Resorting to “that’s the real world” to excuse misconduct is what I mean by saying you’ve got a fucked up idea of how police should behave. If you accept police misconduct as inevitable you’re never going to support any real attempt to change it.
I’m in favor of marijuana decriminalization and legalization but that doesn’t mean I think the police have the right to decree extrajudicial on-the-spot punishments, no matter how mild they might seem. That is the role of the courts. They could also have simply confiscated and destroyed the marijuana rather than making him eat it. That’s an unnecessary attempt at humiliation that ultimately worsens police/community relations and makes the job of law enforcement that much more difficult.
