@gamer00 Has Offered Me 1000 Steem if I Can Post 1000 Stories About Racist Policing in the U.S. (pt 6)

chalidore (54)in #news • 7 years ago

An ex-Los Angeles sheriff’s deputy who testified against former colleagues who were subsequently convicted of beating a handcuffed visitor at the Men’s Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles was sentenced Monday to six months of home detention.Pantamitr Zunggeemoge — who was also ordered to pay a $1,000 fine — pleaded guilty in 2015 to misdemeanor counts of conspiracy and deprivation of rights in connection with the 2011 assault on Gabriel Carrillo. In recommending the probationary sentence, federal prosecutors noted that Zunggeemoge was the first deputy to cooperate with investigators in a wide- ranging jails probe by admitting “direct and substantial” involvement in the assault and agreeing to testify about what he knew. Zunggeemoge testified that the force used by himself and three other Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies on Carrillo — who was also pepper-sprayed while handcuffed and held down — was “excessive.” He also told jurors that afterward, the deputies “huddled” to figure out a way to justify the violence in order to complete a “probable cause declaration,” a document used to explain an official use of force. Zunggeemoge said he falsified the report to state that Carrillo — a then-27-year-old forklift operator from Bellflower who had come to the lockup with his girlfriend to visit a jailed relative — had started a fight with deputies who were trying to book him for the misdemeanor offense of possessing a cell phone inside the jail’s Visiting Center. In fact, the ex-deputy told jurors, Carrillo was “handcuffed, so there was no fighting or resistance on Mr. Carrillo’s part. He posed no threat to any of us.” Based on the false report, Carrillo was charged in state court with assaulting the deputies. The charges were dropped shortly before his trial was to have begun and the county later paid him $1.2 million to settle a civil lawsuit.
May 24, 2017 A now-former U.S. Customs & Border Protection officer was sentenced to 5 years in prison for accepting money and sex for cooperation in human smuggling into the United States.
Fort Worth, Texas: Two senior officers were demoted for allegedly leaking video of a subordinate officer’s violent encounter in which he arrested a woman who had called police for help after her son had been assaulted. The video went viral and the officer in question was suspended for 10 days.
May 22, 2017: A Baton Rouge police officer has been suspended amid allegations he sent a racially charged image to a group of colleagues who had been exchanging text messages about a recent protest following the decision by the U.S. Justice Department not to pursue civil-rights charges in the fatal shooting of Alton Sterling. The officer, Blaine Dupuy, a nearly three-year veteran of the force, was placed on administrative leave Thursday after department brass received a written complaint about the image. "It was definitely inappropriate," Police Chief Carl Dabadie said. "He was placed on leave the day it hit my desk. We're going to handle it the way we would anything else." The police chief did not elaborate on the text exchange, citing an internal investigation. But a law enforcement official familiar with the matter said the image depicted a chimpanzee and the phrase "chimp out," allegedly in reference to the Sterling protesters, many of whom were black. The online Urban Dictionary defines "chimping out" as a slur describing "when a black person removes his/her facade as a civilized human being and releases his/her inner chimp; as in to start acting violent and out of control." Dupuy is white. The text exchange, a regular form of communication for officers on his squad, included black recipients, though it's unclear how many, said the law enforcement official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome issued a statement late Monday saying Dabadie "has informed me of this incident, and I find it appalling. I agree with disciplinary action, including termination." Dupuy was placed on leave for potential administrative violations of "command of temper" and "conduct unbecoming an officer," said Lt. Jonny Dunnam, a Baton Rouge Police Department spokesman. "We don't discuss administrative investigations publicly," Dunnam said. "They're extremely confidential." Dupuy could not be reached for comment Monday, and it was not clear whether he has an attorney. Sgt. C. Bryan Taylor, the president of the Baton Rouge police union, did not return calls seeking comment. The text exchange is the latest controversy for a Police Department that has been no stranger to racial conflict in recent years. The agency still is recovering from the fallout from Sterling's death last summer, a shooting that involved two white police officers who were investigated for — though ultimately not charged with — civil rights violations in Sterling's death.That announcement prompted a new round of demonstrations earlier this month and fresh calls for police reform in Baton Rouge. The officers in Dupuy's squad had been discussing one such protest when Dupuy sent the image in question, the law enforcement official said. At least one of the officers included in the text exchange complained about the image, known as a GIF.
The episode is reminiscent of a controversy in 2014 in which another Baton Rouge police officer, Michael Elsbury, resigned from the department after racist text messages he authored surfaced in the news media, including one in which he wrote, "I wish someone would pull a Ferguson on them and take them out. I hate looking at those African monkeys at work … I enjoy arresting those thugs with their saggy pants." The Elsbury case drew intense criticism from several members of the public, who told Metro Council members at that time the text messages had deepened a racial divide in Baton Rouge and distrust of the police among black residents. In the wake of Sterling's death, which prompted a number of police reforms, several faith-based community leaders also have brought new attention to city's failure to comply with a decades-old consent decree that had been intended to diversify the Baton Rouge Police Department. The agency remains 67 percent white, while the city's population is approximately 55 percent black. "It's already a tough climate and for you to do something like this, it's a travesty," said state Rep. C. Denise Marcelle, D-Baton Rouge, who called for Dupuy to be fired. "We can't tolerate this."
Denver, CO: Court documents show that the city of Rocky Ford and the family of a man who a police officer fatally shot in the back have settled the family's lawsuit against the city and the officer. The Pueblo Chieftain on Thursday reviewed the document, signed by attorneys for the plaintiffs and defendants, that states the settlement resolves "all pending claims." James Ashby, the officer who shot Jack Jacquez, 27, in 2014 is serving 16 years in prison for murder.Jacquez's mother, his estate and the mothers of his minor children sued Ashby, the city and former police Chief Frank Gallegos. They filed the lawsuit Oct. 11 in U.S. District Court in Denver. Ashby shot Jacquez, 27, in the back in his home on Oct. 12, 2014, during a scuffle. Ashby has said he tried to apprehend Jacquez because the officer thought Jacquez was breaking into the home. When questioned by investigators in 2014, Ashby said he was afraid that Jacquez was going to use a baseball bat as a weapon against him. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation said Ashby lied about the shooting and other aspects of what occurred. Ashby was convicted last year of second-degree murder.
May 19, 2017 Alexandria, Virginia: An officer who was fired for racially profiling the police chief’s brother has been re-hired by the department.
May 23, 2017 Fort Worth, Texas. Two senior officers, Assistant Chief Abdul Pridgen and Deputy Chief Vance Keyes, have been demoted for allegedly leaking camera footage of their fellow officer, William Martin, violently attacking a woman who had called police for help after her son was assaulted. The video went viral, and Martin was suspended for ten days. Such retribution against senior officers who appear to have acted as whistleblowers will almost certainly have a chilling effect on reporting misconduct within the department. Moreover, it tells the people of Fort Worth–especially those in minority communities–that police violence against them is a less serious offense than exposing misconduct by fellow officers.
May 18, 2017 An officer with the San Antonio Police Department has been put on 46-day suspension for turning off his body camera during on-duty house calls, doing personal business while on duty, and for telling a theft victim cops "hate citizens."
Hopatcong, New Jersey: An officer pled guilty to harassment for slapping a man who was surrendering himself at the police station for an outstanding warrant wearing a bunny costume and blaring an air horn. The officer will keep his job and pay a $500 fine.
May 15, 2017 King County, Washington: A deputy was fired for putting pepper spray on the spout of a homeless man’s water bottle after dispersing camp. He was quoted in the report saying, “[The victim is] going to understand that he’s no longer welcome here and he won’t be under the bridges anymore…that’s what people showed me to do.” It is unclear if he will be criminally charged in the matter.
May 10, 2017 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: An officer is under criminal investigation for kicking a suspect in the head during a video-recorded arrest.
May 9, 2017 Manatee County, Florida: A deputy was named in an FBI civil rights complaint filed by the NAACP. The deputy falsely arrested and dragged a man out of his house. The deputy had been pursuing a driver who had fled a vehicle on foot. The deputy was suspended for his actions.
May 5, 2017 Fort Pierce, Florida: Two officers were fired for multiple violations during a traffic stop when they fatally shot Demarcus Semer
Woodland Hills High School (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania): An SRO was caught on video knocking a student’s tooth out. Once the story broke, more students have come forth with more allegations of abuse by the officer and staff.
May 4, 2017 Rutherford County, Tennessee: The now-former sheriff was sentenced to 50 months in prison on federal corruption charges for profiteering off of the inmates in the jail he ran.
Fort Myers, Florida: Six officers were placed on leave after an audit alleging misconduct. The City Council is publicly demanding explanations, including the names and offenses of the suspended officers.
April 4, 2017 U.S. District Judge H. Russell Holland issued an order based on findings made by a jury that the Colorado City Marshals Office “engaged in a long-standing pattern of abuses that included false arrests, unreasonable seizures of property, discriminatory policing on the basis of religion, and violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.” According to the Department of Justice, police officials engaged in a decades-long pattern or practice of police misconduct and housing discrimination. Judge Holland concluded that officers turned a blind eye to criminal activity involving FLDS church leaders or members, including supporting a fugitive and ignoring underage marriages, unauthorized distribution of prescription drugs, and food-stamp fraud. The findings of this investigation reflect poorly not only on the towns, but also state attorneys general’s office, which should have take action much sooner so that federal intervention would not have been necessary.
May 3, 2017 Holyoke, Massachusetts: An officer was charged with indecent assault and battery of a minor under 14 years old.
Des Plaines, Illinois: An officer was reinstated by a labor arbitrator after years of appealing firing. The long-running ordeal had the firing upheld by several court proceedings. According to the report, his is alleged to have “beat[en] handcuffed suspects, lied during an internal investigation and made false arrests.” The City is deciding whether to appeal the ruling, but officials said that “rehiring him would be bad public policy and harmful for morale.”
April 28, 2017 Baker, Louisiana: An officer was arrested for malfeasance and obstruction for the attempted cover-up of a shooting incident involving the son of the East Baton Rouge sheriff. The officer and his partner responded to the report of shots fired and found a man shooting target practice in his backyard, who was unaware bullets were leaving his property and striking at the nearby Wal-Mart. No injuries were reported. The officer who was arrested allegedly made several attempts to let the man off easy after learning his identity.
A formerly homeless man who was punched by a Seattle police officer filed a federal lawsuit on Wednesday against that officer for allegedly violating his civil rights. Ofc. Clark Dickson was already suspended for one day without pay for punching Christopher Tavai in the face on January 3, 2015. Now, Tavai, who has since moved in with a relative, says Dickson violated his constitutional rights to be free from excessive force and unreasonable search and seizure, according to a complaint filed in US District Court. “This lawsuit is about getting compensation for being hit when my client hadn’t done anything wrong,” said Harry Williams, the attorney representing Tavai. “He was hit multiple times, which is outside the training and standards we demand or expect from police officers.” On the night of the incident, Seattle cops were patrolling a homeless encampment near Safeco Field, checking for outstanding warrants, when they came upon Christopher Tavai, then 22-years-old, sleeping in his car. The officers asked Tavai to step out of his vehicle. One of officers on the scene, Clark Dickson, began questioning Tavai. According to the lawsuit, Tavai spit on the ground. Dickson admonished Tavai, but the homeless man spit on the ground again. In response, Dickson punched Tavai in the face, took him down with another officer and proceeded to punch him in the face two more times. The Office of Professional Accountability, a civilian-led investigative body, reviewed Dickson’s actions and ruled that the officer used excessive force. The body recommended that Dickson undergo training and receive two days suspension without pay. As The Stranger reported, Dickson’s bosses ultimately ordered him to just one day off the job.
Ofc. Dickson’s punch landed amid a rash of similar, high-profile incidents. In 2014, Ofc. Adley Shepherd punched Miyekko Durden-Bosley, breaking her eye socket, after she kicked in his direction. (Investigators declared that it’s unclear from video of the incident whether that kick landed.) Durden-Bosley settled with the city for $195,000. Another officer, David Bauer, last year was suspended for ten days without pay for repeatedly hitting a man in 2010.
April 26, 2017: Criminal warrants have been issued for two former Gwinnett County police officers videotaped punching and kicking a man after a traffic stop, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has learned. Gwinnett District Attorney Danny Porter said Sgt. Michael Bongiovanni and Master Officer Robert McDonald have each been charged with misdemeanor battery and violating their oath of office, a felony. The latter charge, under Georgia law, carries a sentence of no less than one year in prison.
April 25, 2017 Augusta, Maine: An officer is being sued for excessive force for shooting a suspect. A judge ruled that she did not properly warn the suspect before firing and thus the lawsuit could move forward.
April 26, 2017 Baltimore, Maryland: An officer who was convicted of misconduct and fired for actions against a teenage detainee was reinstated by a judge.
SACRAMENTO: A black Sacramento man who was beaten by police after being stopped for jaywalking said Monday that he was also needlessly placed on suicide watch and assaulted again by jailers. In a federal lawsuit filed Sunday, two weeks after the incident, Nandi Cain claims the arresting officer who was captured on cellphone video punching him in the middle of a residential street continued to beat and humiliate him later that night in an isolation cell. “Apparently not satisfied by just stripping, abusing and humiliating Mr. Cain, the men began to call him a ‘bitch’ and said that he was ‘crying like a bitch,’ in addition to telling Mr. Cain that his naked body ‘stank,’” the lawsuit against the city and Sacramento County states. Cain, 24, says he was targeted and assaulted by Sacramento police while walking home from work on April 10 for “the crime of walking while black.” He was unarmed, and spent nine hours in jail before being released without charges. The incident quickly went viral after a bystander captured it on cellphone video. The video shows the officer rushing and tackling Cain and continuing to punch him in the face before placing him in a police cruiser. The police dashcam video was released the next day and Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg called the officer’s conduct disturbing. With scrutiny spiking following the video releases, the Sacramento Police Department condemned the incident and said it would criminally investigate the officer’s actions. Police have since released information about jaywalking citations in 2016, revealing that blacks were ticketed more times than whites, Hispanics and East Indians combined, despite making up only 14 percent of Sacramento’s population. “The Sacramento Police Department holds itself to the highest professional standard and the actions that were observed are not indicative of the dedicated women and men who work for the department,” the department said in a statement. While the department has not released the name of the arresting officer, the lawsuit says Sacramento police Officer Anthony Figueroa abused Cain and refused to call an ambulance. Figueroa and Doe officers are also named as defendants. The lawsuit accuses Figueroa of following the “longstanding” Sacramento Police Department tradition of using racial profiling to disproportionately search and harass black men. Cain seeks punitive damages for constitutional violations. The department claims that Cain challenged the officer to fight and disobeyed commands, and that he was arrested for resisting and on an outstanding misdemeanor warrant from Fresno County. Cain acknowledges in the lawsuit that he took off his jacket before making a “rhetorical” comment about fighting the officer. He says he told the officer that if he wanted to pick a fight he should “at least be a man and remove his duty belt and fight fairly,” but says he never actually resisted arrest.
Cain is represented by Oakland-based civil rights attorney John Burris, who settled another highly publicized wrongful death lawsuit against the city in February for $719,000. That 2016 incident involved Sacramento Police officers killing a homeless black man who was running from police on a busy boulevard. Dashcam video showed a Sacramento police officer saying “fuck this guy” moments before officers shot and killed Joseph Mann. The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office declined to press charges against the officers.
April 24, 2017: Terrill Thomas spent seven straight days holed up in a solitary confinement cell with no running water, slowly withering away. Thomas started the weeklong stretch at the Milwaukee County Jail belligerent and loud, the result of an untreated mental illness, prosecutors said. But as the days wore on, he grew weak and dehydrated. He lost nearly 35 pounds and turned quiet, never asking for or receiving medical attention. Barely two hours into his eighth day in solitary, jail staff found Thomas, 38, dead on his jail cell floor, the result of profound dehydration. Prosecutors on Monday began the process of publicly airing the circumstances surrounding Thomas' death in April 2016, opening their inquest into whether any jail staff should be criminally charged for failing to help him. An inquest is a rarely used legal process that allows prosecutors to question witnesses under oath and in front of a jury before they file any criminal charges. The jury then returns a unanimous verdict as to whether there's probable cause to charge anybody, and what those charges should be. Prosecutors are not required to follow the jury's verdict. They have not said whom they might consider charging.
Debra Milke was interrogated by a police detective. The officer emerges from the room saying Milke confessed to murder. Milke denies it and maintains her innocence. There is a trial and that’s the sum total of the evidence against her. The officer says she confessed to him. No recording. No signed confession. Other men that were connected to the killing said she was not involved. On the basis of that one officer’s testimony, Milke not only lost her liberty, she almost lost her life–as it was a death penalty case. When Milke’s lawyers dug into the crucial detective’s background, they found evidence of lying and misconduct in other cases. That’s when Judge Kozinski issued his ruling saying the government’s case was so weak that it could not stand. Milke was released from prison.
September 18, 2017 The Rochester Police Department faces a lawsuit from a city man who says officers body-slammed, pepper-sprayed and threatened to shoot him during a 2014 encounter in a 19th Ward laundromat over an apparent false identification. According to the lawsuit, filed Monday in state Supreme Court, police were responding to a call about a man with a gun engaged in an argument outside the laundromat. Keene says he was inside, talking on the phone with his grandmother and doing his laundry, when Rochester police Officer Mario Masic entered with a drawn gun and "slammed Mr. Keene's body into a wall, sprayed Mr. Keene in the face and eyes with pepper spray, and struck him in the head and body several times." Masic then pepper-sprayed Keene again after he had been handcuffed, according to the lawsuit, and threatened to shoot him if he didn't "shut up and stop moving." Neither the RPD, the city of Rochester nor the Locust Club responded to requests for comment Monday evening.
December 1, 2013 Dallas, Texas: A now-former officer was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide for striking a cyclist while in pursuit. The officer ran him over and cuffed him and allegedly waited several minutes before calling EMS. The cyclist died of his injuries before getting to the hospital. The officer was fired and the cyclist’s family received $1,200,000 from a lawsuit against the City.
April 20, 2017: The City of Colorado Springs has agreed to pay $212,000 to settle a racial profiling lawsuit claiming city cops unlawfully targeted two African-American men during a 2015 traffic stop. Ryan Brown, 31, recorded the stop on his cellphone, which showed Colorado Springs police officers aggressively pulling him and his 22-year-old brother, Benjamin Brown, from their vehicle at gunpoint for reasons officers declined to reveal. The video made national news, getting more than 165,000 views. Benjamin Brown was cited for obstruction of view because of a cracked windshield, to which he pleaded guilty. Charges alleging Ryan Brown obstructed a peace officer were dropped. Police maintain officers did nothing improper, but the department will be tweaking some of its policies to better define when officers can search, seize and arrest, according to the terms of the settlement.
April 24, 2017: The Supreme Court declined to review an appeal in the case of Salazar-Limon v. City of Houston (scroll down). Of course, the Court declines most appeals and can only review a small fraction of the cases brought to it. What is noteworthy about this case is the dissent filed by Justice Sotomayor. She wanted to explain why the Court’s denial was a mistake. The case involved a police shooting in Houston. The man, Ricardo Salazar-Limon (SL), survived the shooting and later sued for excessive force. Unfortunately, his lawsuit was thrown out before there was even a trial. That was Sotomayor’s objection–the case was improperly decided by a judge before trial when a jury should have heard the controversy. Salazar-Limon was shot by the police and now the government has tossed away his legal claim of excessive force. By allowing the lower court ruling to stand uncorrected, the law is now tilting against the victims of police misconduct and puts dangerous power in the hands of police. Here’s the background: SL was driving on a Houston freeway around midnight. He had been drinking. Officer Chris Thompson pulled him over, and asked for his license. Thompson checked for warrants, but there were none. SL was asked to exit his vehicle –probably for a sobriety test. It seems that when Thompson moved to put handcuffs on SL, things escalated fast and their stories diverge. SL says he started walking away, and that he was shot in the back just seconds after Thompson had called out to him to stop. Thompson claims that SL responded to his order by turning around and making a motion toward his waistband as if he were about to draw a gun, so Thompson, who had already drawn his weapon, shot SL. SL had no gun. As noted, an excessive force claim was filed. The police officer asked the district judge to resolve the case in his favor prior to trial, arguing that he was immune under the doctrine of qualified immunity. When the facts are disputed, cases typically go to the jury. When there is no real factual dispute, a judge might decide the case based on the law. That’s what happened here, but it remains controversial. Officer Thompson and the lower courts took the position that since SL did not deny reaching for his waistband, the court could decide the case without a jury. In that situation, the courts said Thompson would have been justified in using deadly force–even if no gun is found later. The perceived threat is sufficient. Sotomayor said the courts were making an awful mistake. SL’s legal claim did dispute the facts–that he did not turn to Officer Thompson till he was shot in the back. SL is basically saying that he got shot for disobeying an order given just seconds earlier and that’s excessive force. Sotomayor isn’t saying that Officers Thompson was wrong to shoot. She is making a more modest argument. The jury should have heard both sides and then decided the case after hearing all the evidence. She believes the courts are deciding too many of these kinds of cases prematurely and that the victims of police misconduct are having their claims improperly rejected. She’s right. Alas, only Justice Ginsburg joined Sotomayor’s dissent. Still, the dissent raised the profile of the problem and will help ignite a debate in this important corner of the law. We should note that Sotomayor cites this article by Radley Balko that collects cases of persons shot by police where the justification was “reaching for the waistband” and it turned out there was no gun. That is just too thin a basis for the use of deadly force on people. To be clear, the officer could draw his weapon and he could take cover and issue more commands to a suspect to show his hands. But opening fire without seeing a gun in such circumstances seems wrong. At the least, the jury should have decided whether the shot was truly justified.
April 19, 2017: A veteran police officer is on unpaid leave after a video showed him striking a man in the face at a Fairfield gas station. Detective Gary Lavender, a retired Birmingham detective who joined the Fairfield Police Department 10 years ago, has been suspended for five days without pay pending the ongoing investigation. "I regret the whole incident took place. I don't think that what took place is necessarily reflective of all of our officers,'' Mayor Ed May II said in a sometimes-hostile press conference on the steps of Fairfield City Hall. "We aren't going to have problems with accountability in the City of Fairfield while I'm mayor." The 10-second video of the incident, which happened Tuesday afternoon at the Citgo gas station, was posted to social media mid-afternoon. The video showed the detective yelling and walking up to a black male before striking the man in the face.
PROVIDENCE — A Superior Court jury on Friday acquitted a 25-year-old city man of assaulting two Providence police officers and resisting arrest in an encounter in March 2013 that left him bloodied, with a gash to his forehead. The jury of six men and six women found Joshua Robinson not guilty of two simple assault counts and one of resisting arrest after deliberating about three-and-a-half hours. The verdict elated a crowd of about 25 supporters, who were convinced of Robinson’s innocence and that he had been charged only to cover up a brutal beating by Sgt. David Allen. They wept, embraced and yelled out in celebration. Robinson, who stands 4 feet 11 inches, as compared to the officers’ 6 feet, declined comment afterward, but cried and hugged his lawyer, Dawn Huntley, as the verdict was read. Huntley said her client had been vindicated after previously being convicted of the crimes in a District Court bench trial. He appealed the conviction by Judge Elaine T. Bucci to Superior Court, where his two-week trial was overseen by Judge William E. Carnes Jr. “I think it erodes the public trust when you have a department who insulates under the code of silence. Any officer who’s done wrong, they have a duty to ferret them out,” Huntley said. “The community needs to know that they are also protected from the Police Department.” She said she hoped the verdict would bring about change in the department and the community. Allen testified that Robinson resisted arrest after running a stop sign around 2:30 a.m. on March 5, 2013, and that he saw him stuff bags of crack cocaine in his mouth. No drugs were found at the scene. Terrence Jones, a self-described civil rights investigator and former Philadelphia police officer, said he planned to hold the Providence police officers who testified during the trial accountable for their lies and perjury. “Stop covering up police. It comes from the top down,” said Jones, who investigated the case at the request of Huntley and her co-counsel, Carl Ricci. Providence Police Chief Hugh Clements said, “We respect the criminal justice process, and we certainly respect the jury.” He declined to comment further. The case caught the attention of civil-rights advocates, dozens of whom observed closing arguments Thursday, because of photos of Robinson’s bruised, bloodied and swollen face after the incident. Robinson was taken to Rhode Island Hospital for treatment of the injuries, which required stitches and included two black eyes. Several onlookers, who did not identify themselves, lashed out angrily after the verdict, taking aim at closing statements by Special Assistant Attorney General Joseph McBurney, who prosecuted with John Perrotta. McBurney disputed any notion of a cover-up by police and argued that Robinson’s resistance brought on the violent struggle. He asserted that Robinson had probably swallowed the drugs. Robinson, meanwhile, has filed a civil suit in U.S. District Court, accusing Allen and Officers Christopher Ziroli, Mark Hubbard, Sean Lafferty, Matthew McGloin, Matthew Rampone, Jerome Lynch, Clifford Torres and Joseph Donnelly of using excessive force, assault, battery, false arrest and engaging in malicious prosecution. He alleges that the department’s civilian complaint procedures perpetuate a climate of misconduct by failing to properly investigate allegations and discipline officers. He is seeking unspecified damages.
April 4, 2017 Woonsocket, Rhode Island: A suspended officer pled guilty to assaulting a high school student while volunteering at school. He is still employed at the department despite his conviction for abusing his little sister several years ago.
Bexar County, Texas: A Bexar County Sheriff's Office deputy has been arrested and charged with official oppression, violation of civil rights and assault by a public servant stemming from an incident involving a prisoner in her care on April 14, 2015, according to the Bexar County Criminal District Attorney’s Office. Deputy Cynthia Benavidez is still currently an employee but has been placed on administrative leave pending a professional standards and integrity investigation, according to a Bexar County Sheriff's Office spokesperson. She was arrested with a warrant last Tuesday and has since posted bond.
April 17, 2017: The Denver City Council approved a $47,000 settlement to a woman in a lawsuit against police to avoid going to court. The money will be paid out to Linda McGee, who suffered a broken wrist during the incident. Officers were looking for a man near McGee's neighborhood. An officer approached her nephew, Dakota Randall, thinking he was the person they were looking for. In cellphone video provided by McGee's attorney, Randall explains to the officer that he is not the suspect being sought. When the officer tries to arrest him, Randall runs to McGee's house. "We heard Dakota say, 'Help, help, save me.' So my husband got up and went to the door. As we opened the door, police were there with their guns drawn," McGee said. In the scuffle that ensued, McGee said officers tried to take Randall's girlfriend's phone as she was recording the incident. Then, McGee said an officer approached her, grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her. McGee said she immediately felt pain. "It hurt so bad," McGee said. "I still have pain and it's still swollen." Later, she said she was criticizing officers for their handling of the situation. She said that's when an officer got in her face. "I was afraid that I could be really injured if I would have said anything to him," McGee said. Doctors told McGee her wrist will never be the same. McGee said it's hard to fathom living with the pain considering the incident could have easily been avoided because police had misidentified her nephew. "I get emotional now. I do. I really do. Because I always obey the law and for them to do that to me, I felt horrible. I still feel that way. I still feel afraid," said McGee. McGee grew up in Denver, raised her family here and worked for years for the city. She said she's always been a law-abiding citizen and the incident has scarred her. "It's hard to live your life," McGee said. "It's hard to deal with it mentally that it happened to me here."
The settlement comes on the heels of other big payouts the city has agreed to this year. The city announced last week it would pay $999,999 to Jessica Hernandez's family. Police were trying to arrest the teen for driving a stolen car and said say she tried to run officers over, prompting them to shoot and kill her. The Denver Police Department has since changed its policy on firing into moving vehicles. In January, the city agreed to pay $1.8 million to Daniel Martinez's family. Police kicked in the family's door, expecting to find drug dealers and prostitutes. Four officers roughed up Daniel Martinez and his three sons -- the youngest just 16 years old -- after charging into the home. The criminals police were after had moved out of the home a month earlier. So far this year, the city has paid $1,659,750 in settlements, including the money to Hernandez's family. "There are always more cases than you see," said McGee's attorney, Raymond Bryant, with Civil Rights Litigation Group. "This is just the tip of the iceberg."
El Paso, Texas: An officer was indicted for manslaughter for fatally shooting Erik Sanchez in the back in 2015.
April 15, 2017 Atlanta, GA: Days after two officers in suburban Atlanta were fired when videos surfaced showing them kicking and punching a motorist, authorities have reportedly dismissed nearly 90 cases involving the pair. The Gwinnett County Solicitor said she is dropping all cases in which Robert McDonald or Michael Bongiovanni were either the principal officer or a necessary witness. Sixty-three cases were dismissed in Gwinnett County Recorder's Court and 26 in Gwinnett County State Court, according to ABC affiliate WSB-TV in Atlanta. All were misdemeanor or traffic offenses, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. McDonald and Bongiovanni were fired Thursday after videos emerged online showing a man being punched and kicked during a traffic stop, police said. The Gwinnett County Police Department in Lawrenceville, Georgia -- about 30 miles outside of Atlanta -- called the videos "shocking" and "disturbing" and announced today that two officers had been fired and that criminal investigations had begun. The first video to surface shows an officer, identified as McDonald, kicking a handcuffed man in the head as he lays in the middle of a major roadway during a traffic stop. A second video discovered by police, taken by a witness from a different angle, "shows the man getting out of the car with both hands up," according to police. "As he stands with his hands up, [Sergeant] Michael Bongiovanni strikes the man in the face," the police said in a statement. Bongiovanni was hired in 1999 while McDonald joined the department in 2013. Gwinnett County Police Chief Butch Ayers said of McDonald: "This officer and his actions do not represent the men and women of this police department who put their lives on the line." He said McDonald apologized for what occurred and for embarrassing the department. "It shouldn't have happened," Ayers said McDonald told him. The Gwinnett Police Department said in a press release that it has launched a criminal investigation that will be handed over to the District Attorney's Office. Bongiovanni and McDonald did not immediately respond to ABC News' requests for comment.
Roy, Utah: The department is being sued for the fatal shooting of a man who was appearing to flee after a brief peaceful encounter at a convenience store. The police released body cam footage of the incident. Footage does not show any sign of imminent danger to the officers.
394)April 14, 2017 An Adams County Sheriff's Deputy has been arrested after forcing a suspect off a roof during a confrontation in March. James Cook, 33, was arrested Thursday and is being charged with 2nd degree assault. According to a press release, it all started with a domestic violence call in Brighton on March 21. The suspect, Alejandro Martinez, 24, ran from authorities and climbed onto the rooftop of an outbuilding nearby. Police say he was refusing direct orders to come down so Cook, an Adams County K9 hander, was sent to the roof with a dog to attempt to take Martinez into custody. Witnesses told police that during the ensuing confrontation, Cook physically forced Martinez off the roof. Martinez fell and was taken into custody on the ground. He was transported to the hospital to be treated for his injuries. Martinez was charged with criminal mischief, 3rd degree assault, obstructing a police officer and domestic violence. The Weld County Sheriff's Office, which was also involved in the arrest of Martinez, investigated the claims that Cook had forced Martinez off the roof. Their investigation ended Thursday with the arrest of Cook.
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — A second Gwinnett County police officer has been fired after a handcuffed man was stomped in the head while lying on a Georgia street. On Wednesday around 4 p.m. ET, Master Police Officer Robert McDonald responded to assist a supervisor, Sgt. M.F. Bongiovanni, with a traffic stop at the intersection of Sugarloaf Parkway at Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road. Cellphone video of the incident shows the driver, Demetrius Hollins, being pulled from the vehicle and stomped by McDonald as he arrived on the scene. McDonald was fired early Thursday. Later Thursday, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, another video emerged purportedly showing Bongiovanni punching Hollins in the head before McDonald arrived, even though Hollins had his hands up. The first video to come forward, called "very disturbing" by a police spokesperson, was taken by another driver in traffic. “What I viewed last night was disturbing to me and disturbing to others,” Gwinnett County Police Chief Butch Ayers said at a Thursday afternoon news conference. “What happened last night involving the officer last night was embarrassing to the Gwinnett County Police and other law enforcement.” Initially police said there would be no investigation of Bongiovanni, but Thursday evening he was fired after the second video surfaced. A police department statement said the two officers violated their training and state law. The department said both men are under criminal investigation. “The revelations uncovered in this entire investigation are shocking,” the police statement said.
Miami Beach, Florida: The department and City are being sued by a woman who was allegedly dragged naked from her home by officers at two in the morning over a failure to pay cash cab fare.
Chicago, Illinois: The City will pay $13,000,000 to a man who was wrongfully convicted of double murder because of actions of seven CPD officers and two prosecutors. He spent over 20 years in prison.
Knox County, Barbourville, and Kentucky State Police: Ten officers across three departments are being sued by a pair jailed for 36 months on murder charges before being released for lack of probable cause. The plaintiffs allege manufacturing of evidence, unnecessary jail transfers in order to create jailhouse snitch confessions, and other misconduct.
April 11, 2017 Fort Collins, Colorado: An officer was investigated after a video of him throwing a woman face first onto the pavement went viral.
In Duluth, Minnesota, on June 15, 1920, three young African-American traveling circus workers were lynched after having been accused of having raped a white woman and jailed pending a grand jury hearing. A physician's subsequent examination of the woman found no evidence of rape or assault. The alleged "motive" and action by a mob were consistent with the "community policing" model. The book, The Lynchings in Duluth (2000) by Michael Fedo has documented the events.