Police abuses

[Crazed Rabbit]

Gene Weingarten, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and Washington Post Columnist, on police abuses of the legal sort:

Last week I was a juror in the trial of a man accused of selling a $10 bag of heroin to an undercover police officer. At the end of the two days of testimony, I concluded that the defendant was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. I also concluded that he should be acquitted.

In my mind, it came down to a simple, unsettling question: Is it worse to let a drug dealer go free, or to reward the police for lying under oath?
...
As I saw it, the defendant was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. But there was a complication.

The "eyes" officer in this case -- the only person who claimed to have seen the cash and drugs change hands -- testified that he had radioed the following description of the suspect: black male, black jacket, royal blue baseball hat, v-necked white t-shirt, sneakers, key on a chain around his neck, carrying a bottle of ginger ale. He said his view had been unobstructed, on a clear day, from a distance of 50 to 60 feet.

Defense lawyer Jon W. Norris produced aerial photographs to prove that this was wrong. Between the place that the eyes said he was sitting and the place the police said the transaction occurred was a full-length basketball court -- 80 feet -- plus a lot more pavement. Norris sent an investigator to the scene to measure the total distance: It was, the investigator testified, 172 feet. The prosecutor never contested this. He couldn't. The discrepancy was verified by satellite imagery.

So the eyes had seen a ginger ale bottle at 172 feet? Really? That's some set of eyes the eyes had.

One morning, my wife and I went out into the street, measured off 172 feet and stood at either end. My eyesight is 20-20 with glasses. Her eyesight is 20-20 without glasses. From that distance, I could not see a trace of the key I had hung around her neck. She could not begin to distinguish the Sprite bottle I carried from any other greenish bottle-shaped thing. From that distance, you couldn't tell a v-neck from a crew neck or, for that matter, a T-shirt from a polo shirt.

I concluded that the eyes had lied about the specificity of his radioed description -- and that he wasn't the only one. Two other police officers who had been at the scene testified that they'd heard exactly that description, word for word, detail for detail, down to the ginger ale bottle. They said they were certain.

How could this be? Defense lawyer Norris offered a theory: The officers had colluded in a fabrication. To better justify the arrest, he said, they had improved upon what had probably been a much sketchier original description. Once they had all seen the defendant up close, in handcuffs, and examined photos of him taken at the scene, all the little details became clear: the v-neck, the key, the ginger ale bottle. Retroactively, Norris suggested, they produced a perfect description.

Hadn't the initial description been tape-recorded? No. The D.C. police testified that they do not do that. Sending a radio message out over a recorded channel, they said, would risk that the message could be intercepted by the bad guys on a police scanner and alert them to the sting. I found myself wondering: If the police wanted to, couldn't they just put a cheap recording device in the eyes' car? Just for the record?

But they don't. Possibly they don't want the record.
...
At the end of the day, after four hours of deliberations over a $10 drug bust, the deadlocked jury was sent home for the night. They came back the next day and tried again. More hours passed. In the end, they pronounced themselves hopelessly hung. A mistrial was declared.

I later spoke with one of the jurors, who told me they had been split, 10 for acquittal and two for a guilty verdict. Many of them had simply mistrusted the eyes. They didn't believe he could have possibly seen the ginger ale bottle or the v-neck or the key, and they felt his apparent willingness to lie had tainted the prosecution's whole case.

The prosecution seemed to get the message. On Friday, they said they would not refile the charges. The defendant is now free.

I'm proud of our jury system. I can't say the same about our police.

CR

[Ice]

Looks like a case of Keystone cops to me.

The policemen I spoke to the other days was very professional and friendly.

It's a shame a few idiots give all police officers a bad name.

[Vladimir]

Gene Weingarten, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and Washington Post Columnist, on police abuses of the legal sort:


CR

And we all know journalists are infallible; especially those from the centrist and equitable WaPo.

Far from lying, this is more a case of cognitive biases and perceptions. This whole case is silly; from the $10 bust to quibbling over a bottle.

[Crazed Rabbit]

And we all know journalists are infallible; especially those from the centrist and equitable WaPo.

Far from lying, this is more a case of cognitive biases and perceptions. This whole case is silly; from the $10 bust to quibbling over a bottle.

It's not quibbling; the point is that all the police who testified conspired to lie in court.

Also, I don't care for the TSA at all, but I think I'll said with them in one case;

According to a Tampa police log, two TIA police officers responded to a disturbance call at 9:15 a.m. when Andriani, 56, who was in line for a flight to New Jersey, became irate when airline flight crew members were permitted to pass him in line at a Transportation Security Administration checkpoint. He took pictures of TSA agents' badges, police said.

Ann Davis, TSA spokeswoman, said the passenger yelled at TSA officers, complained about the screening process, displayed a badge and said he was a police officer.

Airport police ran a wanted check on him before allowing him to continue to his flight, the police log said.

Hoboken Police Chief Anthony Falco said that, since this relates to an internal investigation within the police department, he is required by attorney general guidelines not to comment. Falco said he does not know Andriani's current residence.

This 'officer', Andriani, was the leader of a Hoboken, NJ, SWAT team that went down to New Orleans after Katrina, and again some time later, to "help" with hurricane recovery. Instead they went to a Hooters restaurant, took pictures of the girls posing around their van, with guns, and of themselves downing jello shots.

Andriani and other members of the city's SWAT team had gone on a supposed mission of mercy to help survivors of Hurricane Katrina.

Photos and videos, though, showed them in police-issued gear posing with bare-breasted women at Mardi Gras in New Orleans, letting Hooters girls hold their weapons in Alabama and downing Jello shots in a Louisiana bar. They also show him posing in a Confederate cap and pretending to be a Ku Klux Klan member at a restaurant.

And the most disgusting part? When the photos surfaced in 2007, Andriani was punished - with a two year suspension, paid.

Yes, he was given his full salary every month for two years and didn't have to work. That's $132,000 a year for doing absolutely nothing.

Gee, with such decisive punishments, it's no wonder there's so few cops who break the rules!



CR

[Crazed Rabbit]

This thread is to depressing to update often.

Anyway, here's some more lying cops. Apparently some guy asked them why they were arresting his friend. They push him away repeatedly, though he wasn't close to touching any of them. They tell him to leave the public street, and when he doesn't run away, they arrest him and lie on their reports in order to to try and convict him.

Luckily for him, a video shows the liars for what they are.

Here's a fun blog post on how union arbitrators force police departments to rehire officers that shot innocent people, while drunk, and while hitting said innocent with their pistol.

Reckless Chicago cops caused permanent brain injury to a young woman back in 2004 and failed an attempted cover up, so now the city will pay $3million.

Michigan police assault and tazer a man, then needlessly shoot his dog to death.

EDIT: A Recent one; in early march Prince George County (Maryland) cops viciously and without provocation attack a student celebrating his college's basketball win. Of course, he was arrested and charged with crimes before the video surfaced. One cop has been suspended. No sign yet that any will be fired, much less charged with a crime.

Yay for police badges giving people the power to randomly assault others!

CR

[Vladimir]

Sorry, not sure if this was posted already. Maryland police beating of some punk college whipper snapper is making big news around here:

http://www.google.com/search?q=maryl...GGL_en___US334

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAPwyodTkYA

It's his fault, really. You don't just go walking up on a horse like that.

I love it when civilian cops raise the baton above their heads. We would get in so much trouble for that.

But no, seriously, it looks like these cops should be beat down themselves

[drone]

In defense of the PG County police, the Maryland students always riot, win or lose, when they play Duke.

[Seamus Fermanagh]

This thread is consistently depressing.

[Vladimir]

If a thread entitled "Police Abuses" becomes cheerful than I'd loose faith in humanity.

[Louis VI the Fat]

To add insult to injury, I'll share the following video for consideration.

'

this video shows how the norwiangen police are brutally abusing a non returnable refugee in fagerli norway, like they are not human being. "police and his dog, stepping on a man neck with his foot over and over again, lay on the grand with handcuff on him".U.N is not doing anything about them and non do human right group. this people desperately need help and the norwiangen government is covering it them up, they are in this country with no identity card or papers to walk around even in the city". "you can not see it, shown on norwiangen media". "why?" '

Warning! Video contains shocking images of police brutality of the Norwegian kind, such as a person being handcuffed, while another is holding him down! What outrage! Where is the UN!?!?

Yes, there are countries where this is the level of police abuse that shocks public order.

[rvg]

Brave millcents tolchoking old vecks and luscious young malchiks. All in the name of the good old ultra-violence. Real horrorshow.

[drone]

this video shows how the norwiangen police are brutally abusing a non returnable refugee in fagerli norway, like they are not human being. "police and his dog, stepping on a man neck with his foot over and over again, lay on the grand with handcuff on him".U.N is not doing anything about them and non do human right group. this people desperately need help and the norwiangen government is covering it them up, they are in this country with no identity card or papers to walk around even in the city". "you can not see it, shown on norwiangen media". "why?"

The first guy they get off the ground is a Flyers fan. Obviously a dangerous hooligan, a little of the rough stuff is necessary.

[InsaneApache]

Brave millcents tolchoking old vecks and luscious young malchiks. All in the name of the good old ultra-violence. Real horrorshow.

Viddy thee well brother, viddy thee well.

[Vladimir]

To add insult to injury, I'll share the following video for consideration.



this video shows how the Norwegian police are brutally abusing a non returnable refugee in fagerli norway, like they are not human being. "police and his dog, stepping on a man neck with his foot over and over again, lay on the grand with handcuff on him".U.N is not doing anything about them and non do human right group. this people desperately need help and the norwiangen government is covering it them up, they are in this country with no identity card or papers to walk around even in the city". "you can not see it, shown on Norwegian media". "why?" '

Warning! Video contains shocking images of police brutality of the Norwegian kind, such as a person being handcuffed, while another is holding him down! What outrage! Where is the UN!?!?

Yes, there are countries where this is the level of police abuse that shocks public order.

The video was no doubt taken from an Apache helicopter.

No, really. What is the context? Why were they being arrested in the first place? Who called the K9 officer over? Why were there two suspects? Looks to me like the suspect was lifting his head and body up and the police officer brought him back down. I've seen something similar once and got a piece of the action. In my case, the guy was violently drunk and took every opportunity to fight whoever was around him. Who's to say that wasn't so in this case.

What's more outrageous to me is the outrage. Armchair cops having purely emotional overreactions to something they find offensive. Some people live a far too comfortable life.

[Husar]

No, really. What is the context? Why were they being arrested in the first place? Who called the K9 officer over? Why were there two suspects? Looks to me like the suspect was lifting his head and body up and the police officer brought him back down. I've seen something similar once and got a piece of the action. In my case, the guy was violently drunk and took every opportunity to fight whoever was around him. Who's to say that wasn't so in this case.

What's more outrageous to me is the outrage. Armchair cops having purely emotional overreactions to something they find offensive. Some people live a far too comfortable life.

Completely irrelevant, these norwegian officers should be locked up for the rest of their lives for handcuffing and restraining people. Only judges should be allowed to do that.

[HoreTore]

Yes, there are countries where this is the level of police abuse that shocks public order.

Which country is that?

I haven't heard of this, therefore it cannot have made much noise.

And I'm betting the only reason you've heard of it is because you look for arrest videos when you do *youknowwhat*

[Crazed Rabbit]

A cop goes on trial for murder, after he stopped and tasered a drunk man in his car in a parking lot. After the guy was tasered the car lurched forward into a fence, and then the cop drew his gun and shot the man in the back seven times.

Troy Meade shot and killed Niles Meservey, 51, last June in the parking lot of the Chuckwagon Inn while Meade was handling a drunken-driving call involving Meservey. Meservey allegedly wouldn't get out of his car. Meade first shot Meservey with a Taser, then Meservey's car, parked between two other cars, lurched forward into a fence, according to charging papers.

According to another Everett officer's account, Meade said something like: "Time to end this; enough is enough," and opened fire, the charging papers say. The other officer also told investigators Meservey posed no immediate threat to anyone in the area.

The cop is on paid administrative leave.

In Florida, a 20 year old prankster rings a doorbell at 1 am and then runs off. The cop living there was off duty, but got in his squad car and chased down the prankster.

And killed him. Shot him to death.

An autopsy on the body of Tyler Spann is complete and he will be buried today, but questions remain about the death of the 20-year-old who was shot and killed early Friday by an off-duty Sarasota County sheriff's deputy.

The Sheriff's Office did not release details about the case Monday, but officials say they expect the investigation into the actions of Deputy Carlos Verdoni, who shot Spann, to be completed by the end of this week.

The inquiry into the shooting is divided into two parts: a criminal investigation of the shooting; and an administrative look at whether Verdoni followed procedures when he left his home in shorts, a T-shirt and sandals to track down the pranksters who banged on his door and ran off.

Verdoni, 33, told his superiors that his doorbell was rung around midnight Thursday, and then he heard banging on his door around 1 a.m. He said he chased down one prankster in his squad car and found him outside a home in the 300 block of Lisbon Street. There he encountered Spann and told him to lay down while he called for backup.

Spann complied initially, Verdoni said, but then rushed up and tackled the deputy and reached for his gun. Verdoni fired two shots, killing Spann, who was unarmed.

Spann's family has doubts about the investigation, especially as the lead criminal investigator -- Lt. Charlie Thorpe -- is listed as a friend of Verdoni's on the social networking site Facebook.

"Nobody from the Sheriff's Office is even talking to this family," said Alan McEwen, Spann's uncle. "This was a prank and the officer goes and shoots the kid?

"Why didn't he handcuff him first? Why wasn't he put in the back of a police car? The officer went overboard and I think he should be charged with murder."

When a Sheriff's spokeswoman, Wendy Rose, was asked about the Facebook connection, she said it was "not a legitimate question."

Sheriff Tom Knight has said that he believes Verdoni's actions were justified and that the investigation will clear the nine-year veteran.

So we have an off duty cop killing a man for ringing a doorbell, the lead investigator is the cop's friend, and the Sheriff says he thinks the investigation will clear the cop for the murder.

Legalized murder.

CR

[Crazed Rabbit]

A SWAT team bursts into a house, cowards dressed like soldiers, with machine guns and body armor, in the night.

They start shooting with the father, mother, and child in the house because they see a dog and they know they can kill a dog whenever they want to.

And what's the point of all this? A tiny amount of marijuana.

Oh, the cops (who charged in and shot machine guns) also charged the guy with child endangerment for having the tiny amount of pot.

EDIT: SPOILER'D for language.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

CR

[Vladimir]

It's really weird that they didn't just pick him up when he left his house. He has a child and would eventually go somewhere.

[LittleGrizzly]

Oh, the cops (who charged in and shot machine guns) also charged the guy with child endangerment for having the tiny amount of pot.

LOL, I always find it funny when people use this line, as if the cops in question don't allow any alcohol or tobacco to even stay in the same house as children in thier family...

[Crazed Rabbit]

We've come full circle; another Seattle incident, this time of cops detaining a man and forcing him to lay on the ground. Then one said he was going to “beat the ******* Mexican **** out of you”, and kicked the guy in face. The man was not moving at all or resisting in any way. Then a female cop comes over and stomps on the back of the guy's knee.

Then they eventually released him after they found out he had nothing to do with the crime.

SEATTLE -- City leaders expressed shock and disappointment Friday at video that first aired on KIRO 7 Eyewitness News showing two Seattle police officers kicking a man as he lay on the ground. The man was detained during a robbery investigation last month.

The two officers have been reassigned as police conduct an investigation amid a firestorm of reaction.

The racially charged videotape shows officers stomping on the innocent detainee after they responded to several 911 calls for a report of an armed robbery in the parking lot of a night club near Lake Union.

In the video, a male officer is seen kicking the man who had been ordered to the ground while threatening him with racial slurs. Shortly after, a female officer kicked the man in the back of his leg.
Read First Story, Comments

The man was released when the officers realized he was not involved in the reported crime.

Language Warning:


Note that most everything happens in the first 1:30.

CR

[Strike For The South]

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[Vladimir]

I guess the critics were right. Passing that illegal immigration law did increase racial profiling. Oh, wait!

[Crazed Rabbit]

A man calls 911 to ask for medical help for his 86 year old, bedridden mother.

Naturally, a bunch of police barge through the door. The woman, a grandmother, tells them to leave her house.

Naturally, the police taze her;

The remarkable complaint continues: "Instead, the apparent leader of the police [defendant Thomas Duran] instructed another policeman to 'Taser her!' He stated in his report that the 86 year-old plaintiff 'took a more aggressive posture in her bed,' and that he was fearful for his safety and the safety of others.
"Lonnie Tinsley told them, 'Don't taze my Granny!' to which they responded that they would Taser him; instead, they pulled him out of her apartment, took him down to the floor, handcuffed him and placed him in the back of a police car.
"The police then proceeded to approach Ms. Varner in her bed and stepped on her oxygen hose until she began to suffer oxygen deprivation.
"The police then fired a Taser at her and only one wire struck her, in the left arm; the police then fired a second Taser, striking her to the right and left of the midline of her upper chest and applied high voltage, causing burns to her chest, extreme pain and to pass out.
"The police then grabbed Ms. Varner by her forearms and jerked hands together, causing her soft flesh to tear and bleed on her bed; they then handcuffed her.
"The police freed Lonnie Tinsley from his incarceration in the back of the police car and permitted him to accompany the ambulance with his grandmother."
Tinsley says the cops capped it all off by having his grandmother "placed in the psychiatric ward at the direction of the El Reno police; she was held there for six days and released."

At least the sadists of America have a steady job supply and legal authority to torture people.

It seems some cops view the taser as a tool that lets them have almost as much fun as shooting people without all the bothersome paperwork and inquiries involving murdered people.

CR

[Meneldil]

Take the arms and start hanging cops on trees. That's pretty much the only solution. Show your governement that you're not going to let your cops act as the Gestapo. If a few innocent people start harming cops, they might start to wonder what's wrong.

[Mooks]

Take the arms and start hanging cops on trees. That's pretty much the only solution. Show your governement that you're not going to let your cops act as the Gestapo. If a few innocent people start harming cops, they might start to wonder what's wrong.

Thats the spirit!

[Vladimir]

Take the arms and start hanging cops on trees. That's pretty much the only solution. Show your governement that you're not going to let your cops act as the Gestapo. If a few innocent people start harming cops, they might start to wonder what's wrong.

God bless

[Husar]

Yeah, if a few cops are being unfair and beat innocent people, the obvious solution is to be unfair and hang some innocent cops on trees because the only possible reaction that could be expected from the government is to back down and tell their cops to be nice to all those "innocent" people who just killed a few cops...

[Mooks]

Yeah, if a few cops are being unfair and beat innocent people, the obvious solution is to be unfair and hang some innocent cops on trees because the only possible reaction that could be expected from the government is to back down and tell their cops to be nice to all those "innocent" people who just killed a few cops...

Meh, define "innocent". Every cop I know of has stolen somebodys marijuana before.

Semantics are fun.

[InsaneApache]

Not so much individual abuse, more institutional....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQuc...ayer_embedded#!

9/11 really was a politicians wet dream. They've been wanting to shut us up for decades. Now they have a reason.

I'm ashamed of my country.