Would You Break the Law to See a Dying Family Member?  

Of course I'd break the law to see a family member. We often do things when we are very upset that we wouldn't normally do.
I can't say if there was any racism involved. Regardless, police officers should have a little more understanding and compassion in doing their jobs. They are supposed to protect and serve. I think dealing with the crap they have to put up with on a daily basis causes some to lose sight of this.

yeah....i completely agree with you.....i don't understand how come some people do not understand the basic humanity. Why don't they show try and be a better human beings...i respect the rules and everything and breaking rules wud be the last thing i wud do...but if its an emergency situation i will break rules if i can't help it..afterall all are just humans not God

When you have family member that is passing away you will break laws to get there and see them before they pass. That was wrong of the police offer to do that to him. I do not think that there was racism there. The police officer was just being very rude and does need to have something done to him but not fired. Moats can push it and get him fired if he wants to.

I think we would all do everything in our power to be near our loved ones. Sometimes, police officers get wrapped up in their jobs so much, that they make decisions, they later regret. I'm sure the officer in the story regrets his actions, but probably for liability purposes, doesn't want to admit it. I think police officers for the most part will be reasonable if one doesn't give them excuses, or argues with them.

Yes I would break the law to see a dying
family member and this really bothers
me. I hope the cop is fired. If it was
so close to the hospital the cop could
have followed him there .
He could have taken the license plate
number and sent him a ticket in
the mail.
I really really hope this cop gets
fired. He is not a very compassionate
person and we do not need people like
this on the police force.

I seen this, this morning as well, And it was highly disturbing. I think most of us would want to say good bye to our loved ones. Personally i could see myself breaking laws, especially traffic laws for that reason. I agree that the officer was rather dense. But he was correct when he said that he was "just doing his job". I mean I bet people say all sorts of things to get out of tickets all of the time. The question comes down to how the officer should have handled the situation. It was obvious that the individual was going to a hospital. As such the officer should have listened to his story and maybe even escorted him into the hospital to confirm the story. In this situation the officer did not listen to the man at all. I found it funny that he was caught saying "well if you'd have just explained the situation to me" as though the man had not been doing so from the very begining. I doubt that there was any racism behind this. Some officers get caught up in the moment, adrenalin can do that to a person after all. When we get afraid we think with our hindbrain and so most logical and rational thought desists. The officer was likely thinking he had a man that was going to try and flee the scene and chances are that his training kicked in and he did his best to keep the man there. I doubt he truly heard what the man was saying at all. Not to say that just because there is a rational explanation for his behavior being "possibly" a result of brain chemicals, that the officer was not in the wrong. He was doing his job, but he should have been more observant and seen that the hospital they were heading towards provided legitimacy to the mans claims. It wasn't so much disturbing as embarrassing. Officers of the law should be better able to "keep their heads" in even the worst of situations; they should be able to think things through and put "two and two" together.

There are many instances where I would find it appropriate to break the law. If the POLICE are our authority, and they can make devastating mistakes like this one, then by no means should we have to respect the law entirely.

If people were left to their own devices, they would still practice some kind our universal ethical code, it's innate. So by implicating more and more laws, we are thereby strangling people of their natural moral instinct.

Hi lotter
of course i will,rather if its not the matter of family member ,may be anyother person ,i will certainly break the rule to save a life.

yeah i would brake the law to see a dying famely member but only to a point i wouldnt speed if i was going to put other people in danger. but i think that police man was totally out of order there if he had any heart he would of let him see his mother and then speak to him after. i know it was wrong to fun a red light but would the police man do the same it if was his mother.
i'm not sure about the racism becouse i live in the uk and there isnt really much of it here but i dont think it should of matterd if he was black or white but some people are just evil.

fire the police man!!

I saw this video today and it made me cringe because I went through a similar situation.
My daughter has severe asthma and has gone to the ER countless times. However in the last few years it's gotten much worse. So when she got an attack last year we decided not to wait for an ambulance and I drove her myself. I did this for two reasons. One, she was in the chronic stage and not in immediate crisis. Two it would be faster to get to the next town than to wait for the ambulance in our neighboring town to come out to our farm.
So I was driving carefully but over the speed limit by 10mph. It was dark and I realized that a state patrol car was following and he flashed us...I pulled over and explained the reason for our speed and he proceeded to lecture me on how you can't drive over the speed limit...no matter the reason!
I kept trying to get a word in edgewise but he just kept on and on...I finally interupted him to tell him if he wanted to give me a ticket then fine...but I was driving to the nearest hospital and he was welcome to follow me. I then told him where I was going and took off....you know the idiot didn't even check to see if my daughter was ok? And he didn't follow up with a call to see if it was the truth or help me get there safe with an escort?
Sometimes I really do wonder about these guys.....