Back in 1971 Clint Eastwood starred in a movie about a tough and uncompromising cop who cared little for the niceties of due process and possessed a complete lack of empathy for criminals. The underlying message of the movie, neatly summed up in his gruff observation that “the law’s crazy” when he is chastised for failing to obtain a search warrant while trying to save a kidnapped and tortured girl, is that good men sometimes have to bend the law to stop bad people from harming the innocent and vulnerable, so the pointless blather of those who elevate circuitous legal process over swift justice must silenced with a single shot from the hero’s iconic .44 Magnum pistol. The Dirty Harry movies were, of course, a Hollywood fantasy. The vast majority of police officers in America are conscientious and well-trained professionals Read more