI and took me to the county jail. After I sold two classic automobiles to make my bond to get out after five days, I obtained a copy of the deputy’s affidavit. He started of by saying that him and his partner witnessed me driving at an excessive rate of speed and decided to follow me. He also said that I crossed the yellow line twice. He also said I switched off my headlights to avoid detection. His whole affidavit was based on pure lies because he lacked probable cause. The justice system here in Morristown Tn is very unjust. These people just want to try and destroy someone’s live’s. The market had a security camera, so, I went to ask for a copy of that night and the owner said he erased it. I found this unusual since these kind of cameras have a 90 day loop. I was set up and my lawyer that I paid another $ 1700 to, told me to take a plea deal. He said a grand jury would believe them instead of me. If I could only get the cruiser video and radio transmissions I know I could have shown the court that these deputies were guilty of subordination of aggravated perjury. I do not trust anything or any police officer anymore and I never will again. Same is true for the justice center.
It’s absurd and biased to define testilying as something officers only do when they believe someone is guilty. So, those who lie have a kind of liar’s honor about them, where they won’t lie for any reason except to harm someone they are convinced is guilty? How quaint. Clearly, you have not hung out with cops outside of a courtroom or depositions. Go hang out with them on their midnight coffee breaks, return, and edit for accuracy.
The statue of limitations is two years for subordination of aggravated perjury…edit that.
Unfortunately, the main reason the cops are lying is because the court systems allow them to.. The Federal courts are literally in complicity with lying law enforcement.. Look up Cottam V Pelton Fed Middle distr Fl 5:16-cv-413