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Some Cops Lie and That’s Why We Can’t Just ‘Stick to Sports’
Toronto Raptors President Masai Ujiri deserved better from law enforcement
An underplayed aspect of police brutality is the largely ignored fact that some cops lie. It’s not just the systemic violence, but the casual and pervasive dishonesty behind the badge that further degrades the victims. Timothy Loehmann killed 12 year-old Tamir Rice in a Cleveland park two seconds after pulling up on him, then lied and said he had warned Rice three times before pulling the trigger. Michael Slager killed Walter Scott in North Charleston, South Carolina, and then lied and said Scott had stolen his taser. In both cases, and many others, the lies were exposed by video evidence that proved the opposite.
And now we know that cops lied on Masai Ujiri, president of the Toronto Raptors, about an incident that marred what should have been one of the best moments of his life. The Raptors are the reigning NBA champions, having dethroned the Golden State Warriors on their home court last June. But Ujiri had a harder time getting onto the Oracle Center court to celebrate with his squad than they had dusting off the Dubs in six. As Ujiri, who was wearing a credential that permitted him to be pretty much anywhere in the arena, walked toward the court, he was stopped, cursed at, and shoved —…
