Deming, now El Paso police force anal probes, observation of bm movements...

[duhneece]

I thought this had been a Latest Breaking News thread when the 'search' happened, but I can't find it and now read of another instance. I am beyond angry, beyond tears:
Thursday, December 19, 2013 - 7:30pm

El Paso, Texas (KOB) — The American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of a woman from Lovington, N.M., claiming federal agents and doctors unlawfully searched her vaginal and anal cavities.

The woman, known only in the legal document as Jane Doe because she considers herself a victim of sexual assault, crossed a port of entry into El Paso after visiting a family friend in Juarez, Mexico, on Dec. 8, 2012. According to the civil complaint, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection dog alerted agents to Doe. It prompted the federal agents pat her down. "The agents ran their fingers over her genitalia and checked inside of her pants," said Doe's attorney, Laura Schauer Ives, of the ACLU. "She was asked to undress. She was asked to squat and the agents peered into her cavities with flashlights and pressed their fingers into her genitalia."

The complaint states federal agents never found drugs, so they transported her to the University Medical Center of El Paso. There, she was allegedly subjected to unnecessary invasive medical procedures.

"First the agents observed a bowl movement," Schauer Ives said. "That didn't reveal any evidence of criminal activity. She was then X-rayed. The X-rays revealed there was no evidence of contraband or criminal activity. She was then subjected to a cavity search, both rectal and vaginal, and finally she was given a CT scan..."

http://www.ktsm.com/news/new-mexico-woman-files-lawsuit-over-search-border

AND
"ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - A southern New Mexico man who was pulled over for not making a complete traffic stop was taken to two hospitals and forced to have anal probes, three enemas, two body X-rays and a colonoscopy because police thought he was hiding drugs, according a federal lawsuit.

No drugs were found, and the man is now being billed thousands of dollars for the "illegal, invasive and painful medical procedures," the lawsuit claims.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of David Eckert against police and sheriff's officials in Deming and Hidalgo County, which borders Mexico. It alleges police wanted the searches conducted because they thought Eckert appeared to be clenching his buttocks when he got out of his car Jan. 2. Police also brought in a drug-sniffing dog, which detected something in the driver's seat.

The officers named in the complaint deny the bulk of the allegations in court responses. One response says Eckert "was known in Hidalgo County to insert drugs into his anal cavity." No additional details were provided..."
http://www.elpasotimes.com/latestnews/ci_24465428/lawsuit-anal-probes-ordered-after-deming-nm-traffic

[Brigid]

1. Only when LEOs, hospitals, and medical personnel . . .

Are held personally liable, both criminally and civilly, for their actions, will these horrifying incidents stop.

[duhneece]

2. Agreed.

I AM proud of the Deming physicians who refused to participate because they recognized the 'request' as unethical. If you knew Deming, you would first be surprised, then oh-so-proud.

[Frustratedlady]

4. Even were billed for the procedures? Good grief! eom

[Brigid]

5. I dare these providers to try to collect.

I triple-dog dare them.

[malthaussen]

3. Damn, why didn't they just plant some on them and have done with it?

[Th1onein]

6. But, you know, had he CONSENTED to the search, AFTER the search.....

he would not have been billed for the "services."

Can you believe this shit? They ask you to sign a consent form AFTER they've searched your body cavities, and try to coerce you to sign it by saying that, if you don't, you will be billed for the services.

Un-fucking-believable. If they ever tried this with me, I'd probably end up dead. I would not allow them to do this, voluntarily. There are some lines that you simply do not cross.

[loudsue]

7. Good grief, duhneece.... this is awful!

What in the hell are they thinking down there? And you're 100% right about Deming... I'm glad they didn't want to participate.

How are you feeling, BTW?

[Packerowner740]

8. Reading the story it was NOT the El Paso police, it was federal agents

Despicable behavior none the less.

[Dawson Leery]

9. Qualified immunity must be eliminated.

http://www.theagitator.com/2011/11/03/more-police-union-follies/

"A Florida state trooper pulls over an off-duty Miami cop after a five-minute chase, during which the off-duty Miami cop, who was on his way to a second job, drove in excess of 120 mph and weaved in and out of traffic.

The head of the local police union is now criticizing the cop for the unprofessional behavior. But as you might guess, he isn’t criticizing the cop who was speeding."

http://m.daytondailynews.com/news/ap/ohio/ohio-police-contracts-set-allowable-booze-levels/nb7t9/
"Some law enforcement contracts across Ohio set allowable alcohol levels for officers on duty.

State Highway Patrol troopers and state park police are among those who can't be disciplined for having blood alcohol levels below .04 percent, the Dayton Daily News reports (http://bit.ly/17HIMJs ). Some local agencies in the state have higher permissible levels, while others have zero tolerance on drinking.

Officials say such language has often been in contracts for years."

Police "unions" should be eliminated.

[bvar22]

10. Are we "there" yet?

The story needs to be corrected.

The article states, and undoubtedly the Official Police Report states that:
[font size=3]" a U.S. Customs and Border Protection dog alerted agents to Doe."[/font]

This is NOT what happened.
What really happened is that the dog displayed a dog behavior [font size=3]that the agents interpreted as an alert.[/font]

Dogs exhibit a wide range of behaviors that can be interpreted however a human wants to interpret them.
As the case above proves, the dog did NOT alert for drugs, but was simply doing doggy things.

Unfortunately, dogs can not be put on the stand or cross examined.
But their "handlers" SHOULD be held responsible for their BOGUS "interpretations".

[alfredo]

13. Dogs smell crotches and butts. They might find your seat

cushion worthy of a sniff. Sniffing butt probably tells them what food is in their territory.

[bvar22]

15. How did the myth of the infallible Government Dog ever get traction?

The Dog probably knows what he is smelling,
but, for some reason, this infallibility has been transferred to the "handler".
I love dogs and have lived with dogs all my life,
but it is very easy to mis-interpret what they are telling us.

"Did Timmy fall in the well (again)??!!!"


"My DOG smelled DRUGS on THAT person"
does NOT cross the threshold of Probably Cause,
until the DOG achieves human speech,
and can be held accountable in a Court of LAW.

[alfredo]

19. It reminds me of dunking witches.

[bvar22]

20. That is a good comparison.

It absolves the Handlers of any responsibility.

[alfredo]

22. We have become a police state. We've been moving in that direction, but it took

the Patriot Act to push us over the edge.

[A Simple Game]

21. Maybe we need another 3 strikes law? 3 strikes and either the dog

or the handler are out. Oh what the heck, both are out. Most of these dogs only do what the handler wants from them.

[Savannahmann]

11. Bill the individual officers for the medical procedures.

I bet their standard of probable cause goes way up if they personally have to pay for the procedures that turn nothing up. Like store clerks who get fired for falsely accusing someone of shoplifting.

[Swede Atlanta]

12. This is just another view into the police state....

they think they can do anything to anyone at anytime.

The Supremes have increasingly given police the power to do anything they want with impunity.

[Jefferson23]

14. Reprehensible...bastards. I am pleased to read she has ACLU by her side. n/t

[abq e streeter]

16. I hope all involved in these cases are sued to the point

of bankruptcy. And yeah, nice to know that at least some medical personnel refused to go along with state sponsored and imposed rape.

[Garion_55]

17. i think these cops are just horny

this woman was probably just too good looking the cops couldnt control themselves.

in the end (no pun intended) the cops and medical staff will keep their jobs after 'investigations' found no wrong doing but the assault victims will get huge payoffs from the courts paid out by the taxpayers and business will continue as usual.

these are just the cases we've heard about i imagine there are tens maybe hundreds of other victims out there bullied into not talking.

god bless america

[ReRe]

18. What I would like to know is the statistic...

... that shows the total amount of invasive searches v. how many were found to have drugs hidden inside their bodies. I think searching for drugs to this extent should be unlawful. Are they not able to find drugs in the regular search methods? This looks like splitting hairs to me. Or just another proof that we really are a police state.

[woo me with science]

23. K&R

[duhneece]

24. First time I've been at a computer with internet...

And realize that if I had been to a computer with internet, I would have wanted to make the corrections suggested here. Since it's been so long, I feel it's a waste of effort. I DO want to express my gratitude for y'all's expressions of outrage. How weird is that?
Thank you, my fellow DUers.