Cops, Robbers & Boys

Everyone's talking about the 15 year old boy who got shot by the police these days.

The story goes something like this:

It's 2a.m. in the morning. The police are doing a routine road block in Shah Alam in a neighbourhood well known for robberies and break ins. A car tries to escape the road block and the police give chase. A 6km pursuit follows in which half a dozen red lights are broken, a motorcyclist is nearly knocked before the police finally brings the car to a stop. The police approach the car by foot, but the car reverses, in what seems like an attempt to run them over. The police draw their gun out and open fire. One person from the car runs away, while the other is shot dead. Then, they discover, that it was in fact, a 15 year old boy.

To start, it's really so so tragic that a young boy had to die so needlessly. There was no crime (except perhaps driving illegally without a license). And even if there was, there was hardly any need for a life to be taken.

Understandably, a lot of people are upset.The integrity and reliability of the police force is immediately called into question. 'Trigger happy' is added to the long list of defamatory labels Malaysians already associate with the police. The family says they want the truth to come and and justice to be served. They've hired no less a big shot than Karpal Singh to look into the matter (how come he has to get involved in everything anyway?). I agree that the truth must come out and that can only be done once the facts of the case are fully revealed. The high profile nature of the case will undoubtedly make sure no cover up is attempted.

But what kind of truth does the family (and the rest of the blood thirsty nation) hope to uncover anyway? The core facts of the case does not change. The boy ran from the police. The police assumed the worst. They open fired at a vehicle driven by someone they presume to be extremely dangerous. The boy dies and the police discovered their mistake only too late. Unless you think the police deliberately shot a 15 year old boy in cold blood (which is totally absurd), I don't think the full blown investigation is going to reveal anything new. More than justice, I think the family want compensation (which isn't unfair). And the nation.......well, they just want blood and another good excuse to bash to police.

I'm not the biggest fan of the Royal Malaysian Police Force, but in this particular case, I do sympathize with them. Contrary to popular belief, police aren't just a bunch of donut munching fatso's looking for their next victom to squeeze ang pow money from. It's easy for those of us who draw a good pay just by sitting our butts in an air conditioned office to criticize. But for the meager pay they receive, the police really do put their life in harms way to protect our people. The gun they sling around their waste though hardly ever used, isn't there without a reason.

There are a lot of hardcore bad asses lurking around. Remember just a few weeks ago, an armed robber shot dead his own accomplice just to keep his own identity secret. This happened not 10 minutes away from my home.... and the robber is still on the loose. The public gets frightened.... heck, I got frightened. And who do we expect to apprehend hardcore criminals like that? THE POLICE RIGHT?

So fast forward to last week.. the said criminal is STILL ON THE LOOSE and the police are certainly still looking for him. And suddenly, you have this car trying to get away at all cost to avoid capture. What do you expect our men in blue to assume? "Oh... maybe it's just some kids frightened because they don't have a driving license and their moms will so kill them if they find out." Gee... you think so?

What if the car had indeed been driven by the same trigger happy criminal? What if one of the police had been shot dead even before they could even approach the vehicle? What do you think today's headlines will be? "Hardcore criminal got away - AGAIN."; "Cops Let Robber Get Away"....... If a policeman had died, do you think people would be in an uproar? Do you think their families will engage Karpal Singh to demand better pay, equipment and protection for the police force? Of course not. They are being paid after all right? And surely, they should have known the risk when taking the job right? Right.....

So.... why did the boy run? Why did he try to reverse into the police? Surely he should have known the risk when deciding to run from the police right? Wrong..... No, no, no...that's not fair. He's just a kid that didn't know better. That's true. He didn't know better. And so did the police when they opened fire. They didn't know better too. There was no way they could have given the circumstances. There is a difference between committing a wrong and making an honest mistake.

Intentional or not, a mistake was made. Out of compassion more than guilt, the family should be compensated in some way even if the deed cannot be undone and their son can never be brought back. For the police officer who pulled the trigger, whatever punishment awaits him (if any is due) it certainly cannot outweigh the agony he must be feeling over taking away the life of a young boy needlessly. Has anyone stopped to wonder how his family is coping with all of this?

You can assign blame, and it will most likely go to the police, but there are no winners in this tragedy. Punishment to the officer will be but a small consolation... he will be haunted for life, his entire career will be ruined... and the family of the deceased will not gain the peace of mind they seek nor find any meaning in all of it.

I think only God can give them that.

My condolences to all who suffered in this tragedy.