LEE DRESSELHAUS / L’Observateur / October 27, 1999

So..Once again, let’s take a trip to Lawyer Land, the Land Of EternalLawsuits, and frolic barefoot in the nest of weeds that grows there. I seethat the latest folks to consider themselves victims of this cold, cruel world is the family of one of the Los Angeles bank robbers who were killed by the mean ol’ police.

You remember the incident. Two of our finest citizens covered themselvesin bullet proof body armor, armed themselves with fully automatic AK-47 assault rifles and various other weapons, thousands of rounds of ammunition, ski masks and all the other stuff bank robbers wear and carry. They then figured that, hey, since were all dressed up like thisanyway, let’s rob a bank! They then proceeded to do so, storming into a bank and robbing it at gunpoint.

Unfortunately for them and, as it turned out, many other people, they were caught at the scene by LAPD. This is where they became very differentfrom most bank robbers. Most bank robbers surrender when cornered bypolice, preferring to take their chance in court. It’s a crapshoot from thatpoint on, and they know it. They’ll play the odds because they just mightget off after all. Can you say, “technicality”? But, not these guys.They decided to shoot it out, and shoot it out they did. With murderousintent. They sprayed hundreds of rounds at the responding officers,wounding 11 of them. It’s a funny thing about bullets, though. If they don’thit their intended target they just keep on going until something gets in their way. Even if it’s you or, more importantly, me. Numerous civilianswho had nothing to do with any of this were shot. The gunmen wereprotected by the body armor they were wearing so the police couldn’t get a stopping shot on them. They coldly stood and sprayed bullets, not knowingor caring where they went. One was eventually killed by a neck shot as hewalked down a street shooting recklessly at anything that moved. Theother tried to hijack a civilian vehicle and, when that didn’t work, he decided to see it through and took cover and shot it out with the police some more. He was eventually shot and wounded and he bled to death thereat the scene.

And now his family is suing the LAPD, claiming they were deliberately indifferent to the fact that he lay there bleeding and that they didn’t provide medical assistance in a timely manner. They claim he would havelived if the officers had made an effort to save him. They want money. Andnow, get this. I agree with them. And I hope they win the suit. And I hopethe jury pays them a grand total of one dollar. Because nothing else willever convey the message that, yes, the police should have provided timely medical aid to the wounded man. But, guess what, Slappy? In this case, WEDON’T CARE! Your lamented late relative was a cold blooded psycho who sure didn’t care if our families were in the area when he started spraying bullets. And bullets have no discretion about whose body they shatter. Justask the people who were just minding their own business and got shot anyway. OK, you’re right, if aid had been given, he might have lived. Here’syour dollar, stupid. Shut up and go away.Another point is this. The guy just shot 11 policemen. You expectimmediate aid from the other policemen at the scene? Get over it. Like itor not, police are human, and it was probably just a bit hard to swallow the fact that they were supposed to help this idiot at the time who had just shot nearly a dozen of their own. Should they have stopped thebleeding, or gotten an ambulance to him right away? Sure. On the DisneyPlanet, but in the real world things just aren’t that simple. In fact, I thinkthey should be commended for not jumping up and down on him like a cheap trampoline or using him like one of those foot pumps for blow-up air mattresses to bleed him out faster. They showed tremendous restraint andprofessionalism once he was in handcuffs. Not to mention a tremendousawareness of all the TV cameras at the scene, but that’s another story.

The lawyer retained by the family of the tragically dead psycho is a real winner, too. According to the 60 Minutes piece on the incident he’s beensuspended twice from Lawyer Land for unethical activities. Imagine. Exilefrom Lawyer Land. That’s about as hard to do as being kicked out of theRock And Roll Hall Of Fame, isn’t it? I mean, considering some of the company you keep, you would really have to screw up to achieve that questionable goal.

Anyway, this is just another of the most recent of ridiculous lawsuits in which nobody can accept responsibility. What, take responsibility? Don’tbe absurd. If you fail, or lose, blame someone else and sue them. It’s the American way.

Copyright © 1998, Wick Communications, Inc.

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