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By Kevin Johnson, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors are targeting
a rising number of law enforcement officers for alleged brutality,
Justice Department statistics show. The heightened prosecutions come as
the nation's largest police union fears that agencies are dropping
standards to fill thousands of vacancies and "scrimping" on training.
Cases in which police, prison guards and other law enforcement authorities have used excessive force or other tactics to violate victims' civil rights have increased 25% (281 vs. 224) from fiscal years 2001 to 2007 over the previous seven years, the department says. During the same period, the department says it won 53% more convictions (391 vs. 256). Some cases result in multiple convictions. Federal records show the vast majority of police brutality cases referred by investigators are not prosecuted.
'CODE OF SILENCE': Milwaukee beating case collars 'bad cops'
University of Toledo law professor David Harris, who analyzes police conduct issues, says it will take time to determine whether the cases represent a sustained period of more aggressive prosecutions or the beginnings of a surge in misconduct. The cases involve only a fraction of the estimated 800,000 police in the USA, says James Pasco, executive director of the National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), the nation's largest police union. Even so, he says, the FOP is concerned that reduced standards, training and promotion of less experienced officers into the higher police ranks could undermine more rigid supervision. "These are things we are worried about," Pasco says. For the past few years, dozens of police departments across the country have scrambled to fill vacancies. The recruiting effort, which often features cash bonuses, has intensified since 9/11, because many police recruits have been drawn to military service. In its post-Sept. 11 reorganization, the FBI listed police misconduct as one of its highest civil rights priorities to keep pace with an anticipated increase in police hiring through 2009. The increasing Justice numbers generally correspond to a USA TODAY analysis of federal law enforcement prosecutions using data compiled by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University. Those data show 42 law enforcement prosecutions during the first 10 months of fiscal year 2007, a 66% increase from all of fiscal 2002 and a 61% rise from a decade ago. David Burnham, the co-founder of the TRAC database, says prosecutions appear to be increasing, but "more important" are the numbers of cases prosecutors decline. Last year, 96% of cases referred for prosecution by investigative agencies were declined. In 2005, 98% were declined, a rate that has remained "extremely high" under every administration dating to President Carter, according to a TRAC report. The high refusal rates, say Burnham and law enforcement analysts, result in part from the extraordinary difficulty in prosecuting abuse cases. Juries are conditioned to believe cops, and victims' credibility is often challenged. "When police are accused of wrongdoing, the world is turned upside down," Harris says. "In some cases, it may be impossible for (juries) to make the adjustment."
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Comments: (154) Showing: New: Most recommended!
StillASlave (0 friends, send message) wrote:
2/20/2009 12:56:50 PM
My
name is Malik Crosby. The circuit courts of cook county
judges,police,states attorney, and public defenders in illinois are
defrauding citizens of their and my rights unjustley .On june 26 2007 I
was almost killed by a Chicago police sgt. I was also robbed assaulted
and called ni****s along with a passenger in my licensed and insured
vehicle. We were both repeatedly threatened that we would be killed for
breathing because the officer said he can do what he wants to us. I was
forced to plead guilty after almost 2 years of going back and forth to
court and my bond being forfeited and stolen by the judge without cause
for being 5 minutes late to court. The arresting Sgt. did not file a
police report or traffic tickets and i was still held to defend myself
of accusations of uuw and traffic violations which there are no records
of. I have not filed a complaint against the sgt. because he made it
very clear to us that he would kill us whenever he wanted to if we said
something about this incident. PLEASE HELP BECAUSE I COULD HAVE VERY
WELL ENDED LIKE OSCAR GRANT ON THAT DAY. TO MAKE MATTERS EVEN MORE
TRAMATIC THE OFFICER EITHER PULLED THE TRIGGER WHILE HIS GUN WAS
PRESSED AGAINST THE BACK OF MY SKULL OR HE TOOK HIS GUN OF SAFTEY WHILE
IT WAS AGAINST MY SKULL. Also on the police dispatch tape there is no
record of a traffic stop but when dispatch asked the sgt. did he tase
or shoot anyone he replied "not yet".When all of this happened it was
just me, my passenger and the sgt. present.PLEASE HELP IN ANY WAY, MY
CASE IS NOW UP FOR APPEAL, AND I WAS FORCED TO PLEAD GUILTY AND TAKE
PROBATION AND BECOME A CONVICTED FELON/2009 Slave. Please help my
freedom is being assaulted and my life being threatned by chicago
police, judges and courts..
jusbiznuss (0 friends, send message) wrote:
11/25/2008 12:07:20 PM
My
son who is 17 years old was home alone 11/17/08 he called me.said mom
the police were beating on the door cursing yelling to get in my home I
told him not to let them in I was calling 911 I called 911 and was told
they had not sent a unit to my address and was I sure it was the
police. I told her my son was still on the my other cell . they kept
cursing open the f&^*(* door they were going to kick it in and beat
his A$$. It takes me about 25 minutes to get home. listening to all
this cursing driving trying to get him to move away from the door.they
said oh yeah we going to f&*K you up when we get in. The 911
operator tells me she does not know who is at my door.I tell him do not
listen to them your grandparents are on the way. my son afraid he tells
them my mom is on the line with 911 they tell him f()& that open
the d*&n door. They say we will shoot through the door he opens it
and they box him in the nose bum rush him beat him in the chest and
back place him in handcuffs sit him at my table two dogs and over 15
officers search my home. They broke his nose the DEA dont find what or
who they were looking for. Took the handcuffs off he asked about his
nose and face they told him the next time curse word the would open the
door they all laughed when he said he was in pain and told him to put
ice on did not call for medical help. Left a business card had no
search warrant. The Savannah Metropolitan police keeps telling me they
had nothing to do with it.My son nor I have been charged with no crimes
I was later told they were looking for my daughters boyfriend he does
not live with me. My daughter is away in college, does not live there
either they did not let my mother in to get my son questioned him
without a lawyer and left. After they all proceeded to leave my house
my father in law and mother were both standing on my front yard my son
came out with his nose bleeding he pointed to one and said he had beat
him and broken his nose his reply to my them was the door hit him. They
got into their cars took the two dogs and over 15 DEA agents and left.
The Savannah Police met me there and said they were supposed to have a
uniformed officer they did not and they were not informed they were at
my house .This incident happened November 17, 2008. All this can be
verified by the police reports They apologized waited for EMS who
confirmed his nose was broken and followed me to the hospital where
forensic pictures were taken. Here lies the other complaint.They had no
consideration to our civil rights at all. I am so angry I know others
have suffered in other cities across this nation I cant sleep at night
im so infuriated because this is America this was senseless and
unlawful. How do you trust law enforcement if they do not know what is
going on. This is not a racial topic it is a non race issue it happens
to people of all walks of life all colors all economic back grounds.
They damage homes lives I have contacted my state representatives,
congressman, city commissioners city councilmen. They should combine
departments to know what is going on. Its about who receives federal
funding not about the safety of this community innocent people are
being harmed and no one is saying they are responsible the DEA abusing
their power no over sight review, basically exhibiting criminal
behavior broke into my home without a search warrant. I have yet to see
one.
little monster (0 friends, send message) wrote:
8/6/2008 3:52:52 PM
Here
is another one for you. I am also a victim myself. Diffrent part of the
country, same problem with similar rsults. I was tazed 6 times as I too
was handcuffed but I was in the back of a police squad car. I screamed
and yelled like a little girl, begging for my life as my son still in
diapers cried as his mother covered his eyes and ears. Why did this
happen. Retaliation! One of the six police officers at the scene hated
me because I married his brother's ex-girlfriend. He blamed me for
their break up. In the scuffle I broke out the glass on the passenger
door. I was charged with resisting arrest and criminal mischeif.
Charges were dropped on assault on a police officer, one of the
officers cut his finger and accussed me of purposely causing him harm.
This was August 17,2004 in El Paso, Texas. I went to internal affairs
to make a report, nothing was done. They claimed the evidance showed
that I was only tazed twice and the case was closed. Evidance? No they
didn't use the pictures of the six burn marks on my body they took that
night wich they claim were lost, they didn't question the civilians who
witnessed the event, they didn't use the dash cam video because they
calim after 48 hrs they are recorded over, they used the police report
the officer wrote. It doesn't stop there, I have been chased out of my
work, restaurants and was assaulted by one of the officers as he was
off duty at a bar. I got more charges. I tried internal affairs several
times with no luck, I even went up the chain of command and talk to
Richard Wiles, the infamous Chief of police. He had the nerve to tell
me that he hated a dirty cop just like everyone else did. He also told
me that he had the two officers records in front of him and that they
were pretty clean. I had requested an open records request on the two
officers eight days prior. Unfortunately it takes ten days to receive.
I walked out of his office with him assuring me that he would look into
the case. I received the open records report two days later and found
that the officers had been accussed of excessive force once before and
three times after my accussations. I tried calling the Cheif but he
refused to take my calls. I e-mailed him and he gave me some
politically correct B.S. I started to irritate him so he and his
buddies decided to get rid of me. He was getting ready to run for
public office and he didn't need all the negative publicity. I didn't
know but my immediate supervisor and the cheif shared a mutual friend
who was forced to resign from the police department back in 2000. Long
story short, I was set up for attempted murder, fortunately the fake
victom did nod have the nerve to stab himself, he only had a
"superficial scratch". Charges were dropped to aggrevated assault with
a deadly weapon. I bonded out with $1500 after a night in jail. A year
went by, the D.A. offered(how nice of them to offer) three years in
prison. I told her were she could put those three years. One year later
I was cleared of all charges but was put in jail 14 days later. Thats
the amount of time the D.A. had to appeal the judges decision. I was
booked into county jail with a $301,500 bond, with three charges and
pending three more with a bond of $100,000 each. I spent 90 days in
jail, plead guilty to something I didn't do all because I went to go
see my son on his first day of kindergarden. Everyone alsways remembers
their kids' first day of kindergarden, I sure won't forget this one.
Story doesn't stop there. I am out on probation, minding my own
business, shopping at a discount store when I run into the P.O.S who
tazed me and chased me out of several places. He stood in front of me
in off duty attire, I stopped, thought about how much I hated his guts,
held in my anger and just told him what a piece of s--t dirty cop he
was. He wasn't in uniform, had no weapons or partner with him. He
probably thought I was going to beat him up like he did to me every
time he saw me. I am a better man than him. I walked away. He called
the police and now I am facing felony charges of retaliation and obstruction
of justice. He sytates on the police report that I told the crowd who
he was and what a P.O.S he was. He also stated that he was scared that
I was going to hurt him and is scared for his safety. So no threats, no
assaults, in fact he himself states that I didn't even talk to him. But
now I'm facing going to prison for three years for breaking my
probation in less than two weeks. Did I mention Richard Wiles is
running for sheriff this November. I was in jail for his party primary
runoff election, now he wants me in jail for the open election in
November. What a coinsidance? I am tired of the police corruption and
the political repression that goes on in this small town minded city of
El Paso. We can't even ask the local media for help since the D.A.
Jaime Esparza and Richard Wiles have them wrapped around their little
pinky. We need help in El Paso. Corruption is an everyday thing here.
When ever we say how bad it is, all we are told that it is a whole lot
worse across the border in the city of Juarez. What kind of lame excuse
is that?
fluid (0 friends, send message) wrote:
3/27/2008 4:29:10 PM
I
myself am a victim of police brutality and you know what i recieved
instead? I recieved charges against me for assaulting a police officer
in the 2nd degree which is considered a felony in Colorado. I never
even raised a hand to him. I was also charged with resisting arrest but
when they told me to get down, i got down, when they said put your
hands behind my back i did. While WHILE i was in handcuffs, i was tazed
with 50,000 volts as i laid on the ground. What a man that cop must
feel like. I dont like wishing bad things on people but i hope karma
gets him. All this because I would not allow them entrance into my
apartment without a reason or a warrant. They never told me why they
were there, they treated me like a criminal the moment i answered my
door. They searched for drugs and guns but found nothing because i dont
sell drugs or carry guns. They shoved my girlfriend to the ground for
nothing more than asking what is going on after they bum-rushed my door
and tackled me. Because i stood up for my rights. I asked them to wait
at my door while i got my ID he desperatly wanted to so bad. I complied
but they kept entering, the second time they entered i stood my ground
and said i told you not to enter my apartment, next thing ya know, he
grabs me and tries to rip me out into the hallway. I pulled back, he
fell, his buddies charged in and the rest is history. Even my landlord
is taking their side with lies. She says me and my girl are selling
drugs, we have people in and out all the time and she has complaints on
us constantly. Well, we have lived there for 8 months, have had 4
guests the entire time (3 before the incident) never sold drugs and
never had a complaint. Its wrong that cops can do this now i am
defending myself against their slandering lies. I have to pay for my
lawyer, for the paramedic that had to take me to the hospital after
being tazed and i am suffering from anxiety and stress thinking that
because of their disregard of the law, i might lose my job (a federal
employee) i may go to prison for 3 years or even still be convicted of
something i did not do. They were animals and i pray they get what they
deserve. They tested me for drugs, nothing, they even took my BAC which
i was drinking in my home while playing a Video game with my girl
friend. my BAC was 0.065 which is impaired not even intoxicated. What a
joke the system has pulled on me. I know first hand what police
brutality is and i know first hand how they abuse their power and make
YOU the criminal. I have no criminal record, traffic violations and
nothing more. I have not been in a fight since i was in 9th grade, i am
now 28 years old. My fate rests in the hands of a jury.
khooper_jack (0 friends, send message) wrote:
1/2/2008 9:03:24 AM
With
a fiat-monopoly funny money system we have been under since 1913 it is
no wonder that Prescott Bush almost over- threw the government and now
Bush has his neocon globalist fascist who are destroying our
Constitution piece by piece. Bush is like his father and grandfather
CIA banker fascist 'never do well' -'along for the ride'- traitor to
our country-so then what is the 'criminal justice system' when it is
run by a 'criminal traitor fascist!' Note --the Rothschilds have funny
money fiat banking in almost every country and that is what the 'along
for the ride' neocon fascist(moron)(in-bred) elitist are banking on!!
The Mick (34 friends, send message) wrote:
12/19/2007 10:22:43 AM
It
would interesting to see where the increases in brutality cases are and
any recent contraction or expansion of 1) the size of the police force
in each locale, 2) the budget for training and updating training of
police officers, and 3) changes in laws or policy that make it easier
to target police.
Recently, in most places in the country, teachers are not allowed to know if students accuse them of anything. Investigations may go on for months while the teacher and any witnesses lose memory of what may have been a minor event since they have no clue there was any importance to it. In discussing a case with a police officer, he told me that there are many charges filed against police and teachers, but when the same situation occurs to other citizens, charges are never filed. So I wonder about law changes. Even in the school system, a few misbehaving minority students always know how to play the game and instantly claim, "I'm being harassed." as soon as a teacher accuses them of anything. Fortunately, in the schools where I taught one of the accusers was usually an African-American administrator. I live right on the border of Baltimore City (on of several U.S. cities that is NOT in a county) and Anne Arundel County. The police force in Baltimore has produced one horrendous story after another. For example, a young couple from York, PA, about an hour north of Baltimore, attended an Orioles' game in Baltimore and took a wrong turn trying to get to I-83 and return home. They soon found themselves in a seedy neighborhood. Pulling over and trying to check their location on a map, they were pleased when a Balto. city police officer pulled up behind them. They asked directions. The officer rudely refused, then curtly told them loitering was not allowed in the area and they had to move their car! Scared, and not sure which way to go, the couple soon found themselves arrested for loitering. Shortly after the charges were dismissed, but you can bet fewer people from York will attend events in Baltimore. On the other hand, the Anne Arundel County Police have an excellent reputation. They would have probably told the couple to follow them to the I-83 entrance if the couple had encountered them just a couple more miles down the road.
TruthAlert (0 friends, send message) wrote:
12/18/2007 10:34:23 PM
Welcome
to the War on the American Citizen...
http://truthalert.net/Police%20Militarization%20and%20the%20War%20on%20the%20American%20Citizen.htm
Nebuchadnezzar (8 friends, send message) wrote:
12/18/2007 9:39:05 PM
You both did the military a favor by retiring.
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