In Los Angeles, a still unfolding police scandal, which could easily affect some 3,000 cases, according to some observers, has not drawn intense coverage from the national media.

The L.A. Rampart anti-gang unit scandal broke last September with disclosures by former cop Rafael Perez that officers beat people, planted evidence, lied in court, shot innocent people and were really the gang that Black and Latino neighborhoods should have feared.

One cop shooting left a man paralyzed and in jail, another man served five years for cocaine he never had and other cases are bound to emerge.

Just as troubling is the lack of media spotlight on these crimes and dirty deeds of men committed to serve, protect and "break a brother�s neck," as they often say of police in L.A.

The American media prides itself on its "freedom" and ability to serve the public interest by exposing official wrongdoing. What is more wrong than robbing an innocent person of his or her freedom, and betraying the public trust?

Why hasn�t the media focused on this scandal to make the public aware of the danger of police misconduct? The media certainly showed images of Black youth in L.A. it labeled gangbangers; and so-called "reality-based" cop shows are a network favorite, not to mention regular TV shows devoted to praising those who stand along the "Thin Blue Line" between order and anarchy.

Is the media silent on the L.A. case because the victims have been mainly Latino and Black? Or is the media silent because injustice against non-whites isn�t news�it�s the American way?

It is also troubling that the main figure, thus far, in the Rampart probe is Rafael Perez, a Latino officer who victimized his own people.

In Chicago, the case of a young computer analyst shot to death by Black officers is in the news. The department is trying to fire the officers, who didn�t break off a chase when ordered to, and fired shots without immediately telling superiors. In the end, an unarmed LaTanya Haggerty, a passenger in the car, was shot by a Black female cop.

Ms. Haggerty had a cell phone, the officer said she thought was a gun. During a hearing, a lock appeared, hinting that maybe Ms. Haggerty had it, but her prints weren�t found on it. And while the driver�s car was in a police impound lot, a bag of marijuana mysteriously appeared.

In the L.A. case and Chicago case, it is Black and Latino officers who are accused of oppressing and killing their own people. So while many lament Black-on-Black crime committed by young people, the same mentality exists among some officers.

But when cops go bad, it is quickly pointed out that they are the exception not the rule�a benefit of the doubt no longer extended to Black youngsters.