Evil Never Pays

Nearly everyone by now has heard about the controversial Rolling Stone's magazine cover with the picture of the surviving marathon bombing suspect edited to look like a celebrity. The caption indicates that the article will argue that he was a normal kid until his family abandoned him and he reacted by radicalizing. Let me start of by calling this article an abomination. For the mere fact that I refuse to let this clever marketing technique of drawing emotions work, I will not share that photo.

In response, a tactical photographer for the Massachusetts State Police released never-before-seen photos from the night the police arrested this scumbag. The photos are attached this blog post. He said that he released the photos to "right the wrong". He was referring to the magazine portraying him like a normal, brave, and sane kid. His photos show a coward who surrendered after realizing that you don't mess with the US and you certainly don't mess with Bostonians.  This officer was stripped of his badge and gun, and has been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. He could face suspension or worse, lose his job.

Here are my thoughts.

"The police officer in question here was one of the brave officers responsible for the capture of the last surviving marathon bombing suspect. He and his fellow officers endured more that night than most people endure in their lives. Between the constant gun fire, the throwing of grenades and other explosive devises, and the long hours spent searching in constant fear for their lives and the lives of others, there is no denying that there was a substantial emotional toll on all of these officers. I can not imagine what it must have been like, nor could you, cause like me, you didn't experience it. I did, however, experience the week of stress and fear immediately following the attack and leading up to the capture. I remember being in constant fear, always looking over my shoulder. When this officer saw the Rolling Stones article, I would imagine he was brought back to that night. He felt that America and the world needed to see what the coward really looked like. He released these pictures not for money or personal gain, but for Boston. He released those photos to show that this coward may have had his picture photo-shopped and placed on a magazine, but that doesn't diminish his evil, cowardly ways. While I realize that the integrity of our Justice System relies on the ability to trust police officers, and while I acknowledge that this officer broke the rules, I pray that people think deeper about what he did. I pray that his superiors understand his way of thinking, and while I know he needs to be punished, I just hope people realize he doesn't deserve to lose his job. Instead, he deserves a round of applause for standing for something good, for putting his neck on the line to show that evil never pays."

Here are the photos. Caution, some may consider these photos to be graphic!