Palm Beach County, Florida, Police Officer Jay Stalien has shown bravery, strength of character, and a commitment to the truth, standing up to a false narrative that is having a detrimental effect on police officers, black communities, and American society in general.
Stalien, a former Baltimore police officer who grew up in Brooklyn, said he began his career because, growing up seeing black-on-black crime as the norm, “I wanted to help my community and stop watching the blood of African Americans spilled on the street at the hands of a fellow black man. I became a cop because black lives in my community, along with ALL lives, mattered to me, and wanted to help stop the bloodshed.”
Officer Stalien made the observation on his blog and in a Facebook post that the Black Lives Matter movement ignores the thousands of blacks killed every year by other blacks but only focuses on those killed by (white) police officers. He wrote, “Their deaths are unnoticed, accepted as the ‘norm,’ and swept underneath the rug by the very people who claim and post ‘black lives matter.’”
Stalien, as could be expected, took a great deal of criticism for his views, often from the very people he was trying to help. This criticism included personal threats against him on his Facebook post. Officer Stalien believes that Black Lives Matter is largely responsible for the anti-police attitude that has manifested itself in American cities, and he says that many police officers now go to work every day in fear for their personal safety.
Despite the repercussions he has faced for expressing his views (and telling the truth), Jay Stalien continues to do his job because he believes that by being a police officer he is making a difference and working for a greater good. The Law Enforcement Charitable Foundation recognizes Officer Jay Stalien for having the courage to stand up for the truth and expose lies, even at the risk of personal attacks. n
If you’d like to nominate someone from your department for this recognition, submit your nomination at LECF-Inc.org.