Closing arguments are taking place today in the trial of
George Zimmerman, a Florida man accused of killing Trayvon Martin. A jury soon
will decide Zimmerman’s guilt or innocence. The racially charged case has
brought up a lot of emotions across the nation, and some speculate the verdict
could cause civil unrest.
Kansas City is largely a community of good, law-abiding
people, and we are confident people will react to the verdict as responsible
citizens and respect the criminal justice process, just as we do. However, you
can absolutely agree or disagree with whatever the jury decides and make your
thoughts known. The U.S. Constitution guarantees all citizens the right to
voice their opinion and peaceably assemble, and we will support everyone’s
right to do so. But disagreement with any verdict in the judicial process does
not give anyone the right to ignore the law and compromise the safety of others
or harm their property.
I ask all members of the community to respect each other.
Respect one’s right to voice an opinion, but also respect another’s right to be
safe. I also ask everyone to work together to quell any disturbances that may
arise. I know the Zimmerman case is an emotional topic, but we can’t let
emotions bring discredit to Kansas City. Everyone is responsible for keeping
their behavior in check, and if you see someone who isn't, try to help them
redirect their feelings in an appropriate way. If that doesn’t work, call us.
We look forward to working with our supportive community
during this time and every other day. You can be confident police are prepared
for whatever might happen. We have trained for critical incidents for my entire
28-year career here at KCPD. Every officer receives critical incident response
training in the Police Academy, and that training is updated and re-emphasized
periodically. We also have officers who specialize in responding to these
incidents. We always have the ability to re-allocate resources to meet any
needs the community presents to us. Little that we do in response to these
incidents is reactionary. Rather, we proactively plan for and train for all
kinds of situations, including civil unrest.
But police are just a small part of what it takes to keep
our city peaceful. We need everyone’s help to keep tensions down when emotions
run high. Not only could this prevent civil unrest when a verdict comes down in
the Zimmerman case, it also could prevent the majority of our shootings and
homicides. The police are ready to appropriately respond to whatever comes our
way, and I am confident the people of Kansas City are, as well.
Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org
