4 lessons to learn from the Miami-Dade police video

Can you imagine how fellow police officers feel when they see these videos being published throughout their city through the public press?

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We've seen similar behavior to this with EMS and fire folks, be it poor taste in social media posts, or being caught on video by members of the public.

Again, we as viewers should exercise caution — video can be manipulated just like any other media, and it only captures situations out of context.

However, in this case it seems that the internal affairs of the department built the case over an extended period of time, and have built an evidentiary case that may be hard to deny.

As always, there are lessons to be learned.

1. The uniform we wear and the vehicles we drive scream public service, regardless of being public or private, career or volunteer. Imagine a big bull’s-eye painted all over you, with a sign that says, "Pick me! Pick me!" to the person with a recording device.

2. Being professional is an expectation of the public. Meaning, rising to the occasion each and every time is the minimum behavior expected by our community. Anything less is a trigger for a complaint.

3. Think twice about mixing personal business with professional business. Reference point, number 2.

4. Knowing that human behavior is, well, human, foster good feelings about the department, all of the time. Strong community support will help to soften the blow created by the behavior of a couple of bad apples.