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Comment by h4nkoslo | Hacker News Reader

This is incredibly common, much more so than shooting someone or even a serious beating. The logic is:

- I just slapped the phone out of their hand / threw them against the pavement / committed some other sort of assault, usually because they somehow affronted my honor (eg, by asking what law they were breaking).

- If I just walk away, it's clear that that was unjustified.

- So I fabricate a resisting arrest / obstructing an investigation / disturbing the peace / assault on an officer claim for them to fight, so it devolves into he said / she said, where I win by virtue of my reputation as a cop & the lack of AV evidence.

That's what the "we have to cover our ass" discussion is about.

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(Incidentally, this is why threatening lawsuits is always counterproductive. Sue them or don't, later, but if you're exclaiming about how you'll see them in court they're almost certain to trump up some charges on you to stack the deck.)

This might sound counterintuitive but let's say the cop admitted to some mistake? Say, slapping a cellphone out of the hand of some random person. What's the outcome? Punishment? More education?

Basically I'm wondering what is so bad for the cop afterward that they would rather try to cover up a simple mistake?

Cops have near impenetrable immunity (qualified immunity), so there's little legal harm to them in walking away when they're wrong, unless they did something grossly illegal and it's on camera somewhere. I think it's human nature - they're in a position of power, their victim must comply with all their requests and any resistance is punishable severely, so they turn into bullies.

The most proximate risk is that your colleagues will no longer trust you to "cover their asses". That usually results in you being driven out of the department or worse.

You're usually not talking about a "mistake" (although that happens too, eg, cops arresting someone after accidentally hitting them in a crosswalk), you're talking about an intentional on-street retaliation for affronting their honor.

Best case scenario, civil liability for the police department. Which makes the employee (police officer) and his chain of command appear as a "problem" within the police department. These guys are protecting their reputations and their careers. They are also trying to protect their department. Shameful.

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