According to the 3rd Quarter Report of The National Police Misconduct Statistics and Reporting Project, police officers were alleged perpetrators of sexual assault at a rate of 79 per 100,000 law enforcement personal. The rate for the general public is 28.7 per 100,000 general public. The fact that rapists seem to be concentrated among a group of armed individuals who have the purported authority to detain and arrest other individuals should be more than a little alarming for even the most prolific police bootlicker. In just the last month, several stories of officers committing
disgusting crimes have been in the news.

A former Fredericktown, Missouri police captain and Boy Scout leader, Kenneth D. Tomlinson II, was sentenced to three consecutive life terms plus 22 years for sexual contact with two boys, beginning when they were 11 and 13 years old. Evidence presented at sentencing included videos from Tomlinson’s computer, including one taken in the shower at a Scout camp. Tomlinson’s attorney asked for a much lighter sentence of 20 years, citing Tomlinson’s many years as a police officer as one of the reasons that he should receive a shorter sentence.

A Houston Police Officer, Abraham Joseph, has been charged with an aggravated sexual assault that allegedly occurred while he was on duty. Officer Joseph has been accused of handcuffing a woman and then raping her on the trunk of his patrol car. He has now been implicated in five other sexual assault cases.

A Wisconsin state patrolman has been charged with sexual assault of a child for alleged assaults on a foster child in his care. The assaults allegedly began when she was 15 and continued until she was removed from the home this year. She is now 18.

How is a woman supposed to protect herself from a “predator with a badge”? The weapon of choice for many of the above officers was their purported authority. When the perpetrator can threaten you with time in a cage, how likely are you to stand up for yourself? When the perpetrator is armed with a sidearm, pepper spray, a Taser and handcuffs, how is even the toughest person supposed to fight off unwanted advances?

Unfortunately, there may be few things you can do to protect yourself from a rapist with a badge. Even if you successfully resist an attack, you still may end up doing time for “resisting arrest” or assaulting a police officer. You may still be victimized. But, there is one weapon you have at our disposal to help prevent yourself from becoming a victim of a badged rapist; the video camera. Use it. Every time you interact with a police officer, you should record that interaction. If they want to know why you are recording them, tell them the truth, “I fear for my safety. You could be a rapist.”