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TomDestry

For those who don't like to click through and read, this was a British cow and British policeman. 'Home Secretary James Cleverley said he "can think of no reasonable need for this action", and has asked for an urgent explanation of the "heavy handed" action.' In the UK, questionable police violence to a cow draws comments from top level politicians.


Cnidarus

In fairness, while our police are faaaar from perfect, they do tend to be subject to a higher level of accountability than in the US. I do think consequences are appropriate for the officer here, especially as community policing is more emphasised in the UK and this undermines that. But there also needs to be some higher level scrutiny because he was also obviously not prepared for this situation even though he was expected to deal with it


Cabana_bananza

Well in the UK there's been a series of policing reform acts that started in the 80s, because the public saw professional malfeasance and corruption as a detriment to society. We've seen the same in American and we shrug our shoulders, "what can we do?"


Cornelius_Wangenheim

That's not true. 40 percent are outraged by it. 40% cheer it on because they think it only happens to "those people". Neither are enough to make political change happen.


Publius82

Once again, it's the 20% that don't bother to involve themselves at all that could make a difference


lurkinglurkerwholurk

… which hides the fact that 40 effing percent have a TERRIBLE opinion that undermines law and order. Yet their opinion are valid.


Festeisthebest-e

What always blows my mind, as a right leaning moderate when it comes to gov authorization, which the right wing would currently call "basically a communist", is how they'll say that minorities are the problem when the majority of prisoners are white. Sure, there's higher incarceration rates for African Americans, but they also tend to live in areas that got screwed when industrial plants and automation kicked off and funded... In the areas they did not live. *Originally I said violence was higher in rural areas as well but it turns out that was because suicide is included in those numbers and gun suicides count towards those numbers.


Accomplished_Fruit17

Obama had started a large series of reforms. Hillary had an entire program for police reform. Trump undid everything Obama did because Trump is evil. Unfortunately, Biden is not much better than your average Republican when it comes to criminal justice reform.


thorzeen

>Trump undid everything Obama did because Trump is evil OR maybe he's does not care for a particular shade of color I suppose 2 things can be true at the same time


PoeT8r

> Unfortunately, Biden is not much better than your average Republican when it comes to criminal justice reform. That hardly seems fair. He was responsible for suppressing Anita Hill and pushing that mercenary jurist onto SCOTUS. And parts of Biden's failed FBI-fellating bills were incorporated into the oh-so-constitutional Patriot Act. On second thought, you have a good point. I'm going to hold my nose when voting, but only because the alternative is so starkly worse.


Accomplished_Fruit17

As I say now, I vote in the primary for change, I vote in the general election to stop Republicans.  We should push for star voting or ranked choice in the Democratic primaries. This could lead to some real change. 


mces97

> We've seen the same in American and we shrug our shoulders, "what can we do?" That's a feature, not a bug. 😕


mces97

One thing I notice with police in England vs America is how they speak to suspects. Especially if they're not listening. In America it's so many curse words, fighting language. In the UK, I never hear cops cursing at suspects. Not saying it doesn't happen, but in UK police videos I've seen they're very polite.


Henghast

I've definitely heard our (UK) swear on occasion under a great deal of duress whilst having to physically restrain a belligerent offender who is fighting back. Even then it's rare in my experience. Its often said when these comparisons come up, but it holds true that it's a social difference. Not just American police having pseudo military fantasy dress up gadgets and toys but that British police are policing by consent of the population. Where this seems to matter most is in the mindset of the police. It's even set out in principle in UK policies - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/policing-by-consent/definition-of-policing-by-consent Set out by Bob Peel hence British bobbies. The key aspects are the repeated 'dependant on public approval', 'maintain respect and approval of the public', 'co-operation of the public', 'preserve public favour'. So on and so forth. By comparison from what we can see through media a lot of policing actions from the States are more like Skyrim guards 'law is law and I'm here to deal with lawbreakers! ' It's all reductionist of course but it is interesting to see the social differences between two countries that are similar in some ways and worlds apart in others.


IAmPrettyUseless

If they did they’d be breaking the law https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN05760/SN05760.pdf


mces97

Would be nice if we had that in America. Because cursing and being aggressive is not de-escalation one bit.


[deleted]

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LegendaryTJC

The US is near the lowest benchmark of policing in the western world. I'm not sure what that comparison is meant to suggest but I think our police are held to a very high account and we shouldn't do them the disservice of comparing them in this way. They are not nearly the same.


JSteigs

Luckily it was a cow, if it were a horse Redditers would have come from no where and beat it afterwards:


_uckt_

We have no concept of fruit of the poison tree in the UK, so if you're illegally searched, the officer will face minor disciplinary action and anything they found is still admissible. We still have all the same thin blue line issues, on the plus side, the police have been underfunded for so long that you rarely need to interact with them. When you have to wait 5+ hours for an ambulance, it's hardly surprising that you never see a cop.


ThrowawayusGenerica

>We still have all the same thin blue line issues Clearly not, considering an encounter with British police doesn't have you wondering if it's going to end with you bleeding out on the floor.


Cnidarus

We do not have the same issues at all, please trust me as someone that has had extensive interaction with both. Also, fruit of the poisonous tree really doesn't come into play anywhere near as much as the typical copaganda shows like to pretend, the exceptions are fairly broad


Bloodmind

One thing common among British and U.S. police is that we expect them both to handle any miscellaneous issues that pop up in the community, regardless of how untrained for it they are. Police are the default responders when there’s no one else to call.


RDcsmd

In America that video would show the cop capping the cow and 3 more cops coming up and celebrating with him


bhongryp

The press release would state it was a violent black cow known for it's disrespect of authority, and the officer was in "fear for his life".


Abba_Fiskbullar

And the cow had "No outstanding warrants at this time".


Dieter_Knutsen

"Cow with no active warrants comes into contact with officer's bullets in home pasture."


d3k3d

Don't forget to mention the cow was convicted of possession of marijuana paraphernalia 15 years prior when in cowllege.


blacksideblue

To be fair, cows are more dangerous than sharks.


oshaCaller

I was helping a guy feed his cows and one of them bit his truck and took some paint off. He wrote down it's tag number and told me it would be in his freezer soon.


lastskudbook

Ah! would you take on a cow if your electric boat was sinking conundrum.


GozerDGozerian

Thank god that they mostly stay out of the oceans!


creepyeyes

Would you rather be in a cow pasture or in a tank full of sharks?


TurnkeyLurker

And then the SWAT team shows up with a chainsaw and a flamethrower, and they have themselves a BBQ right there in the street. Then they arrest the farmer, charge him with creating a public nuisance and littering.


solarpropietor

I think flame thrower is a little much.  But I can definitely see them bringing a grill.


alchemist5

Don't forget posing for selfies afterwards!


SpleenBender

>cop capping the cow That bovine punk was clearly resisting arrest, though.


VivaFate

Newspapers running stories about how the cow was "no angel" and fled its paddock before.


Swesteel

It was standing there, maliciously. Had to put her down.


TJNel

Would look like this TBH: https://youtu.be/MX7Yo0tWDgk?si=e6ELKVUk1ATXMNsP


stackjr

I was hoping it would be that scene and you delivered!


MarxistMan13

47 shots fired from 3 different officers all cowering behind their vehicles. Followed by high-fives.


Wootery

3 of which struck the cow.


MarxistMan13

And 4 of which struck innocent bystanders.


Wootery

All of whom are now facing charges of interfering with police business.


RainbowCrane

True story: a deer was injured by a car near my brother’s workplace, causing an accident that backed up traffic. The police showed up and gave a friend the ok to kill the crippled deer, because it was badly injured. Friend whips out his hunting knife and slits the deer’s throat, then looks up and notices the school bus full of middle schoolers that are stuck in traffic watching him kill Bambi… the police caught some flack for terrorizing the kids


blacksideblue

> cop capping the cow When you kill a cow with porcelain its 'knickknack paddy whack' but when its a gun it becomes bovinacide...


rascalking9

Reddit: How can we wedge the US into a story about the UK?


DeTiro

[I mean, we'd know why the cops ran over the cow if it happened in the US](https://youtu.be/apq46lA0uSM?si=1LMlyhHJwSv5VraJ&t=133)


russian47

I noticed a baby deer laying in front a house a couple down from me. Which wasn't weird many deer roamed around the neighborhood. Then I noticed a cop stopped by it later. Then there was a gun shot and the baby deer and the cop were gone.


-SaC

Holy fuck, I didn't even know deer had guns!


PM_ME_SAD_STUFF_PLZ

Yeah..."cap" https://youtu.be/pIfiRKFRTVI https://youtu.be/dxSbyZW15tU https://youtu.be/u2isf4iHil4 We just call in A/C or a local cowboy.


SpleenBender

>questionable police violence to a cow draws comments from top level politicians. It would be a great if we had this kind of accountability across the pond.


JubalHarshaw23

In the US, Questionable Police violence on a person draws praise, and career advancement from top level politicians. Especially if the cameras were "Inadvertently" turned off.


DrSmirnoffe

Hitting it ONCE with the car is a dick move. Twice is psycho behaviour.


idbar

How do you know the cow was British? The cop may have thought it was an illegal immigrant. Maybe the cow refused to comply? Also, do they have acorns in the UK? So many questions!


firthy

TBF Cleverly is a fucking clown, whose political career will be in the shitter on 5th July. It’s just pandering.


Xarxsis

As much of a clown as he is, and as good as seeing him go will be, this is an entirely appropriate response to the situation.


KingSpork

In the US, it would be “that police officer feared for his life around that dangerous animal, which had a history of agression. Look how much restraint he exercised by not firing 15 shots. So typical for you liberal scum to put the life of a cow above that of an officer.”


East-Worker4190

Just think what he'd do to escaped swans.


Ihadanapostrophe

It's just the one swan, actually.


CalzonePillow

I’m trying to figure out how a cow had a car to begin with.


KaiserMazoku

Not very often you see a pig attack a cow.


poopmaster747

Some animals are more equal than others.


The_Band_Geek

It's criminal more people did not get this reference.


CynicalPomeranian

It was a very unpopular chapter of Animal Farm. 


AtomicBlastCandy

That’s some pig!


Able_Buffalo

That'll do, pig. That'll do.


AtomicBlastCandy

This little piggie went to the market


Able_Buffalo

**I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig**. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it.


MonkeyNugetz

Zuckerman’s Famous Pig.


MySilverBurrito

Average protect and serve mod


JRE_4815162342

What a jerk to be so cruel. Glad the cow is recovering.


KingJonathan

“We just got word he’s put six bullets into a prized cow’s head. Poor thing’s lucky to still be alive.


pendragon2290

I can't not remember the scene from me myself and Irene while reading this


KingJonathan

Top three movie all time for me. Others are Fargo and O Brother, Where Art Thou?


DarkMuret

Oh George, not the livestock...


thisismydayjob_

Friend, some of your folding money's come unstowed


KingJonathan

Cows! I hate cows worse than coppers!


thisismadeofwood

You never watched Falling Down? Movie about a guy having a less than ideal day.


KingJonathan

Will download and watch. Thank you.


walterpeck1

The real test of watching that movie is if you end up thinking he's a good guy, bad guy or something else once the credits roll.


dpb79

What's wrong with the road?


Jimbohamilton

My buddy thought all three films were directed by the same brothers.


HeadLocksmith5478

Same but my other two are Kingpin and the burbs.


rdxxx

cop dumber than the animal he was chasing, i dont think 'hit it repeatedly with a car' would ever be on my 'how to catch a cow' list


jld2k6

God damn, the cows in the UK have more protection from the police than people in the US


Proper-Application69

“The cow turned towards me in a shooting stance.”


The_Blue_Rooster

I had thought about a whole comment I was gonna write about how dumb it is to hit a cow even if you just want to kill a cow. Then I read the article and watched the video, and like it wasn't even a fucking cow, it was a calf, if you gave me an hour I reckon I could find you at least two teenagers more than capable of wrangling that little guy.


KoolAidRefuser

"Show me your fucking hands!"


CMG30

Dude pit manoeuvred a cow.


OptiKnob

We're police... we can do anything... watch this...


Sete_Sois

watch this drive...


Scribe625

I'm glad cops in rural areas aren't this stupid and don't fear an escaped calf. They just call the owner to come get it or ask for help from a nearby farmer to coral it until the owner can be found and they block traffic until it can be relocated. What idiot thinks running your car into a cow is going to solve the problem?


lohonomo

Yeah, I've lived in rural areas and seen many cows running along the side of the road being chased by farmers lol. There was no worry for public safety, cows are not aggressive.


KickpuncherLex

https://www.discovery.com/nature/cows-kill-more-people-than-sharks


dynamically_drunk

This is such a silly comparison. EVERYTHING kills more people than sharks. Sharks kill like 15 people a year worldwide. 99% of anything on earth you can think of kills more people than sharks.


Irorak

To be fair, so do coconuts


Nick30075

The chase was udder chaos.


senfood

If I had a nickel for every time a cop hit a cow with their car I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.


CheeseMints

If only they installed that CowCatcher to the front of his patrol car that he requisitioned months ago he wouldn't have had to hit it twice.


Big_Foots_Foot

Holy shit, this reminds me of that movie Me, Myself and Irene!


[deleted]

First thing I thought of too.


JustZonesing

for grins... [https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/comments/v66vw1/helicopter\_footage\_of\_a\_loose\_cow\_being\_wrangled/](https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/comments/v66vw1/helicopter_footage_of_a_loose_cow_being_wrangled/)


cinderparty

Ok, hilarious they got helicopter footage…but this is the right way to wrangle a cow. Cowboys with lassos.


poopmaster747

Just unbelievably cruel and stupid, fucking cops need to learn how to actually be members of society. What a disgrace, hope the cow has a full recovery.


colinmacg

It's a cow - a loud "hup" and a tap with a stick would have been enough


fadedwallpaint

That poor cow. It must be udderly devastated.


thedeadthatyetlive

Hey, I got this investigation under wrap for you--dude hit a cow, twice, and parked on it.


Magister5

Would this be a mooving violation?


masspromo

They should assign him to the just stop oil protests


Defective_Falafel

Any luck catching them cows then?


TouchMyGwen

To be fair I heard that the cow had links to Al-Cow-eda


catch2220

Cows are so docile and dumb there’s no public safety issue. Just find the farmer.


StuartGotz

If I were that cow, I'd be mad.


zino332

In america it’s customary for your local police to shoot your dog if they visit your home.


reddittheguy

This sounds like a bit from Hot Fuzz.


Anishinaapunk

No surprise the cow is black.


Mister_Sith

People aren't reading the article and just the headline. This happened in the UK. The police do not carry guns. Jokes about cops killing the cow are completely lost here. We actually hold our police to account (most of the time).


Gone_For_Lunch

People never read the article.


FlyingDiscsandJams

This guy shoots dogs for no reason, only he's allowed to do that.


Mister_Sith

Er, this is the UK and our police are nowhere near as gun happy as the police in America. The only dogs who end up with an armed response being sent out are dogs that have attacked people and cannot be controlled.


FlyingDiscsandJams

My bad. Must be nice to have a police force that won't murder the family dog if you ask them for help.


HateradeVintner

British cops. No guns.


th3ironman55

That’s a myth that’s gotta die. British cops do carry guns and are in fact in a separate unit (which I admit is kinda smart and interesting at the same time) called AFO or Authorized Firearm Officers. They train heavily and are called upon by regular officers who carry the bare minimum


Atomic-Bell

The bare minimum being a taser. Armed police do not show up just because they were called in unless there is report of a gun or knife wielding maniac. We have just 4% of officers allowed to carry guns and they don't roam the streets except in exceptional circumstances (e.g the police guarding Parliamentary buildings). In 2023, guns were only discharged 10 times across all forces, up from 4 discharges the previous year. Its not a myth, its true


Shelisheli1

I’m so glad the cow is alive. What the actual fuck was that cop thinking?


SAlolzorz

That's one way to get around the whole "not carrying guns" thing


Sete_Sois

excessive really, aren't there real ranchers/cowboys who can wrangle the cow back to the farm?


Kersenn

What is there to investigate... oh wait I forgot with cops that means they're gonna wait until the next fucked up event takes our focus off and then he'll get back to his position like nothing happened


SlinkyTail

all I can picture is the scene from me, myself and irene.


rickrt1337

We need something to drive the cow away from the city! Say no more fam;


Admirable_Bad_5649

Love the stark difference’s between bad cop stories in the uk vs us. Earlier i read a story about a woman wrongfully convicted for 43 years for the murder of her daughter. Except it wasn’t her it was a cop and the police department then intimidated her into taking a plea deal. The cop who murdered the girl even took her credit card and used it after he killed her onto of having souvenirs from her house and I’m sure many other victims. 100% other cops on the force knew and helped cover it up. And they all got away with it.


droplivefred

Cop is probably used to pocketing a portion of things they confiscate like cash, drugs, or other stuff and was just hoping the cow would die and he could get a cut of steak to pocket and take home before it gets inventoried into the confiscation room.


Dejugga

Cow should've used slow and careful moooovements.


an_agreeing_dothraki

One P. I. Staker remarked that this is the second bad experience he's had with the police handling his animals after one of his swans escaped years ago.


BardInChains

The fact that they refer to daily policing as the "front lines" says a lot about the attitude police have towards the people they (nominally) protect.


HowObvious

Its not really an unusual description in the UK for emergency services, the same gets used to describe nurses/doctors and paramedics. "Frontline workers" just meaning the ones directly interacting with the general public.


helendestroy

in fairness, frontline refers to anything dealing with the public. i work in the nhs, and frontline is used there too.


Kogling

Might want to look up what a front line manager is and realise the term has nothing to do with what you're trying to imply or twist to imply.


zeusoid

More a reflection of how much back office policing has built up in the UK, most police front line action now requires about the same or more time in back office admin. So the short hand phrasing of frontline policing arises


nomorechoco

fuck this person. I love cows:(


AlienOverlordMinion

Damn. He definitely had a beef.


Key-Airline-2578

Give the officer a ticket for a moooooving violation.


Krinks1

He was feeling udderly threatened.


ThrowbackPie

"feared for community safety" from...a cow?


jasonmaska

I always find is puzzling when they say they need to investigate something that’s very clearly shown on video. I’m sure it’s an investigation on how they can give him the lowest punishment possible.


Bloodviper1

While the video shows what action was taken, it doesn't provide the why. They'll have to speak with the officer and they'll have to explain their thought process (or lack of). Contrary to the Home Secretary, there are reasons why this action could be necessary but they're rather extreme.


merv_havoc

It’s police speak for “we need time to come up with a BS excuse”


Fidulsk-Oom-Bard

Did his vehicle have a bull bar?


gooooooogolioooo

https://youtu.be/qH28EnEsS4M?si=iqMSEWBbo3tW6-Mz


Eyejohn5

Naw it's proximity. At least that's my impression from observing mother and her relatives.


CheezTips

Damn, the cow is still alive!