Kayvan Sabeghi, 32, is a regular American guy. He is the co-owner of a brewery. He served in Iraq, and Afghanistan. He supports the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations. In fact, he’d participated in one earlier that evening, and then went out to dinner with a friend. After that, he
To a movement which has not threatened anyone's person or property, this is an unreasonable response
walked home – or tried to. Near his flat – actually within eyesight – a line of police were blocking the way. He tried to talk to the police calmly and rationally and they, in turn, beat the living crap out of him with their nightsticks, ruptured his spleen, handcuffed him and threw into a paddy wagon. They drove him to a jail instead of a hospital and threw him in a cell. As he vomited, they mocked him. Eventually, 18 hours after his arrest (for resisting arrest), they got him to a hospital.
What is the worst part of this? Not that he was a veteran. Sure, it’s a strange juxtaposition, a Morissette Irony that the man should come through Iraq and Afghanistan unscathed to be beaten within an inch (no exaggeration when you are dealing with the rupture of organs) of his life by his hometown cops. But I would be equally angry with the Oakland PD if they’d beaten a kindly old lady with grandchildren, a union hard-hat, a stoned street musician or a random passer by.
Not even the racism, although I’m pretty sure that played a part. His last name being Sabeghi, I’m guessing he is of some sort of Middle Eastern origin. Cops notice stuff like that.
Was it the total irrationality and pig-headedness of it all? Really, couldn’t they just let the guy cross the line to get to his house. Police-Community relations improved, crowd count lessened by one, tensions reduced, everybody wins. But cops aren’t paid to think. They are paid to stand in a line, like a wall. Well, that’s pretty bad, but I don’t think it was the worst.
Was it the way the cops mocked someone who was obviously in need of medical attention, writhing on the floor of his jail cell and vomiting all over their floor? Despicable human behavior indeed, and if the police had any conscience at all this would haunt them for the rest of their days, but not yet the worst.
The worst thing about this case was that this was the second such incident in about a week. After Scott Olsen got whacked in the face with a tear gas canister, there was some outrage, but apparently not enough.
In a civilized world, the mayor and the police chief would have resigned immediately, officers involved would have been suspended and the investigation would be real. But, everybody knows there will be no real investigation, the officers will soon be reinstated and there was no negative impact at all on the mayor of chief of police.
So, it happened again. If nothing is done to correct this situation, it will happen again and again, until the police actually DO kill somebody.
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