Does it matter?
Biden won so as You SEE no more Riots:-)
Of course they can...but at what cost?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_Police_riot
The New York City Police Riot of 1857, known at the time as the Great Police Riot, was a conflict which occurred in front of New York City Hall between the recently dissolved New York Municipal Police and the newly formed Metropolitan Police on June 16, 1857. Arising over New York City Mayor Fernando Wood’s appointment of Charles Devlin over Daniel Conover for the position of city street commissioner, amid rumors that Devlin purchased the office for $50,000 from Wood, Municipal police battled Metropolitan officers attempting to arrest Mayor Wood.
Two words for everyone: Oath Keepers.
All public employees take an oath to the constitution. Some keep it.
Sure, but they risk being fired.
They can also be fired too, but it also depends on what and why the refuse orders.
Yes, and then risk being fired.
I wasn’t a police officer, but was a peace officer for New York State. In our rules and regulations, there was a specific clause that dealt with unlawful orders. If we believed that the order we had been given was unlawful, and that it could lead to the death or injury of ourselves and others, then we had the right to disobey that order. Of course we would have had to defend ourselves later, but the option was available, and I’d have to believe that the same clause is covered in all police department rules and regulations manuals.
I don’t know, who has the greater firepower?
Good Luck with that - Not a police officer.
Yes all can, on constitutional grounds.
And also on fiscal/administrative grounds if they are elected directly by the People..........Such as a mayoral order NOT to engage looters and rioters.
Police Officers take an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. And to enforce the laws of our state.
We are legally required to obey all ‘lawful’ orders.
An order not to take action when observing a crime in progress is not lawful. It can and often is disregarded by the rank-and-file. However, cops are subject to retaliation and a refusal to be provided immunity against ruinous lawsuits filed by perps against whom we take enforcement action. This is the dilemna faced by cops. It is why I ultimately decided to retire.
They can easily obstruct, impede, refuse and delay orders to go DO something. But if they are ordered not to intervene in a riot, and to make arrests, and they do, the mayor will pick up the phone to the governor or the FBI, and they will be facing arrests and ruin.
The more interesting question is why do you think police will go out and enforce laws that the entire political structure above has ordered not be enforced? That’s the action of a kamikaze.
It makes as much sense to ask why the police department doesn’t just walk in and arrest the mayor for issuing that order. And then turn it over to the DA who says he will not prosecute.
I am a retired Fire Officer; we used the same type of incident command structure and protocol as the police. I suppose you are making the assumption that there is some type of Hippocratic Oath for police, but there is not. Police and Fire follow orders from above. If we were responding to someone with a papercut and we came across a serious motor vehicle accident our protocol was basically to report the accident but continue to the call we were assigned to. Of course in reality we would report that we had come across a life threatening situation and communications needed to reassign our original call and send us whatever additional resources that we requested.
Remember the big difference between police officers and sheriffs is that sheriffs are directly elected by the citizenry. Police are appointed by elected officials. It’s a big difference worth remembering.
In general, the “Mayor”, commissioner, and/or Chief of Police can control the deployment of assets.
However, every officer took an oath to enforce the law. This is the problem with the riot response in that you cannot order officers to ignore a crime in their presence.
What would you do to an officer that arrested an individual who assaulted him or another officer? I order you to stand there and be assaulted and not touch the peaceful protestor who did it?
Even in Portland the police have made lawful arrest. The DA there does nothing with the charge, but I am not aware that any officer has been punished for doing so.
How or why these men and women go out there every night and endure this crap is beyond reason to me. It seems rather pointless doesn’t it?
Yes, they can refuse. Mayors can then fire them.