Over marijuana. Lethal force? Are you fvcking kidding me?!

[kpete]

Police shoot unarmed student over marijuana, campuses erupt
by Cenobyte
Sun Mar 29, 2009 at 06:42:28 AM PDT

Seriously, this insanity has to stop.

I can't even use marijuana -- it just knocks me out -- so I hope that that disclosure heads off any assumption that I'm in this to get high.

But in Michigan, a college student was shot in the chest by police during a search of his off-campus apartment for marijuana. According to reports, he opened the door, and was shot by a deputy in the chest.

Over marijuana. Lethal force? Are you fvcking kidding me?!

From The Holland Sentinal:

He returns to class following punctured lung, fractured ribs, damaged liver

Copp was unarmed when a deputy shot him in the chest at his off-campus apartment more than two weeks ago. West Michigan Enforcement Team officers entered the residence on a search warrant.

That deputy remains on paid leave while the Michigan State Police investigate the shooting.

The shooting spurred several student protests ...

Copp’s attorney has said “a few tablespoonfuls” of marijuana were found in the apartment.


http://www.hollandsentinel.com/news/x1984813816/GVSU-student-shot-in-drug-raid-calls-for-patience-in-investigation

more at:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/3/29/714283/-Police-shoot-unarmed-student-over-marijuana,-campuses-erupt

[Summermoondancer]

1. They shoot old 92 year old ladies over it too

Do you recall the situation in Atlanta where they shot an elderly lady? They broke down her door with a no knock warrant trying to accuse her of drug dealing...it was a warrant they lied to get in the first place...they based it on burgler bars...who would be stupid enough to NOT have burgler bars in the West End of Atlanta, Georgia? It is the Hood extra heavy...! Well they broke down the door, didn´t identify themselves as cops and were in plain clothing...stupid...she shot at them and they killed her...well she wasn´t a drug dealer, she didn´t have drugs, they planted them...then they tried to threaten someone that saw the whole thing...it all came to light and they were suspended and the entire narcotics force had to be replaced. Nice job!

[Heidi]

2. Can't believe some of the nutty comments at the Holland Sentinel website.

Cogent thought and literacy apparently are not valued by some of those folks. Hope none of their kids are found by cops to be in the presence of two or three spoonsful of weed.

i stand on the sideof the sheriffs dept. and our drug team. they were doing their jobs. copp was had something he knew was illegal to have. it dont matter how much or little he had. it was still illegal. and the drug policys. their is nothing wrong with them.if it were not for the dea. and other drug agencys. the big drug cartels would run the world. and we would not have the freedoms we have now.drug users are just a small part of a much bigger picture. the drug has to come from some where,read up on the cartels and their violence.

[dixiegrrrrl]

7. What a kool aid quote from the freeper.

"the big drug cartels would run the world."

Right...."would run", huh?


"and we would not have the freedoms we have now"

I will bet dollars to doughnuts that writer could not even list the "freedoms" in the Constitution versus the
"freedoms" we have lost, or even state what "freedoms" we have now.
Gotta protect those "freedoms"...which apparently no longer cover being shot by the police for no reason.

[BR_Parkway]

10. Big Drug cartels already rule the world - Phizer, Merck, GlaxoSmithKline

typical Freeper - can't ever see what's in front of their face, but always willing to misspell their radio broadcast talking points in any and every forum

[The_Commonist]

19. Yeah, like what about the freedom...

...to enjoy a bonghit in the privacy of my own home?

[surrealAmerican]

21. ... or even just the freedom not to be gunned down in your own home.

[rurallib]

12. looks like that poster was stoned.

[Heidi]

13. Probably gettin' ready to call the cops and report himself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrZLc9lqQM0

[nuxvomica]

37. Maybe not. Some folks smoke pot to get "stupid"

While other folks don't need any assistance.

[sarcasmo]

27. Holland is a Hardcore winger area which is about ten miles from my house

[riverdeep]

63. Isn't Holland where Hope College is?

College towns are usually better.

[Mari333]

29. ooo I live in west michigan and it doesnt surprise me

lots of people like that here. creepy.

[acmavm]

30. That fucker is lucky the cops aren't allowed to shoot someone based on

how ignorant they are. He would have been worm food long ago.

[sammythecat]

32. (sigh)

The sad thing is, there are millions and millions of voters in this country just as brilliant as this guy.

[PA Democrat]

41. That poster's grammar and spelling are equal to his logic

and intelligence. I stopped counting at 12 errors in spelling and grammar.

[scarletwoman]

3. From your OP, I wouldn't have known that the student is still alive, if I hadn't clicked on

the first link. I got really upset as I was reading your post, thinking how horrible, what a waste of a life, hope his parents sue the shit out of that police department -- until the Holland Sentinel page finally loaded (I'm on dialup) and I saw the actual headline.

Yes, it still sucks that he was shot, but I think it's a bit of a disservice that your OP doesn't make it clear that he survived the shooting.

I love you dearly, kpete, and appreciate all that you do for DU and all hundreds and hundreds of incredibly important pieces of information you tirelessly gather week after week -- so I hope you'll not take this small criticism personally.

Best wishes,
sw

[kpete]

5. I do not mind at all...

you are right and I thank you.
I updated post to include:
"He returns to class following punctured lung, fractured ribs, damaged liver"


peace, kp

[scarletwoman]

9. Thank you.

:hug:

[Bluenorthwest]

43. Well they shot a 68 year old man, and he died

in Oregon at the begining of March. Arrested an 80 year old woman for growing plants, shot the man dead.

[peace13]

15. I didn't know that we measure pot by cooking utensils now.

I can just hear someone asking to buy one half cup of the stuff. Too funny!

[BlooInBloo]

4. Fucking domestic terrorists.

[Tim01]

6. Wow. They thought he had pot so they shot him in the chest.

Seriously. They shot him over a mistake. Either the cop was incompetent or the cop believed the guy had a weapon.

We should get rid of all cops. When somebody calls 911 they can get a drug dealer instead.

[Pastiche423]

61. I think that is a grand idea

[MadHound]

8. Of course the insanity has to stop

The majority of people of this country want it to stop, other countries want it to stop, but the power elite certainly don't want it to stop. After all, the War on Drugs brings the cash rolling in for the select few, police departments, certain segments of the legal community, various government agencies, etc. etc. Despite his being initially in favor of decriminalizing pot, apparently this power elite has gotten to our new president, who now says, "The answer is 'no," Obama said flatly, "I dont think that is a good strategy to grow our economy."

Thus this failed war is going to roll on as more people get killed and all our civil rights disappear.

What's even more troubling is that the Obama administration is even backpedaling on their pledge of no more medical marijuana raids. <http://cbs5.com/local/medical.marijuana.raid.2.968019.html> So much for that "change we can believe in" at least when it comes to marijuana policy.

[tridim]

17. Why are you ignoring Senator Webb's plan?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=8298114&mesg_id=8298114

And no the admin is not backpedaling on their pledge, the DEA is claiming the dispensary broke federal and state law. That claim is being litigated now.

[MadHound]

23. I would love to see Webb's plan come to fruition,

The trouble is, given Obama's recent statements, I doubt that the bill would get much traction in Congress without the president pushing it, not to mention Obama signing it into law.

As far as Obama breaking his pledge, yes, he did. He promised in the campaign that if he were to be president he would “not use Justice Department resources to try and circumvent state laws” in regards to medical marijuana. <“not use Justice Department resources to try and circumvent state laws” [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTWZ7W5w48s> Yet that's what the DEA just did.

[tridim]

24. The bill already has traction AND bipartisan support.

It's going to happen, period. This year.

And you're still wrong about the Obama/Holder pledge, but it looks like there no convincing you. If the DEA was in the wrong (and I'm guessing might be), they'll be dealt with. But for now, all we know is that the dispensary was allegedly not paying some taxes and that's a crime regardless of what Obama and Holder said. Let's see where this goes before condemning the President who had exactly nothing to do with the recent raid.

[MadHound]

25. Will Obama sign it?

Somehow I doubt it, but we'll see.

As far as the dispensary raid, if the problem was with taxes, then why send in the DEA and not the IRS? Sorry, but this looks like another case of unleashing the DEA to subvert state laws and the will of the people. Oh, and since the DEA is part of the executive branch of government, Obama does indeed have everything to do with this raid.

[tridim]

28. I don't know why they sent the DEA instead of the IRS

That's what they're trying to determine as we type.

But I know that Obama didn't send them.

[MadHound]

31. So Obama isn't in charge of the Justice Dept. and by extension the DEA?

I'm sure that if Obama had actually put his foot down on the matter, the DEA wouldn't have been involved in this. Instead we see that Obama was simply paying lip service to the notion of restraining the DEA, while the reality seems to be that there is no change and the DEA is still free to raid as it pleases.

[tridim]

33. Obama did put his foot down, and it's still down

You're still ignoring that fact.

Do you really believe that Obama called the DEA and told them to raid the dispensary? :eyes:

[MadHound]

34. Apparently not, being the President, if he had wanted the DEA to stop these raids,

They would have stopped. One call to the DEA and there would be no more raids. Yet Obama didn't make that call, and instead of the IRS going in on a tax matter, the DEA went in and raided the place.

Understand this, please. Obama has control over the DEA. What he says concerning their actions is law. And while he publicly promised that there would be no more DEA raids, apparently he "forgot" to pass that memo on to the DEA. Thus, he broke his promise. The only other alternative is that we have a rogue DEA, which would be a much more serious problem. So which is it? A rogue DEA or a broken promise?

[crikkett]

39. Do you really think they go to him for approval of every action?

I'm sorry that you're angry. I think you're mistaken in your assumption that this particular raid was approved by Pres. Obama himself rather than other people interpreting his policy.

[Romulox]

44. If Obama ordered the DEA to stop the raids, they would stop.

It's just like NAFTA: "Sometimes during campaigns the rhetoric gets overheated and amplified."

In other words, his words are frequently just talk.

[crikkett]

47. So do you fault him for not ordering a stop to raids (that haven't happened since

this one instance in SF)?

[Romulox]

49. Yes. Especially since he claimed to have ordered a stop to them weeks ago.

More "amplified rhetoric", I'm sure. :eyes:

[crikkett]

54. Good. Glad we're at the bottom of it. IMO the only amplified rhetoric is here online. n/t

[Romulox]

55. Right. It sounds like you support DEA raids on Medical Marijuana facilities. I oppose them.

President Obama has claimed to oppose them, but has allowed them to continue.

[crikkett]

56. "Obama ...has allowed them to continue" is your contention. I say, the single solitary drug raid

that occurred in SF since the Atty General announced a halt to Raiding Drug Clinics that are Operating Lawfully was
a) against a clinic allegedly in violation of tax law
b) the result of an underling's interpretation of Obama's policy against raiding drug clinics
c) not Obama's direct decision in itself.


What I say is a LOT less hyperbolic than what you say.

I do not say that I support raids on drug clinics.

To the contrary, I support calm reasoning and critical thinking, instead of leaping off a cliff like so many hysterical lemmings at the slightest provocation, Cursing Obama the entire way down, the way you and half of DU has.

[Bluenorthwest]

45. When a business fails to pay taxes

is it common for the DEA to raid them? Is that how taxation issues are usually dealt with, by armed agents raiding the business?

[guruoo]

46. DEA goes in whenever drugs are involved, legal or not.

[snot]

11. Background would be helpful.

[killbotfactory]

14. It's a reason for no-knock raids in the middle of the night

You know, cause big time drug dealers are just seconds away from being able to dump their entire stash down the toilet without a trace, so this violent and dangerous entry into a suspects homes is required.

[panader0]

16. Big timers couldn't flush their weed down the toilet.

In Tucson big dealers have bedrooms packed floor to ceiling with weed.

[Butch350]

60. How do you know this?

[GoesTo11]

18. Better dead than head?

That's insane.

[RedCappedBandit]

20. And he gets paid vacation. Fuck these lunatics.

[Hubert Flottz]

22. But if you steal 50 billion dollars you get to stay in your 8.4 ...

million dollar apartment.

[DemBones DemBones]

42. Bingo. Fucking George Soros says he's doing

very well out of this economic crises, making billions, and it's the culmination of his life's work. Don't anybody tell me this guy's a liberal again.

[sarcasmo]

26. 8.5 Miles from my house sits Grand Valley. The college student is out of the hospital and the irony

of the whole story to me was his last name is Copp. The Students protested and the Dean actually supported the student and not the officer which was nice to see. I haven't seen anymore about the story on our local news but of course the cop who shot the student is not cooperating. Legalize it, Tax it and use the police for real crimes.

[NutmegYankee]

35. People are happy he got shot on the posting board, wtf?

Shooting an unarmed man, even if he was a drug addict (on a drug that doesn't cause violence), is unjustifiable. I wonder if the police officer just got trigger happy and fired when he shouldn't have. I'm interested in updates.

[Cid_B]

36. This article is shit....

... he opened the door and was shot. Willing to bet there is something else going on here. Christ.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

51. All the info that was disclosed, is in the article. There's an ongoing investigation.

What's your beef?

[Cid_B]

52. My beef is...

... that all the info that was disclosed consisted of "The student was shot." It doesn't say why, if the officer was threatened, if the student had a weapon, what the warrant was for etc.. etc.. etc.. Shoddy "journalism"

The post and especially the KOS post try to insinuate that the cop said something along the lines of "Gosh, this defenseless boy has a few ounces of pot, I think I'll shoot him when he opens the door." It is misleading and frankly insulting.

Everyone jumps on the "Fucking Pigs" bandwagon with zero information and it shows an intellectual laziness that is pervasive around here.

[Rex]

38. Mary Jane makes the government nervous, they don't like the fact

that THC won't lead to violence like booze or coke. It really pisses em off when people want to do a peaceful drug. Since they don't understand peace, they shoot to kill and lie about the effects of THC.

Weed is the most politicized drug in America and the most hated by people who are boring and hate watching people feel good without wanting to smash a chair over someone elses head in a bar.

[Echo In Light]

50. Pretty much. There's a real ideological drive fueling the 'war' on pot

That the fascists get to make so much $ on harmless "criminals" is the icing on their cake.

[proud2BlibKansan]

40. A few tablesponfuls! Why he was obviously a HUGE dealer!!

Lock em all up!

:sarcasm:

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

48. Something tells me the cops have a higher chance of getting nailed than in other cases like that

Can you tell why?

[Name removed]

53. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[bamacrat]

57. LEGALIZE THIS ALREADY

Obviously there are more harms in getting caught with weed as opposed to actually doin it. So sad, why guns drawn? I actually was a victim of an unreasonable search of my house I was renting while in college, 6 armed undercover officers barged in my house without a warrant, accusing us of selling cocaine. Tried it once when I was 22, never have never will sell it. Marijuana is a peaceful drug, you might need firepower when dealing with a drunk but never a pot head.

[Fuzz]

58. It is a war after all. What do you expect?

:sarcasm:

[LooseWilly]

59. Police. Side effects may include being shot, tasered, pepper-sprayed, run over...

Of course, the side effects are categorically your own fault. The police are angels who patrol the streets, tracking down the boogey men, boogey women, and boogey children who mean to do you harm...

Funny thing, in all my time driving a taxi in East and West Oakland, I lost more time hassle and real property to the Police than I did to all the pimps, prostitutes, thugs, playuhs, thugs, gangstas and hustlers... combined.

[slampoet]

62. Grand Valley State has been harrassed by Dutch Christian Reformed Church and its cops for DECADES

This is just the latest salvo of police harassment and worse at the direction of Holland county and its church cronies.