Police officers aren’t perfect. They can be evil just like the rest of us, and we’ve seen our share of evil cops lately.
But Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri is giving us hope. A month ago, three teenagers in Florida drowned after crashing a stolen vehicle into a cemetery pond while being chased by the police.
After news of the tragic accident spread online, people started sharing an edited version of the police dashcam video, which briefly shows the scene and includes bits of audio. One deputy comments in the video that he thinks he hears screaming coming from the car, and another deputy quickly responds with, “They are done. They are sig-7 dude.”
Basically, the edited version of the video made the officers look heartless. TV stations across the country jumped on the story, bloggers wrote misleading articles and celebrities even joined the madness.
Comedian D.L. Hughley posted the story on his Facebook page: “Police caught on tape watching girls die. They didn’t even try to help. Just watched. Sickening,” he wrote. The post had more than 7,000 shares.
Now, one month later, Sheriff Gualtieri is setting the record straight. He told reporters that the officers did try to save the girls, and the extended dashcam video proves it.
Watch him destroy the media in the powerful video below. The most impressive part about his speech is how he refrained from childish name-calling. The way he defends his officers is admirable.
Screengrab via: Youtube
