Undercover Narco Befriends, then Busts, Autistic Teenager is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>“Our son was a new kid in August, and this undercover cop befriended him,” Snodgrass said. On the second day of school, Snodgrass said, Daniel asked the boy to buy drugs. “He asked my son if he could find marijuana for $20,” Snodgrass said. ”Three weeks later my son was able to bring back a half joint he received from a homeless guy.”
Later, Snodgrass said, “he asked to purchase my son’s prescription medication, but our son refused.”
It took the 17-year-old three weeks to procure a half joint of marijuana, according to court documents filed later in Riverside County juvenile court. After he was pressed again by the police officer, the student retrieved another joint for $20, from another homeless man, the documents said.
“During that time, he received more than 60 text messages from this undercover officer,” Snodgrass said. “Our son has a real problem reading social cues and social inferences because of his various disabilities. It would’ve been hard for him to figure to out that he was talking to an undercover officer.”
Snodgrass said his son had been diagnosed with autism, bipolar disorder, Tourette’s syndrome and various anxiety disorders.
Temecula police arrested Snodgrass’ son, along with 21 other students, on Dec. 11. Snodgrass told ABC News that his son was interrogated, booked and held for two days without having contact with his parents.
Undercover Narco Befriends, then Busts, Autistic Teenager is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>The Julian Dawkins Case is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>According to police, Dawkins, 22, a shuttle driver for the “PBS NewsHour,” was fatally shot by an off-duty Arlington County sheriff’s deputy. Family members say they are still struggling to understand why.
“He was a working guy. Didn’t bother nobody,” said Curtis Dawkins, Julian Dawkins’s father. “It’s just so sad and senseless that these things had to occur.”
The officer was interviewed, but not charged. Police declined to offer details about the incident.
The Julian Dawkins Case is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-22-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-22-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-21-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-21-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>‘I really thought I was going to die.’ is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>Driving in the early morning hours to his job at a metal shop in Buda, Miguel Montanez at first thought the approaching lights were a school bus or a tow truck.
But Montanez says it was a Hays County SWAT truck that rammed his car head-on. As they collided, another police vehicle pinned him from behind, he says.
He heard a shot.
“I saw my windshield crack, and I ducked down as low as possible,” Montanez said. “I really thought I was going to die.”
Seconds later, he says, three deputies were pointing assault rifles at him. “That’s when I heard one of the officers say, ‘Oh, (expletive), we got the wrong guy,’ ” Montanez said.
First there’s the close-call on an innocent person losing his life. Next comes the troubling, circle-the-wagons response–which is 100% deliberate.
H/T: Instapundit
‘I really thought I was going to die.’ is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-20-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-20-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>One-Year Anniversary is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>Our job here is to gather news reports about police misconduct in America in a fair and unbiased way. Our primary objective is to study the scope of the problem and to identify policies that can minimize misconduct.
This site is hosted by the Cato Institute, the world’s leading libertarian think tank. We expect thousands of new visitors here today because Cato’s marketing team is blasting a notice about our work far and wide this morning. So, if this is your first visit, welcome! Quick virtual tour: Over on the right margin of the home page, you will find the stories we are tracking today. On the main page (where you are looking now), we post a “Daily Recap” of the stories from the previous day along with additional details we could not include in a tweet. There is always a link to our news story source for anyone who wants to read the full story. We are as transparent as possible. In addition to the recap, we also use the main page to highlight stories or news articles on related aspects of the American criminal justice system. You’ll also see links to Cato books and events–these resources are offered to persons who wish to deepen their understanding of our constitutional rights and police misconduct issues. At the top of the page, you’ll find links for additional background information, including Frequently Asked Questions.
Let me take a moment here to mention a few other things. First, whether you are a regular reader or first time visitor, one easy way that you can help this project is by spreading the word–so please take two minutes to go over to our Facebook page and “Like” us and recommend us to your friends.
Second, we invite you to work with us. We want to expand our reporting capacity. We’re grateful to the dozens of readers who take a moment out of their day to send us police misconduct stories that they come across in their own community, or just as they scan the news generally. As we grow, we’ll eventually have ‘scouts’ in all of our major metropolitan areas–and beyond. Consider doing this yourself. Really. If you read the news and can email, you’re qualified! We will not interrupt your evening with phone calls asking you to renew your support. We don’t roll like that. Help us out whenever you can. Here is our form for story submissions.
We’re pleased with the work we have done over the past year, but we will be striving to do better work in the coming months and years. Thanks for visiting!
One-Year Anniversary is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-17-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-17-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>Hero Cop Now Under Felony Arrest is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>A former Philadelphia police officer, once hailed as a hero and given a seat next to the first lady at a 2009 speech by President Obama, has been arrested and charged with rape and other crimes.
Authorities allege that Richard DeCoatsworth left a party with two females early Thursday and took them to another location, where they allege that he produced a handgun and “forced the two females to engage in the use of narcotics and sexual acts.”
Hero Cop Now Under Felony Arrest is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>LAPD Says Its Rehabilitation is Complete is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>The federal judge who oversaw a dramatic, forced transformation of the Los Angeles Police Department has freed the department from the final vestiges of federal oversight….
The dismissal of the so-called consent decree, which arose largely out of the Rampart corruption scandal and addressed basic problems of accountability that stretched back decades, delivered a largely symbolic, but nonetheless important milestone for the LAPD as it continues to disassociate itself from a past marked by abuses and turmoil. Following revelations in 1999 that officers assigned to the LAPD’s Rampart Division were implicated in serious misconduct, including physical abuse of suspects, evidence tampering and perjury, public trust in the police plummeted and federal officials responded to calls from a growing chorus of critics for intervention.
LAPD Says Its Rehabilitation is Complete is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>Jailed for Remaining Silent? is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>“I anticipate that the government will seek an order from the court holding Jerry in civil contempt,” said the lawyer, Susan V. Tipograph, adding that her client had refused to testify as “a matter of principle” and because “he has no knowledge whatsoever” about the bombing or who caused it….
Mr. Koch was subpoenaed to testify in front of a grand jury examining the matter in 2009, Ms. Tipograph said, and refused then with no consequences. She added that his continued refusal was motivated by a conviction that “the grand jury was being used in a manner to fish for information about the political movements he’s been involved in.”
Most Americans are unaware of the astonishing powers of grand juries. To learn more, go here.
Jailed for Remaining Silent? is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-16-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-16-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-15-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-15-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-14-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-14-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-11-13 to 05-13-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-11-13 to 05-13-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-10-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-10-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>The David Silva Case is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>UPDATE: “Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood said he asked the FBI to get involved after learning that one of two phones seized from witnesses had no footage on it.” Hmm.
The David Silva Case is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>Brady v. Maryland — 50 Year Anniversary is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>We now hold that the suppression by the prosecution of evidence favorable to an accused upon request violates due process where the evidence is material either to guilt or to punishment, irrespective of the good faith or bad faith of the prosecution... Society wins not only when the guilty are convicted, but when criminal trials are fair; our system of the administration of justice suffers when any accused is treated unfairly.
I like this language from a related case that the Court quotes approvingly:
“Petitioner’s papers are inexpertly drawn, but they do set forth allegations that his imprisonment resulted from perjured testimony, knowingly used by the State authorities to obtain his conviction, and from the deliberate suppression by those same authorities of evidence favorable to him. These allegations sufficiently charge a deprivation of rights guaranteed by the Federal Constitution, and, if proven, would entitle petitioner to release from his present custody….”
We should all be troubled that this rule was not clearly established in our law long before 1963, but better late than never. And do note that the prosecutor cannot turn over evidence if the police have kept it from him.
Let’s take a concrete example to illustrate what this is all about. Let’s say a jewelery store was robbed by a guy with a gun yesterday. Police arrived shortly thereafter to investigate and interview witnesses at the scene. Three witnesses say the robber was an Asian male in his 50s. Two witnesses say the robber was a white guy in his 30s.
Seven months later an Asian family arrives at your law office and asks you to represent their relative, a man who has been arrested for that jewelery store robbery. Your client turns out to be an Asian male, age 55. He has no criminal record. He says he is innocent, but he has no alibi–home alone watching television is his story. The prosecutor offers a plea bargain: Your client pleads guilty and must do one year in prison. If the deal is rejected and you insist on a trial, it’ll be a 10 year prison sentence. The prosecutor informs you that this case is “open and shut”–showing you police reports of three witnesses from the scene. And these three people also picked your client from a police line-up. He says, “Do we have a deal, or not?” Since you are in the dark about the other two witnesses, you recommend to your client that he take the deal and plead guilty. The client hates the deal, but he is frightened by the prospect of 10 years in prison and is unnerved that his own lawyer says that he will probably lose in court. So he pleads guilty and is taken to prison. You and the prosecutor move on to other cases.
The Brady rule is supposed to make such scenarios impossible. As noted, the rule says the prosecution has to tell the defense about those other 2 witnesses and their statements that constitute exculpatory evidence for your client. But there is a serious shortcoming with the Brady rule. It is sorta like the 55 mph speed limit for motorists on the highway. Violations are common. In 2010, a federal judge wrote, “The persistent recurrence of inadvertent violations of defendants’ constitutional right to discovery in the District of Massachusetts persuades this court that it is insufficient to rely on the Department of Justice training programs for prosecutors alone to assure that the government’s obligation to produce certain information to defendants is understood and properly discharged.” In 2009, a federal judge in Washington, DC threw out the criminal case against Alaska Senator Ted Stevens. The judge said withholding evidence that could be helpful to defendants had become a troubling trend.
The troubling trend is found in the state courts as well. John Thompson spent 18 years in prison, 14 of those years isolated on death row, before exculpatory evidence came to light. He did not commit the crimes of armed robbery and murder. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg noted that this was no isolated incident in New Orleans: “From the top down, the evidence showed, members of the District Attorney’s Office, including the District Attorney himself, misperceived Brady’s compass and therefore inadequately attended to their disclosure obligations … Based on the prosecutors’ conduct relating to Thompson’s trials, a fact trier could reasonably conclude that inattention to Brady was standard operating procedure at the District Attorney’s Office.” See Connick v. Thompson (2011).
So we have 50 years of experience now and still great reluctance to face the fact that Brady is mostly a paper tiger. When violations do come to light, often years later, the courts typically engage in a “harmless error” analysis. That is, they look to see if the outcome of the case would have been any different if the rules had been followed. If not, the court will just scold the prosecutor that what he did was improper but the conviction will stand. In my book, I suggest the courts adopt another rule: Automatic retrials whenever a Brady violation comes to light. This stricter rule would, I argue, “spur officials to meet their obligation, and improve the overall administration of justice.” The Innocence Project is proposing another approach in Texas and elsewhere.
For a related article where I discuss the connection between plea bargains and the Brady rule more fully, go here.
Brady v. Maryland — 50 Year Anniversary is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-09-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-09-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>Man Run Over by Police Cruiser is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>Investigators are searching for answers and members of a DeLand neighborhood are angry, all wondering how a man fleeing early Wednesday morning from a traffic stop ended up dead, run over by a police car.
Details about the incident remain sketchy. But preliminary reports indicate Marlon Brown, 38, fled from an attempted traffic stop, first in the vehicle he was driving, and then on foot.
A minute later, as Brown ran through a field, two DeLand police officers who heard the call over the radio followed in their patrol cars. Somehow, one of the police cars ended up knocking down a fence at the end of the field, and Brown ended up dead, under the car.
It all started because the man was not wearing his seat belt.
H/T: Reason
Man Run Over by Police Cruiser is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>How Many DUIs Will It Take? is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>A 40-year-old Jacksonville police officer with a history of DUIs since her 2004 hire was charged Tuesday with five counts of driving under the influence causing damage as well as multiple hit-and-runs, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Diana Laura Jones, who was off duty, also was cited with reckless driving after officers found her in her truck eating a hamburger after three cars were hit in an Atlantic Boulevard parking lot and another on Hodges Boulevard, according to her arrest report.
Undersheriff Dwain Senterfitt said he had fired Jones after a DUI investigation in 2011, but an arbitrator reinstated her. Senterfitt said he is frustrated she was rehired and is now under investigation a third time
How Many DUIs Will It Take? is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>Worst of the Month — April 2013 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>The worst case is from Bolivia, North Carolina. According to the complaint filed by a minor’s guardian ad litem, a police officer, Jaymin Lenwood Murphy, came to a home to investigate allegations that an adult had sent inappropriate photos via cell phone to a minor child. The officer said he needed to question the minor in private. Once in private, the officer had the minor remove her clothing so he could take photos for his ‘investigative file.’ It gets worse. The officer later returned on minor’s fourteenth birthday and raped her.
The runner-up story comes from Bakersfield, California. A 21-year-old woman called the police to report a burglary. Two deputies arrived and one led her into a room where she was then sexually assaulted under the pretense of a ‘pat-down’ search by the deputy. The authorities did move promptly against this deputy–so good for them.
Worst of the Month — April 2013 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-08-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-08-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-07-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-07-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-04-13 to 05-06-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
]]>National Police Misconduct NewsFeed Daily Recap 05-04-13 to 05-06-13 is a post from PoliceMisconduct.net
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