Yes, they may be “better” than you, but that doesn’t mean they’re smarter than you!
Repeat after me….”GUNS are NOT TOYS!!!!!”
Now repeated that 10,000 times or until you understand that.
#nraam No, I’m not DJ’ing
Never there when I need them, always there when I don’t – POLICE
On the way home I was pulled over by police in Illinois. Apparently, the tags were expired on the vehicle I was driving. Thankfully the officer only gave me a warning – which is what I believe he should have done. And kept me from lowering my faith in cops further.
The annoying part is (according to my gut feeling) that he followed me because he saw me over the “white line” of a street light. This came out when I tried to inform him that the streetlight up the road was not working.
Which I was stopped at for 10 minutes maybe even 15. He stated that he observed me well past the white line. I tried to explain that I originally started WELL BEFORE THE WHITE LINE. And I each time the light went through a rotation and skipped me, I moved forward. I went from being 3/4 of a car length behind the white line to a 1/4 in front. Ironically, I was about to run the light, when I saw the police officer. I decided to wait a couple more times, but had decided that even with the recent police officer I was going to run it after the next rotation. Thankfully, it turned “green”. I was like “Great, now I don’t have to worry about police – oh what a fool, what was I thinking.”
I am pretty sure that the reason he trailed me was this fact. I just wish police would listen for a change. It gets harder and harder to respect the position.
Seriously, I don’t want to hear another lame arse mayor complain about crime until they quit wasting police officers time as ticket maids. Thankfully, it’s just a warning.
But now I’m even more tired….
Night all!
FBI agents taught to “bend” the law.
I wager most are not surprised by this revelation. Equally unsurprising -
“That review, now complete, did not result in a single disciplinary action for any instructor. Nor did it mandate the retraining of any FBI agent exposed to what the Bureau concedes was inappropriate material.”
In fact, what is surprising is that the agency itself found any criticisms. I’ve pretty much written off “internal investigations”, as everyone I seem to see results in the same result “concludes no breach of conduct or protocol was made”. I put about as much trust in such internal investigations as I do with a junky locked inside a pharmacy.
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/03/fbi-bend-suspend-law/
BTW, anyone know why the warning for “shaking hands with “Asians””?
Dangers of a Paranoid Society
An elderly man is apprehended by a squad of police for a second time…his crime “kidnapping (babysitting) his grand-daughter of a different melanin count.
http://gritsforbreakfast.blogspot.com/2012/02/me-apd-and-babysitting-while-white-part.html
The entire approach of this action was wrong. Having the first officer make a determination was reasonably acceptable if an actual call had been reported, but also very invasive. But if she felt there was a concern, a single cruiser should have joined her and the 2-3 officers could have inquired further. Then when he gave them the parents number, the very first thing they should have done was call the number to verify he was the grandfather – instead of using 9 police cruisers to surround him.
To quote the grandfather “”Seize first and ask questions later” is better than “shoot first,” I suppose, but it’s problematic for the same reasons.”
And this is the problem, we’re living in a society where gestapo police will cut through your door with a chainsaw, before they confirm they have the right address. How do you do a 2 year investigation and barge into the wrong house? (Furthermore, why use the chainsaw to cut a hole in the door. A sledgehammer is a better tool. But if you’re going to use a chainsaw, just cut the door around the lock. Are our FBI really that !@#$% stupid? Yes, sadly they are.
Dear police,
Mistakes happen. Please apologize when they do. It’s the difference between thinking you human vs inhuman.
Congratulations you idiots. You just made a 4 year old forever afraid of you.
Seriously, it’s called an A-D-D-R-E-S-S
FBI cuts through door of a home with a change saw. Lays mother prone on the floor with a gun pointed at her, as her 3 year old cries in the background.
Her crime? Wrong address!!!
Seriously, how many times do we need to read this before changes are enacted. If you can’t read an address or know what house you are busting into, than frankly, I sure as hell don’t want you to have a rifle and SWAT gear.
http://news.yahoo.com/fbi-cuts-down-mass-moms-door-wrong-home-143434056.html
I hereby propose a new law. All S.W.A.T. raids must now field a representative from the local post office to instruct and guide the S.W.A.T. unit in identifying and recognizing distinguing marks and numerals which aid in the identification of specific housing units.
Thankfully there were no negligent discharages on the part of officers this time. Less an innocent woman would likely be dead and a 3 year old girl motherless.
Police come lately…
Recently, there was a massive and lethal pile-up of cars in Florida. Nearly a dozen dead and another 1-2 dozen injured. (Please note the numerous media people calling for a ban on cars.)
Article
http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/29/us/florida-fatal-crashes/index.html?hpt=hp_c2
A spokesperson stated the Highway Patrol would “review this situation and determine if our process needs to be changed.”
I can tell you without a doubt that the policy and process needs to be changed. But I can almost guarantee you that a review will determine no fault on the police department and no need to change policy. The police department will continue to be ‘unresponsive’.
How do I know this? From nearly half a dozen personal experiences. Enough for me to anecdotally conclude that police departments are not trained in being responsive to potential emergencies, only past ones. And while many excuses can be made as to a shortage of officers, vehicles, etc. There is something more to it.
Recently, I found myself behind a swerving mini-van which posed a danger to itself and numerous other vehicles. I did my civic duty and called 9-1-1 twice. I drove through half the county awaiting to see a police vehicle. It never showed. Had I not remained with the vehicle until it was safely off the road, people could have died. Now I know it takes time to respond. But I drove through half the county, often at speeds as low as 35mph. Are you seriously going to tell me not a single county officer could respond within that time?
Similarly, 6 weeks before my wedding I was nearly killed in an accident. A combination of skilled driving and divine miracle allowed me to reach my wedding day. It was a drizzly day, I came over a small hill on I-91 only to see a car parked with it’s flashers in the middle of the highway. Attempting a sudden 65 to 0 stop in the drizzle is no easy task. Lead time was very slim, and I could feel my light Honda starting to hydro-plane. I knew if I rear-ended that car, I was dead. I made a decision to turn toward the guard rail wagering my chances of surviving a side impact with the rail was better than plowing into the vehicle. Miraculously I was able to turn before impact with the rail and narrowly pass the disabled vehicle.
I called 9-1-1 to report a car in a dead stop in an unviewable area of the highway posing an extreme danger. The dispatcher was non-chalant, and I could tell by their voice they were not going to act. “Excuse me, but I almost died. And there are already more cars narrowly avoiding impact. Get a patrol car out there and do something.”
And in a similar incident where I-95 flooded in the New Haven, Connecticut area. Cars were on the highway and finding themselves suddenly hydroplaning with zero visibility through about 8 inches of water. Alerted the police to the need for them to bring a patrol car to the area and slow down the traffic before someone was injured.
I do not understand why our police force is so focused on responding to incidents instead of pre-empting them. But I can tell you, this Florida incident was caused in part due to this mentality, and do I want to say “laziness”? Though I think it is more of a doctrine of “response” instead of “prevention”.
You see, as soon as that first impact occurred on that night (one in which the highway had already been closed to two prior impacts). A patrol car should have been routed to the area of the accident to start slowing down the traffic. Flashing red & blue lights in fog & smoke tend to slow down most drivers.
Lives could be saved through an implementation of a “pre-emptive” and responsive doctrine. No, police cannot be everywhere (but strangely they seem to be when it’s quota time for traffic tickets – then they can be sitting out in the middle of corn fields watching stop signs for which a dozen cars might use in an entire day).
This failed doctrine holds true beyond automobiles. One cannot rely upon the police force to keep you safe. You can’t always have a police officer with you. And sadly, you can seldom expect law enforcement to arrive in a fashion timely enough to keep you safe. I believe a lot of this comes down to the beauracracy involved. Before you even reach a police officer you must go through a 9-1-1 dispatch that is often poorly trained, and poorly paid. If you can get through that hurdle you then must potentially get through beauracratic policies that may further impede response. Ones designed to prevent officers from wasting gas driving around to potential emergencies that might never materialize. We’ll never know the extent of beauracratic influence that officers have to deal with, and how it impedes their service (unless of course you’re an officer). But from a few discussions I’ve had in the past, there is a lot more than us average folk are aware of. I mention the gasoline as just one, where chiefs and supervisors force the rank and file to be less effective due to budget restraints and rising gas prices being one of the most affectable. So when you wonder why you always see a police cruiser just sitting there all day, that’s your likely answer. And many of these police chiefs do so because they’re beholden to politicians who will often use “budget cuts” to police departments as one of their first weapons in their political negotiations.
For example, in the 1/2 dozen times I’ve called 9-1-1 over a vehicle swerving on the highway. One might point out that not a single one resulted in an accident. So why should the police respond? But I will counter with the fact that I expended my time to assist those vehicles (by flashing my lights and honking whenever they were about to impact) and thus prevented accidents that were likely if I had not remained shadowing the vehicles.
The problem with “potential incidents” is that a police officers arrival is likely to make them “avoided incidents”. If an officer had been set-up immediately to warn of the accident ahead and thus slowed traffic, or better yet, kept there after the first two accidents until visibility returned. How would you document the success? A police officer’s presence would have likely prevented any accidents. From a management’s point of time it would likely be viewed as a waste of resources. Especially if one had to pay overtime to maintain an officer’s presence. It is very hard to guage the success of preventative action.
For example, we know exactly how many people are killed by criminals wielding firearms. We know how many criminals are killed by citizens wielding firearms in their defense. But we only have a vague idea of how many incidents have been prevented from ever occurring due to armed citizens. Many encounters in which an armed citizen defends themselves go unreported. The criminals flees and the citizen sees little point in getting caught up in paperwork with law enforcement, especially if the city or area they’re in is reknown for not being gun friendly. Most of the accounts I’ve heard of a firearm being used to dissuade a perpetrator from action were not reported to law enforcement. Most seem to feel their firearm accomplished it’s purpose and they are safe. End of story. However, I believe this to be a failing in the gun community. If one is accosted, one should report it. Regardless of a safe outcome, reporting it to the authorities has the potential to provide safety to the next passer by.
How many people use firearms to defend themselves in a given year? I’ve heard anywhere from 65,000 to 2.5 million. I’d wager it falls somewhere in the middle, probably around a 1/4 of a million each year.
All this said, remember, the final responsible party for your safety is yourself. Avoid putting yourself in dangerous situations. Be it walking down a street in a bad neighborhood or driving during poor visibility conditions. And if you must engage in such situations take prudent actions. Be armed, and be aware. Drive slow and provide yourself more lead time by leaving a greater space between yourself and the vehicle in front of you.
Why? A Question on the Role of Police in Society
SHOULD WE ABOLISH THE POLICE?
Why is it, that when I dial 9-1-1, I can never get a police officer response. Currently I’m about 0-12. Yet, it never seems to fail that there is always an officer ready and available to ticket you.
Recent cases in point. A couple months ago I received a $110 ticket for not displaying my inspection stickers on my window. Mind you, my window had just been replaced. Then broke again 1 week later on my way to vacation. Then followed by days of massive flooding in our region. But none of that meant anything because, as the oldest !@#$% officer I’ve ever seen in my life stated, it was a matter of priorities.
More recently, I dialed 9-1-1 twice in relation to a min-van that was swerving all over the road. I followed this vehicle through half the country, often at 35mph. Flashing my lights whenever he was about to go off the road or into another car. I prevented 1/2 a dozen accidents. Still no action on the part of the police. Regardless of the fact that this was a mini-van and there was a higher than average chance children could have been on board.
A few days ago I received my first moving traffic conviction for accidentally running a stop sign. Now, I’m guilty. I failed to stop. My lunch was sliding off my seat, I was distracted, and it was drizzly. I realized I was going to have to make a really really hard stop and probably pass the sign a bit. So I kept going. Yes….I was wrong. And wouldn’t you know it, the one time I fail to stop. N-A-I-L-E-D.
Oh, let me describe this stop sign. It’s a back country road, off a back country road. There is a T-intersection with a stop sign. This in the midst of about a 1,000 acres of farmland. The intersecting road was clearly at one time the farm road, but was paved over at some point and made an actual road. I have seen exactly three vehicles use that intersecting road in the year+ of driving past it. And only one of those was oncoming from the road.
So basically, we have a stop sign for the soul purpose of having a speed trap to make $$$ off of. There is no safety reason for the stop sign. The view as one drives gives clear visibility of the oncoming road for about 1/2 a mile.
That said, I was guilty. I ran the stop sign. What !@#$% pisses me off. Is the fact that I stop at this sign every day on my way to work without fail. Regardless of the fact that it’s a stupid useless and annoying sign. But the one day I fail, there is a cop to nail me with a ticket.
Meanwhile, every !@#$% time I need a man in blue. They’re no where to be found. I’d just once, like to get an actual police response from a 9-1-1 call. Sorry men in blue. I know there are some really good cops out there. (Rich at BlueSheepDog.com seems like one, and I know a few officers personally.) But overall, I have found the majority of my interactions with police forces to be sub-par and unprofessional. And I question whether we should in fact have police forces.
I know that’s a very controversial statement. But look at it from my perspective. Dozen times calling 9-1-1, no response. Mind you, for one of those incidents was later deemed worthy of three police cruisers. Which were sent out to take a police report after the gas station manager called it in when all was well. But when the threat was posed, I got told “It’s New Haven, what you want us to do about it.”
Dozen times calling 9-1-1, no response. When my mother and I were dealing with a convicted Federal felon who was engaging in criminal behavior. We dealt with three law enforcement branches and not a single one were willing to do anything. And two of them stated of their own omission that it was essentially laziness.
So as far as I view police officers, they seem to be mostly a resource for counties and cities to raise $$ via ticketing of minor infractions. Well, I don’t view that as something the public needs. And frankly, I’m tired of being told that the reason officers can’t respond to my 9-1-1 calls is cause they’re too busy. Too busy doing what? Speed traps and fundraising.
The sad truth is that the regular speedsters and crazy drivers on the road seldom get caught by police. In fact, I’ve watch police officers quickly give us chase of those. The ones who usually receive tickets are those who drive the regular traffic flow on a highway that has artificially low speed limits set so that tickets can be given at need.
We’d be better off, if we set the speed limit and enforced it. But set them at a realistic speed. In fact, I’ve advocated that we need to move to variable speed highways. In which the speed limit can be adjusted based on the time and conditions. 55mph may be a fine speed limit on a rainy highway during rush hour. But is it a realistic speed limit at 3am?
I’d really love to hear from police officers, if any are willing to give voice, as to why 9-1-1 calls for me and many I know go un-responded too. But you guys always seem to be there to give out a ticket. Is this a management thing? Is there pressure from the depart, cities, etc. to ticket. Is this considered a higher priority than serving and responding to calls.
I am just trying to understand….cause I really don’t. And it’s very frustrating. I drove for half my county, for approx. 35 minutes. And apparently no officer was available to respond to my call about a vehicle swerving all over the road. The responsibility to protect lives fell onto my shoulders. I drove several exits past my house to ensure no one was hurt and no incident occurred. Thankfully, they eventually pulled over to the side of the road. But seriously, shame on the police, shame.
Lastly, my final reason for this contemplation is the 2nd Amendment itself. How much has the right to keep and bear arms been hurt by our multitude of standing police corps (and with Mayor Boomberg blabbing about his army, is there any other name for it but police corps). There was a time in the past where every decent person in town was expected to play a part in regards to dealing with and subjugating the criminal element. We gained safety in relinquishing that duty to a professional, but have we at the lost? our own active role in self-preservation? the strength of our rights? How many times have we heard someone say “We don’t need the 2nd Amendment. That’s why we have police.”
Please don’t get me wrong. I do believe there is a need for a professional police force, and that they have a role. I believe that role is to deal with the hardened professional criminals and gang lords. And to assist the citizens in their defense against criminals at hand. To me, the role should not be ticketing the avg joe for driving the traffic flow speed. It should be nailing those idiots who we see every day weaving in and out of traffic going 20mph+ more than anyone else on the road.
I would make a wager that if NONE of the ticket fine went to any government entity (not the city, not the emergency fund, not the ambulance fund, nada). A hypothetical situation where a traffic fine went to any 501C3 registered charity of the driver’s choosing. That we’d probably see an order of magnitude less tickets given out. The irksome part is that I feel this recession has seen a dramatic increase in the amount of ticketing being done. Perhaps the cash strapped cities and counties forget that most of US are also cash strapped in this recession.
“a couple of traffic tickets and no criminal history”
I’m a little late on this one, it slipped by me until today.
Jose Guerena, former marine, gunned down in a SWAT raid. Served two tours in Iraq. The SWAT team claims they did not do a no knock warrant, and came in with sirens. (I’d really like to hear from neighbors if that was true.)
How often are we going to tolerate these style SWAT raids? Granted, it’s possible Jose Guerena was involved in some illicit activity. Wouldn’t be the first soldier to do so. But the officers involved have released no details as to any evidence collected.
But even if they did, can we believe them? SWAT teams are becoming quite famed for fabricating lies and planting evidence. (See Kathryn Johnston)
Well it didn’t take long for them to being fabricating. Apparently, they initially claimed Jose Guerena shot first. “They now acknowledge that not only did he not fire, the safety on his gun was still activated when he was killed”
“We spoke with several of the neighbors,” Epps says. “And none of them — none of them — heard any sirens that morning. Every one of them told us they didn’t hear anything, no knocking, no shouting, until the shooting started. They didn’t hear anything until the shooting started.”
Now mind you…it is possible that Guerena was in fact involved in some illicit behavior. Let’s say that all the known evidence to the contrary doesn’t exist and he was. We are seeing a practice of bad habits arising. No knock SWAT raids. Shoot first, question later. And poor intelligence (ie: woman and children in location at time of raid). None of these occurences should be happening in America.
But based on the fact so far, it’s looking pretty damning to police. For those wondering why Guerena would respond with a rifle. Could it be because his wife lost two relatives to a home invasion the year before?
In conclusion, we already know how this will end. It will be sent to an independent police board of made up of knowledgeful examiners. They will review the case in detail and conclude that no wrong-doing was done on the part of the law enforcement officers.
While the rest of us will exlaim, there is a dead “daddy”, a dead “marine”, a dead “American”. Only a liar or a thug can conclude there was no wrong-doing.
If we can sentence Ramos and Compean to prison for 10 yrs for shooting a drug dealer in the butt. How many years should a police officer get for shooting an innocent American who risked his life serving his country in Iraq?
—
For those who want to have their stomach sickened further, here are some additional links.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/25/jose-guerena-arizona-_n_867020.html
http://azstarnet.com/news/local/crime/article_a978c23a-a40f-5d0a-a203-76b88ac67e86.html
http://azstarnet.com/news/local/crime/article_d7d979d4-f4fb-5603-af76-0bef206f8301.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BJ_Jn9rlVs
http://pimasheriff.org/files/1013/0463/5381/OIS050511.pdf
UPDATE: Camera video is posted over at
http://cursesfoiledagain2.wordpress.com/2011/05/27/more-on-the-killing-of-jose-guerena/
Well, it does seem they did have the sirens on for a few seconds. Though that siren sounded a lot more like a car alarm going off than a normal police siren. Wasn’t much of a knock. And far from the original comment that they knocked loudly for
I could almost hear something in the background there. Not sure if it was an officer or Guerena.
Here is what I believe happened. I believe the SWAT team figured they’d roll in like a piece of cake. They’d briefly turn on the siren, knock softly a few taps in order to claim they’d done what they should. Then just knock the door in and tell everyone to go prone.
Instead, they knock open the door and see their suspect armed. They simply opened fire without any hesitation. I understand that the SWAT team wants to go home at night. But police have to take the high road.
Their tactics seem pretty dumb as well. 5 team members at the door. What if there were other aggressors, they’d simply exit the back. Or even come around and flank the officers. Even if Guerena was everything the SWAT team says. This was pretty much a botched raid.
New Haven Police Sergeant “City residents should arm themselves”
As a former resident of New Haven, let me say a few things. The city needs more officers – not less. The city needs less crappy officers as well.
My wife comments that cuts always seem to involve police. Even though they tend to be a very very small portion of the budget. In fact, these high profile cuts are often done because they raise the ire of the city and help spur the cause of tax increases.
I have a lot of personal experience with the police of New Haven. Can I be honest, 90% of my loss of respect for police officers came from that city.
- I’ve dialed 9-1-1 and never had a response. After multiple incidents in a given day.
- Once dialed 9-1-1 and was told “It’s New Haven, what’d'ya expect us to do about it.” (Mind you, this same call later resulted in three police cars being sent to take down a police report.)
- When a known convicted federal felon broke into my mother’s house. We could not even get the police to dust for fingerprints. So that the info could be turned over to the man’s parole officer.
- And God forbid, you ever get into any situation involving a younger woman with a nice butt. The New Haven police will be such horny wankers that they won’t even bother to listen to you – even if you’re the victim.
So let me say clearly, that the New Haven police department is one of the major factors in my realization that every individual must take the law into their own hands. And hopefully, your police department will there to back you up.
So when a representative of the New Haven police say “city residents should arm themselves”, I fully agree.
Let me also chime in and say that New Haven’s got some damn good officers too. And thanks to two men in blue, a lot of my faither in police was restored.
After having a series of failed responses and unprofessional behavior on the part of a number New Haven police officers (and one insane New Jersey state trooper); I had pretty much began writing the police off.
Mind you, I am an Eagle Scout and it was very much ingrained in me that police officers are good folk. I never looked at them in any derogatory fashion. But I had just about lost all faith. One simple event changed that.
I was helping a friend push his broken truck into my driveway. It was snowing. Suddenly flashing lights appeared. I was in no mood for any hassle from a police department that had failed me way too many times in the prior 6 months. When the two officers stepped out, I was ready to be defensive (but civil). Instead, they offered to give us a hand. The four of us pushed the truck up into my driveway.
While that may seem a trivial matter, it was to me an act of restoration. “To serve and protect”. Here were two good officers. Two helpful officers. It told me that there were still good officers on the streets who weren’t about their egos, who weren’t lazy, who took their motto seriously. So how could such a little act change my attitude to an entire plethora of uniformed officers?
Simple…it reminded me that there are good cops. Therefore I could not allow myself to look upon all cops with disdain. To those two badges….thank you.
PS – And to all those who told me, “then maybe I should move?”, I did, and am much happier for it. Though I do miss the culinary mecca that is New Haven.
Police Officers that make us distrust LEOs
My wife came across this article. She forwarded it to me. I’ll forewarn you that this will be one of the most disgusting things you’ve ever read. Frankly, this article epitomizes the reason why many of us “citizens” do not trust or like LEOs.
There are some great officers, serving and protecting society. [If you’re one of them. Thank you! You are greatly appreciated for all your hard work and risk of life and limb. Thank you! You are the one’s that keep us from writing off men with badges. If not for those of you that server and protect, and uphold while not abusing your authority – we’d have no faith left in law enforcement. But there are an equal number of scumbadges (scumbags with a badge). They’re dishonest, they’re on the take, they’re on power trips with egos run amok. They are little more than high school bullies in uniforms.
The following article details a horrendous event. The incident involves a man breaking into a home. A father hurries his family out, grabs his gun, and goes to protect his son who is upstairs. He detains the criminal at gun point and calls 911. The police arrive and are informed of the situation by the man’s wife.
A police officer enters the home and immediately shoots the homeowner six times. And then numerous attempts by the police to cover-up the infraction. One that would have likely been glossed over and covered up except for two facts. One that the homeowner was on the phone with 911 and everything was recorded. Two, that the homeowner lived to sue.
Several insidious deeds transpired on the part of the officer:
- Failure to announce presence, or issue any command or verbal warning.
- Lying, when speaking with Internal Affairs, Officer Lily claims the homeowner pointed a firearm at him. However, the 911 recording bore a much different statement on the part of Mr. Lily.
- Sgt. on scene promises to have Officer Lily’s “back” on the matter.
- Anthony, the home owner, requests that his shot-up body not be shown to his wife and children. Instead, the officers drag him outside by his leg.
- The police treated the incident as if Athony was a criminal, denying friends and family information about Anthony’s well being, and refusing Athony’s family access to him in the hospital. (Frankly, if Anthony’s wife Lesley determined herself to visit her husband, even at the well being of the officers – I’d consider her justified.)
- Per the Simple Justice Blog, it is stated that they also tried to pin out-of-state warrants on Anthony, and coax the gun dealer who sold Anthony his firearm to state the firearm was illegal.
- Furthermore, the police almost let the criminal walk due to a failure to conduct a proper investigation.
In all likelihood, the police department will state that they did an internal investigation and concluded that the officers acted accordingly. Hogwash (to use a polite term).
Now, I understand in the fog of war – SHT happens. American soldiers have long suffered friendly fire, and casualties at the hands of friendly fire. However, upon reading the filed document and the quotes from the 911 tape. It is my opinion that the officers involved should face significant jail time. They neglected standard operating procedures that resulted in the near death and crippling of a citizen. But they also showed blatant disregard to that citizen’s rights, and well-being – engaging in activities that could have furthered Athony’s wounds. Based on the actions of the officers one could make a good case for the assumption that they were seeking Athony’s death. The homeowner lived, no thanks to the officers.
All I can say is reading this document makes my blood boil. And frankly, if it was my wife who was in the hospital under such auspices, no one would stop me from visiting her. Badge or no badge.
If you think my views are out of line. Read the following court filing document. If you are not left outraged. Than you must be a LEO more concerned with covering your fellow badges butt than serving and protecting the citizens you took an oath for.
http://www.courthousenews.com/2009/09/23/911Call.pdf
PS – Yes, the Phoenix “Use of Force” review board cleared the officers. Can I make a suggestion to municipalities. Do yourself a favor and save some money, disband these silly “boards”. Having read a number of similar incidents, there is only one thing they all share in common, the review board always comes out in favor of the officers. In fact, I’ve never seen them come out with any other answer in these situations. Their value and trustworthiness in the eyes of the citizenry is nill. I’d trust a heroine addict with a bag more than I trust these so-called review boards.
