Virginia Considers Keeping Police Officer Names Secret

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Virginia Considers Keeping Police Officer Names Secret

By alanna durkin richer, associated press

RICHMOND, Va. — Feb 18, 2016, 5:17 PM ET

Should the government be allowed to keep the names of police officers secret from the news media and public?

A bill moving forward in Virginia would do that, and it's drawing sharp criticism from open records advocates who say the names are an important tool in keeping watch over whether police departments are hiring problem officers with taxpayer money. Supporters say handing over the lists of names would put officers and deputies in danger at a time of what they describe as growing contempt toward law enforcement.

"It used to be that there was a healthy respect for law enforcement," said Republican Sen. John Cosgrove, the bill's sponsor. "Now they've become targets of opportunity."

While officers have been threatened, particularly in high-profile cases, opponents call the bill an extreme reaction to an unlikely scenario.

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/virginia-considers-keeping-police-officer-names-secret-37038421

---

[center]

Senator John Cosgrove [/center]

[jtuck004]

1. Well, it's not like there's no precedent.

Stasi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the secret police of East Germany. For its other common meaning, see Stasi Commission.
...
The Ministry for State Security (German: Ministerium für Staatssicherheit, MfS), commonly known as the Stasi (IPA: [ˈʃtaːziː]) (abbreviation German: Staatssicherheit, literally State Security), also State Security Service (German Staatssicherheitsdienst, SSD), was the official state security service of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), or Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR), colloquially known as East Germany. It has been described as one of the most effective and repressive intelligence and secret police agencies to have ever existed.[2][3][4][5][6][7] The Stasi was headquartered in East Berlin, with an extensive complex in Berlin-Lichtenberg and several smaller facilities throughout the city. The Stasi motto was "Schild und Schwert der Partei" (Shield and Sword of the Party), referring to the ruling Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED).
...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stasi

[Chakab]

2. I find it fucking bizarre that the ethos of their party is supposed to revolve around suspicion

of government authority; however, they seem to think that every person in law enforcement, or the military for that matter, is exempted from suspicion and all scrutiny by virtue of the authority imbued in them by the state.

[scscholar]

3. Nothing could ever go wrong with a "secret police"

[sarge43]

4. Nothing more 'respectable' than secret police. n/t

[CanonRay]

5. Ahh...the Secret Police

Good idea!

[Zorra]

14. +1

[bluestateguy]

6. Bill is outrageous

If the police aren't doing anything wrong, they should have nothing to fear with their names being public.

[JimDandy]

7. What a really bad idea! n/t

[13Dogs]

8. On the Road to Totalitarianism

Talk about misguided ideas. Hasn't this guy ever had a history class. What a coward, what a fool.

[bemildred]

9. Gosh, "Secret Police". nt

[atreides1]

10. "It used to be that there was a healthy respect for law enforcement,"

Bull, it was fear...and they were the ones targeting people!!!

[atreides1]

11. John Cosgrove, an ALEC clone and a Koch sucker!!!

Cosgrove is a Virginia State Leader for the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which writes conservative model bills for state legislators to introduce.

[Blue_Tires]

12. +1

No way this makes it to the Governor's desk...

[Faux pas]

13. They're supposed to be

public servants answerable to the public they serve, duh.