Yes, absolutely. However, filing a winning federal lawsuit against a police officer or department is nearly impossible, even in outrageous cases, because of qualified immunity.

Federal judges frequently note in cases where they turn plaintiffs away that their hands are tied. They are unable to provide justice Even in cases we're injustice is brutal and plainly manifest.

The American justice system has centered a notion that police officers are presumptively trustworthy and honest. The deck in court is overwhelmingly stacked in favor of police, but as it turns out, police officers are not usually trustworthy and honest.

They don't deserve that presumption, as more and more Americans are beginning to discover.

However, we haven't even begun to grapple with what to do about brutal, fundamentally dishonest police culture.