Justice Failed.
On the way out to Ice Cream at the local Dairy Queen last night, a drunk driver decided to careen through my driveway at about 15 mph, hit my garbage can, almost hit another car, almost hit Renee, and then moseyed on off at about 10mph down the street as if nothing had happened.
So I went after him. On foot. In sandals. Wearing socks. What else was I going to do?
After following him on foot a few blocks, I caught up with him and told him to pull over; He decided to swerve over and attempt to hit me with his truck instead. After slowing down and jumping out of the way, I fell back a bit, doing my best to tail him while making him think he had lost me in case he was not as drunk as I suspected.. so after going about 4 blocks total, he parked the truck.
The guy was falling down drunk, smelled of the hard stuff, was clearly over the legal BAL. He lied to me when I asked if he was drunk to test if he would, mumbling "no" as he clutched the side of the truck he was attempting to get out of, and it was at that point I should have totally kicked his fucking ass.
But instead I didn't touch him, and he stumbled up the stairs leading into the house he parked in front of, letting himself in by collapsing into the door that so helpfully opened for him before he picked himself up enough to close it weakly behind him.
I had already called the police by then, but they took there sweet time and got there too late. No arrests where made, and they did not have the power to drag the worthless sack of sh*t away because he was "renting a room" from the other renters who occupied the place, or so they claimed after first attempting to tell me what to tell the police before the police actually showed up. I know they lied. I know the guy was drunk, and I smelled it on him. He could have killed somebody, and it would not have been the first time a drunk killed in my life. Either way, Constitutional rights, etc.
I'm really angry about this. He was driving drunk, did - admittedly little - damage to property, almost killed somebody on accident, attempted to kill me, fled both attempted murder scenes, had people lie to the cops, and had his friends try to bribe me. And that is just the stuff I know about.. yet the cops refused to do everything, citing that they are scared of being thought of as too harsh. I am very angry. That is not justice. That is not what the police are supposed to do. They are there to haul the drunk driver off to a cell in order to protect people from him, not tell people they don't want to be seen as protectors of the weak or innocent. Whatever happened to "Protect and Serve"?
I did what I could. I followed the law like a good citizen. Yet justice failed, and yet another drunk driver got away with it. I'm really saddened and angry about that. I also wish I knew what I should have done to make sure justice prevailed, I really would have done it.
To make it worse, after getting in the car to continue the original goal of ice cream and hot fudge, we got to the Diary Queen to find that I had missed a guy with a gun doing something he should not have at the DQ itself. So if I had not called the cops, and just just kicked the drunks ass instead of wasting time, I probably could have gotten to the DQ in time to helpe somebody not get killed or hurt at the DQ. By the time I got there, the cops where everywhere looking for glory after the fact, and the DQ was shut down.
I'm really confused about the nature of justice. A part of me want to get a concealed carry permit, just so I can be armed 24/7 in case some stupid drunk driver wants to get a bullet in the brain pan in return for his stupidity, or some perp attempts to rob a 16 year old geek behind a DQ counter. Is justice Jail Time? Death? An ass kicking? And how are these different from revenge?
I'm just really angry, and I cant help but feel that by "doing the right thing" I really failed to do the right thing, just because I tried to help. What are your thoughts?
So I went after him. On foot. In sandals. Wearing socks. What else was I going to do?
After following him on foot a few blocks, I caught up with him and told him to pull over; He decided to swerve over and attempt to hit me with his truck instead. After slowing down and jumping out of the way, I fell back a bit, doing my best to tail him while making him think he had lost me in case he was not as drunk as I suspected.. so after going about 4 blocks total, he parked the truck.
The guy was falling down drunk, smelled of the hard stuff, was clearly over the legal BAL. He lied to me when I asked if he was drunk to test if he would, mumbling "no" as he clutched the side of the truck he was attempting to get out of, and it was at that point I should have totally kicked his fucking ass.
But instead I didn't touch him, and he stumbled up the stairs leading into the house he parked in front of, letting himself in by collapsing into the door that so helpfully opened for him before he picked himself up enough to close it weakly behind him.
I had already called the police by then, but they took there sweet time and got there too late. No arrests where made, and they did not have the power to drag the worthless sack of sh*t away because he was "renting a room" from the other renters who occupied the place, or so they claimed after first attempting to tell me what to tell the police before the police actually showed up. I know they lied. I know the guy was drunk, and I smelled it on him. He could have killed somebody, and it would not have been the first time a drunk killed in my life. Either way, Constitutional rights, etc.
I'm really angry about this. He was driving drunk, did - admittedly little - damage to property, almost killed somebody on accident, attempted to kill me, fled both attempted murder scenes, had people lie to the cops, and had his friends try to bribe me. And that is just the stuff I know about.. yet the cops refused to do everything, citing that they are scared of being thought of as too harsh. I am very angry. That is not justice. That is not what the police are supposed to do. They are there to haul the drunk driver off to a cell in order to protect people from him, not tell people they don't want to be seen as protectors of the weak or innocent. Whatever happened to "Protect and Serve"?
I did what I could. I followed the law like a good citizen. Yet justice failed, and yet another drunk driver got away with it. I'm really saddened and angry about that. I also wish I knew what I should have done to make sure justice prevailed, I really would have done it.
To make it worse, after getting in the car to continue the original goal of ice cream and hot fudge, we got to the Diary Queen to find that I had missed a guy with a gun doing something he should not have at the DQ itself. So if I had not called the cops, and just just kicked the drunks ass instead of wasting time, I probably could have gotten to the DQ in time to helpe somebody not get killed or hurt at the DQ. By the time I got there, the cops where everywhere looking for glory after the fact, and the DQ was shut down.
I'm really confused about the nature of justice. A part of me want to get a concealed carry permit, just so I can be armed 24/7 in case some stupid drunk driver wants to get a bullet in the brain pan in return for his stupidity, or some perp attempts to rob a 16 year old geek behind a DQ counter. Is justice Jail Time? Death? An ass kicking? And how are these different from revenge?
I'm just really angry, and I cant help but feel that by "doing the right thing" I really failed to do the right thing, just because I tried to help. What are your thoughts?