The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About07-28-1998 Articles July L~O, 1998 Iowa City press-C~en Police board forum a good starting point A forum on Iowa City That's exactly why this police drew piles of people mustbeonlythefirstofsuch -- many with complaints -- forums. Communication and and lasted longer than understanding bring resp~ planned. And it's a two-way strut. Is this a surprise? Hardly. A first forum like this was But it was good for the bound to bring out corn- community and, if we're plaints. People want to vent smart, was just the first of their dislress and anger, such forums. That's been done. We can The forum was sponsored learn from it. And we can by the Police Citizens move on. Review Board as part of an Now we can schedule effort to review police poli- forums- or other events- cies and procedures. Board for police to explain how members got an earful, from they do things. For residents charges of racism and to talk about how police harassment to aggression practices could be changed and arrogance, to show more respect. There also were police We all want the same and their defenders, thing: A safe city. But there Over and over and over, are going to be differences of there were two themes: corn- opinion and perspective munication and respect. City about how we achieve that. residents and police both We at least are talking. want them. There's a sense Now we can work on they aren't happening, solving the problems. Iowa City Press-Citizen, Wednesday, July PCRB Chairman Paul Police said the board will crt- Officer Charles Singleman begins tique what it heard Tuesday his 25th year with the department in during its next meeting, Aug. September. 11. The board's t~st annual His main duty is dou, mown. but, as foruI report is expected by city coun- it is with most officers, he has many cilors in September. Another assignments. Singleman also is a Drag public forum is scheduled f~ Abuse Resistance Education officer, a Oct. 27. fire investigator, crime scene techni- "I think you have to hope f~' ci~n and bike patrol officer, stirs the very best police force you '~rhis community does not have can have in this community," enough poi'ce; S'ngleman sald, conn- said local resident Dave Mo~... tering arguments heard earlier that it debate --"'But' l" think y°u have t° assume t~'¢~ "This·, community The Tuesday night forum went'= have enough police. well beyond schedule, lasting 2½, not do my job as well hours as about 40 beople arrived and ay Bnan aharo wouM like because I tllost of them spoke, There were The Press-Citizen ;ties of apparent abuse of power by $0 many additional After two hours of criticism officers, there were questions about an mixed withpraise, DavidNixon apparent increase in charges filed! rose from his seat, feeling corn- alleging res dents had interfered with ] pelled to speak, or assaulted officers. ; iOWa City police officer The Iowa City Police officer And again, there was appreciation, had heard compliments. But from some for officers' vigilance. , may have too many. "l cannot do my during the Police Citizens Each speaker, it seemed, came back to i ~eview Board forum Tuesday - .}ob as well as I would like to because key issues of communication and night, Nixon respect. Among the citizen topics fc~r i have so many additional duties;' eOW~l C:i~ also listened discussion that Hoffey noted TueMay I Before Singleman stood to speak, to charges of were questions about policies that ' however, Anthony Haughton gave a racism, harassment, aggression authorize police to use fo*ce, slightly different view of the depart- and arrogance. Those allega~ mont. The probation officer of 10 lions came from the people he On this evening, there also was a had sworn to protect and s~'ve return to what brought everyone here: years with the Sixth Judicial Disffict the past four years. One late August night back in 1996, has lived in this area for about 30 The board's first forum was On that night, former, officer Jeffrey years, called to give focus ~ a City Gilaspie, investigating an open door, And he has watched the police Council-requested PCRB shot and killed an unarmed Erie Shaw, department change. review of police policies and The local artist and businessman was He talked about a distressing trend procedures, The five-member talking on the telephone in his busi- -- those charges of residents interfer- board also has the ongoing ness at the time, lng with police duties, the allegations responsibility of reviewing citi- The PCRB was born in the weeks of racism and an apparent thc~ase in zen complaints against the that followed, though it would take non-whiu~s being stopped by police. department, another year to work out the details. "There are a number of good "We're in a job that is thank- And Tuesday night, it appeared, many police officers," Haughton said. less, We go to calls that deal residents still were trying to under- "There also are a number of what 1 with ~ragedy, yet we have to stand what led to that shot, and what call cowboys." display no emotion, We have to has followed it. ' The board was asked to get more take charge," said Nixon, his "If it had been your son that was input from non-white residents. The voice cracking and his word~ murdered, then these rationalizations ,audience Tu~May night was nearly as _ halted by emotion, would slice up your s~oul and leave homogeneous as the board. "Do we do the job perfect you enraged;' said Eric's father, Jay ~ every day? No, we don't," Shaw. However, by statute, the PcRB ~ Nixon said, "There are days cannot investigate the case -- it was when we probably shouldn't given authority to review only those~ '~ we put the uniform on. We complaints filed within 60 days. ~d have stayed home .., But Police and residents alike spoke of ', are asked to be super a lack of community understanding human, and sometimes we fall about police practices and a lack of short. And I apologize, because police officem. Of th~ state's la~ ~ we're not suppoa~d to fall short;' communities, onlY Ames has a Iowe~ officers per capita ratio than Iowa City. First police review board forum draWs residents: * Iowa City police say they are working with citizens to adapt to the attitudes of community members. By Rebecca Anderson The Daily Iowan At the first public forum of the Police-Citizens Review Board, many Iowa City residents expressed the need for the Iowa City police to keep up with the changing atmosphere of the community. Iowa City resident and attorney Linda Levey said she would like to see the police communicate more with residents. She noted that blame for the increase in gang-related violence and drug busts in tov~n seems to have recently been placed on African Americans. "These are not all gangsters; these are human beings," Levey said. "There's tension arid lack of understanding of minority people." More than 25 Iowa City residents turned out for Tuesday evening's forum to express their concerns. Richard Twohy, 3168 Dubuque St. NE, said residents' attitudes are changing, and the police should respond in return. "There are times when this marvelous town feels like Los Angeles," Twohy'said He also aliuded to the' building of Coral Ridge Mall as a major influence of change in town. Charles Eastham, 1152 E. Court St., expressed concern that Iowa City police are making traffic stops ~.- without issuing tickets or citations. He said his son has told him of many occasions when officers have stopped people solely because of their minority status. ~ Iowa City police Sgt. Mike Brotherton said he believes the department is working with the residents and working on being polite and courteous while still being firm and assertive. "I firmly believe we're going through changes and have a really good police department," Brotherton said. Eastham noted the current complaint investigation concerning Faith Walker, which was reported in The Daily lowan on June 12. "There have been enough reports for this board to see if it's occurring," Eastham said. John Bennett, a UI journalism assistant professor, echoed Eastham, giving what he called "anecdotal" reactions to Iowa City police and the manner in which they treated his teen-age son. I of 2 7/15/98 9:02 AM He said first-hand experience has showed him how Iowa City police officers often treat younger people different than adults. Bennett said he believes the treatment has an effect on how younger people view the police and Iowa City in general. "There has to be a particular kind of mature discipline," he said. Jay Shaw read from a script detailing his opinions on how the review hoard should handle public complaints following the police-shooting death of his son, Eric Shaw, on Aug. 30, 1996. "The primary purpose of the review board is to protect citizens from abuse and death at the hands of police," Shaw said. Although his son's death was the stepping stone to the board's creation, its purpose is to "effect changes in police procedures." Despite the development of the board, Twohy asked if Eric Shaw's death still leaves unanswered questions in the minds of residents. "Have we learned anything from what happened in August 19967" Twohy said. As for the future of the police, he wants to see an end to the investigation of the Shaw shooting. "There ought to be answers," he said. "There ought to be closure." The board will hold another public forum on Oct. 27. D1 reporter Rebecca Anderson can'be reached at: raanders@blue.we~g.uiow~., edu Title: First police review board forum draws residents Page: lA Date: 7/15/98 ' · [ Home Search Front Metro & Imva Nation & World Viewpoints Sports Arts ] Copyright 1996 The Daily Iowan. <http://www.uiowa.edu/--~dlyiowan/> 2 of 2 · 7/15/98 9:02 AM ' · Page 11A Monday July 13, 1998 ~wa Ci~Press. C#izen Offer ideas on police Have a ?pe about the room A of the Iowa City Iowa Cit5 Police Public Library, 123 S. Linn Department? St. Have a suggestion for If you show up, you can how they can do things bet- speak. If you want to register ter? in advance, to speak in the Or do 3ou just want to In'st 90 minutes of the forum, offer a word of encourage- ca11356-5041. merit, a word of thanks? Speakers will be limited Your chance comes to 5 minutes each, Tuesday. By all means, attend. As part of a review of the But a suggestion. You'll depmlmem, the city Police accomplish more if you go Citizens Re;iew Board will with an idea of how to hold a thrum from 7 to 9 change things and make p.m. Tuesday in meeting them better. Local Police Board fOrum set The PoLice Citizens Review forum from 7 t° ~,~ ~ .t~. y, it ~ 123 $ Linn St. Residents may ~'tnon police policies, practices. Public suggestions will be used as the City Counc~appoimed board determines the focus and direc- tion for its assigned review of the police depamnent. Board recomn~ndations then will be forwarded to the council. ~dYance sign ap is available for people wanting to address the board during the first 90 minutes of the forum. Call 356- 5041 to register. The fovam is in Meeting RoomA of the library. Spealmes are limited to five minutes. Today, Iowa City, Iowa: Sun. July 12, 1998 3 PCRB forum set for Tuesday IOW-X. CITY -- A rescheduled police policies. community forum hosted by the Police Citizen Rex iew Board is Once it completes its review, set Ibr '['ue~day at 7 p.m. in the board will make recommen- Reom A of [kc [o',~,a City Public dations to the Iowa City Coun- l,ibrm'y oil. People attendil~g may give An earlier attempt to hold the their suggestions about police hearing on ,June 29 was post- department policies and proce- poned after a severe wind and dures, rain storm swept through John- Boa[:d members plan to use son County, knocking out ~ the suggestions to help guide the power in Iowa City and Coral- direction of its work reviewing ville. 1 PATRICK I/HITE, HAROLD YOUNG, TON HILLER, THE~AND JUP. Y ia study in interactive bias) I was recently Informed by Ic~a Assistant Attorney General Harold Young that the U.S. Justice Department had sought and would receive a transcript of the Johnson County Grand Jury's Investigation into the killing o! our son by Io~a City Police officers Gllla~ple and [elsay. I have advised the Justice Department that when examining this transcript t~o critical facts must be kept in mind~ l~ic~t, the 'prosecutor' presiding over the grand Jury vas Harold Young, *an assistant of Io~a Attorney General Tom Hiller, who supported the decision not to prosecute, and who fought against the appointment of a special Independent prosecutor- THE CONFLICT OF INTEREST HERE IS GROSS AND O)VIOU$. Second, the ~rand Jury refused to hear ~aorn testimony from those with evidence, or interpretations of evidence, that supported a proseoution of these officers. I l~i~W THAT THgRE WOULD )E NO PROSECUTION Tiro WP,~[S BEFORE THE 6P. AIiD JURY HADE ITS ~OU)ICI~iEIiT BECAUSE HAROLD YOUNG TOLD HE AT THAT TIHE THAT OHLY THO~JE WHO HAD DIRECT I~OWLEDOE OF GR INVOLVEI4EHT WITH THE KILLING ~JLD BE ALLO~ED TO TESTIFY- THIS RESTRICTION HEART THAT ONLY THE POLICE VERSION OF THE ~ILLIHG WO~LD BE HEARD)- Young and the ~rand Jury did not even bother to give the appearance of objectivity. Evidence of Dre-e×lstino bias In the orand Jury could be found In the ~ltness list itself. 1~ that list ~eren~t ~secret. Such a preponderance of witnesses whose slm~pathles lie with the killers can have more that Just an evidential effect, It can create sympathies for the killers that will cause Jurors to stretch law to the breaking point as they look for ways to avoid prosecution. The grand Jury uncioubted]y heard moving testimony from Glllaspie about ho~ terrible he feels and ho~much he regrets kll]lng our son. But regret does not get other killers off, so why shou)d it get a policeman off? Glllasple's regret was obviously shallo~ anyway because it vas not strong enough to prevent him fro~ changing his testimony to avoid prosecution, Evidence of Hr Young's bias can be found In a letter which Young sent to Hr. Herman Lenz, ~Yflo In turn sent a copy to me. In this letter Young attempts to demonstrate why White and the grand Jury did not Indict the officers for murder, or manslaughter, or assault, or Involuntary manslaughter. But what this letter really demonstrates are the misinterpretations of lay, the sloppy logic, the selective recall, and the gross bias for police that has Infected Iowa's prosecutorlal system from bottom to top. THIS LI~'~TER ~L~O O]~IO~ISTI?AT~ 80~I~TBIHG IfHICH I HAVE SAID ALL ALONG, THAT THE IOWA ATTORNEY 6~P.~L'8 OFFICE WAS NOT PROVIDING A .REVIEW OF COUNTY ATTORNEY PATRICl I/HITE'S DEOISIOW, I~T INSTEAD WAS PROVIDING UI~/AVERIHG ~UPRORT FOR THEIR FRIEHD AND AI~SOCIATE l/R WItlTE, BECAUSE THEY A~REED ~ITH, AND PRO~BLY ~ iH, ~ ~ HURDER/ HANSLAUG?ITF. R/ ASSAULT Young states In this letter that White believes that assault (and murder and manslaughter) charges were not possible because the killing happened so rapidly that there vas no time for the officer to form an Intent. Just how much time do these men think It takes to form an Intent to kill- It takes only as much time as It takes to Intentionally pull the trigger of a gun which Is loaded with hollow point bullets and pointed centen~ass at a person In front of them. I would like to ask Hr White and Hr Young If they would 2 be willing to give this special dlmpensatlon of lack of Intent to every person who fires a gun and kills mono In a situation where the killing happens In a micro-second- say to a burglar or an Intruder who encounters a person suddenly and unexpectedly and kills them because they have seen his face or simply because he is startled, or to a bank robber who kills someone who makes a move that the robber Interprets as a move toward the panic button or a weapon, or to a hostage taker who kills a person because that person moves In the wrong way. It is ludicrous for men with Whlte's and Young's supposed expertise to be making excuses for this killing based on the amount of time the killers spent doing the killing- NO JUSTIFICATION IN L~ FOR SUCH ~ pOSITION. SINCE INTENT IS A STATE OF HIND AND BECAUSE THE LAW [lAS NOT DEVELOPED AN ABILITY TO READ HINDS, INTENT CAN NOT BE PROVED, IT C~[ ONLY BE REA~O~IABLY AND RATIONALLY INFERRED YEOtl A PERSON'S ACTIONS AND STATF~ffiNTS AND FROM SITUATION- for Young to talk about proving state of mind Is preposterous. Gillasole anti is I say were lileoal ~ they can not be alven the ~ of lack of Intent. Glllasple and [elsay Intentionally attempted an entry without a warrant, with guns drawn and ready to fire, In a situation where there was not the slightest Justification for entering at all- they failed to give verbal warning, and acted completely contrary to the procedures they were taught at the police academy. Glllasple knew that his gun contained hollow point bullets and he knew that firing a hollow point bullet center mass at a man who is only a few feet from him will almost certainly cause death- he knew that his training as an officer made him a good shot whose bullet was likely to land where he aimed it- Glllaspie knew what would happen if he fired his gun, and he Intentionally fired his gun. It Is not necessary to 'prove' that fllllasple had all these facts in his mind In the seconds before he fired, only that he was operating as a police officer In full knowledge of these facts. ONLY EXTR~tlE PREJUDICE YOR THE [ILL~RS COULD PEEVFA1T WHITE AND YOUNG AND ATTOP. N~Y iENERAL MILLER [~ FOP~IIN$ AN OPINION TNAT ?BIS KILLING WAS BOTH INTENTIONAL AND UNJBSTIFIED AND TNEREFO~E ~ CRINE OF AT LEAST MANSLAUGHTER IF NOT MURDER. ~re these men willing to extend to every killer who comes before them the same special dispensations which they have extended to our son's killers? White and Young and Hiller know in general that a peFson who has killed can not be trusted to tell the truth about their Intent. Gillasple could not lie about the circumstances of the killing because there was a witness listening to the killing on the phone, but he could lie about his Intent. andwhite and Youno and ~lller These men know that shortly after the killing Giliasple stated that he saw the phone and thought It was a gun and fired In self defense, ~]ICH NEANS WITH [~E~- and they know that two weeks later Glllasple stated the exact opposite, that he did not see the phone, did not think there was a gun, did not think he was In danger, that he Just flinched (White participated In this Interview). White and Young and Nlller also know that officer Zacharlas testified that Glllasple went through the doo~ In a crouched position with his gun pointed at the ground and that when he saw our son he moved to an upright position raised his gun aimed and fired- these men know that this Is absolutely not a description o[ a flinch. T~EY [NOW TN~T LYING IS ONE THE MOST RELIABLE AND GUILT. ~ow ts It that White and Youno and Mil]er were able ~o Ionore ~ lie a swell as other lies bv Officer ~elsav? 3 THE EXPLANATIOM FOR WNITE'S EASn~ ACCEI~TANCE OF LYING BY POLICE )SAY BE FOUND IN THE FACT THAT WHITE ~HIMSELF LIED ABOUT HIS REASONS FOR NOT PROSECUTIHG. At his new~ conference on Oct $, 1996 White stated that he accepted Glllsapie's second version of the killing that he flinched, In other words fired unintentionally- to accept this statement White had to Ignore Zacharias's testimony and Glllaspie's initial statement given the night of the killing that he had (ired his gun Intentionally. PERHA?8 THE FACTS OF ?HE KIL~ING CAUGHT UP WITH WHITE, because since that time White has stated on numerous occasions In the local'and national media that he believes Glllasple intentionally fired his weapon. ONE OF WHITE'8 STATEMENTS IS A LIE{ THE FACT THAT WHITE AND YOUNG AND MILLER (and grand Jury members) HAD FULL KNOWLEDGE OF GILLASPIE'S ~WITCH FROM A SELF-DEFI~iSE DEFENSE TO A FLINCH DEFENSE IS AN ABSOLUTE CONDEMNATION OF THESE MEN, because It proves that they were willing to overlook obvious lies as they decided to file no charges. There is, In fact, good reason to believe that White was Involved In this ~witch from self-defense'to flinch defense. White did not even ask Glllasple to explain the contradiction between his statement given the night of the killing that he intentionally fired his 9un, and his Involuntary flinch defense given two weeks later. This glaring omlslon ~uggests that White willingly and knowingly participated In Glllasple's change of testimony. It would be highly unlikely that Gllla~ple's attorney would advise his client to contradict previous testimony without assurance from White that he would accept the contradiction and would not prosecute. White must have concluded that the only way he could reasonably fall to prosecute was to call this an accidental killing that re~ulted from a flinch, and not an Intentional killing that was Justified by a ml~perceptlon of danger. White has been accused In the media, and he has not denied It, that he struck a deal with GIIla~ple's lawyer that he, White, would not prosecute If Gllla~ple would agree not to fight his die~lssal and would resign if given the chance. Substituting civil psnaltles for criminal penalties Is not a legally acceptable alternative for a county prosecutor. (see enclosed oplnlon page article). THE NUMBER OF LIESWHICH THESE OFFICERS ~ND POLICE CHIEF~AND COUNTY A~O~EY WIalTE HAVE TOLD ~ ~ THOROUGH ~ OF THE~E INVOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER (while co,hitting an Illegal act) Involuntary manslaughter does not require intent, of course, but It does require either that the killing occur In conjunction with co~lssion of certain Illegal acts, or as a result of acts which are likely to cause death or Injury (recklessness). Young again parrots White with a statement that lnvoluntarty manslaughter was ruled out because the officers were not engaged In a pubic offense at the time of the killing. Young and White are apparently choosing to Ignore completely our Constitution which requires a search warrant before entry for any reason other than to protect the life of someone who might be In danger. These officers were in the process of committing the public offense of entering without a warrant, and they our son In the process of breaking the law! For the sake of expediency, some would give police the right to make building searches without a warrant when they find a door open or unlocked, but THERE IS NO MIDDLE GROUND HERE- IF YOU GIVE POLICE OFFICERS THE RIGHT TO 4 ENTER PRIVATE SPACE WITHOUT A WARRANT IN NON-EMERGF. NC'Y SITUATIONS BECAUSE A DOOR IS NOT LOCKED OR IS OPEN, THEN-YOU MUST INFORM ~ PER~ON IN THIS COUNTRY THAT LF.~,VING A DOOR ~ OR UNLOCKED ~ RIGHTS WHICH ~ERYONE IN THIS COUNTRY ~ TAKEN FOR G~NTED FOR OVER TWO HUNDRED YEAI~., THE RIGHT TO L~FB AND ~ RIGHT TO ~ ~ ~ IN PRIVATE SPAC~ ~ mOM IHT~USIONS OF LAW ~ ~ BOTH T~E RIGHT TO PRIVA~ ~ THE RIGHT OF POLICE TO ~ WITHO~ h WARRA~ CAN N~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ AND ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Al lowing police to enter unlocked buildings without a warrant puts our lives and our civil rights at risk, and It also glve~ police a way to enter a BullOlng when they kn~ they ~o not have probable cause to obtain a search warrant. Police In thl~ country have ~emon~trate~ time an~ again that they view lying as a tool of their tra~e, that they will lie if It suits their purposes an~ If they think they can get away with it. ~ ~ officer ~ enter any ~ ~ ~ found unlocked ~ o~en without I ~ then you are lnvltln~ officers ~ ~ o~en ~ ~ ~nd lie ~ ~ they foun~ ~ o~en. INVOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER (recklessness) Young then gives ~lte's second excuse for falllng to file an Involuntary manslaughter charge which is that a ~bulldlng search Is not an act that is likely to cause death or injury,u First of all this ~ Is totally false, because ~ bulldlnc searches IS an ac ti vi tv that is Inherently ~ to anyone who may be In the building, for the slm~le reason that ~ollce have ~ns ~nd are ~ ~ ~nvone they encounter durlnc ~~ search ~resents ~~ them. THE FA~ IS THAT BUILDING SEARCHES ~HOULD BE CONDUCED ONLY WHEN ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY, AND ONLY ~ EV~Y ~HER M~NS OF RE~OLVING THE SITUATION ~S BE~ ~U~ED- POLICE TRAINING MANUALS MAKE THIS VERY CLEAR. FINDING ~ DOOR ~ HAS ~ ~ AND ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ CONDU~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ FA~ THAT ~ ~ ~ ~ SON'~ ~R WITH GUNS DRA~ WAS ~ A~ ~ ~ ~ THE ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ WAS 6 ~ ~ THAT ~ WAS ~ ~ AND THAT ~ MIGHT ~ THAT ~ Poll~e training manuals state that the most G~on ~ause of an open or unlocke~ ~oor Is that an authorlze~ person has left It open or unlo~ke~- c~on sense tells you that the most likely reason that this person has left it open/ unlocke~ Is that he Is Inside and has either forgot to close/lock the ~oor, or has ]eft It open for s~e reason- a business ~ner makes very thorough checks o~ doors ~en he leaves ~or the n{~f, bu[ is much less careful when he Is Inside conducting his business. I myself left that ~oor open for over ~ minutes earlier that nl~t ~en I was In the process of leaving the shop. All this means that an open/ unlo~ke~ ~oor Is thousands, probably hundreds of thousan~ of times more likely to mean that an authorlze~ person is Inside th~n a burg]ar, ~ ~ ~ ~ A~ ~~~~~ R~SK ~~~. But even In the ~are circumstance where a building search must be conOucte~, there are obvious safe~ar~s which must be taken to re~uce the chance of killing Innocent people. Police training manuals go Into ~eat ~etall on this subject ~n~ these offlGer ~1~ not take even one of those safe~ar~s- this fact makes Young's statement that "a bul]~lng search Is not an act that ]s likely to ~ause ~eath or Injury" absur~ on the fa~e of It, but that ab~rdltY can be seen with more clarity by making, a similar statement about sane other activity; say driving. Can you Imagine White or Young or Hiller making ~he excuse that "~lvlng Is nol an activity tha~ likely ko c~u~e ~akh o~ InjuryTM loc a man ~ho b~s ~lven hi8 ca~ at 80 miles an h~ past a school yard and killed chilean c~o~lng the the~e o~flce~s actions ~re of the ~ llkJ ~ Y~N~ ~ ~ WHITE ~ SON'S SHOP, ~ ~ ~ 4 ~ ~ T,AT ~~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 4~ ~0 ~ ~ ~ AND ~ Young'~ letter ha~ ~ 1{~ primary motivation 4 d~lre to Justify ~lte~ and Young'~ 4nd th~ grand Jury'~ failure to pro~out~ ~h~ officer~ killed our ~on- it l~ not ~on{trlin~d by rationality ~nd I~gl~- It 1~ full of BIAS- what Young'~ litter pr~v{{ b~yond 4ny d~ubt i~ th{ unwawring SUPPO~ of Young 4nd by {xt{n{l~n Mlll{r f~r th{Ir ltl{nd ~nH Patrick ~1~, ~D FOR THE OFFI~8 ~0 KIL~D ~ 8ON. Y~ng'{ I~tt~r ~ prov~ that th{ ~and Jury did n~t h~v{ ~n obJ~tlv~ {p~lll pr~utor who{e goal wa{ Ju~tl~, but 4 facilitator ~ wa~ thor{ t~ d~ ~at~v{r h~ could to h~lp ~{d{ ~4nd Jury m~r{ t~ar~ th~ obJ~tlw ~lr~ by the Attorney Oen{ral~ office. PROSECUTIONS SPEAK LOOD~R THAN WORDS Hany feel that this Is a problem that affects only business ~e~s, but lnfo~atlon we have received fF~ people at.nd the c~nt=y ~ose loved ones have been killed Iff their h~s or on the street by police prove this false. ~th ~ns ~ vhen they f~nd ~ ~ o=en ~ ~ ~ ~ checks. AND~~~~~ I thank you for t~lng the time to read my letter. I hope you have given it the coneiderBtlon It ~eBerv~8 In II~t of the fact that violation8 of the 4th ~en~ent repreBentg · grave dBnge~ to the citizen8 of this ~ountry. Jay Shaw, faCher of Eric ~aw. LETTER TO EDITOR from Jay Shaw 5.,27,:~8 WE NEED PROTECTION FROM OUR POLICE Police live and work in virtually a closed society- their allegiance to each other is w~thout parallel. The fact that not one police officer in this state was willing to speak out publicly against the grossly reckless · policy and proceclures which set up the totally unjustified killing of our son is proof that police look out for each other first and foremost. ~ ls~l~u~ when ~aken ~o the extreme by colics It creates~ Blue Wall which orotects officers from the conseauences of their own One of the most critical roles of civilian government is to protect citizens from police, because police have guns and without strict civilian control will always move toward overrellance on them. If allowed to operate without oversight behind the protections of the blue wall, police chiefs and their officers will, over time, advance their needs, their goals, and their self protection ahead of the needs and protection of the citizens they are hired to serve, in Iowa City Chief Wlnkelhake and his officers found that entering any unlocked business or home with guns drawn looking for burglars served their purposes better than following safety procedures taught at the police academy, or'obeying the dictates of our Constitution and seeking a search warrant. THIS GROSSLY RECKLESS F~ILURE TO PUT THE S~ETY O~ CITIZENS It is the cluty of our prosecutors and courts to provide the primary line of protection from pollce by causing them to fear prosecution and Jail when they kill without Justification, But our prosecutors and courts are showlna c~ardlce a~ ~hev clive police the rlaht to kill for reason~ that would not .lustlfv kllllna by non-~ollce. THE FACT THAT OUR PROSECUTORS AND COURTS ARE TURNIHG THEIR BACKS OH MURDERS AND MANSLAUGHTERS BY POLICE MAKES THE HEED FOR THE PROTECTION WHICH CIVILIAN GOVERNMENT CAN PROVIDE ALL THE MORE CRITICAL. City government can provide this protection by overviewing the performance of employees to ensure they are not engaging in dangerous practices, and by ~ealing harshly with employees who have willfully put citizens at risk, and by terminating any employee who, through gross recklessness or willful negligence or violations of the law has caused the death or serious injury of a citizen, This may seem harsh, but then death is harsher still. City council members and City Manager Atklns did not exercise this vital protective role in the years preceding our son's killing, and to date, to their shame, council and Atkins are still not performing this role adequately. One can only hope that in future these men and women will not allow a bias or ~lsproportlonate respect for police to keep them from performing the most important Job they have, protecting the citizens they serve, Jay Shaw, father of Eric Shaw LETTER TO EDITOR from Jay Ohaw,-~ 5/27':~8 WE NEED PROTECTION FROM OUR POLICE Police live and work in virtually a closed society- their allegiance to each other Is without parallel. The fact that not one police officer in this state was willing to speak out publicly against the grossly reckless . policy and procedures which set up the totally unjustified killing of our son Is proof that police look out for each other first and foremost. ~ 1~ a~i~abl~ but when taken to the extreme bv police It erda t es ~ Blue W~ll which ~rotecta offlcer~ frem the conse~uence~ of their own misdeeds. One of the most critical roles of civilian government is to protect citizens from police, because police have guns and without strict civilian control will always move toward overreliance on them. If allowed to operate without oversight behind the protections of the blue wall, police chiefs and their officers will. over time, advance their needs, their goals, and their self protection ahead of the needs and protection of the citizens they are hired to serve, in iowa City Chief Wlnkelhake and his officers found that entering any unlocked business or home with guns drawn looking for burglars served their purposes better than following safety procedures taught at the police academy, or'obeying the dictates of our Constitution and seeking a search warrant. THIS ORO~L~~ F~ILURE TO PUT THE ~FETYOF CITIZENS AHEAD OFPROPm~r~CO~OUR~ONI~I~I~LEF~ It Is the duty of our prosecutors and courts to provide the primary line of protection from police by causing them to fear prosecution and Jail when they kill without Justification. But our orosecutors and court~ are showlna ~ a~ they alve police the ri(~ht to kill for ~ea~on~ that ~ould not ,Justify klllina bv non-oolite. THE FACT THAT OUR PROSECUTORS AND COURTS ARE TURNING THEIR BACKS ON MURDERS AND MANS~UGRTERS BY POLICE MAKES THE NEED FOR THE PROTECTION WHICH CIVILIAN GOVERNMENT CAN PROVIDE ALL THE MORE CRITICAL. City government can provide this protection by overviewing the performance of employees to ensure they are not engaging In dangerous practices, and by dealing harshly with employees who have willfully put citizens at risk, and by terminating any employee who, through gross recklessness or willful negligence or violations of the law has caused the death or serious injury of a citizen. This may seem harsh, but then death is harsher still. City council members and City Manager Atklns did not exercise this vital protective role in the years preceding our son's killing, and to date, to their shame, council and Atkins are still not performing this role adequately. One can only hope that in future these men and women will not allow a bias or disproportionate respect for police to keep them from performing the most important Job they have, protecting the citizens they serve. Jay Shaw, father of Eric Shaw THE KILLING OF ERIC SHAW August 30, 1996 11:44 pm · Eric was in his shop talking on the phone to a friend, his door was slightly ajar. · Lights were on inside and outside - four banks of flourescent lights inside, a mercury vapor light directly above the door on the outside. · Just five feet away, having arrived only seconds before, stood a policeman on the other side of the door. Two back-ups were behind him. All three had guns drawn. · With no announcement and with no cause except that the door was not completely dosed, the lead officer pushed the door open and (in the words of one of the back-up officers) without saying a word, all in one motion straightened up, raised his arm and fired his weapon. The hollow point bullet struck center mass, meaning Eric's heart. Eric died having no idea why they killed him. Eric's friend heard Eric start to say, uWhat's happening?" But he didn't fully get the words out of his mouth before the bullet ripped through his chest. · To the first investigating officer responding, the young police officer said he shot Eric because he thought the phone in Eric's hand was a gun. He gave no explanation why in that well-lit situation he would think that. · Two weeks later when the young police officer was finally interviewed in the presence of his lawyer, his defense had changed to ~I flinched, it was not a conscious decision to fire, I didn't see a phone or a gun or anything, just an upward movement (Eric was seated), and I flinched". · Over a month after Eric Shaw died the county attorney said it was not a crime to kill him. The reason given was that the officer did not consciously kill Eric, in other words, ~the officer flinched". All the media reported this as the reason. · Weeks later, Eric's uncle, discovered that on the very next day after announcing there would be no prosecution of the young officer, the county attorney said on a local talk radio show in response to a question about the pulling of the trigger, ~ I don't have any doubt that it was a consdous decision". · The protection of the police and the local officials is so strong that none of the media would report the illogical contradiction. Even though the county attorney later repeated on national media that the young officer made a consdous decision to fire his weapon, no one from the local media nor any one with oversight of the decisions of county attorneys has asked him to explain his blatant contradictions regarding his decision not to prosecute. · The U.S. Department of Justice is now considering federal criminal charges. James E Shaw 1 April 10, 1998 414 641-0496 The Killing of Eric Shaw THE TIMELINE OF THE KILLING OF ERIC SHAW 23:42:00 Kelsay is on foot patrol. He notices a door ajar at Eric's studio. He walks up to the door and listens for a few seconds. He backs away from the door and notices that the east windows are blocked with plywood except for the top foot or so of the window. Lights are on inside the studio. A mercury vapor light over the door illumines the alley. Later when describing the moment, Kelsay recalls noticing model airplanes inside the shop. 23:42:53 Duration of activity: Approximately 53 seconds 23:42:53 Kelsay is calling on his cell phone from the parking lot on the east side of Iowa Vend'mg ask'rog for the assistance of uniformed officers. Kelsay is not in uniform. He also does not have on a bullet proof vest. (As he talks, he walks carefully in a large seimicirlce around to the north side of IowaVending/Eric's shop/Ahren's Concrete keeping some distance from Eric' door) 23:43:23 Duration of call: 30 seconds 23:43:23 Kelsay continues walking on around to Gilbert Street He flags down a passing squad car. Zacharias p-]].~ in. Duration of activity: 36 seconds 23:43:59 Zacharias parks car in the alley between Ahren's and Budget Car Rental. Kelsay calls advising that ~3 & 12 are with mew. 23:44:05 Duration of call: 6 seconds 23:44:05 Gillaspie and Zacharias open and close their doors quietly. Kelsay whispers to G'fllaspie that he has an open door. He also tells Gillaspie something which Zacharias can not hear. Gillaspie begins walking toward Eric's door. 23:44:15 Duration of activity: 10 seconds Total elapsed time since Zacharias & GLllaspie arrived: 10 seconds 23:44:15 Officer Gillaspie continues on toward the door. He notices the north window as he walks by but he says he saw no movement. (To have seen Eric it would have been necessary to have gotten very near the window. There is little indication that he took the time to go to the window and actually look in) Kelsay follows or leads and goes around and positions himself with his back against the east side April 10, 1998 1 of 4 TIMELINE of the building. Kelsay says he then realized that Zacharias has been a police man for a very short time so he stepped quietly back around to the north side of the building and put his back against the building - he actually says door but he must mean the tha~ and one half to four feet of wall between the NE comer of Eric's shop and the door which Gillaspie pushes open. When Kelsay steps back around to the north side he sees that Zacharias is heading back to the Patrol Car to get his flashlight. 23:44:26 Duration of activity: 11 seconds Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & Gillaspie arrived: 21 seconds NOTE: It takes 10 seconds to walk from where the Patrol Car was parked to the north east comer of the building walking in a straight line at a brisk clip. Kelsay described his route in going from the east side of the building to G'flbert Street (when he flagged down Gillaspie and Zacharias) as being rather circular so as to not draw attention to himself and so that his footsteps would not be heard. (Budget's lot is paved, the alley is an uneven rough surface of gravel and rocks). From the testimony I cannot determine whether Kelsay took the same route in returning to the east side of the building. If he did take the circular route the elapsed time from the Patrol Car to the east side walking carefully would be about 14 to 16 seconds, which of course leaves even less time to investigate Eric's shop before opening the door. 23:44:26 Gillaspie is at the door. Kelsay is positioned right beside G'fllaspie about 2 or 3 feet away. Zacharias is 'digging inside' the car getting his flashlight. Zacharias gets his flashlight and walks back toward where Kelsay and G'xllaspie have positioned themselves. He gets to a position about five feet away from the door on an approximately 45 degree angle. Gillaspie whispers to Kelsay, ~There's a light on inside.' Keisay motions to G'fllaspie that he is ready to follow Gillaspie in.~ All three officers unholster their weapons. 23:44:32 At this point 27 seconds have elapsed since Keisay advised dispatch that Gillaspie and Zacharias are on the scene. Kelsay is in position on the north side of the building, Gillaspie is at the door. Zacharias is still moving toward Eric's door. Duration of activity: 6 seconds Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & Giilaspie arrived: 27 seconds 23:44:32 Gillaspie begins pushing open the door. If it is pushed open slowly a distance of 2 feet the elapsed time would be 3 to 4 seconds. If the door is kicked open or shoved open quickly the elaspsed time would be 1 to 2 seconds. Giilaspie has his weapon in his right hand. 23:44:35 Duration of activity: 3 seconds Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & Gillaspie arrived: 30 seconds April 10, 1998 2 of 4 TIMELINE 23:44:35 Gillaspie sees someone seated before him, he has an *object~ in his hand. Eric is startled. As he is getting up from the stool he starts to say ~What's going on?" Gillaspie raises his weapon and with no warning fires ~center mass". David Buttita hears the shot and Eric's screams. 23:44:37 Duration of activity: 1 to 2 seconds Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & Gillaspie arrived: 32 seconds One half minute after Gillaspie arrives, Eric is dying on his shop floor. 23:44:37 Gillaspie drops his gun when he realizes that the *object~ was a telephone. Gillaspie testified that he began screaming ~There's a phone in there, there's a phone in there ' and other things which Kelsay says that he could not understand. Kelsay describes G'tllaspie as ~fumbling with his mike'. Kelsay tells him to shut up (most likely to keep Gillaspie from incriminating them). NOTE: Kelsay observes Gillaspie making the entry, pushing open the door and firing the weapon and he most likely understands what G'tllaspie is saying but he admits only hearing a weapon discharge and describes none of the actions except pushing the door open. Kelsay cautiously looks in the door and sees Eric convulsing on the floor. He tells Zacharias to take care of G'tllaspie. Gillaspie continues screaming about the fact it was a phone and tells Kelsay to ~Help him, help him!'. 23:44:44 Duration of activity: 7 seconds Total Elapsed Time since Zacharias & Gillaspie arrived: 39 seconds 23:44:44 Kelsay pushes the door past Eric. He notes that Eric is losing a lot of blood. He described Eric as being in a fetal position, with his eyes 'open and fixed~. Kelsay reaches for his radio. Zacharias tries to calm Gillaspie telling him that it will be OK. Gillaspie counters, ~No it won't, you don't understand, there was a phone! I saw a phone~. 23:44:48 Duration of activity: 4 seconds Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & Gillaspie arrived: 43 seconds 23:44:48 Kelsay calls for an ambulance and a supervisor - ~right now, 10-52 right now~ . David Buttita has been listening to Eric die. He hears Kelsay call for an ambulance and a supervisor. 23:44:55 April 10, 1998 3 of 4 TIMELINE Duration of activity: 7 seconds Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & G'fllaspie arrived: 50 seconds 23:44:55 David pleads desperately for information but Kelsay ignores him. Gillaspie becomes increasingly agitated as he continues to tell those who try to calm him that ~You don't understand.~ Gillaspie soon becomes aware that there is a man in the Budget lot just look'rog at him and watching all the commotion. 23:45:26 Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & G'tllaspie arrived: 81 seconds NOTE: This timeline has been determined by combining the testimony of the three officers and the times recorded for Kelsay's calls to dispatch. The times for these activities can be established because the call before the entry into Eric's shop and the call after the entry into Eric's shop were recorded. The call advising that Gillaspie and Zacharias were on site and the subsequent call requesting a supervisor and an ambulance establish the maximum amount of time that could have been used to investigate. They are also based on the length of time it takes to walk from the location of the patrol car to the door of Eric's shop and the time it takes to perform the actions described and make the testified statements. A total time of 44 seconds are frequently mentioned as the time in which these officers had available to investigate the scene. But it is clear, as you step through the time line the actual time is much less. It is quite possible that Eric was killed half way through the 44 second period. Officer Kelsay stated that he estimated that the time between Gillaspie's exiting of the squad car and pushing open Eric's door at between 20 and 30 seconds. 23:45:26 Kelsay: Code 3 on everybody please. This will be a gunshot wound 23:45:30 Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & G'tllaspie arrived: 85 seconds 23:45:36 Kelsay: ...single gunshot wound .... looks like center mass .... 23:45:43 Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & Gillaspie arrived: 98 seconds 23:46:11 Kelsay: I need a supervisor is what I need. Total Elaspsed Time since Zacharias & Gillaspie arrived: 126 seconds April 10, 1998 4 of 4 TIMELINE James E Shaw 13830 Watertown Plank Road Elm Grove, Wisconsin 53122 414 641-O496 What I have learned because of the THE KILLING OF ERIC SHAW Which Lawmakers and the Citizens of the United States should also know. · Many Police Depa~tu~ents have a SHOOTTO KILL policy. It is not called by that name but death is invariably the result if the police officer follows policy. 1) Warning shots are not allowed. 2) Verbal warnings are frequently absent, even against the untamed. 3) Officers are trained and instructed to fire center mass (the heart). 4) Police depath~ents use hollow po'mt bullets. 5) They use semi-automatic weapons. 6) They are instructed to keep firing until the victim no longer presents a threat. (I have seen that interpreted by police as *no longer moving'). 7) A police officer is a lot less likely to be charged or reprimanded if he kills his victim than if he injures his victim, thereby leaving a witness. · A Police Officer who kills is not treated as a suspect of a crime even in the most egregious circumstances. 1) He is not arrested. 2) He is not tested for drugs or alcohol. 3) He is not sequestered. 4) He is allowed, even encouraged to change his ~story~. · The victim is treated as the criminal even if he has done nothing criminal. 1) The victim will be tested for drugs or alcohol. 2) His background will be checked looking for any "extenuating circumstances" to present to the media to cast the victim in a ~bad light". 3) The boldness of the lies by the ~Police ~ will depend on whether there are any witnesses alive and whether those witnesses can be discredited. 4) The first reports by the police will most likely have errors which paint the victim in a bad light and the police in a favorable light. If necessary, those "mistakes~ or "misunderstandings~ will be corrected later, knowing that by then the lies will have served their purpose in making the important initial reports very favorable to the police. 5) As an example, SLX hours after Eric was murdered (manslaughtered?), the county ("prosecuting") attorney told a radio reporter that the police were James E Shaw 1 Victim as Enemy 414 641-0496 April 11, 1998 still searching for a weapon. Such a statement plants in the initial media reports the idea that the officer killed in self-defense. It also preserves the possibility of planting a gun on the suspect. Such statements clearly indicate why special prosecutors not in the government loop must be called in whenever police kill citizens. The three police officers knew Eric did not have a gun, yet six hours later misinformation is being fed to the public. · When the evidence is that Police may be guilty of murder or manslaughter: 1) A secret report or an investigation will be ordered that will make it possible for the official answer to all questions to be: 'we can't respond because the case is being investigated". That gives the police depa~h,,ent, their attorneys, and the ~prosecuting' attorneys time to develop a strategy to convince the public and any grand juries which may be called that no crime was committed. Delaying the report for 3 weeks or a month allows the initial outrage over the killing to die down in the public's mind. 2) The victim's family will be denied information or will be given such information that will be useful in gaining leverage over the victims and/or sympathy toward the prosecutor. 3) The victim's family will also be investigated for any possible advantages that might be used against the victim by the police or the prosecutor. 4) The victim's family will quite likely be led to believe that a prosecution is forthcoming so that they will not be suspicious of the motives of the investigators and the prosecuting attorneys. · An us (the Police) against them (the victims) mentality is adopted immediately. 1) On my first visit to the Police Station (18 hours after Eric was killed) there was certainly no sympathy. I was treated with disdain, even contempt by the officer on duty. She could not even bring herself to treat me civilly as I politely and respectfully asked to speak with the ranking officer on duty. 2) When your loved one has been killed, the least the victims should expect is integrity from the city government and the police depa~h~ent. Instead of truth from the Police and city officials, the victim gets half-truths, misrepresentation, stone-walling and even outright lies. The wrongful killing of your loved one by the police is a nightmare from which it is impossible to escape. But when those who represent the city and the police force treat the family of the victim as the enemy, the sense of isolation and abandonment is absolutely overwhelming. Added to the excruciating pain of separation from your loved one is the awful realization that your own city has turned against you. This pain could be avoided if each person in the Police Depath~ent, the Criminal Justice system and city government would approach his or her duties with a commitment to integrity - integrity that reaches far beyond just telling the truth, and James E Shaw 2 Victim as Enemy 414 641-0496 April 11, 1998 not lying. This kind of integrity requires an absolute commitment to doing the right thing. It requires that actions and motives be above reproach. It takes the ever present realization that the lives of innocent people have been shattered. To ignore the needs of the victim's family for honesty at a time like this is disgusting beyond description. When a government employee is responsible for such a mind-numbing tragedy, it is an affront to decency for those in charge to be lying, stone-walling and issuing self-serving bureaucratic platitudes in an effort to avoid responsibility. Every person involved needs to search his or her soul and realize that if this could happen to Eric it can happen to anyone. Once a person come to grips with that realization he or she then needs to ask, ~how would I want to be treated if ! suddenly discovered that the police murdered my son for absolutely no reason.~ Reflecting upon the anguish which Jay and Blossom went through, I discovered two primary standards of human decency which must be strictly adhered to by those in government when a tragedy as cruel as the killing of another human being occurs: First and Foremost TELL THE TRUTH Secondly LISTEN TO YOUR HEART AND DO THE HONORABLE THING Lawyers Give Advice about Law, not Decency IF YOU OR A SUBORDINATE HAS WRONGED SOME ONE ADMIT IT Not only were Jay and Blossom assaulted with excruciatingly painful news that their beloved son had been killed by a policeman, they were forced to endure lie after lie and the cruel refusal of the city government to even offer sympathy, let alone admit that anyone had done anything wrong. It was a nightmare from which Jay and Blossom could not escape, but in those first hours and days, a decent, truthful and sincere word from those in positions of responsibility would have lessened their burden tremendously. Concluding Remarks These thoughts are not idle speculation. Police are unnecessarily killing people all over America. Each city and town in America should be adopting policies and procedures to prevent gratuitous killings by police. It must stop. Both life and law must be respected. Government employees must realize that when police kill, they kill more than just the victim. Their bullets shatter the lives of the victim's family. Heartless stonewalling just adds to the terrible misery that the families must bear. James E Shaw 3 Victim as Enemy 414 641-0496 April 11, 1998 February lO, Blossom Perkins Shaw AND ~ FOR ALL (from our Pledge of Allegiance) My heart was broken not once but many times. Once when two Iowa City cops under the "watch" of the chief of police burst into my son~s shop and gunned him down while he was innocently talking on the phone. This was an act of brutal and criminal malpractice that violated Eric's Constitutional rights: his Inalienable right to life and his Fourth Amen~ent rights. "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated, and no Warrants (for such searches or seizures) shall Issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or Affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized." THE FOURTH AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATF_~S OF AMERICA Then my heart was broken over and over as the city officials <except one council member), the Johnson County Attorney, the Iowa Attorney General, the Supreme Court of Iowa, and a Johnson County Grand Jury all failed to do the right thing by our son and by us. What can you do, you ask? Do Somethina! Just stand up, speak out against our son"s unwarrantable execution. How can you care about Just one poor person killed by police, you ask? He Is one too manv~. This unspeakable horror should never have happened! It was not caused by bizarre chance! It was preventable by the chief of police. It was not just a mistake or an accident. It was a case of criminal and intentional behavior by the cop who ordered the entry, and the cop ~no pulled the trigger. The fact that it happened ls proof of the crime! In Tennessee v. Garner (1985) the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a fleeing felon cannot be captured by killing him, that the intrusiveness of a seizure by deadly force is not reasonable and is unconstitutional under the Fourth Amenc~nent. So should not my innocent son, who Is talking on the phone In his very well- lit shop, be protected from trespassing cops who want to catch a purely phantom burglar by shooting him? 2 Our son has a right to be ~secure In his person and In his house~, protected by his government from the police. This Is the truth, my beloved son, as you well know it. l) There was zero probable cause to enter. 2~ There was zero threat to the officers. $) The use of deadly force was 100% unreasonable and unjustified. On behalf of my son, who cannot speak anymore, I cry out: ""Listen to the truth! It is undeniable! If Eric~s God-given, USA guaranteed constitutional rights were not violated on August 30, 1996, then the Fourth Amen~ent means absolutely nothing, and the police have a newly expanded license to kill anyone, anytime, anywhere, under any circumstances without fear of consequence or concern for the sanctity of citizens~ lives.~ The apparent wanton disregard shown by police and police executives for the value and preciousness of the lives they are taking away Is a frightening and ugly thing to see. Representatives of the police, the City of Iowa City, Johnson County, and the State of Iowa have all officially sanctioned Eric's murder; and they are ali profoundly wrong. Hear and feel the real meaning of what these people say: The police have a right to murder your son, because they are police, and you should accept that you will never get justice - says the Johnson County Attorney. It"s not my responsibility - says the chief of police. We did nothing wrong - says the cop who helped kill. Fear is the only Justification I need to pull the trigger - says virtually every law officer in this state. Public image is all I care about - says the city manager and the city council. Jurisdiction is more important than justice - says the Iowa Attorney General and the Iowa Supreme Court. We care so l~ttle about justice that we will not even listen to those with evidence of its obstruction - say the members of the Johnson County Grand Jury, Why should ! apologize? I didn't do it - says the Mayor. Now it won't happen to me or mY loved ones - says a person on the street. Why should ! care? Can this be Iowa City, Iowa, USA? Our hometown? Can this be the town where our Eric lived since second grade? Is this the town he loved? I ask you, who and what Is responsible for our son's killing? Eric did not make this happen. Our dear son had no idea he could be In danger from Iowa City's Intrusive, gun-pulling cop patrols while he was in his place of business, and neither did other business people or their employees. The How many more innocent lives will be destroyed by law enforcement before we all realize we are in potential danger from them, especially because of their misuse of guns? How maoy innocent victims are there? Count them! But their true numbers and their true stories could very well be hidden by lies. Jay and I have heard from too many other families in the state of Iowa and from across the country whose children were killed and whose lives were shattered by the very police sworn to protect them. In addition to suffering the terrible loss of a loved one, these families have suffered the loss of corr~unlty when their com~unity chose to turn its back on the family's pain and on the family's and the victim's need for justice. Instead their co~unlty selfishly tried to protect Its own comfort zone and Its image from the hard truth of murder. To treat these killings as a public relations problem rather than a problem of accountability and justice is a sin against the victims and their families. Why do police always seem to be "justified"' when they take a life? Why do county attorneys and grand juries and city councils and mayors all put their stamps of acceptance, if not approval, on unnecessary and criminal killings by police? An Iowa City policeman once got more punishment for shoplifting that did the officers who Instigated and carried out our son's slaughter. How shamefully gross, how wrong, can the "blue wall" get?! Is there justice for all except an Individual who is the victim of police crimes? Is my baby boy's statistic going to go down as "Justified~ as well? NO! That Is unacceptable to Eric, to his family, and also to you- our fellow citizens. ... Every morning of every night and each tomorrow of each day I wish I could awake from this hideous nightmare... I know there Is no peace without Justice. Eric's Mom UPON THESE PRINCIPLES A few principles lie at the bedrock of our government, of our civilization. Truth and Justice are two of the most critical. Justice, which Is but another word for "doing the right thing'", cannot exist where truth is not valued and lies are not condemned. And a society which Is not based on Justice is evil! Truth is always necessary from those entrusted with providing justice, but when ~ life ha~ been ~ended. that which is false becomes ~oart of the crime. Lies told or accepted in relation to the irreverslblle act of murder bring further devastation to the family of the victim, and cause them to recoil in horror, as It should everyone. When ~with death, Truth beccems sacred, and when those in po~er in our legal system fail to determine truth, or do not value it, or turn their backs on obvious lies, they murder the lives of the victim's loved ones, and they damage our country. If our attempts to doW hat is right are not anchored in law and truth, then justice cannot be done. Many people, probably including Johnson County Attorney Patrick White, did not think it was 'fair~ that officers Glllasple and Kelsay should face prosecution for murder or manslaughter In the killing of Eric Shaw because policemen are by definition "good~, and because Glllaspie said that he felt terrible about killing this "guy" as he called Eric in his statement. White ignored Eric's right to be protected in his private space from the Intrusions of the state, and he ignored Eric's inalienable right to life. White demonstrated a grotesque adherance to the maxim, "out of sight, out of mind'- applying a misguided fairness prlnclple to the killer In front of him, but refusing to do what is right for the man out of sight in his grave. In failing to prosecute Eric's killers, White made two horribly dangerous errors. FIRST. he fell into the old frae of all,in= the end to .lustl(y the means. In order to reach the end he desired, White ignored the fact that these officers violated Eric's civil rights both in entering his space and in killing him, and he ignored obscene derelictions of duty and outrageous recklessness leading to a death, and he ignored an intentional killing without cause. White treated Eric as a thing without rights that got In the way of these officers' bullet. White ignored the right and the need of Eric's family to see these officers punished by law. White ignored lies from Kelsay and Gillaspie and Police Chief Winkelhake that are blatant beyond belief, and then he himself lieu about his reasons for not prosecuting (see enclosed material). The meanQ used bv ~ite can not be _lustifie~bv any end. SECOND. White fallecltomeasure his "end" against the ~of truth and la~ and Justice. White's "end" here was to convince people that this killing was more like a physician's mistake which leads to a malpractice lawsuit than it was to a murder or a manslaughter. But this klllina could not have haooened If these officers had not enoa~ed In the ~[J.Je~al act o~ enterlna without a ~ and had not eho~n criminal recklessness so cross that ~~ ~ ~o kn~ the ~ The only ~ay ~hls killing could be likened to a phy~lclan~ "mistake" ~ould be l~ that physician's "mistake" also recited fr~ ~oes recklessness such as operating ~lle drunk, or also Involved an illegal act such as performing surgery without quall(lcatlone or consent, An ex.pie everyday life will make this distinction very clear, especially to Mrlvers who drink. It a driver makes a mistake, even a very stupid mistake, and kills s~eone with his car, he may be li~le civily, but his act is not treated as a crime, unlea~ ~ ~ereon ~ ~ ~~~unless ~Der~n ~~~ ~eee officers vere ~lltv ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~lvlnc ~ ml~ee ~ h~r ~ ~ ~ ~ and ~ reckle~ne~ ~ the ~ ~ ~ ~ ~lte~e end doe~ not measure ~e~l against the ~olutes of t~uth an~ ]a~ an~ justice. ~HITE ~S THaT THESE POLIC~ ~ILLED ~ITH~ C~USE ~D HE F~ THE H~ ~TI~L SC~ T~T POLICE ~VE A R~TI~ ~S LI~ ~HD HE ~S T~T F~ OF P~E~I~ 6~VE THeE P~I~ POLICE ~IV~TI~ TO LIE ~D HE ~S T~T TH~ DID LIE- ~ DID ~ ~ ~ ~ A~Y ~ ~ ~HITE ~S T~T OFFIC~ EE~Y AND 6IL~IE ~D J~C~ OB~U~D ~ICE BY LYINg, ~D ~ITE ~ T~T LYIN~ THE ~0~ RELIABLE ~D O~E~IVE INDI~TOR OF ~ILT ~V~I~BLE ~ PROSE~OR, ~ DID ~~ ~~N~ ~ THeE H~ ~E ~IL~ OF ~T L~ OB~r~O~I~ OF ~ICE AND ~0~ C~INLY ~S~U6~, ~ HE JOINED THEH IN THEIR LYIN6, ~ND BY DOIN6 JOINED TH~ IN THE ~I~E OF OB~U~ION OF ~ICE. ~HITE P~D~ED TO THIS C~HUNI~'S POLICE BI~S ~ND O~VE I~ CI~ COPS THIS U~I~A~BLE MESSAeE- Y~ CAN ~ ~ { A~ ~ Eric's killing Is so obviously a crime of at least manslaughter, it has received so much national publicity, and the lies of the police and the pro~cutcr are so blatant, that If this manslau~ter/ murOer goes unprosecuted, it ~111 give officers everywhere the message that they can get away with almost any killing. Bringing justice for the ~rder of Eric Shaw shoul8 be enou~ in and of Itself to file charges against these officers, but the fact that killings by police will continue {fa prosecution is not vigorously pursued should provide additional urgency to motivate our local legal system and our Justice Department to ~o what Is ri~t by Eric. It is still our hope that we are not a country that will allow Its Judicial system to determine right without reference to law, anO we are trying to keep alive our faith that our Justice Department will not all~ the local legal system to aetermine Justice without reference to truth. Justice is at the heart of a civilized society. The serving of justice on the police officers who killed Eric accomplishes the following: * It serves notice that we as a country value life, and that we recognize that the absolute ultimate wrong has been done to a fellow human being, * It recognizes that our rights do not end with our death, and that those of us still alive have a sacred duty to ensure that violations of the murdered person's rights are punished to the full extent allowed by law. * It recognizes that the family's need for Justice Is innately right and completely Justified. To lose your child is devastating. To be told that his llfe had no value and that the police had a right to kill him is unbearable. * It protects our citizens by serving notice that klllings which result from Illegal acts and recklessness and malpractice will not be condoned. ~ It serves notice to police that lying will not be tolerated, that when they lie their lies will be taken as evidence of guilt. ~ It strengthens the values of truth and Justice, and validates the concept "'Equal Justice for All" We must be ever vigilant against abuses of power, especlaly by those who carry the guns andwhose abuses can kill us. Our lives depend upon it. James Shaw, Uncle of Eric Shaw/ Jay Shaw, father of Eric Shaw SHOULD BE h FOR K LL[N OF ERIC s Aw On August 30, 1996 at 23:42:00 (approx), while on foot patrol, Iowa City police officer Kelsay notices a door slightly ajar at the rear of 1130 So Gilbert (Eric's shop). Kelsay attempts to look in the east windows (view was blocked), listens at the open door for a few seconds, walks toward Gilbert street then back around to the rear (east side) of the building, always keeping some distance from the door. According to his testimony, Kelsay did not look in the north window which was not blocked, anclb~hich would have ~llowed him roses Eric talkinaon the ohone. At 23:42:57, officer kelsay initiates a call to dispatch on his phone and requests uniformed assistance at an open door as he walks in a large semicircle back to the front of the building; at 23:43:59 Kelsay initiates a second call on his cell ~hone in which he instructs dispatch to disregard the first call because he has been able to flag down officers Gillaspie and Zacharlas who were driving by. At 23:44:04 Glllaspie and Zacharias get out of their car and begin walking toward Eric's door. At 23:44:34 Glllasple shoves open Eric's door and fires a hollow point bullet throuG~h his heart as he sits talking on the phone. Glllaspie instantly realizes that he has killed an innocent being and drops his gun, backs away in horror, and immediately tries to call dispatch on his radio to tell themwhat has happened. He is stopped from making this call by Kelsay who YELLS AT HIM TO SHUTUP, THAT HE, KELSAY, WILL MAKE THE CALL!; At 23:44:48 Kelsay initiates a third call in which he Informs dispatch that there has been a shooting, and requests an ambulance and a supervisor. When Kelsav ~~call to~ HE PREVENTED GILLASPIE ~ TELLING THE TRUTH ON A RECORDED LINE. and ~fnen Kelsav made the call himself and re~orted simply that ~ shot had been fired, he set pattern that wa~ to be followed bv the Iowa City police throu~hout this traaedv, ~ pattern of QivinQ out as little information a~ they could aet away with, ~attern of~lantlna~ ~ncl~~ whenever It suited ~helr purposes, ~attern ofprotectlna fellow cops the lawwith half truths ancl~utrlcuht These officers took no precautlonswhatsoever to ensure the safety of occupants. Bv their own testimony and the second bY second recordina of Kelsav's calls these officers convicted themselves of ~ reckless ~sreoard for lives other th~n their own. Recklessnes~ of this maanltude that led directly to ~ death, comblne~ with an intentional firln~ of ~w~apon without cause should have resulted In ~ prosecution for manslauohter or murder. Kelsav's sulo ~ortion of this murder took 124 8econ~. and all but a few of those seconds were ~pent making calls to dispatch; attew~tlng to look in blocked windows, walking In large semicircles around the building, and flagging down Glllsaple's car. Kelly gave only a moments thoug~t and investigation to a grossly reckless act that robbed our son of over 20 million minutes that ~ normal life ~wouldhave all~ed him. Kelsav~s and ~teamoortlon of this murder took at most 30 seconds, and most of those seconds were spent making entry plans and w~lklng to the door and getting In position. Es]say and Glllaspie as a team gave ]ess that 5 seconds thought or investigation to an illegal and obscenely dangerous act that sentenced Eric to death andconde~edErlc's~arents to lives of horror and p.~Jn. ACTIONS THESE OFFICERS TOOK BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER THE KILLING ARE IN GROSS VIOLATION OF PROFESSIONAL POLICING AND IN VIOLATION OF THE LAW. THEIR CRIMINAL RECKLESSNESS IS EVIDENCED BOTH BY WHAT THEY DID AND WHAT THEY~DID NOT DO: * Going Into a building with guns drawn for no other reason than that the door Is not locked is so totally wrong that this is the only fact that is required to convict them of reckless homicide. * If these officers had looked carefully through the unblocked north window at the area In front of the door they almost certainly woul~ have seen our son. * If they had listened carefully at the open door they would have heard Eric talking on the phone. * If they had obeyed the law and sought to obtain a search warrant, our son would be alive today. County Attorney Patrick White chose to Ignore this recklessness, AND HE CHOSE TO IGNORE THE LIES THAT FOLLOWED: Lie ~1: Within minutes of killing our son, Glllasple stated to investigating officer Jackson that he had seen a phone and thought It was a gun and had fired In mistaken self defense (a tan dumbbell shaped phone with a 12 foot cord attached bears no resemblance to a gun), then two weeks later Glllasple stated to the DCI that he had not intended to fire his gun, that he had seen only movement and had not seen the phone, and that he had flinched- one of these ~ ls~ )Is. ~ know that Initial ~almost always contain the most truth. Officer ~ testimony that Gl))a~lemoved to an u~rlc~ht position raised his ~un arm and flre~ Is a total ~of ~'flinch'. Lie ~2 Kelsa¥ stated that he did not see Glllasple's movements at the moment he fired, even though he was standing less than 2 feet from him and was acting as his back-up. Lie ~3 Kelsay also lieu when he came up with his scratch marks on the door, a statement which County Attorney White called a stretch after looking for them and finding none. 3 Lie ~ 5~ Officer Jackson Iledwhen he changed his statements to match Oillaspie's belated claim that he had flinched. Lie ~5: Five weeks after the killing, at his press conference, White gave as his reason for not prosecuting that he accepted Olllaaple's claim that he had not intended to fire hisweapon, then the next day, and on several other occasions, White stated to the media that he had no doubt that Oillaspie did fire his gun intentionally, which meant that White should have prosecuted Glllasple. When Police Chief Winkelhake learned of Whlte's about-face he said, 'then he should have charade. That all this lying occurred Is bad enough, but it is made worse by the fact that even when the lies became obvious, they were not challenged by investigators or by White or by the media, but Instead were Ignored- this in spite of the fact that lying ia one of the most ~and rell~le ~of euilt. The ready acceptance of blatant ties by so many people In this state shows that truth Is not valued. This sobering reality should scare everyone because actions and decisions based on lies inevitably bring harm. This killing and Its aftermath involved undeniable recklessness and blatant lies- If anyone besides police officers had killed in this manner and lied In this manner a prosecution would have taken place. White and the Grand Jury Ignored all of this, and more- they Ignored violations of our son's constitutional rights. These officers by ~heir own testimony convicted~of~to enter A~rlvate soacewithout ~ search warrant and without orobable cause and In the absence of ~ threat to life- they heard nothing, they ~nothlna, so they sav, y~ they Intruded without ~ warrant, and wlth ~uns drawn, for no other reason than that the door was ajar. Police Academy training manuals state that an open door is far more likely to mean that a rightful occupant is Inside than a criminal. These facts have not been denied, AND THEY FORCE THE CONCLUSION THAT THESE OFFICERS WERE ILLEGAL INTRUDERS WITH NO MORE LEGAL b-~nANDINO THAN A BURGLAR- THES~ OFFICERS CAN HOT CLAIM ~ SELF D~FEtiSE ])~j[ya~J[ THEY WERE THE ONES WHO CREATED THE ~OF D~NGER IN THE FIRST ~LAC~WITH THEIR ILL~GAL ~TRY. The absence of legal standing is most likely the reason why Gillasple ~wltched from his original self defense, intentional firing version to his unintentional firing, flinch version. But this raises the auestlon of whether ~ uo}ice officer who ~enters your soace should be al}owed to claim that he flinched when he scare9 himself and kil}s you? IN ANY CASE ~ FLINCH I~ h ~ and WHITES ~ OF THIS & citizen who is not connected with law enforcement who llleoallv enters ~ private space and kltls ~ rlohtful occupant can neither claim that he flinched nor that he fired in self defense. Even if this intruder did flinch or was defending himself he can not escape a murder or manslaughter charge BECAUSE THAT INTRUDER HAS NO LEGAL RIGHT TO BEINTHAT SPACE. THESE POLICE OFFICERS HAD NO LEGAL RIGHT TO BE IN ERIC'S SPACE, AND TH~EFORE THEY CAN NOT BE ALLOWED TO PLEAD EITHER THAT THEY KILLED IN MISTAKEN SELF This bias for the police also explains WHY THE SILENT MAJORITY DID NOT PROTEST the failures of their Judicial system, and, In fact, turned against us for insisting that their police had committed at the very least manslaughter. This ~ for the police ~nlalnson~ of the most cruel thinc~whlch many p~oDle did to us, ~lch ~~r fl~t for _Justice with ~. Vengeance is one of tho~e word~ whose meaning too often depends on what or wh~ the user Is trying to vilify- It is a favorite word of all those who would excuse s~e particular criminal, even a murderer, fr~ punishment. ~e ~~~~~~~ the oolite ~~ ~~~en they Insist ~ their ~ killers ~~~ ~, ~ile ~~~~~ else ~~~ insist ~~~~ first ste~ ~ clo~re~ ~ people, ~ ~ ~~, ~ ~ch ~~ for the police ~ the~ ~ ~~ seeln~ even ~~ kllllnq~Dolice officers~ ~ crime- ~~ they ~ not see the crime, they see ~ insi~tance ~ ~~~ Peonle ~ the Influence ~ this ~ overlo~ lies, ~~, ~~~, ~IODDV ~, ~~~~~ evidence ~hat screws ~ the 9fflcers cme ~with. ~ sh~ld~Deo~le ~ ~e officers count ~ this ~, a~d~~~c~l% crimes It should al~o scare people that denl~ating ju~tlce by calling It vengeance is dangerous. Vengeance and justice are two very ~lfferent terms, and a clear distinction of the~e core concept~ l~ necessary for the continuation of civilized society. Justice ~served~an~ ~ annlicatlon ~ the ~ the ~ everyone, ~DOIIce officers. The measured punishment which I ~ convinced the law should mete out to these police officers l~ not vengeance, It Is justice. ~en parents of children killed by the police insist on justice they are not only ~ccused of vengeance, they are very often bl~e~ by many for not forgiving their child's killers. Many people, who have failed to consider h~ easy It l~ to forgive the killers of s~eone else's child, have con~emne~ me for not publicly forgiving these officers. These people must have forgotten that If forgiveness Is to be meaningful, then repentance and honesty are first requirements, an~ If these men were truly repentant they would replace every lie they have ~oken wtth the truth an~ tell every fact they have left out and insist that Justice be done. ~at would make forgiveness possible, but the simple truth Is that even ~ ~ forqive th~, the crime would still ~there, an~w~ld still ~~~ let them~wlth ~~ TOO MA~ ~~~~ ~ ~~ FOR JU~ICE- they forget that it l~ not their place to forgive- they were not wron~; nor are they God~ ~e DurDose ~ the ~ system ~ not ~ forqivc ~, but ~ ~unish them, ~ the ~ foruivene~ ~ lack ~not A~ the ~Drocess. For a concrete exile take my pu~ of ~lef Wlnkelhake and a~k yourselves If the legal system ~b8tituted forgiveness frm Chief Wlnkelhake for appropriate punis~ent fr~ the court. They dl~ not, an~ they ~houl~ notl 5 As you look at all the decisions by so many different people which protected these officers from prosecution, you come to realize that: 1) The blue wall i~ real and police officers do orotect other police ~(flcers, as ~bv the fact that our son was tested for druqs while his killers were not; that Eric's killers were allowed to remain at the scene and were not sequestered; that Eric's killers were allowed to change their story without being challenged; that in fact, the killing was never treated as the police treat a killing by a citizen. 2) County ~have made themselves A~art of this blue wall- they work with the police on Ac lay to day basle- they depend on the ~ollce to ~rovlde them withboth the peo~le to prosecute and the evidenc~ to~rosecute them- ~roseeutors and the police are on the same team. Prosecutors fear that indicting a police officer could destroy cooperation from that team member, and they know it.could cost votes. Even when White was finally forced to recuse himself he showed his bias by turning the case over to his like minded Attorney General. THE C~FLICT OF INTER~ H~RE I~ EXTREME AND OBVIOUS. $) State Attorney Generals usu~allv take the ~ide of their county attorneys, and In fact have the ~ame confl)ot of interest. Attorney General Tom Miller told me In A ~hone ~ that he a~reed 100% with his friendPat White's ~eclslon not to prosecute, vet when Mr Miller wa~ ~wlth presentlnq evldencewithout ~ In the matter of our son's klllinq, Mr Miller did not recurs his office, but chose one of his loyal teammember~ to "present ~to the Johnson ~ountv ~rand Jury. 4) Grand Juries almost never qoaqaln~t the wishes of th~ prosecutor ~h~ presents the evidence, and this grand jury left no doubt as to their partiality for the police by refusing to even hear ~worn testimony from those who would have pointed out the police lies, and who would have presented evidence and arguments that a prosecution should take place. 5) Bias 1~ built into the system and the svstam must be ch an o ed if Justice ls ever to bedonewhen the ~ollce D~dr~er. Bias protected these po)ice officers at every ste~ in the leoal orocess, ~ivinq them ~ Virtual )rmnunitv from prosecution. Everyone must remember that our son had no Ink,unity from that ~ollce bullet, and we have no lmmunl~y from our son's murder and the injustice that ~ One of the most blatant demonstrations of this bias for the police came from County Attorney White himself when he told a reporter that they could not rule out the poseiblllty that Eric had had a gun, that they were still looking for the gun. WHITE KNEW THAT ERIC HAD FALLEN AND DIED RIGHT IN FRONT OF GILLSAPIE AND KELSAY- If our son had been holdln~A Qun in his hand, he would have died with ~ oun in his hand. WHITE KNEW THAT KEL~AY HAD ENTERED ERIC'S SHOP- WHITE KNEW THAT ~ GUN WOULD HAVE BEEN FOUND WITHIN SECONDS- and White knew that if Eric had owned ~ Qun which warn not in his hand, and therefore not visible to Gl liable, that oun would have been totallv~to this case. Whlte's own explanations of this gross misrepresentation, that he was Just being cautious and didn't see the harm of his words, Just doesn't ring true. White Is hardly a novice at talking to the media. He knows the effect of saying to reporters hungry for Information, "we're still looking for the gun"- with Just these few words the "it was self-defense" defense Is conveniently planted In the minds of the media. Mr White had been to the scene- HE KNEW THAT IF THERE HAD BEEN A GUN THE POLICF,/ DCI WOULD NOT STILL BE LOOKING FOR IT, THEY WOULD BE MAKING {SURE THAT EVERYONE KNEW ABOUT IT, ESPECIALLY MR WHITE! WHY THATPA~I~LAR WI~ONG ~AT~E~-WHY WOULD THAT ~AT~TEVENENTERWHIT~'S MIND UNLESS HE WAS LOOKING, HOPING, FOR ~OME WAY OUT OF CHARGING THE~E POLICE ~ THERE IS GOOD REASON TO SUSPECT THAT WHITE MADE A DEAL WITH CHIEF WINKELHAKE THAT HE WOULD NOT PROSECUTE IF WINKELHAKE WOULD FIRE GILLASPIE- I WANT A COURT OF LAW TO TELL ME THAT SUCH A DEAL IS LEGAL, AND IF IT IS NOT LEGAL I WANT AN INVESTIGATION TO DETERMINE IF ~UCH A DEAL WAS MADE! EVEN IF 5%lCH A DEAL IS LEGAL, IT IS SLEAZY IN THE EXTREME- ~ A CIVIL PENALTY FOR CRIMINAL ~ SHOULD NEVER BE AN OPTION FOR ~ ~OUNTY A~ORNEY. Wlnkelhake has stated over and over that Glllasple and Kelsay did nothing wrong until Gillas~le pulled the trigger. This statements Is a blatant acknowledgment that Wlnkelhake gave his officers permission to violate citizens' constitutional rights by falling to obtain search warrants before entering private property. BOTH WNITE AND ~KNEW THAT ~ AND KELSAY HADVIOLATEB OUR ~OH~~RI~HT~ IHTHE PROCESS OF KILLING HIM. ~~ NIS OFFICERS TO BREAK T~E LAW. AND WHITE IGNORED THESE ~ OF THE LAW ~ HE CHOSE NOT TO ~ THESE ~ LI ~s T~ME FOR 6 STATE couRT ~ ~ ~ COURT TO ~ THESE MEN FOR OBSTRUCTION OF ~ OUR STATE AND FEDERAL CONSTITUTIONS ARE A CONTRACT BETWEEN THESE RESPECTIVE GOVERNMENTS AND EACH INDIVIDUAL CITIZEN BY WHICH OUR GOVERNMENTS GUARANTEE THAT THEY WILL PROTECT EACH CITIZEN'S RIGHTS AS DEFINED IN THOSE CONSTITUTIONS- THESE CONSTITUTIONS RIGHTLY PLACE THE ULTIMATE VALUE ON THE RIGHT TO LIFE. Iowa City police officers violated our son's right to ~rlvacv bv enterinQ without a searchwarrant, a~d they vlolatedhis rioht to life by shootlnQ him with a HOLLOW POINT BULLET through his heart. If shovino our son's door open an~ killln~ him Is not :~of his ~lvll rights, then he hacl~o ri oh ts at all becaus~ all other rights are ~ If your rlc~t to life Is not sacrosanct. Our U.S. Justice ~wlll either haw toproseeute for these ~ of our son's civil rights, or ~ to Its ~ltlzens that beln~ In your riohtful s~ace with your door open or unlocked robs you of your ri~ht to life. and In fact. all of your rights. Each citizen has a contract with his ~overnment to place an ultimate ~on his life, and there Is no other way toCx~ress that value than bv ~unlshin~ those who have killed you. Fines and settlements are acceptable only in civil cases. When the crime of murder or manslaughter has been committed, prosecution and the standard punishment are the only way for your government to fulfil Its contract with you. If a oovernment will Qlve your killers ~ ~ermissioq to ll~urder vou, then they have violate~ that ~ Our local judicial system's failure to punish the officers who murdered our son, and our city's acceptance of that failure have expressed their valuation of our son's life as zero. My wife and I now entreat the U.S. Justice l)ept to right this horrible wrong by prosecuting the officers who violated our son's constitutional rights as they ended a life they were ~worn to protect, and by so doing say to us that they, and our government, value our son's life. Jay Shaw, father of Eric Shaw OPEN L~'I'i'ER TO LEGISLATORS, OFFICIALS, AND CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES My brother and I recently made a trip to Washington to deliver a personal plea to Senators and Representatives from Iowa and other states that ~, ~, and unDrosecuted klllina~ by law enforcement officers l~natlonal ~roblemwhlch will co~t too many lives for u~ towait for It tobe ~olved one pQlice ~at ~ time. We told these Senators and Representatives how two Iowa City officers shoved open my son's shop door without the slightest justification, and In total violation of the law, shot him as he talked on the phone; and then how their blatant lies about the killing were ignored or accepted by the media, by investigators and by county attorney Patrick White as these officers were given lawful permission to murder. We asked our representatives in Congress to use all means available to move local governments and police forces toward better training, higher standards, safer proceclures, and safer attitudes for officers, with the goat of lnstlllinq ~ resoect for t~ )~W In police officers and drastically reducing the number of unnecessary killings by police. We also asked for help in forcing our criminal investigative system and our judicial system to vigorously investigate and prosecute police officers when they co~it murder or manslaughter. We hoped to move Congress to help the people of this country recognize that we have come dangerously close to granting our police an unfettered license to kill us. Congress can call attention to this horrible problem with congressional hearings that allow people whose loved ones have been killed by the police to tell what really happened. The bias for the police and the fear of going against the police Is so strong in this country that the local media almost always lines up on the side of the police when they commit murder or manslaughter, and the truth about killings by police officers almost never comes out, and there is very seldom a prosecution. ONE OF THE HORRORS OF MODERN DAY POLICING IS THAT A POLICE OFFICER IS BETTER OFF MURDERERING HIS VICTIM THAN USING I~<CESSIVE FORCE, BECAUSE HE IS MORE LIKELY TO BE PROSECUTED OR LOSE HIS JOB IF THE VICTIM REMAINS ALIVE TO COUNTER POLICE LIES. In partnership with the Justice Department, Congress can make an effort to determine the true number of people killed without cause by the pollce- too many unwarrantable killings are being hidden by police lies and misleading statistics, made all the easier by vlrture of the fact that most state criminal investigative agencies operate in total secrecy as they put together their report on killings by officers, and lo~al prosecutors are not even required to release that report, or they can edit out anything that does not ~upport their decision not to prosecute. ~I8~AN Congress itself may bear some responsibility for the more recent killings by police officers in this country- the recent crime bill flooded our communities with thousands of young, inexperienced, and poorly trained macho guys with guns without regard to whether there was actually a need for additional officers In that con~nunlty, and many of these rookie cops are being trained by other rookie cops. Young officers should be teamed with 2 seasoned vererans who not only respect the law but respect life as well, The officer who pulled the trigger had less than three years experience, yet instead of working with a seasoned veteran, he was training a new hire the night he killed our son. If Congress is going to make money available to hire cops, they must attach chains to this money, chains that will pull police departments back from dangerous procedures and toward safe and legal operations. This money is the way for Congress to act as a conscience for local police departments. But while Congress and the Justice Department have large roles to play in the solution of this problem, only ~tate ~ can p~% an end towhat has becom~ ~ to ~ ~ rloht for police to kill t6.9. As a first step state ~must ~ that all~ln~ state colics forces (the DCI In Iowa) to ~killlnos by colics in secret oives them the unchallenoable opportunity of hldino their biases for fellow pQllce officers and their failures to uphold the law behind ~ and lnco~n~lete investioations. As presently written Iowa Law does not even allow Eric's family to see the full DCI report to determine for ourselves if the edited version which county attorney White chose to release is a fair representation of the whole report, or if DCI Investigators focused more on our son than on his killers. Wltnee~what if ear Is the %IP of ~ very uolv iceberg- OUR SON'S BODY WAS GIVEN DRUG TESTS BUT HIS KILLERS, ~HOSE BIZZARE BBHAVIOR SCR~AMBDFOR DRUG TB~TING,~NOT! Legislators will of course hear the DCI argument that operating in secret has advantages, but keep in mind that legislators could make that argument themselves, and In fact every public agency could make an argument for secrecy. BUT ~MALL~ IF ANY. THaT ~~BY~Ji~EWLSWHICH SE~ECY~LEADSTO. SECRECY ALWAYS CORRUPTS, AND ABSOLUTE SECRECY CORROPTS ABSOLUTELY. It may be that the DCI conflict of interest is too great for them to Investigate fel¥ow officers objectively- after all most of the time DCI investigators work with local police, and they need the cooperation of local police to do their Job. This ~confllct of interest 1~ reason enouoh by itself to end the secrecy of DCI ~andtomandate that the tull DCI re~ort on ~oli~ crimes be made oubllc. State legislators must also come to terms with the fact that giving even small slices of absolute power to anyone, including county attorneys, will lead to evil and injustice, and Is contrary to two of the central concepts on which our country is founded, "checks and balances", and "peer review"". As witness to that danger consider that COU~ ATTOI~N~Y WHITE WAS ALLOWED TO RECANT HIS ACCEI~TADICE OF THE "FLINCB" V~$ION OF OUlt BON~$ KILLING, WHICH NE HAD GIVEN AS HIS REASON FOR NOT PROSECUTING, AND TO DO SO WITHOUT EXPLAINING HIS CONTINUING FAILURE TO PROSECUTE IN LIGHT OF LATER ~TATBMENTS THAT BE BELIEVES THAT GILLASS~IE FIRED HIS GUN INTENTIONADLY. Legislators MO59~ establish some form of review of county attorney's decisions in extreme cases. 3 As further evidence of the danger of unreviewable power, consider that when Judge William Ends called for a grand jury investigation into the killing, and ordered that White be replaced by a special prosecutor on the grounds of conflict of Interest, White and Attorney General Tom Miller challenged that order. ALTHOUGH CONFLICT OF INTEREST WAS OBVIOUS, AND WHITE HAS MADE HIS POLICE BIAS UNMISTAKABLE BY HIS ACTIONS AND STATEMENTS, the Supreme Court of Iowa inexplicably upheld that challenge, returning jurisdiction to White. For the sake of appearances Whlte asked Attorney General Tom Miller to take over. Tom Miller, who ha~made it crystal clear tome In an earlier nhone ~ that he acce~te~wlthout ~ White') decision not to nrosecute, was nowdlrectlnQ the "pcosecu~ion". THIS SYSTEM ALLOWED h HAH WITH GROSS AND VERY PUBLICLY DEMONb~rRATED BIASES FOR THE POLICE AND FOR HIS COtlHTY PROSECUTOR TO CHOOSE A LOYAL TEAM PLAYER TO PRESENT "EVIDENCE" TO THE GRAND JURY- THIS WAS AN OBSCENITY! Not surprisingly the grand Jury followed its cues from the '"evidence presenter" and took the easy way out, FLAUNTING ITS BIAS TO AN OBSCENE DEGREE BY REFUSING TO EVEN HEAR SWORN TESTIMONY FROM THOSE WITH EVIDENCE AND INTERPRETATIONS OF THE EVIDENCE THAT RAN CONTRARY TO THE POLICE VERSION OF THIS KILLING. Local orosecutorshave~ conflict of Interest which causes them to utterly fail to u~hold the law- local prosecutor8 view the police as team m~mber~ because la almost every prosecution the oolice ~rovlde them with both the Deoole to Dromecute a~ the evidence to~ them. LEGISLATION IS REQUIRED THAT TAKES PROSECUTION OF POLICE CRIMES COMPLETELY OUT OF THE HANDS OF LOCAL AND STATE PROSECUTORS, AND ENTRUSTS THAT RESPONSIBILITY TO A SPECIAL PROSECUTOR WHO HAS NO TIES TO POLICE AND WHO IS GIVEN THE MANDATE TO HAKE SURE THAT POLICE DO NOT RECEIVE FAVORED TREATMENT BY OUR JUDICIAL SYSTEM. Because of mandated secrecy, arand]uries also have no ~lace In ~of oolice crimes- a~other R Qb 1 lc .iurv system which o~erates In full ¥1ewof the ~ublic l~~ to avoid the dan~er~ of secrecy. THERE IS NO ~HER WAY TO ENTRE THAT BIASES WILL NOT CO~INOE TO Do OUT OF SIGHT. When police commit murder or manslaughter, as defined by law, their c~lme almost always goes unpunished because of a gross bias for the police which has infested our country, and because of gross flaws in our judicial system which allows this bias to do its work. This bias comes from thinking too exclusively of the police as good guys In a "war against crime"- this unfortunate phrase has encouraged the general public to think In terms of war, where the normal rules of civilized action and behavior are suspended. But we are not In a war on crime, and we should not allow our police to think of themselves as an army. When the police descend to warlike Behavior, law abldln9 citizens ~uffer great harm, and if we legalize and standardize such behavior in our police, our lives and our freedoms are at great risk. Our Founding Fathers and other great men of America ensured that the Constitution and Its Amendments protected this country's citizens from the always overwhelming power and intrusiveness of the state, with special restrictions aimed at officers of the law who have the capability of doing the most damage, and In fact who can Inflict the ultimate wrong, death. America's Constitution places a great sanctity on a man's home and his person- anyone who has had their h~ae or their person violated understands the terrible need for this sanctity. IOWA CITY POLICE OFFICERS LOWERED THEMSELVES TO THE LEVEL OF COt~M~ ~ WH~tt THEY SHOVED OPENED OUR SON'S DOOR WITHOUT A SEARCH WARRANT, AND THEY BECAME MURDERERS WHEN THEY SHOT HIM TO DEATH AS HE TALKED ON THE PHONE. THERE WAS ABSOLOTELY NO PROBABLE CAUSE THAT WOULD HAVE ALLOWED THEM TO EVEN GET A SEARCH WARRANT, AND THERE WAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING OVERRIDIHG THE REOUIREM[I~I' FOR A WAI~tANT. By enterlno our son's shoo ~ and kllllnohimwithout reason these officers~~vondanvo~e's d~bt _lust whY laws a~alnst ~ ~earcheawere written. But these laws offer ~ no orotectlon If ~of rhea are not ~ AND IFWE LEAVET~E JOB OF ~T~ POLICE IN ~OF PEOPLE LIKE COUNTY A~OR~EY WHITE AND A~OEN~ ~ TOM MILLE~. THEY ~ WILL BE. Our local oolic~ chief. R.J. ~haasaldover and over that the man who killed our son did nothinowrona until he Dulled the tria~er- Iowa City's chlef of police does not even know or more likely does not even care that search warrants are required before officers can enter private space- it does not even bother him that his officers shoved open our son's door without the slightest probable cause and without even thinking about the safety of someone inside, and it does not even bother him that his officers violated one of the most sacred laws we have, the law protecting us from the intrusiveness of government and government police forces. AND IF WINKELHAKE'S ACTIONS AND ATTITUDES ARE NOT HORROR ENOUGH, CONSIDER IOWA CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS' REACTION TO THEIR POLICE CHIEF'S GROSS DERELICTION OF DUTY. BEFORE MURDERING OUR SON WINKELHAKE'S OFFICERS VIOLATED OUR SON'S FOURTH AMENDMENT RIGHTS, AND THE CHIEF CAN SEE NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT, AND COUNCIL MEMBERS HAVE SO LITTLE RESPECT FOR THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION THAT THEY PRAISE A MAN WHO DIRECTED HIS MEN TO VIOLATE CITIZENS' PRIVATE SPACE. THE FACT THAT A POLICE CHIEF WILL MAKE PUBLIC STATEMENTS THAT SHOW HE DOES NOT HAVE THE SLIGHTEST UNDERSTANDING OR RESPECT FOR THE PURPOSES OF OUR CONSTITUTION AND THE INAILENABLE RIGHTS IT GRANTS TO CITIZEN SHOULD BE A CLARION CALL OF DANGER TO EVERYONE, AND ESPECIALLY TO LEGISLATORS WHO HAVE A SACRED DUTY TO LEGISLATE AND EDUCATE THIS COUNTRY BACK TO A RESPECT FOR OUR CONSTITUTION AND FOR OUR LAWS. Eric's shop was his sac~ed space, a parents' gift to their son, and our legal system to date has put no sanctity whatsoever on Eric's protected space, or on his life. The local prosecutor, the state supreme court, the state attorney general, and a local grand jury were all moved by considerations other than justice. Our last hope for justice for the police officerswho killed our son lies with the U.S. Justice Department. One of the most horrlfic and frustrating aspects of our local judicial system's failure to prosecute our son's killers has been the fact that so many people have been allowed to tell so many blatant lies that were not 5 even noticed let alone challenged- THE BIAS FOR THE POLICE IS SICKENLY OBVIOUS! The two officers involved were allowed to lie about several important and material facts regarding the events of August 30, 1996- I have detailed these lies in "WHY THERE SHOULD BE A PROSECUTION". One example will give you an Idea how brazen these lies have been= ~everal weeks after the killing, when the chief could no longer IQnore widespread crltlclom of his officers failure to obtain the required search warrant, the chief of oollce mtated that him officers had 9nlv ~ to look in, not to enter ~ shoo, ~ ab~t orevious behavior of the Iowa City Police, and the situation Itself ~lvem the lie to thls~, and the f~ct that one of hl~ officers, while mtandlna In the cl~av, sent ~bullet Into mY son's shoo and throuah mY son's heart makes this lie obscene. When police officers lie and their superiors do not condemn their lies, and even Join them In their lies, these officers bring harm to their professlon because they destroy the credibility of police In every situation. Police can not lie when It suits their purposes, say when they are questioning a suspect, or to cover-up their own crimes, and still expect juries and Judges to believe them when they give testimony In court. Lying by police destroys their effectiveness as witnesses. OJ Sl~mon was able to oet away with murder In part because oollce in this country have ma~e lyina ~ tool of their trade andbecause of the many national scandal~where pQllce have been cauaht ]¥1na, and specifically because one L.A officer lied about some Inconsequential things. The mountain of evidence against Simpson eroded to nothing In some jurors' minds when they could not believe the police who gathered and presented the evidence. Please understand that the decision not to prosecute our son's murder has sent a message to all who know the truth about this killing that Eric's country places no value on his life, and that the police have a legal right to violate anyone's property and kill them, and that our aovernment will not protect um from our oollce. The decision not to prosecute has also enforced a belief that has infested many minds In this country, that police lives are more important than the lives of people they are sworn to protect. ~ kllllna~, ~ kllllnos, ~ kllllnas, even executions by oolic~ officerm in this coun%~¥ have oone unorosecuted, and the me~aae to the oolice lm clear, kllllno Impart of your .Iol:), you can q~ away with It, if there J_~~~to flrlno ~lrst and checklna for dan~er later, DO I~! IOWA LEGISLATORS MUST UNDERSTAND THAT INACTION AT THE STATE LEVEL WILL EN~URE THAT UNPUNISHED MURDERS/ MANSLAUGHTERS BY LAW OFFICERS WILL CONTINUE UNTIL ENOUGH PEOPLE ARE KILLED THAT THE PROBLEM CAN NO LONGER BE IGNORED, OR UNTIL ONE PERSON OF ~UCH PROMINENCE IS ~ILLED THAT HIS MURDER CAUSES A MEDIA STORM. If Eric's killing and the Injustice that followed do not scare legislators, what will it take? Will it have t O be your son? If the US Justice Department does not right the wrongs done at the state and local level, and allows these officers to get away with murder (manslaughter?), then the Justlce Department Is condemning more citizens to death at the hands of the police. The Justice Department will not soon get a more clear-cut case of murder and lying by police officers and lying and obstruction of Justice by the police chief and the county prosecutor. ~ vrosecutlon of the officers and their chief and the county attorney will send ~clear anci powerful message to volice forces and officials across the country that they mu~t o~erate within the la~, or they will ~p~osecute~ ~ the law. Prosecuting our son'~ murderers will also ~o the only thing that Eric's country can do for him n~, give hl~ parent~ reason to believe that their son's life and the lives of citizens throu~out the U.S. are value~ by tho~e who represent u~ in our government. CITIZ~S OF I~A, PLEASE L~ THE ~ICE D~ ~ T~T YOU W~ TO SEE THE LAWS OF OUR ~ND ~HELD AND JU~ICE D~E FOR THE MURD~ OF OUR SON. PLEASE ~ITE OR CALL YO~ ~ATE LEGIS~T~S ~D THE ~V~OR ~D TELL TH~ THAT Y~ W~ TB~ TO ~ LEGIS~TION T~AT CALLS FOR A ~ECIAL PROSE~TOR ~IME A POLICE OFFIC~ KILL~ ~MEONE. THIS LEGIS~TI~ WILL ~E THAT THE F~ILY OF THE N~ P~SON ~0 IS M~D~ED BY POLICE ~ N~ HAVE TO GO THROUGH ~T ~ ~VE ~D~ED A~ING TO RECEIVE FAIR ~ ~D A ~LL M~RE OF JU~ICE. Y~R ~ ~ ~ P~OVIDE ~U WITH THE { AND { {~Y~ ~. ~ you want ~Justice ~ for our ~ son ~write ~~ ~one ~ all ~ the foll~ln~ veovle ~ lnform~ that you ~ the THYS Honorable Janet Reno Bill Lann Lee Kathleen Brandon Attorney General Assistant Attorney General Trial Attorney Dept of Justice Civil Rights Division Civil Rights Division 950 Penn Ave N.W. Dept of Justice Criminal Section Washington, DC 20530 950 Penn Ave N.W. Dept of Justice Phone- 202 514 2171 Washington, DC 20530 P.O. Box 60018 Fax- 202 514 4371 Phone- Washington, DC 20035 Fax- Phone- 202 514 3204 Fax- 202 514 8336 Taking these ~all actlon~ n~ wlll save lives, possibly your ~n or the life of a loved one. Jay Shaw, father of Eric Shaw EDITORIAL Review board vital to city's future , The Police-Citizens Review Board held its first public forum on July 16 to "learn if the I6wa City Police Department's performance is in keeping with community standards," as stated in its mission statement. Just a few minutes at the inaugural meeting showed how vital the review board is to the future well-being of the Iowa City community. Speakers raised some very serious issues and concerns that need to be addressed by the police. These issues range from questions about racism and intimidation by the police to the use of force and the infamous Eric Shaw case. With Iowa City being one of the most educated communities in the country, it only follows that mature, intelligent dialogue is the best way to give important matters the attention they deserve. Hopes run high that the efforts of the review board will ease the tension between some members of the community and the police. But public discussion can go only so far; action must be taken at some point to make change happen. Here are some suggestions that would make the review board more effective and, in the long run, improve the relationship between the community and the police. No. 1: Remove the "Sunset Clause" in the review board's ordinance. The clause mandates that the board be terminated after three years unless re-enacted by the Iowa City City Council. The review board needs to be around at least as long as the police department: forever. There will always be community issues to address and improvements to be made in the police department. The police need to be kept abreast of these issues and concerns. The community also plays an important role in making sure the police work according to procedure and the conununity's standards. : No. 2: Publish a layperson's guide to police policies, procedures and practices so the co .mmunity can have a greater awareness of them. While a copy of the police department's manual is available for pub!ic viewing at the civic center, the language is incredibly technical and filled with bureau'cra/tic jargon. It would be much easier for the public to understand a manual written in everyday language. No. 3: Allow the review board to respond to a speaker's comment or question. The board is supposed to listen objectively and then present concerns and issues to another panel for further reviev~. H6wever, it would be helpful for the community to get a more immediate response. This way th{/speaker feels his or her message is heard and understood. No. 4: Publish a brief report on its progress implementing changes and investigating issues within the police department. This way the community can be sure that its concerns are being addressed and taken seriously. By following these suggestions, the review board could go a long way to improve the relationship I o£2 7/20/98 9:37 AM l~le Dailx h~;'~an http: x~x~ aio~a.cdu dl;iox~an issue ;13ti i30 ~;Iorlcs A0503V btm[ between the police and the community The review board will hopefully become a critical part of the community; its presence and role, to encourage the public to speak freely and address issues of great concern to them, is long overdue and greatly appreciated. Rachel Ballweg is a DI editorial writer. Title: Review board vital to city's future Page: 5A Date: 7/20/98 [ Home Search Front Metro & Iowa Nation & World Viewpoints Sports Arts ] Copyright 1996 The Daily Iowan. <http://www.uiowa.edu/~llyiowan~> 2 of 2 7/20/98 9:37 AM *Sun,, July 19, 1998 that police can use to fight day-to-day crime. The team will : CR-COPPS ALSO emphasizes track parolees and probationers communication between police ~uspected ~t' ce-offending. and other public agencie~ -- city 'We'ce ceally looking at that housing inspection and ariimal neighborhood connection." said control, and county and state Gary Hinzman, director of 6th family services, for example. I Judicial District Department of .Harrison mentioned a rentedI Correctional Services. ttouse whose occupants haveI Byrne said that police across drawn complaints of loud par-I the country began discussing .t~es and heavy tl-afflc, After a{ alternatives to the by-then tradl- pheeting with the landlord failed~ tional preventive patrol tactics to produce results, city housingI decades ago. illspectors were called in. They In 1973, researchers tracked feund some 'broken windows crime trends in three Kansas ~nd other housing law viola.{ City neighborhoods. One area tlons, received preventive patrol, and : So Harrison checke4 the city i another received three times the Cl~ tO=fllld {]~ llrol~ citatiolo,{ normal levels of police patrol. Ill, ~r a letter to the i~Rdlord.~[ the third neighborhood, offlcer~ · "I'm goin~ to .s~.=~=~,h?:~aI left the area after handling th&' ROfl~,' ~uia if,lin j.d~.t.~-~ call that had brought them ~hin$ ,about it, ',¥rttt~'h~.,m, I there. ~," I-I~n ~Md. i, . ~,] "Researchers found no signtfl- · .The next major a~p will be I cant differences in crime or fear tiken with the slate Division ell of crime in any of the areas," Correctional Services, which! according to a report prepared has landed a ~8,000 federal by the Community Policing Con. grant to hire a police officer i sot'tim, an information clear- ~ho will work with parole and~ inghouse in Washington, D.C. lirobation officers out of an of-~ tlce in a Cedar Rapids neighber- ~ COMMUNITY policing gained .hoed. I momentum with the passage of -Probation 0tilters have knowl-I the 1994 federal crime bill. Re- edge about erlmL, ml htstorle~ flecting the political priorities of · r President Clinton and Congress, the bill created the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) within the De- partment of Justice. COPS has distributed more than $3.6 billion in federal aid to 9,000 departments to adopt com- munity policing techniques. It's part of Clinton's 1992 campaign promise to put 100,000 new offi- cers on the nation's streets by 2000. Police Chief Byrne credits the federal program with hastening a change that would have hap- pened anyway. "It was sort of a catalyst and probably sped things up, but I think this change was inevila- ble," he said. "Officers across the county were becoming too much isolationist." Byrne is happy with his de- partment's measured pace in adopting community policing. "This is the ground floor, but [ haven't seen problems," he said. "I think that is deflI~lt~ly · strong indication things moving slowly and smoothly." The G~e~e. Cedar Rapids, Iowa: Sun., ~uly 19, lgg8 Local Wednesday, July 22, 1998 Iowa City Press-Cit~.en Session fights domestic abuse Domestie ! Police train to ease process of dealing with violence From 3A By Larlaaa Olstad materials, codes of law andkqSUes increases the quality of investigation, The Press-Citizen Ol'iSiS hotlin s of dealing with victims, as well as support services, and makes sure there It is a crime that happens 365 IIDol13esti~Violonce leamingabontinunigmionlaws are no holes, in thc process. She days a year. It is a crime against Intervention Project Cris~ and how to select an interpreter, referred to a new report, like a el~ck ape~son. And it is fmstrating for I.irm~: 351-1043 and 1- Cords has been in law list, for domestic violence cases. Th all l:~ar ties involved from the vic- 800-373-1043 . enforcement since 1973 and has a new forms lay out the information tht tim to the prosecutor. Ph.D. in sociolo~ fi'om Iowa needs td be gathered and are more Iowa City police officers wiH Dom~ticabusecallsare~dif- State University. For the last year effective, Fortmann Doser said. finish a three-day domestic rio-- ficult to handle, he said, bec. arose and a half, he has l:govided train- Lanm Roan, an assistant attorney lence training session today in they are unpredictable, eino- ' lng on domestic alax~ to rmae general, talked to officers about new hopesofmaldngtbeprocessmn fions are running high, relation- than 3,000 officers, advocates and ' legislature and threat assessment. One a little smoother. Last year, 105 ships are going on, and a lot of attorneys fl~reugh the S.T.O.P. of her primary duties is with the ~orts of domestic abuse were time and energy are invested. Violence Against Women Grant Prosecuting Attorney Training Counsel. made m the Iowa City Police Iowa City Police Chief R.J. Krisfi Fortmann Dozer, edu- Roan discussed with officers a ~epartment. In 1998, there have W'mkelhake said the training is cation director with the Domestic strangulation study done by the San ready been 73 reports made. for the en6re deparnnent. Violence Intervention Program, Diego City Attorney's Office where Capt. Tommy Widmer said Officers from the Johnson said police are requived by law to more than 300 cases of domestic vio- domestic violence is one area County Sheriff's Office, inform victims of their rights, lence with choking were reviewed. A where the laws are rapidly Coralville Police Department and There is a DomesficAImse largepercentageofthevictimsdidnot changing. He said it is tough University Deparanent of Public Response Team made up of a show visible injury. enforcing the laws, but very Safety also were invited to attend, staff member from the Johnson She said it's part of the control important. Widmcr said it is Pete Conis, an inslructor for County Attorney's Office, the issue for batterers. It's saying: "l can important for all of the officers the Iowa Law Enforcement police deparanentand DVIP. rake you just to the brink ... then to have the proper information Academy, said off~cers are Forlmann Doser said DART decide whether you will return;' when handling domestic cases, reviewing domestic violence Sue DOMESTIC/4A Roan Went over new laws and sce- narios with officers. There is manda- tory arrest in domestic assault cases, but not in all assaults. There are measures officers can take to further protect the victim from the abuser. For instance, in cases of stalking or harassment, no contact orders can be put into effect tbr five years instead of the usual one year. Fortmann Doser said over the last five years she has seen a dramatic increase with the shelter, outreaches and crisis calls. "Domestic violence as an issue has come to the forefront in many com- munities.'' she said, "There are more people looking for accountability and resources for the victims."