Are Police Becoming The Enemy of The People?

On July 1st, a CHP officer was caught on camera beating a woman off the 10 freeway. The officer had already pinned the woman to the ground, and then proceeded to viciouly punch her more than 11 times in the head.

The violence was unjustified. If this had beeen an incident between civilians, the assailant would have been charged with assault. Peace officers should be held to higher standards, not less, so the officer should be held criminally accountable.

The CHP claims to be conducting an internal investigation. However, from the get go, their official stance is "the video doesn't show everything". Nothing the video didn't show could justfiy the officer's violence, and the fact that CHP wants to find extenuating circumstances is worrisome. Moreover, the victim of this assault is locked up in psychiatric hold, while the perpetrator is only on paid leave, not suspended.

The police should put protecting public above protecting one of their own. But the citizens have reason to doubt whether CHP is truly committed to doing the right thing. We request the district attorney to step in because:

1. The public deserve a fair investigation.

2. Regardless of the CHP investigation's outcome, the officer still committed a crime.

3. When police inspire fear instead of trust, then the system no longer works. The community needs to see proof that the law officers are not above the law.

Update: I spoke with the woman's attorney Caree Harper on twitter. She said they also want to file a complaint to the DOJ because the victim's civil rights were also violated.

Our Notes:  The stories of police brutality have always been out there, but it seems like the issue is growing and not shrinking.  If you watch this second video, you are told exactly how to avoid becoming the next victim.  Simply Comply with what you are told.  You may be told that your rights are about to be highly violated, but as long as you comply, you will not get beaten?  That statement to simply comply was not at all sound advice based on the number of people who are having their rights violated by police throughout the country.  Those sworn to serve and protect are earning a very bad reputation throughout the nation these days thanks to post 9/11 fear mongering which seems to stem from the Fed's.

Austin Police Arrest Jogger on Video and Tell Everybody to Relax

Austin Texas Lake Front (Photo credit: StuSeeger)

A jogger was arrested for jaywalking in Austin, Texas after she was unable to present any identification to the police. Austin's police chief responded to the incident by saying that the woman should be happy the police didn't do something more severe to her like sexually assault her as cops in other cities do. Mark Sovel and Lissette Padilla discuss the police chief's comments, in this clip from the Lip News.

Our Notes:  Anyone see anything wrong here?

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Scenes from a militarized America: Iowa family ‘terrorized’

By Radley Balko, Updated: February 4 at 10:37 am

Watch this video, taken from a police raid in Des Moines, Iowa. Send it to some people. When critics (like me) warn about the dangers of police militarization, this is what we’re talking about. You’ll see the raid team, dressed in battle-dress uniforms, helmets and face-covering balaclava hoods take down the family’s door with a battering ram. You’ll see them storm the home with ballistics shields, guns at the ready. More troubling still, you’ll see not one but two officers attempt to prevent the family from having an independent record of the raid, one by destroying a surveillance camera, another by blocking another camera’s lens.

From the images in the video, you’d think they were looking for an escaped murderer or a house full of hit men. No, none of that. They were looking for a few people suspected of credit card fraud. None of the people they were looking for were inside of the house, nor was any of the stolen property they were looking for. They did arrest two houseguests of the family on what the news report says were unrelated charges, one for a probation violation and one for possession of illegal drugs.

(UPDATE: Troubling new details in Iowa police raid)

A couple other points about this story. First, note that the police say they knocked and announced themselves before the raid. The knock and announce requirement has a long history in U.S. and English common law. Its purpose was to give the occupants of a home the opportunity to avoid property damage and unnecessary violence by giving them time to come to the door and let the police in peacefully. As you can see from the video, the knock and announce today is largely a formality. The original purpose is gone. From the perspective of the people inside, there’s really no difference between this sort of “knock and announce” and a no-knock raid. (The covering of the officers’ faces is also troubling, though also not uncommon.)

Historically, the other purpose of the knock-and-announce requirement is to avoid the inevitable tragedy that can result if homeowners mistake raiding police for criminal intruders. As the requirement has been eroded, allegedly to protect the safety of police officers, we’ve seen plenty of tragedy — and many of those tragedies have been the deaths of police officers. There was another one just last December. And it almost happened here:

Prince’s son, Justin Ross, was in the bathroom when police burst in, and he was carrying a gun that he has the legal right to carry. “I stood up, I drew my weapon, I started to get myself together to get out the door, I heard someone in the main room say police. I re-holstered my weapon sat back down and put my hands in my lap,” Ross recalls.

Ross says he didn’t hear the police announcement until after one officer had already attempted to kick in the door. Had that officer been successful, there’s a good chance that Ross, the police officer, or both would be dead. The police department would then have inevitably argued that Ross should have known that they were law enforcement. But you can’t simultaneously argue that these violent, volatile tactics are necessary to take suspects by surprise and that the same suspects you’re taking by surprise should have known all along that they were being raided by police. Well you can, and police do, and judges and prosecutors usually support them. But the arguments don’t logically coexist.

Finally, note that police department officials say they “do not have a written policy governing how search warrants are executed.” That’s inexcusable. Most police departments do. But whether or not they’re governed by a formal policy, the use of these kinds of tactics for nonviolent crimes like credit card fraud is hardly unusual, and it’s happening more often, not less. I’ve reported on jurisdictions where all felony search warrants are now served with a SWAT team. At least one federal appeals court has now ruled that under the Fourth Amendment, there’s nothing unreasonable about using a SWAT team to perform regulatory inspections. To be fair, two others have ruled that such tactics are not reasonable. But it’s concerning that this would even be up for debate. We have plenty of discussion and analysis about when searches are appropriate. We also need to start talking about how.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/opinions/wp/2014/02/04/scenes-from-a-militarized-america-iowa-family-terrorized//?print=1

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Woman's Face Shattered By Cop In Cell Following DUI [GRAPHIC VIDEO]

English:  (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

"A Chicago woman has sued the village of Skokie and one of its police officers, alleging she was seriously injured after being shoved headfirst into a jail cell bench after a drunken driving arrest last winter.

Cassandra Feuerstein, 47, said in a federal lawsuit that the incident required facial reconstructive surgery and the insertion of a titanium plate to "replace the bones that had been shattered."".* Cenk Uygur, Eboni K Williams, Ben Mankiewicz and Jimmy Dore (The Jimmy Dore Show) break it down on The Young Turks.

(Our Notes:)  Welcome to the Nazi USSA?  Come on now.  And this cop still has a job too?  Again, people, at what point to we say enough is enough!

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The Police Are Involved In Every Aspect Of American Life

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By; Richard Martin

The police seem to be an integral part of everyone’s life in the U.S. today. Even involving social problems. Errant school behavior has become a police issue. Driving without a seat belt can easily escalate into an arrest. Air travel pat downs. Suspicion (justified or not) of drug use. Even staying at home can be hazardous. Anyone who “looks Latino” is at high risk of being stopped as being potentially ‘undocumented’. The outrage of incarceration in the U.S. It is said the average American commits three felonies a day without being aware of it. Poverty and deprivation in the U.K. How future generations unborn are being robbed today. U.S. households’ net worth at a record high. Yes but… GDP grow misrepresented as usual.

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Governor McDonnell’s Budget to Provide $55 Million in Funding for Public Safety

English: Governor of Virginia at CPAC in . (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Investment of $22.2 Million for Sheriffs, Commonwealth’s Attorneys and County Clerks Deputies

$21.3 Million in New 599 Funding Will Support Local Public Safety Services in Virginia

RICHMOND - Governor Bob McDonnell announced today that his biennial budget will provide $55.3 million in targeted funding to support public safety around Virginia.  The governor’s budget proposals include $22.2 million for sheriffs, Commonwealth’s Attorneys, and Circuit Court Clerk Deputies to fund new hires, reduce overcrowding in jails, fund long overdue pay increases and support other critical operations. Governor McDonnell also proposed $21.3 million in additional funding to assist local law enforcement through the “599” program.

            Speaking about today’s announcement, Governor McDonnell said, “Local law enforcement plays a critical role in ensuring that Virginia’s streets and communities are safe.  I began my career in public service as a prosecutor in the Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office. I know firsthand how hard the men and women who serve as Sheriffs, Commonwealth Attorney’s and in clerk’s offices work day in and day out to protect their communities and preserve justice for their fellow Virginians.  These funds will provide the critical resources necessary to better serve the public and will play a vital role in ensuring a safe and prosperous Commonwealth in the years ahead.”

            Governor McDonnell continued, “Additionally, 599 funding is an important way to provide local departments with the tools, facilities and support necessary to do their job and do it well.  Over the last four years we have advanced legislation and provided funding for important public safety initiatives that support law enforcement, keep offenders off the street, and help transition those who have served their time back into their communities.  This is good government.  The additional 599 funding I have appropriated for the next biennium will help support local public safety services so that Virginia continues to be a safe place to live, work and raise a family. ”

The governor’s budget proposals include the following funding:

Sheriffs: 

·         Provide $3.2 million in funding for 48 temporary corrections officers for local and regional jails that are experiencing jail overcrowding issues through the Compensation Board.  This funding is to help alleviate some of the overcrowding issues some localities are experiencing. Localities experiencing overcrowding will be identified by the Compensation Board.  ($1,536,315 the first year and $1,679,216 the second year).

·         Provide $3.0 million in funding to support 29 law enforcement deputies FY15 and 33 additional law enforcement deputies in FY16, for a total of 62 positions.  These positions represent 25 percent and 50 percent of the necessary law enforcement deputies to meet the current requirement of 1:1,500 ratio.  The Compensation Board will distribute these positions to sheriff’s offices with law enforcement responsibilities. ($928,203 the first year and $2.1 million the second year).

·         Provide $1 million in funding to expand the Career Development Programs for certain constitutional officers, including Sheriff’s and Commonwealth’s Attorneys, as well as members of their staff.  This funding is targeted for those individuals who have already qualified but have been waiting to participate in career development programs due to insufficient funding. (Total of $770,513 each year).

·         Provide $9.3 million to support a two percent salary adjustment for entry level (grade 7 and 8) sheriff deputy positions working in a sheriff office and regional jail.  (Total $4.7 million each year).

·         Provided $12.4 million over the biennium to support the opening of Rappahannock/Shenandoah/Warren (RSW) Regional Jail on October 1, 2014, and Southwest Virginia Regional Jail on November 1, 2014. (Total $4,589,971 the first year and $7,767,497). This covers funding positions to staff the new jails.

Commonwealth’s Attorneys:

·         Provide $4.2 million in funding to support the second phase of assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney’s salary increase to achieve a starting salary level of $52,000 per year ($2.1 million each year).  The first phase was provided in the 2013 Session of the General Assembly. Each of the 577 full-time assistant Commonwealth’s attorneys will receive a $3,308 increase and the 11 part-time assistant Commonwealth’s attorneys will receive a $1,654 increase. 

Circuit Court Clerks Deputies:  

·         Provide over $860,000 in funding to support a four percent salary adjustment for Circuit Court Deputy Clerk I positions, and a two percent salary adjustment for Circuit Court Deputy Clerk II positions.  (Total $430,789 each year). 

·         State Aid to Localities with Police Departments (“599” Program)

·         Provide $21.3 million over the biennium to assist localities with qualified law enforcement departments through the “599” program.    The Department of Criminal Justice Services administers the program to enhance public safety efforts across the Commonwealth. To be eligible for “599” funds, a locality must have a police department as defined in §9.1-165, and all of the department's law enforcement personnel must meet the state's minimum training requirements.

Public Safety Accomplishments during McDonnell Administration

·         In 2012, successfully spearheaded the most aggressive tough-on-crime legislative agenda by a governor since the abolition of parole in 1995, including: tougher penalties for violent sex offenders and repeat drug dealers; mandatory minimum life sentences for rape or forcible sodomy of a child under 13

·         Successfully advanced legislation to add 19 additional felonies to the gang predicate criminal statute, including burglary, grand larceny, aggravated malicious wounding, and violations of manufacturing and distributing a controlled substance or marijuana

·         Established first statewide prisoner re-entry plan and re-entry coordinator, contributing to Virginia having the second lowest recidivism rate in the country at 23%

·         Managed state response, recovery, and mitigation activities associated with 7 federally declared natural disasters

·         Along with the Secretaries of Education and Health and Human Resources, convened the Governor’s School and Campus Safety Taskforce to identify legislative and policy enhancements for school and campus safety and increase effectiveness of training and programs, and implemented multiple legislative and budget policies

·         Established first statewide anti-gang plan and appointed first statewide anti-gang coordinator

·         First Department of Forensic Science implementation of familial DNA searching

·         Completed state-of-the-art Virginia State Police driver training center at Fort Pickett

·         Improved Virginia’s laws against human trafficking resulting in Commonwealth going from bottom (red) to top (green) in Polaris project rankings

·         Directed the Department of Social Services to develop plan for providing services to victims of human trafficking and increased penalty from a misdemeanor to a felony for soliciting prostitution from a minor

·         Established the Domestic Violence Prevention and Response Advisory Board to reduce domestic and sexual violence, improve services to victims, and hold offenders accountable; the advisory board made 33 recommendations to enhance policies and procedures

·         Initiated the public safety compact: a local, state and federal partnership designed to prevent and reduce crime, and increase inter-agency cooperation and coordination

·         Opened the new state-of-the art River North Correctional Center in Grayson County

·         Developed and opened the public safety training center at the site of the former Hanover Juvenile Correctional Center

·         Partnered with localities to implement Operation Rolling Thunder: a strategic law enforcement initiative to reduce violent crime and property crime

·         Eliminated an agency and merged core services into two other public safety agencies

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Sheriffs Department operates one shift per day?

(Photo credit: Battleofthehook)

Open Letter to the Citizens of Gloucester County Virginia

“For the Common Good. “

"The Land of the Life Worth Living?" 

The Virginia Constitution was written for us to limit the government intrusion into our lives.  Have you ever read the Constitution of the United States?  How about the Constitution of Virginia?

Listening to the Sheriff speak during the Board of Supervisors meeting last week.  Sheriff Warren said when asked about escorting the judges that they only have one shift per day and it would require overtime to escort judges to their cars.  If the sheriff’s office is only operating one shift per day who is keeping us safe when they are not on duty? Does this explain the crimes at night?  Why do we see sheriff’s vehicles on the road and at local businesses all hours day and night?  Is this for personal errands?  When is a good time to call to ensure we will get a response or someone will answer the phone?

Maybe we should consider doing away with the Sheriff’s Department and getting a professional Police Force?  One that is there to ensure the rule of law is obeyed and enforced; not an organization that serves at the Sheriff’s convenience? This would help to make it "The Land of the Life Worth Living?" 

I am not a lawyer and cannot give legal advice.  Our founding fathers used common sense and Christian scripture when establishing our founding documents. 

“For the Common Good. “

Sincerely,

Alexander James Jay

P.S.  "The nature of the encroachment upon American constitution is such, as to grow every day more and more encroaching. Like a cancer; it eats faster and faster every hour. The revenue creates pensioners, and the pensioners urge for more revenue. The people grow less steady, spirited and virtuous, the seekers more numerous and more corrupt, and every day increases the circles of their dependents and expectants, until virtue, integrity, public spirit, simplicity and frugality become the objects of ridicule and scorn, and vanity, luxury, foppery, selfishness, meanness, and downright venality swallow up the whole of society." --John Adams, to the Inhabitants of the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, 1775

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An Ex-Cop's Guide to Not Getting Arrested

getting arrested in Knoxville, Tennessee (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

MIKE RIGGSNOV 07, 2013

Dale Carson is a defense attorney in Jacksonville, Florida, as well as an alumnus of the Miami-Dade Police Department and the FBI. So he knows a thing or two about how cops determine who to hassle, and what all of us can do to not be one of those people. Carson has distilled his tips into a book titled Arrest-Proof Yourself, now in its second edition. It is a legitimately scary book—369 pages of insight on the many ways police officers profile and harass the people on their beat in an effort to rack up as many arrests as possible. 

"Law enforcement officers now are part of the revenue gathering system," Carson tells me in a phone interview. "The ranks of cops are young and competitive, they’re in competition with one another and intra-departmentally. It becomes a game. Policing isn’t about keeping streets safe, it’s about statistical success. The question for them is, Who can put the most people in jail?"

Which would make the question for you and me, how can we stay out of jail? Carson's book does a pretty good job of explaining—in frank language—how to beat a system that's increasingly predatory.

Be Invisible to Police

Carson has four golden rules, the first of which is, "If police can't see you, they can't arrest you." The simplest application of this concept is that if you plan on doing something illegal, you should do it in the privacy of your home. Yes, you can be arrested while at home, but you can't be profiled sitting in your living room, and profiling is what you're trying to avoid.

Be Invisible to Police

Carson has four golden rules, the first of which is, "If police can't see you, they can't arrest you." The simplest application of this concept is that if you plan on doing something illegal, you should do it in the privacy of your home. Yes, you can be arrested while at home, but you can't be profiled sitting in your living room, and profiling is what you're trying to avoid. 

The rule extends to activities that are perfectly legal. "In 21st century America," he writes, "as long as you're not committing a crime, you should be able to wear the wildest clothes you want, roam the streets when you feel like it, and lean on a light post or hang out at some wild club if it amuses you." "Should" is the key word. In reality, cops love hassling people who stand out, even though it's not illegal to, say, have a Buckeyes bumper sticker that looks like a pot leaf. If you drive a sports car or a lowrider, you're more likely to attract a cop's attention than if you drive, say, a gray Honda Civic. Same goes for clothes, hairstyles, tone and volume of voice. Be boring.  

So try to blend in. Beat cops who patrol the same routes day after day are "incredibly attuned to incongruity." But don't be too reactive when you see cops. "Police are visual predators," Carson writes. "Any sudden change in motion, speed, direction or behavior immediately attracts their attention." That means even if you're doing something you think might attract a cop's attention, quickly doing something else will attract even more attention. "Don't alter the pattern," Carson advises. "Keep on keeping on." 

Also, if you can help it, don't go out after dark. 

What if I can't be invisible to police?

If police want to hassle you, they're going to, even if you're following the above tips as closely as possible. What then? Every interaction with a police officer entails two contests: One for "psychological dominance" and one for "custody of your body." Carson advises giving in on the first contest in order to win the second. Is that belittling? Of course. "Being questioned by police is insulting," Carson writes. "It is, however, less insulting than being arrested. What I'm advising you to do when questioned by police is pocket the insult. This is difficult and emotionally painful."

Make eye contact, but don't smile. "Cops don't like smiles."

Winning the psychological battle requires you to be honest with cops, polite, respectful, and resistant to incitement. "If cops lean into your space and blast you with coffee-and-stale-donut breath, ignore it," Carson writes. Same goes for if they poke you in the chest or use racial slurs. "If you react, you'll get busted." Make eye contact, but don't smile. "Cops don't like smiles." Always tell the truth. "Lying is complicated, telling the truth is simple." 

He also says you should be dignified—unless it looks like you're about to lose both the psychological contest and the one for custody of your body. In which case, you should be strategically pitiful. 

 

First off, you should ask for a notice to appear as an alternative to being arrested. You still have to go before a judge, but you can go under your own power without first going to jail. Carson says the least degrading way to get a cop to issue you a notice in lieu of arresting you is to tell them that you're not a hardened criminal and that being arrested (and having your mugshot taken) is going to impact your employment, education and/or family. 

 

And if that doesn't work? It's debasement time. Start with crying. Bawl hard while begging for a notice (the option here is a notice or jail, not notice/jail or getting off scot free). "Don't waste time worrying about what your friends will think," Carson says. "If they're with you, they're getting arrested too." If they're not with you, they won't know. 

If crying fails, and you're willing to do whatever it takes to not go to jail, Carson advises you to "foul yourself so that the police will consider setting you free in order not to get their cruiser nasty." Vomit on your clothes. Defecate and urinate in your pants. Then let the officers know what you've done. If they arrest you anyway, you'll get cleaned and reclothed at the jail. 

 

Reasonable things you should never do 

 

If you're driving too fast and see a police car up ahead, don't hit the brakes. "If you suddenly hit the brakes," Carson writes, "cops in front of you will see your front end dip, a tip-off that you were speeding." Don't drive perfectly, or too slow. Don't slouch or put too much heavy stuff in your trunk, causing your car to ride low. If you're a dude, and you want to roll around town with your fellow dudes, be prepared for a stop. "When cops see four young males in a car, they immediately wonder if this is a crew of criminals out to do a job." If you're going to ride four deep, have one member of your car wear a highly visible item of clothing indicating what you do for a living. For instance, if you're all construction workers car-pooling on the way home from a job site, someone in the car should wear a hard hat. Seriously. 

Another reasonable thing you should never do? Allow a cop to search your car. There are many loopholes that allow cops to search your car without probable cause or a warrant, but Carson advises you to say no every time. You should still follow all the rules of a traffic stop—keep hands where cops can see them, give them your paperwork, get out of the car if they ask you to—but never let them search. Always, always, always say no (politely).

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/politics/2013/11/ex-cops-guide-not-getting-arrested/7491/

Link back to original story at The Atlantic Cities

Our Notes:

Violations to the United States Constitution continue to prevail throughout the nation.  Citizens are now the hunted.  We have all become pry to our government at so many levels and the insults continue to grow each year.  It's a sad state of affairs when a book like this becomes critical to daily survival.  We continue to head towards being nothing more than a major banana republic.  If you do not know your Constitutional rights, you do not see all the violations that exist in the above story.

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