One of the many principles that rings true in many aspects of daily life is the notion of the law of unintended consequences.
You can set out with the mind to do something good and in the end find yourself having to do something so backwards that you begin to wonder how anyone can ever think it is a good idea.
Look at it this way, there are people that are in prisons right now that never went to a dentist a day of their life that before they were incarcerated had maybe three teeth in their heads. Now, and take a wild guess who is paying for it they now have teeth that are so perfect you’d never guess they were screwed in. Those, by the way cost several thousand dollars per tooth and guess who is paying for that one as well.
Now, when the police take someone into custody they are responsible for footing the bill of any medical expenses that might come up. Now, if someone tries to shoot a cop and the cop shoots back…guess who has to pay for the bullet to be removed?
The Omaha World-Herald reported Monday that the city is on the hook for an estimated $240,000 in medical bills for 36-year-old John Ezell, Jr.
Ezell was shot multiple times by Omaha police officers after Ezell fired his weapon at Omaha Officer Ken Fortune during a traffic stop and pursuit in September.
During the incident, Omaha gang officers in an unmarked car attempted to stop a vehicle in which Ezell was a passenger. While the vehicle initially stopped, it then took off — reportedly at the urging of Ezell — and a brief pursuit ensued, during which multiple additional attempts were made to stop the car.
John Ezell is on fed prob. for firearm violations and is a known gang member. He will be booked for two counts of Attempted Murder, Pos. of F/A by Prohibited Person, and two counts of Weapon Use Felony.
At one point, Fortune approached the vehicle only to be shot in the shoulder by Ezell. Two other officers returned fire on Ezell, striking him multiple times.
Ezell spent more than a month recovering from the gunshot wounds at the Nebraska Medical Center and racked up medical bills totaling nearly $480,000 for his treatment. Ezell doesn’t have any health insurance, nor is he eligible for Medicaid or Medicare, and thus has no way to pay his medical bills.
That means the burden for paying the bill has fallen on the city, as per local and state law and court precedent.
