July 22, 2014

Chokehold case raises police brutality concerns

http://www.msnbc.com/politicsnation/watch/chokehold-case-raises-police-brutality-concerns-310489155657

Rev. Al Sharpton weighs in on the disturbing video, that went viral over the weekend, of 43-year-old Eric Garner struggling as a police officer appears to place him in a chokehold. Plus, the tape of a California woman beaten by a patrol officer on a highway. Rev. Al Sharpton calls both attacks “unjustified.”

July 21, 2014

From Coast-To-Coast, Police Abuse Must End

Every time I comfort a grieving family member who has lost a loved one to police brutality, I hope and pray that it will be the last time. But deep down, I know it won't be.

Saturday morning, I was joined at National Action Network's (NAN) weekly rally by relatives of the late Eric Garner, a father of six who died as police officers in Staten Island placed him in an illegal chokehold. At our rally, Garner's widow was so overcome with grief that she collapsed on stage right near me as several of us then rushed to assist her. NAN also held a march in Staten Island over the weekend after family members came to us for help, and I preached at Riverside Church in Manhattan yesterday to call for a restoration of humanity. As Garner's children have to face the harsh reality of living without their father for the rest of their lives, we must demand that they receive justice. At the same time, NAN's Los Angeles chapter has rallied with others for Marlene Pinnock, a 51-year-old grandmother, who was repeatedly pummeled in the face reportedly by a California Highway Patrol officer. Both outrageous incidents were caught on videotape, and both cases demand swift action. But after watching continuous acts of police abuse and brutality from coast-to-coast, perhaps the real question is, have we reached a point where federal authorities need to step in?"

The video footage that emerged of Eric Garner's encounter with police is disturbing on multiple levels and very difficult to watch. I caution anyone who is about to view it to be prepared to witness a level of disregard for human life that should disgust and outrage us all. I cannot understand how anyone can choke an unarmed man, and continue to do so despite the fact that he is saying he cannot breathe over and over and over again. Let's put aside the fact that chokeholds are illegal; where is the humanity? This man is literally telling you he cannot breathe. And to add insult to injury, EMS workers and others that arrive on the scene also fail to do anything to revive or assist Garner as this footage shows. The level of disregard is utterly frightening. And what might you ask was Eric Garner's alleged crime? Selling loose cigarettes. "

In both the Garner case and the Pinnock case, individuals of a different race sensed that something was wrong and recorded the events. Let's not fool ourselves, if it weren't for these videos, would we have even known about the tragic death of Garner, or the vicious abuse against Pinnock? These aren't isolated incidents; all across this nation police brutality is very much alive and impacting people who aren't lucky enough to have it caught on tape.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-al-sharpton/from-coasttocoast-police-_b_5606161.html

July 17, 2014

Imagine What We Could Buy If We Didn't Have to Spend Billions on Police Brutality Cases

"The numbers are shocking. "








Every few weeks, a newspaper somewhere in America reports on a million-dollar settlement paid out in a case of police abuse. Sometimes the figures are jarring. In 2012, Chicago gave Christina Eilman $22.5 million after police released the bipolar woman into a violent neighborhood, where she was beaten and raped. Earlier this year, the NYPD agreed to pay out $18 million to various defendants roughed up at the RNC convention in 2004.

It’s true that most cases result in far smaller payouts, but they can add up to nearly a billion dollars a year for just one city. That’s eye-popping when you consider that state governments collectively spend roughly $10 billion on public assistance programs for the poor. When more money is spent consoling victims of brutality than providing assistance for low-income people, that’s both a fiscal and humanitarian crisis. "


Consider New York City. In 2012, taxpayers paid $152 million in claims involving the NYPD. That same year, Mayor Bloomberg voted to cut $175 million from childcare and afterschool programs, affecting 47,000 kids. Child programs not only provide relief to working families with maxed-out schedules, they are the best tools the city has to foster an equal society in the long term. Instead the city is spending money settling cases like the one last month involving Officer Eugene Donnelly, who drunkenly barged into a woman’s home one night and “beat the hell out of her.”

The NYPD forecasts it will spend even more on such cases by 2016. "

* Prosecutors have an extreme reluctance to pick up cases of police abuse. Federal prosecutors decline around 95 percent of such cases for two main reasons: juries are mostly conditioned to side with the police, and various impediments are in place to make prosecution more difficult

http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/imagine-what-we-could-buy-if-we-didnt-have-spend-billions-police-brutality-cases

July 13, 2014

APD to buy 350-plus AR-15 rifles

New Mexico's largest police department, mired in controversy over the use of excessive force, is about to supply military-style weapons to officers using taxpayer money.

The investigative team at KOB Eyewitness News 4 learned that Albuquerque Police awarded a bid to a local vendor for the purchase of AR-15 rifles -- the type of gun used to kill James Boyd in the foothills in March.

According to the request for bid, which ended two weeks ago, the department would likely purchase 350 guns in the first year of a two-year contract. Thereafter, it would order quantities of 50 as necessary.

"You're asking for trouble, in my opinion," Peter Simonson, Executive Director of the ACLU of New Mexico said."

Simonson was unaware of the department's purchasing plans until KOB contacted him. He thought APD was moving away from using high-powered weapons after the Department of Justice said APD officers have a "pattern and practice" of using excessive and deadly force.

"I think it sends a contradictory message to the public, and I think it should raise concerns about how seriously they're actually taking the DOJ reforms," he said."

http://www.kob.com/article/stories/s3499057.shtml#.U7_vB_ldXKh

July 12, 2014

Cops Rethink Plan To Give Teen A Boner For Justice

Police in Virginia will not proceed with controversial plans to photograph a 17-year-old boy's genitalia as evidence in a sexting case against him.

Manassas police backed down Thursday following criticism for obtaining a search warrant to take pictures of the boy's penis. Authorities planned to compare those photos with a pornographic video the teen allegedly sent to his 15-year-old girlfriend in January.

The teen's lawyer had said officials threatened to medically induce an erection in the boy if necessary"

July 10, 2014

Congresswoman Says CHP Beating Video Is Brutality

A congresswoman said Wednesday that video of a California Highway Patrol officer repeatedly punching a woman he had pinned on the side of a Los Angeles freeway is unjustifiable police brutality.

Rep. Maxine Waters said the officer should be fired for "viciously" punching the woman and the CHP must thoroughly investigate.

She called the incident a "brutal attack" and said "there is nothing that can justify the officer punching a helpless woman on a freeway."

Water said she will organize women to speak out about police brutality again and "demand justice and reforms that will create change within law enforcement to prevent this kind of abuse from continuing to happen."

For now, Pinnock remains in the hospital under a psychiatric hold. Her family found her covered in bruises, ice packs and taking pain medication.

"I'm just so overwhelmed," daughter Maisha Allums told reporters Tuesday. "I can't believe a CHP officer that was supposed to protect my mom and help my mom beat her like a — I can't even say like a dog because if it was a dog getting beat like that he would have been in jail."

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/patrol-head-shocked-beating-video-24478937

July 8, 2014

Americans are down on America

We’re No. 33!

That’s the bottom line in a new Gallup poll measuring the extent of freedom in 135 countries. Only 79% of Americans say they’re satisfied with their freedom to choose what to do with their lives, down from 87% in 2008. The top five nations where people feel most satisfied with their freedoms are New Zealand, Australia, Cambodia, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates. At No. 33, the United States is sandwiched between Bahrain and Cameroon."

* The United States is one of the few places where freedoms appear to be on the wane. Of the 100 countries where Gallup measured changes in freedom during the past five years, 75 of them registered an improvement, while 21 registered a decline. Four stayed the same. Of the decliners, only five nations report sharper drops than the United States. Two of them — Syria and Afghanistan —

* the percentage of Americans who believe the United States “stands above all other countries” dropped from 38% in 2011 to 28% in 2014. Young Americans are least impressed with their home country, with only 15% of 18-29-year-olds saying the United States is the world’s No. 1 nation. Among seniors, 40% feel that way "

* Many Americans seem to question the basic premise that everybody can get ahead in the so-called land of the free. A recent analysis by USA Today found living the American Dream, loosely defined, costs a typical family of four roughly $130,000 per year. That’s in a country where the median household income is only about $53,000, or less than half of what’s needed for a middle-class lifestyle."

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/americans-are-down-on-america-190304928.html

July 7, 2014

Indiana cop assaults wheelchair-bound man, keeps job, faces no charges

LAFAYETTE, IN — An officer has been allowed to keep his job and face no legal consequences after accosting a paralyzed and dumping him out of his wheelchair into the street.

The incident occurred on October 1, 2013. Some Lafayette police officers had just finished issuing a warning to 25-year-old Nicholas Kincade, who requires a motorized scooter for mobility."

Nicholas Kincade’s with facial cuts following the attack.

Kincade had been dismissed, and began slowly rolling down the sidewalk. His wheel inadvertently grazed Lt. Tom Davidson’s foot.

Davidson’s fury erupted in an instant. With both hands he plowed into the paralyzed man, sending him sprawling helplessly onto the pavement.

“You did not drive over me, f*****!!” Davidson barked. “Now you’re going to jail. Now you’re going to jail.”

Officers swarmed the man as he lie awkwardly in the street. Mr. Kincade attempted to explain it was all an accident.

The incident was captured on dash-cam video, which has finally been released after 9 months."

Video at link: http://www.policestateusa.com/2014/nicholas-kincade/#prettyPhoto

July 7, 2014

Police Brutality Statistics In The United States Fell By 60 Percent When Cops Wear Video Cameras

Police brutality statistics apparently fell by 60 percent in one California town when all police officers were required to wear portable video cameras while on the job.

In a related report by The Inquisitr, a video of a CHP officer punching a fallen woman 11 times in the face went viral after it was filmed by a passing driver. But another video was even worse since it showed Albuquerque police shooting two suspects in the back, never mind when a homeless man was shot in the back.

The city of Rialto, California did a controlled study where the city’s 70 police officers were required to wear a video camera that recorded all of their interactions with the public. In 2012 alone complaints against Rialto police officers fell by 88 percent, while use of force by officers fell by almost 60 percent."


* Of course, one huge negative to outfitting every cop with a camera is public privacy concerns. But even the American Civil Liberties Union, which is usually quick to protest anything that might infringe upon personal privacy, says that the notable drop in police brutality statistics is worth it:

“Although we generally take a dim view of the proliferation of surveillance cameras in American life, police on-body cameras are different because of their potential to serve as a check against the abuse of power by police officers.”

http://www.inquisitr.com/1337944/police-brutality-statistics-in-the-united-states-fell-by-60-percent-when-cops-wear-video-cameras/