I my country we have rules set after the Nazi occupation ('40-'45) that you don't have to follow rules which are unethical. "Befehl ist befehl" isn't absolute here, everyone has to think for himself. With that in mind no Police officer in my country would remove someone in this situation, the airline would have been ordered to transport their own personnel on another flight. Any Police officer who would act this way under these circumstances would face disciplinary actions against him, and rightfully so!
Despicable. And one of the many reasons i'll never travel to the US, your rights are not protected there.