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Amanda Wright
English 2010
Professor Kilpatrick
February 5, 2015
Annotated Bibliography- Police Brutality
Many Americans are acting out against police brutality. As I turn on my TV and browse the
internet, I am flooded with stories of angry citizens claiming that racism among police officers
needs to stop. Riots, looting, and extreme violence are going on in many parts of the United
States. The common conception in news media is that officers are targeting the black community.
I wonder to myself, but are all cops really racist? Is fighting in the streets justified for the actions
of a few police officers? Officers are dying and innocent citizens are getting hurt because
minority groups feel that they are being targeted. I cant help but fear for the future if this is the
notion we now have against police officers; that they are to be feared. I had to find out what
exactly was causing all the commotion and if police officers are really just cold blooded, racist
killers out to hurt and kill as many people as they can.
Legum, Judd. 17-Year-Old Girl Shot Dead By Three Cops At Texas Police
Station. Think
Progress. www.thinkprogress.org. 26 Jan 2015. Web. 27 Jan 2015.

This news article talks about the recent events that happened in Longview, Texas. It was written
by Judd Legum. The author states that a young girl, Kristiana Coignard; only 17, was shot dead
by three police officers while entering a police station. He explains that the police officers are
now on administrative leave due to the incident but the police department is declining to release
further information. The author claims that Police say that Coignard was "brandishing a weapon"
before she was shot four times. Legum states that Coignard was living with her Aunt, Heather
Robertson at the time of the incident. She stated that her niece had struggled with depression and
bipolar disorder as well as being hospitalized twice for attempted suicides. Her aunt also
claimed that other than self injury, she had no criminal history. Kristiana was likely crying out
for help, Judd indicated that her grandma stated. Legum explains that although police are often
exposed to the mentally handicapped, most of the time they do not have the proper training to
deal with them. He quotes that as a result, rash stigmatization and misinterpretation of the
intentions of the mentally ill can cause vital errors and ultimately make the difference between
life and death. He is basically saying that immediately thinking the mentally ill are out to cause
danger can cause a huge error and ultimately kill someone.

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The author of the news article, Judd Legum, is the Editor-in-Chief of Think
Progress. This man is highly educated, holding his Juris Doctor from
Georgetown University Law Center and a B.A. from Pomona College in Public
Policy Analysis. He has also been a practicing lawyer with his main focus
being civil and criminal trial work. This tells me that he has the credentials to
write this article accurately and is reputable as a source. The article clearly
states facts of what happened and makes it very clear on where he got his
information and quotes from. The company he is the Editor-in-Chief of even
had a direct interview with at least one of his sources.

This shocking article is just one example of potential perceived negligence

displayed by our police officers. This is a great expression of my argument. A
white girl, only 17, was shot and killed by a police officer for possibly
brandishing a weapon. Although this may or may not be reason enough for
a fatal attack, as detailed information has not yet been released is not the
point. Our police are supposed to be people we can go to in a time of need.
We should feel safe and comfortable enough to come to them when we feel
scared, confused, or we are not sure what else to do. We shouldnt have to
fear what might happen to us, even those of us with a mental illness. Our
police officers, whether intentionally or not, are portraying themselves to the
general public as extremely negligent and careless towards the ones they
are employed to protect.

Brown, Peter F. Martin Luther King III Criticizes Ferguson Riots, Violence
Against Police.
Western Journalism. www.westernjournalism.com. 19 Jan 2015. Web. 24
Jan 2015

This article is written by Peter F. Brown and found on Westernjournalism.com.

Brown summarizes a recent report where Martin Luther King III criticized the
recent violence against the police by apparently stating that it goes against
what his father, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had envisioned. Brown quotes
Martin Luther King III as saying, In no way do I nor would my father,

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condone any ends justify the means behavior. The author states that
violence broke out in Ferguson after it was decided to not file charges against
police officer Darren Wilson for shooting Michael Brown. The author then
claims that seven citizens and four police officers were injured as a result
and in Brooklyn, two officers were murdered. He explains that Martin Luther
King III stressed in an interview that importance of nonviolence and
communication.

The author writes for Western Journalism and is a constitutional conservative.

The website is widely accessed so I know that it is a credible source. He
quotes Mr. King throughout the article and is clear with his sources. The point
of this article is to raise question on whether Mr. King is right in his views on
communication to end violence as opposed to violence as a means to an end
in the name of justice. He emphasizes race as a matter of tension in current
events and the interview with Martin Luther King III was from the Washington
Times.

The purpose of providing this article is to display the skewed way of thinking
he black community has developed as a result of recent events. Martin
Luther King III has a good reputation as being a human rights activist, much
like his father. The fact that this story headlines a black man who is definitely
for human rights and African American rights feelings the opposite of many
black people rioting the streets because of injustice, says a lot to me and
proves a great point. I can agree with Mr. King that the black community hasin some ways- every right to be angry. However, I feel that this anger should
be re-directed and channeled into something more meaningful, something
more powerful, and something more productive if they want to see change.
Anger towards alleged injustice needs to be channeled into positive things,
like communication, if they want to see positive results.

Troutt, David Dante. Imagining Racial Justice in America (Cover Story). Nation 299.26 (2014).
17-19. Academic Search Premier. Web. 30 Jan 2015.

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The article I chose is called Racial Justice In America by David Dante Troutt. He explains the
problem with racial profiling by police in America and the violence towards black men as a
result. His main claim in this article is that we dont need another conversation about race as
much as we need to talk about reform. He speaks of reforming the police and their policies
towards citizens. Rebuilding trust for the police with constructive policing is required according
to Troutt. He emphasizes the need for us to have a desire for change. He says that we have to
want to end the brutality from police as much as we want to end other horrific things in society
such as pedophilia, rape, or domestic violence.
The author quotes several sources in the article as well as uses many examples of racial profiling
as seen in the news lately. He uses the Michael Brown case in particular as his main example of
the way the system of trying a police officer may be seriously flawed. He gives very detailed
accounts throughout the article of both perspectives; that of the black community and how he
thinks Michael Brown might have wanted justice, as well as the side of the police officer (Darren
Wilson) and the prosecutors in the case. Troutt is a professor of law and the John J Francis
Scholar at Rutgers School of Law in Newark. He is a reputable source and very educated in the
subject. His intention in writing the article is to prove a point or to state his case/ opinion on the
subject. He believes that although justice may not be served for Michael Brown, the point is to
rally together for a change in how the police act as whole. I think the intended audience is that of
young people to educate them on the facts in this case and to help people see the bigger picture.
This was a very interesting article to me and I found it very informative. The thing I liked most
about this article was the extensive amount of facts and quotes provided that I had not already
known. I think this piece works great in my paper because I am trying to prove that there are
truths to both sides of the argument and I feel that both sides are to blame. The fight should not
be in the streets, rioting and looting to make a point or to express anger. It should be to reform
the police in general and as a whole. A change needs to be made in the way police are trained to
handle these types of situations and how they treat citizens of all races and backgrounds. We as a
community need to take a stand to make this happen.
Lougy, Cody. Personal Interview. 29 Jan 2015.
I interviewed Detective Cody Loudy regarding current police procedures and about the news
surrounding police brutality to gather information from an insider perspective. Detective Lougy
expressed his sadness with how the media portrays police as a whole. He states that it is all
"misinformation." He encourages people to "go out and research their own facts instead of
listening to the media." The reason for this, Lougy explains, is because the media makes it seem
like police are just out killing people and that is not the case. Lougy emphasized that the media
never talks about the mental trauma and danger that officers face every day. He goes on, "officers
really need to be careful to keep their minds healthy." He gave an account of a murder that
happened back in 2010 at Fairmont Park in Sugarhouse, Utah which involved a woman being
disemboweled through her vagina. Lougy had to stay with that crime scene for 6 hours. He
informed me that officers are required to do 40 hours of training every year that include active
shooter training, first aid training, taser training, baton training, cultural diversity training and
less than lethal force training. All officers are also CIT or Crisis Intervention Team Member

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certified which helps give them empathy and experience on how to deal with people with a
mental illness. In regards to police brutality over race, he asks, "What do we have to gain by
going out and shooting someone? Nothing. What do I have to lose? My job, my pension, my
career." As a result of the riots caused by the Michael Brown shooting 36 cops are dead, he
admits. He begs the question, "where are the protests and dialogue when we are killed during
duty?" Detective Lougy provided many facts including the fact that the majority of officer
involved shooting has dropped 70% and the majority of civilians killed are in fact, Caucasian.
Detective Lougy used a lot of examples and external sources to prove his point. His opinion may
seem biased because he is a police officer but he gave a lot of statistics to back his claim. He is a
detective for the Salt Lake City police department and currently working in the Public Relation
department doing news releases and interviews. Lougy also serves part-time as a teacher in the
Empower program at Salt Lake Community college. This is a program aimed for students aged
14-20 with an interest in law enforcement. He has been a police officer for 19 years spending 4
years in homicide, 3 years as a detective in burglary, 4 years special victims, 3 years motor duty
on patrol, with a few years in other areas. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Business
Administration and an Associate's Degree in Criminal Justice.
This interview is good for my paper because it is another perspective on police brutality today
from a more first person perspective. Detective Lougy gave many examples of statistics and
sources to prove his point, that the media is full of misinformation about the way police handle
their jobs. His main claim that police do not want to kill is clear. He gave me the sources for his
arguments and for that I find him a very credible source. He emphasizes that the problem lies in
citizens failing to comply with officers as creating an opportunity to use force.
Abbey-Lambertz, Kate. Rep. John Conyers Calls For Police Reforms After Cop Who Killed 7Year-Old Walks. The Huffington Post. www.huffintonpost.com. 31 Jan 2015. Web. 1
Feb 2015.
This article, written by Kate Abbey-Lambertz explains that rep. John Conyers pledged to
introduce laws on police accountability after the dismissal of charges against officer Joseph
Weekley, who fatally shot a 7 year old girl. She explains that the girl was killed during a police
raid while she was sleeping. She states that Weekley was the first through the door during the
raid in search of a murder suspect. She explains that Conyer's main point in expressing interest in
new laws is he feels that this tragedy should lead to creating a "community focused policing."
She says that he feels we should start by taking certain steps to reform our criminal justice
system. "The first step," Conyer says, "is to review the matter very closely." He adds that he
plans to continue to work on police accountability and follow through by introducing
legislation.
Kate Abbey-Lambertz is the associate editor for the Huff Post Detroit. This is a credible source
because it was published on huffingtonpost.com, a credible news website, and was written as a
news article. This article contained many facts and was written with no opinion on the part of the
author. She used many direct quotes from her sources. The article is aimed towards educated
individuals interested in reform of the police.

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This article is good for my paper because it includes many quotes from a representative in the
case who wants to urge reform. A major problem I see in the way things have been going lately
with the police, I feel, could be resolved or greatly diminished by a reform in the way police do
their jobs. They should change the way they use lethal action. I definitely agree with Conyer
when he says that the tragedy should bring about change and that this should be done in many
steps. Change cannot be done overnight but I feel that it can be done if we take one step at a time
to reach our goal. The point is not to riot and argue over who is right and wrong, but to make
steps towards justice in a positive way.
In reviewing my sources I found that police brutality is not a question of racism. Both sides need
to be accountable for their actions that led to this conflict. How can we as citizens take a stand
against injustice towards people of all races? This is not something we can do by acting out in
angry, destructive ways. We need to take a stand for change. In learning the right way to be
compliant, we can teach our kids how to properly act towards officers to avoid unnecessary
police brutality. We need to push for reform in the way police do their jobs and increase their
training in high risk situations. Change can only be done when if we truly want it. We have to
rally together as a community to make this happen and one day we will feel a lot safer around
police officers, whether we are a minority or not!