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Home My WebLink About06-06-2001 Articles I.e. Council votes to renew citizen board ~ ~he~. do~to~ More community co~c~ mem~r Ross W~- ~e~ ~h b~s ~d ~e~ay b~ ~id he'd l~e ~e PCB cle~ ~d requWe each bmi- interaction with to be mo~ rodependent. ~e hess p~ch~e a ordm~ce ~at created ~e ~ey ~h b~. police is debated Pc~ ~s~ic~ me bo~ to A ~h b~ pemt wo~d evaluate recommendations cost a bus~ess ~n $10 By Nathan Hill by ~e police chic[ m~g ~d $~ ~y, ~d wo~d be Gaze,e staff writer S~ ~ey'm not ~on- accompanied by educationM IOWA C~Y -- ~e s~ able or ~biW~. mter~ on mh flow. wffi not set on ~e Police ~at ~Sage, ~id W~- "~em ~ msm~ ~d Cit~ens Review Bo~d, ~e Ci~ Co~c~ decid~ l~t ha, ~ a "b~ier to a ~ ~at p~e up W~h ~vo f~t ni~t. ~divid~ voice." over ~e~ Papstem," ~id Co~cH members, howev- Options v~ied as to ~e ~a. a do~to~ bus~ess er, co~d,:n~ a~ on what PC~'s ~etions. Co~c~ o~er. · e boEd's f~ction w~ ~. member:: Steven ~er said Council member Mike · e ~oup sho~d s~ ~ eom- O'Do~eH ~ed ~e do~to~ ~e bo~d w~ set to ex- p ~ made to ~e ~ b~ "d~ter ~e~," wh~e h p~e ~is ye~ ~der a s~set depment, wh~e Mayor ~- ~b ~ed ~em "a d~ace." chu~. ~e co~c~ vot~ ~1 nie Lehman wanted the l~t ni~t to k~p ~e cit~en ~oup to o~rate s~ to ~em ~ morn ~ ~ W~h b~, wi~ D~ V~derh~f ~e ~d of adjm~ent, b~ doctor, ~id Brad Neu- ~, Jo~son Co~'s soHd ~tmg ~e dhsent~g vote. which ~ ~e au~ori~ to I w~te p~er. Co~c~ mem~r ~ ~ab ~ow vaces ~ ~e zoning ~id he w~m ~e ~d to hws. ~ Bus~esses who do not clea have mo~ power, to I~ ~e Co~c~ mem~m d~ided , up ~e~ mess wi~ ~ ho~ coa~i~ wiffi im police ~ey wffi each ~ite up a list of a verb~ wamg wo~d decent. of ~e ch~ges ~ey'd l~e to subj~t to a $I~ free. "The police system is m~e. ~d ~sc~s ~e ma~er ~n~ ~cm~es to ~ for chang, ~com~g morn s~ aga~ at a work session J~e ~e s~ond offeme, ~d ~ for phgti~t~ ad ~we~," 11. ~e ~ ad subsequent of- ~ab ~d. "~ok at o~ ~ In other business, the fe~s. Bee bu~et. ~ ~ not a co~c~ ~om~y appmv~ "We don't wat ~e ~n~," nei~rh~ watch ~oup. ~d ~. "We w~t ~ '~ a ~we~ fore." I Turn to 5B: C~ndl mmp~." DesMoinesRegjSter-~~ '~ News · Crime & Courts Aqricullure e.me,co..s Court rules open-door searches u n ] a w fu I Opinion_ By CLARK KAUFFMAN People/Places Register Staff Writer ReliqioQ 06/01/2001 ~ E-mail this Space tO fi fi'iell(t~ ~ Tech/Science The Iowa Supreme CourJ ruled hi hvo Gases Thursday ~wealher tidal 8n open door is not always 8n inviJalk~n f~r ~ Send ~ lelJer Io ,Obituaries police to conduc[ a search lhe edilor , Web Extras The fiIsI ca~e involved suspec[ed drLig dcnle~ Faroroy Jo l~einier Two plaintlodges Des Moines police 'y6 "i6 i , Forums of)icers staked ou[ Reinier's home [b~ a ~eek in 1998, multimedia , Spots walclfing fbr signs ordru~ activity After f~iling ~o see rec~it~e~t any such activity, they knocked on Reinier's door and, SOlUtiOn. , Entedainment withou~ asking tbr Reinier's consenL entered her ~ Marketplaces porch, where they spoke to her ~ JObS , on TV , Help The officers told Reinier their preferred med~od of investigating drug activity complaints was to ibrgo obtaining a search warrant and simply look mound a suspecl's house They also told Reinier they were concerned with major drug dealers and nmthamphetamine labs. not petty users of drugs In response to a queslion posed by one of the officers. Reinier admitted she had drugs in the house The o~cers then asked if they could search the home. poinm~8 out that her admission gave them reasonable cause for a search warrant Reinier let the officers reside. where they saw a bag of methamphetamine Reinlet ~vas then arresled on a variety of drug charges She appealed he~ conviction. arguing thal her consent to a search of the home was gained through intmfidation and coercion The Supreme Court sided with Reinlet, ruling that the officers' initial entry into the home was unlawful. The police, the court said, "not only asserted authority to enter the house, but they also asserted authority to search." The officers' comments about being uninterested in petty drug use were a "subtle form of deception" intended to make Reinier believe there would be no adverse consequences if drugs were found, the court said. Justices Linda Neuman and James Carlet dissented, arguing that because the officers did not use force to gain entry to the porch, the search they conducted was legal. The second case heard by the court involved a 1999 case in Linn County. Police there had gone to a motel to execute an arrest warrant for Danette Kubit, a suspected drug dealer. An officer knocked on Kubit's door and, as Kubit exited the room and attempted to shut the door behind her, the officer put his foot in the doorway. At that point, the police pushed their way into the room, saw drug paraphernalia and arrested Kubit. In reversing Kubit's conviction on drug charges, the Supreme Court said an arrest warrant does not give police the same access to a suspect's home as a search warrant. The court said the officers had "forced Kubit into the room so they could get inside and see what was in plain view." Justices James Carlet and Mark Cady dissented, arguing that "it was up to the officers to decide" whether Kubit would be arrested inside or outside the motel room. In another case, the court upheld the sexual predator law that allows individuals convicted of sex crimes to remain confined to mental-health facilities after their prison terms have expired. The court rejected arguments that the law violates equal-protection guarantees by treating sex offenders differently from other mental patients. The court also said juries are entitled to hear evidence of predators' past convictions because that information is "crucial to the jury's decision regarding his dangerousness and likelihood ofreoffending." 2 o1'3 6/1/01 10::' Saturday, May 19, 2001 Racial -,- .--,--.. profiling defies regulation ! One fateful traffic stop started it all Today's minorily drivers "Gelling al tile prol,lem is j.uqt Topic: who clmm in m'o much Olore dimcul~ lhtm keeping profiling afth{Inuml,el:~and Mal}'land have mmcfP(l laws PRESS CONFERENCE 2000 IPA REPORT Awareness of police misconduct in the United States has reached new heights since the Los Angeles Police Department' s Rampart scandal, which ranks as one of the worst police scandals in modern history. The San Jose Police Departmere, in compadsion, is currently enjoying a high level of confidence from the public. The IPA has three primary functions: 1. Serve as an alternate office where people may file a complaint of police misconduct; 2. Monitor and audit the investigations of citizen eomplaints conducted by the SIPD; 3. Promote public awareness of a person' s right to file a complalm. In addition, this office publishes annual reports with findings and recommendations. Our findings reveal that the SIPD has made significant gains in public trust and customer satisfaction. A city wide survey commissioned by the City of San Jos6, where 1000 randomly picked citizens were surveyed, indicated that about 3__/4 of those residents who have had contact with the SIPD said that the officer with whom they had contact was courteous and helpful and 2/3 believed that the SJPD treats people fairly. It is our belief that the San Jos~ Police Departmere overall has a culture of openness, a willingness to accept criticism and a desire to focus on solutions. STATISTICS This office documents all citizen contacts and then break them down in two categories, those cases which are resolved without requiting an investigation and those cases that turn into complaints. Total citizen contacts: (2000) 694 (1999) 819 Total citizen contacts has gone down 15% Investigated Complaints 374 Unnecessary Force Complaints, down 26% The combined sustained rate for Formal cases overall is 23%. Discipline ranged from Training to 80 hour suspension. Resolved w/o investigation 320 Citizens were satisfied with explanation RECOMMENDATIONS IN THIS REPORT ETHICS & INTEGRITY STANDARDS SJPD started an Ethics training program last year, the following recommendations will enhance the ethics training: 1. To reassure the public that it is safe to file complaints, it is recommended that the Chief of Police should create policy to prohibit actual or attempts to threaten, intimidate, mislead, or harass potential or actual complainants and/or witnesses. The fear of retaliation is very real even in light of very few documented cases. 2. The Chief of Police should include, in all citizen complaint printed materials, wording that clearly states that, "Retaliation against complainants is prohibited. The Chief of Police will not tolerate retaliation and immediate action will be taken if an officer retaliates against a complainant directly or indirectly" or other similar words that emphasizes the Chiefs position. 3. By incorpurating federal Wlfistleblower guidelines, the ChiefofPolice should create a comprehensive Whistleblower policy for the San Jos~ Police Department. No one is in a better position to deter police misconduct than other officers, but in order to do so, officers must know what to expect. It is said that the greatest victim of police misconduct is the honest cop. VEHICLE STOP DEMOGRAPHIC STUDY (RACIAL PROFILING) In December 2000, the San Jos~ Police Department (SJPD) released data fxorn the Vehicle Stop Demographic Study for the period of July 1, 1999 to June 30, 2000. The study was designed to collect data that would identify the ethnicity, gender, age, location and action taken against a driver as a result of a vehicle stop by a SJ police officer. In a vehicle traffic stop, racial profiling occurs when the officer uses race or ethnicity as the deciding factor for making the traffic stop. The SIPD's analysis of data from the Vehicle Stop Demographic Study, indicated that Hispanic Americans and African Americans are stopped at a rate higher than their overall population within the city of San Jos~. Although the figure for African Americans does not seem to be significantly disproportionate, the figure for Hispanic Americans on the other hand appears to be problematic and requires further study. For example, in police district W, Berryessa area, the latest census show that over 60% of the population is Asian American yet, Hispanics were stopped 36% of the time. Since 2000 census data was not available at the time of the Demographic Study, the difference between the number of minorities stopped and the actual population is still to be deter atined. However, more important than the number of minorities stopped is once stopped, how they are treated. 1. The IPA recommends that the Chief of Police expand the fields for data collection to determine how the individual stopped was treated, i.e., was there a search. This should include search information and the factual basis for a stop and the action taken by the officer as a result of the stop. Officer-Involved Shootings In the year 2000, there was a total of five officer-involved shooting incidents involving San Jos~ Police Department officers. The Shooling Review Panel examined these incidents. Three out of the five shoorings resulted in fatal injuries to the person shot. These figures show a decrease from 1999's figures of eight shoorings, in which seven were fatalities. Although the incident count is lower, there are still some room for improvement. 1. Continue to identify alternate, less lethal weapons and make them more readily accessible. 2. Provide specialized training in handling suspects not armed with a firearm. 3. The Critical Incident Response Team' s presence at the scene is very important. Continue to provide special training in identifying and handling suspects with mental iliness histories. 4. Continue to recruit and hire officers with bi-lingual skills. UPDATE$ AUTHORITY TO DELEGATE DUTIES On February 2, 2001, the IPA received a favorable Arbitration regarding the SJPOA challenge to the IPA authority to delegate certain duties, specifically the duty to attend subject officer interviews. Justice Agliano ruled that the City Charter and the Municipal Code provide the IPA the authority to delegate duties and responsibilities and that this is a matter of managerial discretion not subject to meet and confer. MEDIA TI ON PROGR,4M Last year the IPA recommended a voluntary mediation program for implementation by the San Jos~ Police Department (SJPD). This mediation program would serve as an alternative to the formal complaint investigation process and would allow the complainant and the subject officer to engage in meaningful dialogue. UPDATE: The IPA is pleased to announce that as of July of this year, the SJPD will be launching a mediation pilot program wherein judges from the Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services (JAMS) will serve as mediators. TIMES LINION ~ By ELIZABETH BENJAMIN, Capitol bureau ~,-:'~,~ First published: Tuesday. May 22, 2001 Traffic stop motivated by F L e N e 's: race, educator says Albany -- Member of Board of Regents accuses Albany cops of racial profiling SUPPLY CENTER A newly appointed Aft'lean-American member of lhe , state Board of Regents has accused d~c Alhany Police Department of racial profiling, saying he was slopped and quesnoned without cause hy offecers -- at least .... Joseph E Bowman ,h', S0, said the officers told hm~ they pulled hint over early in the n~ornin8 on May 5 because his 1999 white Jeep Cherokee :rod his appearance nmtched lhosc era man suspected of committm~ an armed robbery earlier thai day An Albany police spokesman confirmed Monday lhat Bowman had been slopped bul could not say whether an incident involvm~ a while Jcep dtn un hy an armed black man had occuH'ed in lhe p. eccdinS hours Public Safety Commissioner John (' N;clscn said he has asked for a further look into the mcidcnl. 'It was a tra~c stop, and at lifts point d~ere does not seem to have been any impropriety at alL" Deteclive ,lames Miller said "Wc'rc Iookin~ into n fiHlhcr" Bowman, appointed to the I 6-rimtuber Board of Re~ents bx the state I,c~islamrc m March, sad he and a colleague were drivm~ home to GuHderland at 2:4S am. thai Saturday after allendin8 an ewn[ al the Albany Crowne Plaza when a police cm flashin5 its liahts and hlarm~ ns s.en pulled his Jccp over near lhe mtcrscclion oFWcslem A~cnuc and Rohm Sireel Soon, five other police cars arrn, ed and circled his vehicle, Bowman sad l'wo office~s appKmched the Jeep and demanded to scc Bowman's hccnse, reBistralion an d proof of insurance 522(11 ~21 AN4 "They were veC¢ aggressive, and one had his gun drawn," Bowman recalled. "l asked why my vehicle had been stopped and (~he officer) respcmded that there had been an arn~ed robbery and the passengers and the vehicle that was used matched our description and vehicle make," Tbe police officers let Bowman go and did not write any tickets, he said. He did not file a formal complaint with the Police Department, he said, because he did not "know the procedure." Bowman said he has a cleau driving record and had never before been pulled over by police tte has lived in the Capital Region for 17 years and is an assistant professor at the University at Albany's School of Education, TIle man who was m tile car with Bowman also is Aft-lean-American and is a librarian at Lehman College in the Bronx, Bowman said. Noting that he was not speeding when l:e was pulled over and that he has not been able to confirm that an armed robbery occurred in the hours before the stop, Bowman surmised the officers were suspicious of a black man driving an expensive, relatively new car early in the morning "I am concerned that tile type of vehicle you drive can facilitate this type of behavior from the police," Bowman said. "| am very concerned about the racial profiling that made these officers stop my vebicle in the first place" Bowman called for the Albany Police Department to conduct community workshops to inform residents of their rights when they are stopped by the police. He also suggested officials take a closet' look at the rationale police officers use when stopping vehicles driven by African-Americans. Nielsen said Mollday that police officials are aware of other cities' problems with racial profiling and have studied the department's records to determine if similar problems exist here, "1 have not seen, or had anything presented to me, to reflect a pattern of racial profiling in our own incidents," Nielsen said, adding that he had just learned of' Bowman's allegations and asked the pol ice Office of Professional Standards to look into theill. Robert CasteIll, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manbattan, said racial profiling occurs when police officers "single out an individual for scrutiny based solely upon their race." African-Americans and Hispanics -- particularly in urban centers -- long have criticized predonm~antly white police departments of prejudice and civil rights violatioas because officers stop individuals who fit a predetermined criminal "type": often young, male blacks or llispanlcs. "We work hard, make significant contributious to this country, but because of the color of our skins we are treated with the same disrespect that our forefathers had to endure," Bowman said. The chairman of the Black, Puerto Rican and Hispanic Legislative Caucus, Assemblyman Keith Wright, D-Manhattan, said he was concerned by Bowman's story but not surprised. Wright said pol ice in Harlem pulled him over without cause and refused to believe he was a state legislator -- despite his Assembly license plates. "This is a fact of life; 'driving while black' occurs all the time," Wright said "A lot of black folks have become almost conditioaed to it." Wright said he was disappointed Bowman had not filed a formal complaint against the Police Departmeat, adding that the caucus would support him if he does The Democratic Assembly majority has beea discussing legislation that would attempt to end racial profiling by police officers, Wright said But CasteIll warned that the problem is attitudinal and not likely to be fixed through laws. "Legislation is not the answer, education and training is," Castelli said. "There are already laws on the books to deal with harassment and civil rights violations. At the end of the day, we don't need more laws. What we need is more effective law enforcement." L,.::] Send this storv to a friend Return to Top 5/22/01 g:21 AM ljint_lt0n Racial Profiling in Ma land Defies Definition -- or Solution Washington Post ~lall' Writcr W~ndsda)'. May 16, 2001: Pa~c A01 Ro~d Wilkins, a Last year, Ma~lan~ state defender and troopers searched 533 cars on ~raduate, was pul[~ Interstate 95. More than haw of over and searched the drivers were black. Ten of his race (Sarah percent were Hispanic. In all 63 L. Voisin-The pcrcent of drivers forced out oF Washington Post) their cars were minorities. ~j~ The Ma~lan~ chapter of din ~~ American Civil Libemes Union ---'Graphic- ~ and more than 140 minorily · Racial Profilina in Naryland ~*-~;~,~ ,,~ drivers who claim in two separate --From the Post-- ~"~:""~ lawsuits to be victims of racial · E~i~l Profiline in Narvland ~'~ profiling by the Ma~land State (The Washington see clear evidence of racial bias. · D,C, Chief F'lan~ ~'~"~"'~*t'~'~ Police officials look at the same ~ ..... ' ...........numbers and see nothing wrong. · D.C. Officers Upbraided Over 29, 2001) Six years aaer the ACLU fbrced · D.C. Police Probe Blue E-Nail the Ma~land State Police to (The Washington Post, Hat 28, 2001) become the first major police · ~Lsis ot ~rrest. Race Data Stymies Police (The Washington ~,:~;~,;::::;:~5~::~:~...:::~:5agency in the countW to collectpost, . ........ data on highway traffic stops, two · Racial Profilin~ ~orries Parents ~l~'i~:;;(':::;:;C::;~things are clear: Ma~land (r,e washington post, oec 8, 2000) ~i~::;:~);j:: 5~ · Where Families Fear the Police ~li: ~?:: :: troopers continue to stop and (~e washington Post, Dec 8, 2000) :~;ed~ilon search minority drivers at rates , Nontqomery Chief Backs Officers ~n Traffic Stops (the Washington jT}a~b~ far higher than their numbers on Post, Sep 27, 2000) ~d~ialth the highway can explain. And the · Activists Seek Penalties To Halt ~0me & Garden tWO sides are at a vi,ual impasse )~elt~e( E-Hail This ~rticle ~:~ee:k ~ ~ions Yesterday, Ma~land became the Printer-Friendly Version }~CiaiSi~eds 13th state to enact legislation Edition addressing racial profiling as Gov. Parris N. Glendening signed a bill thai outlaws face-based traffic stops ves and requires state and municipal police to record and report the ethnicity of every motorist they pull over "It is simply outrageous that African Americans are being targeted tbr tra~c stops, We know it does happea. And under this bill, it is illegal and it will stop," Glendening said at a bill-si~ning ceremony packed with jubilant black lawmakers. But the assertion that the new law will change police behavior is challenged by the recent histo~ ot'the Maryland State Police And the Ma~land experience holds a harsh less~m tbr minorities hoping tbr clear answers as hundreds of police agencies across the country begin to collect data in an efTon to ferre~ out racial bias. Since 1995, under the oversight of a f~deral judge. the Maryland agency has pursued a thorough campaign to combal racial proliling It has assembled one of the most con~prehensive stal istical portrait of highway stops of any police a~ency in the country, I1 has prohibited troopers from usin~ race as a factor to gauge criminal behavior. It has installed video cameras in patrol cars in the most troublesome barracks And it has required troopers to have an "articulable suspicion" of criminal activity before they ask a driver to consent to a vehicle search In short, it has done eve~thin~ the now law demands m~d more. The result? "We have five or six years of data show~n~ ~ross racial disparity in who's stopped on the interstate." said Deborah Jeon, a. attorney with the Ma~land ACLU. "Getting at the problem is just much more di~icull than keeping data and putting out a piece of paper that says, 'Don't do it.'" Since 1999, 10 states including Maryland have enacted laws requiring data collection; three more passed laws to eliminate racial profiling. In addition. data collection bills are close to being passed in Colorado and Texas. And the federal government and dozens of municipal and state agencies have begun keeping statistics, many voluntarily. Other agencies are under legal mandate ~o collect traffic data, Since last fall, Montgome~ County o~cers have been required to record the racial characteristics of eve~ motorist they stop. The roles are part of the settlement oCa four-year civil rights probe by the U.S Justice Department. The numbers are slowly rollin~ in. As they do. they are raising difficult questions about exactly how to recognize racial profiling. Should the percentage of minorities stopped by police be measured against their presence in the local population? Or should there be some effort to find out how many minorities are speeding alo~ i~ the flow of tra~c? Should vehicle searches be tracked as an important measure of 2o1'5 5/16/01 2:1 profiling? Across the country, police and community representatives are just beginning to grapple with those issues, as well as more fimdamental concerns about the accuracy and completeness of the data collected. In Houston, for example, where Mayor Lee Brown initiated a voluntary data collection program in 1999, a recent study by the Houston Chronicle found that police failed to record the race of the driver in hundreds of thousands of traffic stops, making a meaningful analysis virtually impossible. "Unfortunately, in a lot of places where data collection has been mandated, police are not going the extra step to develop benchmarks" to accurately measure racial disparity, said Temple University professor John Lainberth, one of the country's premier analysts of traffic-stop statistics. "A lot of places are reporting the data, and then the question becomes, 'What does it mean?' And no one seems to know." That problem has become almost intractable in Maryland. Here, the state's trove of data allows virtually any statistical question to be asked and answered. Yet despite intense set! lement negotiations between police and the ACLU, the two sides still cannot agree on whether racial profiling exists and, if so, what to do about it. Police officials are just as frustrated by tile stalemate as the ACLU and its plaintiffs. "We feel we're doing all we can do and the nmnbers are purely what tile numbers are," said Lt. Col. Williarn Arrington, chief of the field operations bureau, who is black. Police point out that they stop far more white drivers than black ones and that they search only a fraction of tile thousands of vehicles they stop. They do a search, they say, either because the trooper notices clear evidence of wrongdoing (the smell of marijuana smoke through a lowered window) or because they have a reasonable suspicion that criminal activity is afoot (the driver's name is not listed on the cat's rental agreement) and the driver consents. For a consent search, police are not required by law to have a reason for the search. Why do minorities suffer the majority or' police searches7 "1 don't know," Arrington said. "But it does not suggest a problem to me." Arrington noted that since 1999, video cameras have recorded every traffic stop made by troopers from the JFK Memorial Highway barracks in Cecil County, near the Delaware line. That barracks has been the focus of the ACLU's most intense scrutiny. None of the videos, Arrington said, 3 of 5 5/16701 has shown "a trooper acting inappropriately." The legal battle began in May 1992~ when a Harvard University-educated public defender was stopped in Cumberland, Md., while driving from a funeral in Chicago back home to the District. Robert L. Wilkins refused to consent to a police search, and he and and three relatives were held for almost an hour while a state trooper called a police dog to sniff the car for drugs. Wilkins was convinced that the trooper stopped the car because his family is black. Later, he obtained a conlidential state police report urging troopers in Western Maryland to be on tile lookout tbr black drug traffickers in rental cars with Virginia tags, similar to the car Wilkins and his family were traveling in. He contacted the ACLU and filed suit in 1993. The state police quickly offered to settle for $50,000, but Wilkins held out for a promise that police would track traffic stops to detern~ine whether troopers were targeting people for "driving while black? The settlement was signed in 1995. In 1996, the ACLU had Lamberth examine the data. He drove along 1-95 north of Baltimore and counted speeding cars to establish tile percentage of law-breaking drivers who were black. Measured against that benchmark, the Maryland nmnbers were staggering. At the JFK barracks, nearly 30 percent of drivers stopped were black, though Lainberth estimated that blacks accounted for only 17 percent of the law-breakers. And oftbe drivers searched, 73 percent were black. In 1997, a federal judge found a "pattern and practice of discrimination." !n 1998, the ACLU filed a new suit backed by testimony from 14 additional plaintiffs and more tban 125 alleged victims of racial profiling. No one wants the case to go to trial, and botb sides are urgently looking for common ground. "We would like for there to be an agreed-upon resolution to this case that everyone could be happy with, rather than a big court fight that places us as antagonistsl" Wilkins said. "But I'm not going to lie about the reality," he said. "Maryland has really been the capital of racial profiling in the United States. The disparities on 1-95 in Maryland match or beat anything documented [elsewhere], and they've been going on lbr years and years and years. And they continued even after the settlement of a lawsuit and the involvement of a federal judge. How much worse can you get than that?" CO 2001 The Washington Post Company 4 of 5 5/16i01 2:1: Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq@aol.com .mint: Wednesday. May 30, 2001 10:48 AM : BAttard{~ci.berkeley.ca,us; Teresa. Guerrer0-Daley~ci.sj.ca.us; SIF(~citymgr.sannet,gov; fheske@sdccd.cc. ca,us; cfisher~maiLsdsu.edu; DWilliam{ci.dverside.ca.us; JParkeCH@co,san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH@co.san-diego.ca.us; mbobb~pacbell.net; dhbums@lasd.org; smdacus{lasd.org; NKULLA@aoi.com; c-novak@ix.netcom.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o(~aol.com; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz(~aol.com; wq6i@earthlink. net; paint2@gateway.net; jemurphy909@earthlink. net; smaxberry@bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla@co.la.ca.us; CReeder~indygov.org; cdavis@ultra- tech.com; davisf@nysnet.net; NACOLE95@aol.com; james.johnson@cinlaw, rcc. org; DCasimere@gw. sacto.org; MMonteiro{~ci.cambddge.ma.us; Sandovaj@mscd.edu; dede@hawaiian.net; rowaugh@ci.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel@yahoo,com; markids@northwestem.edu; LPMurphy@cityoboise,org; ~nkle{ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS(~aol.com; CScott7544@aol.com; mcdonaldp{dpdchiefinv.ci.detmitmi.us; ronald.clarkson@co.mo.md.us; bjackson@oaklandnet.com; LPemzl@mail.ci.tucson.az.us; jwillia4@ci,phoenix.az.us; RHAaronson{gateway.net; JimFight@cs.com; mhe,ss~ci.portland.or. us; psalk~mail.als.edu; rheve{mail.als.edu; asb~co.clark. nv.us; Sandy-Bauer@iowa-city.org; Patdcia. Hughes2@ci.minneapolis. mn.us; Dlovelyone@qwest.net; phileure@hotmall.com; Sfmedley22615@cs.com; irp@co.miami- dade.fl.us; Cdavis~diocese-gal-hou.org; hector.w.soto~phila.gov; don,luna@ci.stpaul.mn.us; mike(~cdsadr. org; Ellen.Celsler{~phlla,gov; EMiller@ci.miami.fl.us; SGudn@pcweb.net; mumsee1 ~mindspdng.com; IIIIola@juno.com; jw2b~fuse.net; drjandrewsphd@woddnet.att,net; dheard@ci.mil.wi.us; rmmos@contracosta.cc,ca.us; Trgunnl@aol,com; SXH@citymgr. sannet.gov; martina@hdcdojnetstate.ca.us; Slecorre@uottawa.ca; rzoss@mymailstation.com; PZamary{yahoo,com; afryer@seattletimes.com; LSiegel{~aclu.org; tiyeluv(~hotmail.com; Tim. Ohara@herald-tdb.com; Susan. Sheldon@vedzon.net; d.ramirez@nunet.neu.edu; Mvdanielesq@aol.com; sharewhy@hotmail.com; Kelly. Thomton@uniontdb.com; WLN(~sdpdms.sannet.gov; RmDuvall@aol.com; Chevigny@tudng.law.nyu.edu; AEHobmn(~aol.com; rashbaumd~nytimes.com; skolnick~tudng.law.nyu.edu; apc211 @nyu.edu; samwalker@unomaha.edu; spgetty@azstamet.com; Womencops~aol.com; Collina@hrw.org; lynn_davis~la.ldrkland.com; hfujie@buchalter. com; drotter~akingump,com; david.weiss(~cgu.edu; mcnamara@hoover. stanford.edu; DMack500(~aol.com; mgraham{)nctimes.com; rgreenspan~policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE{att.net; bill.finney@ci.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG~aol.com; nancy_falcon@qc.edu; usmexborder@igc.apc. org Subject: FBI Stings Catch Cops; Detroit Citzns Want PD Change; Colo Cop Acquitted FBI 'Baited Hooks' to Lure Bad Cops Dateline: San Antonio - 5/30/2001 By Maro Robbins San Antonio Express-News Staff Writer The FBI baited its lures with baking soda in Cleveland and mixed real cocaine with powder in Savannah, Ga., and New Orleans. The cops never knew the difference and, while ingredients varied, the results were the same: local law-enforcement officers led away in handcuffs. Put to the test most recently in San Antonio, the recipe worked yet again, federal authorities allege. This time, agents resorted to flour, then crumbly chunks of drywall, to mimic pocaine bricks and, on March 22, they arrested 10 officers. _he accusations potentially add fresh members to a small but growing group of ~aw officers snared by undercover FBI stings. Besides Cleveland, Savannah and ew Orleans, the crooked cop club has chapters in cities such as Chicago, Atlanta, Detroit, Washington and Jackson, Miss. 1 In each locale, FBI agents, sometimes working with local internal affairs units, said they first received allegations of police misconduct. Then, going undercover, they posed as drug dealers and worked with informants to give local officers opportunities to make fast money protecting narcotics '~ipments or stealing from drug dealers. The unsuspecting -- if not always innocent -- officers earned first a few hundred or thousand dollars, then a heaping dose of disgrace. "I'm surprised officers do it anymore," said Don Burkhalter, a Mississippi federal prosecutor handling cases against three Jackson officers. "Because they (the stings) are all variations on the same theme." So, too, were many of the defenses offered from city to city. Some officers claimed entrapment. Some said they didn't know what they were guarding. But, for all the similarities, officials say no two cases were identical. Some prosecutors were armed with clear and damning secretly recorded tapes; others worked with grainy images and jumbled sounds. As in other cities, secret recordings appear a crucial part of the San~ntonio case. One of the few publicly revealed snippets shows a man identified by authorities as Sgt. Conrad Fragozo Jr. perusing headlines of USA Today moments before foil-wrapped bundles are stacked and counted on a table in a motel room. Some investigations had dramatic flair, as in Cleveland, where undercover FBI agents posed as mobsters and staged an elaborate ceremony inducting one of their targets, a jail guard, into the Mafia. At least one sting ended with bloodshed. The Louisiana operation stopped .~fter one of its targets, a New Orleans Officer, used a tapped phone to rther a murder plot. Among the sharpest contrasts between cities -- and even co-defendants -- were the consequences. Punishments ranged, like the cases themselves, all over the map. At one extreme, a New Orleans officer was sentenced to death while, at the other end of the spectrum, a jury set free a Savannah officer. Most, as is typical of criminal cases, ended with plea bargains. Thus far, one of the San Antonio officers has followed suit. Patrolman Lawrence Bustos on May 11 took a plea deal that capped his prison time at 10 years, while enabling him to hope for far less. Lawyers for the rest are silent about making any deals or talking about going to trial. 'A sting is a sting' Between 1996 and last year, the FBI took a leading or supporting role in 508 convictions related to law enforcement corruption, including civilians who offered bribes or otherwise were acco~plices. The numbers, however, do not distinguish which cases resulted from undercover sting operations. To longtime law officers and prosecutors, there is little ~traordinary about stings. It is a basic tool that can be adapted to ,vestigate drug traffickers, Internet child predators and corrupt public servants alike. A sting is a sting, whether (you're) doing cops, politicians -- whatever," said A1 Winters, a Louisiana prosecutor for more than 27 years. 2 Yet, among stings, the New Orleans case stands out, partly because it ended with a death. In addition, as Winters describes it, the investigation also had an unusual beginning. started with a drug dealer seeking justice. The dealer had no pending .arges, but came to federal authorities in late 1993 because he was "sick of being ripped off by police officers," Winters said. The dealer named one officer in particular and the investigation began there. First, the informant recorded Officer Sam~ie L. Williams Jr. offering him protection from police, as well as other dealers. Before long, the dealer arranged to introduce both Williams and his friend, Officer Len E. Davis, to his purported supplier, in reality an undercover agent. At the meeting, everyone -- informant, undercover agent and both officers -- stripped to their underwear to show no one was wearing a wire. No one was. However, the meeting, all 1 hour and 8 minutes, was captured by a hidden camera. Before long, the FBI had rented a warehouse, then rigged it with cameras. Agents posing as drug couriers came and went while Williams, Davis and officers they recruited stood guard outside. After awhile, the officers sat in a van, also provided -- and bugged -- by agents. The case ended abruptly after Davis ordered the murder of a woman who had filed a brutality complaint against him. Agents eavesdropping on a tapped phone line heard -- but did not understand until it was too late -- some cryptic comments about the plot. then, at least nine police officers were entangled in the sting that came Lo be called "Operation Shattered Shield." After separate trials, Davis got life in prison, plus five years for the drug conspiracy, and a death sentence for the murder. Willie pleaded guilty to all charges but, after testifying against officers in three trials, was rewarded with a prison sentence of two years and four months, then was ushered into the federal witness protection program. Another officer, Larry Smith Jr., the first to plead and offer his cooperation, got three years for a crime that, under federal guidelines, called for potentially 20 years behind bars. Two others took their chances in trials. Both got more than 20 years behind bars, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported. Most pleaded guilty. Several received prison sentences of about seven years after Winters dismissed the initial drug counts and substituted relatively minor charges. Winters said the penalties reflected the case's weaknesses - low-quality recordings - as well as his notion of fairness. .y theory of prosecuting is: Everyone can't get 100 years," he said. d in the Midwest The Cleveland case came looking for authorities when a sheriff's jailer 3 approached an undercover agent working in a strip club. Michael Joye told the agent, who was posing as a mobster for an organized crime investigation, that he and his law-enforcement pals could protect illicit Mafia shipments, according to the lawyer who prosecuted the case, '-mes R. Wooley. The offer intrigued the government. "If the guy can't produce the friends, it's over," Wooley said of the initial investigation. "But in Our case he produced eight of them." And they introduced still others until the conspiracy involved 43 correctional and police officers from various local departments. The sting started with a truckload of illegal slot machines and quickly switched to 25-kilogram shipments of baking soda purported to be cocaine. But FBI agents grew wary of Joye's violent streak. To make sure nothing like the New Orleans murder occurred, agents resolved to tame Joye. Their method was as creative as it Was controversial. They staged an elaborate ceremony, anointing Joye with oil and hot wax and inducting him into the Mafia, according to the (Cleveland) Plain Dealer. They told him as a member, he had to behave. If not, they'd kill him. The threat worked, but it also left the government vulnerable to complaints that agents coerced Joye into continuing the conspiracy. For that reason, prosecutors did not charge any of Joye's crimes after the ceremony. Regardless, the case was labeled unfair by protesters. Officers' relatives and supporters picketed and passed out fliers outside the courthouse. They cast the investigation as a waste of crime-fighting resources. t in the end, the tapes were dee/ned strong, defense lawyers said. Everyone Fieaded guilty. Joye got what legal experts consider a generous deal for someone who admitted helping protect more than 250 kilograms of cocaine, plus some small crack sales on the side. He is serving nine years in prison. Lesser participants got two to three years, even those whose sentences would otherwise have been double under federal guidelines because their crimes involved considerable amounts of cocaine. "We felt it was sort of fundamentally unfair to tag them with all this (drug) quantity when the government chose the quantity," said Wooley, now in private practice. Those would be magic words to local defense lawyers if they spilled from the mouth of a San Antonio prosecutor. Together, six of the 10 locally accused officers are alleged to have collectively moved 350 kilograms of what they believed was cocaine. Largely as a result, they face sentences ranging from 15 years to life in prison, if convicted. Just say no =~cal defense lawyers argue that drug punishments don't fit a corruption ing, even one disguised as a drug conspiracy. ere were no drugs, they say. There were only harmless bundles of flour, _£ushed drywall and, in some instances, rubber bricks wrapped in brown paper. That looms as a key question for sentencing, should more officers plead guilty or be convicted. But, first, another question has to be settled: Who will go to trial? Some defense lawyers are talking about preparing entrapment defenses, si~ilar ~ ~ those considered but rarely used successfully against the FBI stings in ~io and Louisiana. "It's almost impossible for an entrapment defense to work when at some point, they (the target) didn't engage in some way of saying, 'No,"' said Ronald Goldstock, a law professor who has taught seminars on public corruption at New York University and Cornell University. In San Antonio, the publicly released video sequences suggest the undercover agent anticipated the defense and subtly offered some targets chances to back out. He seemed to insert the opportunities almost casually into conversations about transporting carloads of cocaine. "But are you comfortable with it?" he inquired of one. "Did I treat you fair?" he asked a second. "Still feel comfortable?" he said to a third. In those moments at least, they seemed more intent on the bait than on turning back. SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS Citizens Group: Detroit P.D. 'Broken, Needs to be Fixed' Dateline: Detroit, Michigan - 5/30/2001 Saying the Detroit Police Department is broken and needs to be fixed, a 12-member citizen group will urge Chief Benny Napoleon and other city leaders today to equip officers with more nonlethal weapons to reduce fatal shootings of civilians and costly lawsuits. fne group also will ask city officials to hire more officers and pay them higher starting salaries, provide more training on ethics and accountability and create a legal affairs division to handle police litigation rather than the Detroit Law Department, according to a person who has read the conumittee's report. The report will be given to Napoleon, who will review it along with recommendations he received earlier this year from a group of police executives. Napoleon plans to recommend the best of both reports to the Detroit Board of Police Commissioners for adoption. Napoleon and the Rev. Edgar Vann, chairman of the Detroit police commission, could not be reached for co~nent Tuesday. Napoleon and Mayor Dennis A/cher appointed the committee last year after the Free Press reported that Detroit led the nation's largest cities in the rate of fatal shootings of civilians in the 1990s. Marty Bandemer, president of the Detroit Police Officers Association, said the proposals sound fine, but he wondered how the cash-strapped city would "nd the money to pay for them. 'hese are some of the very things we've been talking about in negotiations," oandemer said. "But they have told us, 'Hey, we don't have the money.' I'm glad somebody else is now stepping up." A staff member for the Rev. Wendell Anthony, who chaired the citizens' conmLittee, said he wouldn't con~ne~t on the report's reconunendations until ~0day's news conference. The committee wants to equip officers with a more potent form of pepper spray, an expandable easy-to-carry baton in limited use in the department and a pepperball launcher that fires a round of irritant about 30 feet. The weapons are designed to subdue people without killing them. since 1987, the Detroit City Council has authorized nearly $124 million for police lawsuits, including fatal shootings. Councilwoman Sheila Cocktel expressed concern that the impact of the panel's reconmnendations could be diminished because it was commissioned by Napoleon, who is leaving the department in July. The U.S. Justice Department is investigating the Detroit Police Department for possible civil-rights violations in officers' use of deadly force. Similar investigations in other cities have resulted in sweeping reforms. Any federal reforms in Detroit could be a year or more away. DETROIT FREE PRESS Ex CO Cop Acquitted of Excessive Force (in Videotaped Arrest) Dateline: Glendale, Colorado - 5/30/2001 Former Glendale police Sgt. Robert Malafronte was acquitted Tuesday of charges that he used excessive force in the ~ deotaped 1999 arrest of a drunken-driving suspect. T~e verdict came in Malafronte's second trial on misdemeanor counts of third-degree assault, official oppression, first-degree official misconduct and harassment. Another jury deadlocked on the charges in January. "We're very pleased with the result and wish it had not taken so long to reach this point," said Malafronte's attorney, Doug Jewell. But Debra Schaefer, wife of the alleged victim, John Schaefer, said the verdict left her in shock. "I walked out of there and I couldn't believe it," she said. "I'm just disappointed that they would not hold him accountable for what he did. I felt like it was pretty clear-cut." Schaefer, a Glendale attorney, died in October after a stroke. Malafronte was fired from the Glendale force in April 2000. The jury viewed a videotape, from a camera in a Glendale police car, that appeared to show Malafronte kneeing Schaefer twice in the thigh, then pushing him to the ground. Schaefer was handcuffed. Arapahoe County prosecutor Will Hood argued during a closing statement Tuesday that Malafronte was angry because he thought Schaefer had tried to n down another officer with his car. Hood said Malafronte told Schaefer, on't you ever try to hurt one of my officers." hat statement is huge in this case," Hood said. Malafronte contended that when he arrived at the scene, he didn't know 6 Schaefer was handcuffed. Schaefer was in an unusual position -- lying on his back, wriggling, on the hood of a police car with his hands behind his back, he said. M_alafronte viewed that as "defensive resistance," Jewell told the jury. "It · necessary, in his mind, to get this man under control." While the jury was deliberating Tuesday, attorneys started picking a new panel for a trial in which Malafronte is accused of mistreating another man during an arrest in the fall of 1999. That incident was tried along with the Schaefer matter in the January trial that ended with a hung jury. The cases were separated for the retrials. DENVER ROCKY MNTN. NEWS Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq@aol.com "'nt: Monday, May 28, 2001 10:51 PM ,: BAttard(~ci.berkeley.ca.us; Temsa.Guerrero-Daley@ci.sj.ca.us; SIF~citymgr.sannet.gov; fheske@sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher@mail.sdsu.edu; DWilliam@ci.dverside.ca.us; JParkeCH@co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH@co.san-diego.ca.us; mbobb@pacbell.net; dhbums~lasd.org; smdacus(~lasd.org; NKULLA@aol.com; c-novak@ix.netcom.com; EllenSTaylor@yahoo.com; HGoldh2o~aol.com; rrass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz@aol.com; wq6i@earthlink.net; paint2(~gateway.net; jemurphy909(~earthlink.net; smaxberry~bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla@co.la.ca.us; cburdick@maui.net; CReeder@indygov.org; cdavis~;~ultra-tech.com; davisf(~nysnetnet; NACOLE95(~aol.com; james.johnson@cinlaw.rcc.org; DCasimere@gw. sacto.org; MMonteiro@ci.cambddge.ma.us; Sandovaj@mscd.edu; dede@hawaiian.net; rowaugh@ci.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel (~yahoo.com; markids~northwestem.edu; LPMurphy(~cityofboise.org; ffinkle~ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS(~aol.com; CScott7544@aol.com; mcdonaldp@dpdchiefinv.ci.detroit.mi.us; mnald.clan%son@co.mo.md.us; bjackson@oaklandnet.com; LPerezl@mail.ci.tucson.az.us; jwillia4@ci.phoenix.az.us; RHAaronson~gateway.net; JimFight@cs.com; mhess@ci.portland.or. us; psalk@mail.als.edu; rheve@mail.als.edu; asb~co.clark.nv.us; Sandy-Bauer@iowa-city.org; Patdcia. Hughes2@ci.minneapolis.mn.us; Dlovelyone@qwest.net; phileure@hotmail.com; Sfmedley22615@cs.com; irp@co.miami-dade.fl.us; Cdavis@diocese-gal-hou.org; hector.w.soto@phila.gov; don.luna@ci.stpaul.mn.us; mike@cdsadr.org; Ellen.Ceisler@phila.gov; EMiller@ci.miami.fl.us; SGudn(~pcweb.net; mumsee1 @mindspdng.com; IIIIola@juno.com; jw2b@fuse.net; drjandrewsphd@worldnet.att.net; dheard@ci.mil.wi.us; rramos(~contracosta.cc.ca.us; Trgunnl @aol.com; SXH@citymgr.sannetgov; martina@hdcdojnet.state.ca.us; Slecorre@uottawa.ca; rzoss@mymailstation.com; PZamary@yahoo.com; afryer@seattletimes.corn; LSiegel@aclu.org; tiyeluv@hotmail.com; Tim.Ohara@herald-tdb.com; Susan. Sheldon~;~vedzon.net; d.ramirez~nunet.neu.edu; Mvdanielesq@aol.com; sharewhy@hotmail.com; Kelly. Thomton(~uniontrib.com; WLN@sdpdms.sannet.gov; RmDuvall@aol.com; Chevigny@tudng.law.nyu.edu; AEHobron@aol.com; rashbaum@nytimes.corn; skolnick@tudng.law.nyu.edu; apc211 @nyu.edu; samwalker@unomaha.edu; spgetty@azstamet.com; Womencops~aol.com; Collina~hrw.org; lynn_.davis(~la.kirkland.com; hfujie(~buchalter. com; rtrotter@akingump.com; david.weiss~cgu.edu; mcnamara@hoover. stanford.edu; DMack500@aol.com; mgraham@nctimes,com; rgreenspan@policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE(~att.net; bill.~nney{~ci.stpaul.mn,us; DRPPG(~aol.com; nancy_falcon{qc.edu; usmexborder@igc.apc.org Subject: Indiana Fatal Shoot Draws Protest; New Odeans PD Internal Integrity Checks Fatal Shooting by Indiana Deputy Draws Protest Dateline: Marion County, IN - 5/27/2001 Indianapolis, IN By R. Joseph Gelarden On a day when thousands turned out for a festive parade, Marion County Sheriff Jack L. Cottey was unmoved when he saw Larry Leaf's yellow sign: "The Marion County Sheriff's Department Killed My Son." About 60 protesters stared silently as the shiny white convertible carrying Cottey passed Washington and Meridian streets in the 500 Festival Parade. "I didn't pay any attention to them. There were not many of them, and they were behind a fence," Cottey said after the parade. ~af, 51, a retired General Motors worke~ from~nderson, and the others splayed signs blaming Cottey's department in the slaying of Leaf's son, ~ohn Patrick Leaf, 35, a stockbroker. The younger Leaf was shot to death in his Indianapolis apartment early May 5 1 by one of Cottey's deputies, Ronald Shelnutt. Shelnutt said he was investigating a burglary report when he entered Leaf's apartment. He said Leaf, who was in bed, was startled awake and grabbed a k__nife. Shelnutt fired three times at point-blank range into Leaf's chest. The ~e is being investigated by a Marion County grand jury. Before the parade began, Larry Leaf linked arms with Elder Lionel Rush, a frequent police critic, and led his group north on Meridian Street and around Monument Circle. When they reached Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral, they knelt and prayed for justice. As thousands gathered for the parade watched, they turned around and marched back to the south segment of the Circle, where they knelt again to pray. Then they returned to their starting point, where they called for more and better training for deputies, a unified police and sheriff's department law enforcement staff, and a civilian review board. Will their actions do any good? "I hope so. This is a dignified call. They killed my boy," said Leaf in an interview. Then he paused. "No, he was a man, but I still think of him as my boy. This just isn't right." Leaf's comments were echoed by his daughter, Tricia Leaf-Croft, 35, of Muncie. "I am not anti-police. But this Shelnutt was out of control. He waved his gun and took a position and fired," she said. PD Keeping Eye Out for BadApples--Internally Dateline: New Orleans, ~ouisiana - 5/26/2001 When David and Ronald Singleton were arrested on cocaine charges in 1997, they were busted by their boss. The brothers were veteran patrol officers with the New Orleans Police Department, and their links to a narcotics ring were revealed by an internal sting operation. In the aftermath of the Singleton brothers' case, police Superintendent Richard Pennington announced that such undercover operations would become a staple of the department's Public Integrity Division. Modeled after similar tactics used by the New York Police Department, Pennington called the probes "integrity checks" and put his officers on notice that they could be subject to a check at any time. Since then, the department has quietly conducted such checks on 125 officers, according to Majo James Treadaway, commander of the Public Integrity Division. Eleven officers flunked, a failure rate of 8.8 percent, Treadaway said. He declined to give a year-by-year breakdown but said the department averages 28 checks annually. So far this year, 12 checks have been completed and the success rate has been 100 percent. "Although we're doing this to see if any officers aren't doing the right thing, we find that most officers are passing with flying colors," Treadaway said. The department also refused to disclose the specific outcomes of individual ~integrity checks, although Treadaway said penalties for failing have ranged ?om reprimands to dismissals to arrests. Overall, the failure rate in the ~partment is similar to that of other big city police departments that run .ings on their officers. In New York, for example, about 10 percent of officers fail, although the tests there are more frequent. Running the gamut Treadaway and his assistant, Capt. Joseph Lopinto, said most of the NOPD'S integrity checks are random. They can vary from how a sergeant handles a ~lephone inquiry to what a patrol officer does when a piece of crack cocaine planted in the back seat of his police cruiser. But the most widely used -- and most revealing -- type of test involves a staged street encounter with a person posing as an ordinary citizen, Treadaway said. "We know that the biggest part of an officer's performance is dealing with the public," he said. "So that's the main focus of our integrity checks. That can be anything from handling a call about missing property to responding to an accident scene." In some instances, a well-rehearsed operative will draw an officer into an encounter while public integrity investigators videotape the episode. Usually, the operative is a police officer borrowed from another agency. "I hate to make it sound like ~Candid Camera,' "Treadaway said, "but that's how we do it." Studying the secretly taped encounters has provided a wealth of valuable information, Treadaway said. In addition to checking if officers are running afoul of the law, commanders have been able to pinpoint police procedures that are ineffective or need to be given more emphasis during training. "The tests give us a lot of feedback. We're getting a lot of candid observations of officers going about their everyday duties," he said. ~obody's exempt .ndividual officers aren't notified if they pass a random check, but after a series of tests are complete, district co~ananders are told of the quarterly results, Treadaway said. Less frequently, the Public Integrity Division will target a specific officer with an integrity check, Lopinto said. In those instances, the officer may have been the subject of coreplaints from citizens or fallen under the suspicion of a commanding officer. And police Officers aren't the only people who can be targeted. One well-publicized sting was staged after the department received coraplaints that civilian record-room employees were giving away police reports in exchange for gifts and under-the-table payments. By the time the operation was completed, six employees were caught red-handed and charged in federal court. Each of the clerks was fined, placed on probation and either fired or forced to resign from the department. "That was an extremely successful operation," police spokesman Lt. Marlon Defillo said. But unlike with civilian employees, staging a sting against a seasoned police officer is a considerable challenge, Lopinto said. Officers are trained to notice when things appear out of the ordinary, and an officer who suspects he is being watched is on heightened alert, Lopinto said. 'qWe do a lot of brainstorming," Lopinto said. "We have to keep challenging arselves to come up with more innovative tests." Producing results 3 Several patrol officers said the rank-and-file have come to accept the checks as a part of the job, even though some quietly grumble that such tactics are heavy-handed. ,~x never did believe in that," said one longtime officer who requested ,nyl~ity. "Provocation should be against the law. If you put bread in front of a man who is starving, he's going to eat." Another veteran said the integrity checks have made some officers reluctant to interact with citizens, an outcome that runs counter to the NOPD's philosophy of hands-on cormnunity policing. "It's kept a lot of us from engaging with people," the officer said. "You have officers looking over their shoulders or they just don't want to be bothered. I think it shortchanges the person who has a legitimate problem that might need some handling." But, according to Lopinto, planting the notion that the Public Integrity Division could be looking over an officer's shoulder has more plusses than "We don't have to do 100 tests to send a message," he said. "We just have to do a few of a particular kind, and that sends the message that we're testing integrity in that area. Once the word gets out, it's an integrity test every time that situation comes up." Defillo said he has seen evidence that the integrity checks keep officers on their toes. In one instance, an off-duty cop was jogging and found a cell phone on the ground. The officer went to great lengths to notify a supervisor and report his discovery, Defillo said. And it wasn't even a test. Lopinto said that even among officers who are cynical about integrity checks, ~le results are worthwhile. ,~hether they were inclined to do the right thing all along or whether they're laughing about it because they know it's a test, the end result is the same: We have police officers doing the right thing." NEW ORLEANS TIMES-PICAYUNE Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq@aol.com ,.,~ent: Thursday, May 31, 2001 1:03 PM : BAttard(~ci.berkeley.ca.us; Teresa. Guerrero-Daley@ci.sj.ca.us; SIF(~citymgr.sannet.gov; fheske@sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher@mail.sdsu.edu; DWilliam@ci.riverside.ca.us; JParkeCH@co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH@co.san-diego,ca.us; mbobb@pacbell,net; dhbums@lasd.org; smdacus~lasd,org; NKULLA@aol.com; c-novak@ix.netcom.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o~aol,com; rfass@pomona.edu; Cuquiz@aol.com; wq6i@earthlink.net; paint2@gateway.net; jemurphyg09@earthlink.net; smaxberry@bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla@co.la.ca.us; CReeder@indygov.org; cdavis@ultra- tech.com; davisf@nysnet.net; NACOLE95@aol.com; james.johnson@cinlaw,rcc.org; DCasimem@gw.sacto.org; MMonteiro@cLcambridge.ma.us; Sandovaj(~mscd.edu; dede@hawaiian.net; rowaugh@ci,long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel (~yahoo.com; markids@northwestem.edu; LPMurphy@cityofboise.org; ~nkle@ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS@aol.com; CScott7544@aol.com; mcdonaldp{~dpdchiefinv.ci,detroitmi.us; ronald.clarkson@co.mo.md,us; bjackson@oaklandnet.com; LPerezl@mail.ci.tucson.az.us; jwillia4@ci.phoenix.az.us; RHAaronson@gateway.net; JimFight@cs.com; mhess@ci.podland.or.us; psalk@mail.als,edu; rheve@mail.als.edu; asb@co.clark.nv.us; Sandy-Bauer@iowa-city.org; Patdcia. Hughes2@ci.minneapolis.mn,us; Dlovelyone@qwest.net; phileuro@hotmail.com; Sfmedley22615@cs.com; irp@co.miami- dade.~,us; Cdavis@diocese-gal-hou,org; hector.w.soto@phila.gov; don.luna@ci.stpaul.mn.us; mike@cdsadr. org; Ellen.Ceisler@phila.gov; EMiller@ci.miami.~.us; SGudn@pcweb.net; mumseel@mindspdng.com; IIIIola@juno,com; jw2b@fuse.net; ddandrewsphd@woddnetatt.net; dheard(~ci,mil.wi.us; rramos@contracosta.cc.ca.us; Trgunnl@aol.com; SXH@citymgr,sannetgov; martina@hdcdojnet.state.ca.us; Slecorre@uottawa.ca; rzoss@mymailstation.com; PZamary@yahoo,com; afryer@seattletimes.com; LSiegel~aclu.org; tiyeluv@hotmail.com; Tim. Ohara@herald-tdb.com; Susan. Sheldon@vedzon.net; d.ramirez@nunetneu.edu; Mvdanielesq@aol.com; shamwhy@hotmail.com; Kelly. Thomton@uniontdb.com; WLN@sdpdms.sannet.gov; RmDuvall@aol.com; Chevigny@tudng.law.nyu,edu; AEHobron@aol.com; rashbaum(~nytimes.com; skolnick@tudng,law.nyu.edu; apc211 (~nyu.edu; samwalker@unomaha.edu; spgetty@azstametcom; Collina@hrw.org; lynn_davis(~la.kirkland.com; hfujie@buchalter. com; rtrotter{akingump.com; david.weiss@cgu.edu; mcnamara@hoover.stanford.edu; DMack500@aol.com; mgraham@nctimes.com; rgreenspan@policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE@att,net; bill.finney@ci.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG(~aol.com; nancy_falcon{qc, edu; usmexborder@igc.apc.org Subject: Tucson PD To Eval Force Used in Riot; Detroit Panel Wants PD Changes Tucson Police to Evaluate use of Munitions During Riot Dateline: Tucson, AZ - 5/31/2001 Arizona Republic/AP Tucson police cormmanders say they will evaluate individual incidents of people being hit by rubber bullets and "less-lethal" munitions during the riot that followed the NCAA basketball championship game to detern~ne whether excessive force was used. "We will identify which group of officers were present at each incident, and they will have to justify their use of force," Assistant Tucson police Chief Robert Lehner said last night at the fourth meeting of a panel reviewing police actions during the riot. "An officer or supervisor directing the use of force that is outside -!department) policy faces discipline." t least 40 people were struck as police fired more than 450 less-lethal unds during the April 2 riot after the University of Arizona basketball team's loss in the championship game. Those hit included shop owners trying to protect their property and journalists covering the melee. Panel member Jaime Gutierrez, UA's assistant vice president for community relations, told Lehner it was troubling to hear reports of less-lethal munitions being used two hours after police ordered the crowd on the avenue to disperse. ou make a good point," Lehner replied. "The farther you get away from the dispersal order, the more pointed the questions need to be asked for justification." Gutierrez also asked Lehner when an officer was authorized to fire less-lethal weapons. "The first is on their own initiative and when faced with an immediate threat, and other than that, it is authorized and directed by a supervisor," Lehner said. Tucson police Chief Richard Miranda appointed the 14-member panel to evaluate whether police procedures were followed during the riot and to review complaints of excessive force. Jack Langley, 46, a small- business owner and Tucson resident for 21 years, told panelists, "It's unbelievable we are condemning police and accusing them of being the bad guys when we know who the bad guys are." Police have arrested six people on felony charges related to the riot. About an hour after UA lost the game, rioters overturned several cars and burned an RV. Some shops also were vandalized. Changes Recommended for Detroit Police Dateline: Detroit, MI - 5/31/2001 by JIM SUHR Associated Press Writer A civilian panel appointed by the police chief says the Detroit Police Department is "broken and needs to be fixed" with higher pay and better ~aining for officers on when to use lethal force. ,~ a 25-page report released Wednesday, the 12 community members and activists blamed "inadequate training of officers, a lack of material resources, lack of accountability and a shortage of personnel." The panel was appointed last fall by Police Chief Benny Napoleon after a string of deadly police shootings of civilians. The U.S. Justice Department is investigating those shootings, questionable treatment of inmates and wholesale arrests of homicide witnesses. Napoleon announced his retirement last week. He insisted that he wasn't rattled by criticism aimed at the department. "We have now come to a fork in the road to either take the path that leads to healing, or the path that leads to the further deterioration of an effective department," said the Rev. Wendell Anthony, chief of the Detroit NAACP and the panel's chairman. Anthony did not estimate how much it would cost to implement the recommendations, which include hiring more city residents and minorities with military backgrounds, and using more non-deadly weapons. The report also suggested establishing a program to identify officers who have problems with proper use of force. .Marty Bandemer, president of the Detroit Police Officers Association, said e union had been discussing similar proposals. But they have told us, 'Hey, we don't have the money,"' he said. "I'm ~lad somebody else is now stepping up." Mayor Dennis Archer, who was in New York Wednesday, planned to read the report when he returned to Detroit, spokeswoman Michelle Zdrodowski said. "He will look at these suggestions and give them considerable thought," then decide which to implement based on funding, she said. Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq@aol.com =-,nt: Wednesday, May 23, 2001 9:00 AM : BAttard@ci.berkeley.ca.us; Teresa. Guerrem-Daley~ci.sj.ca.us; SIF@citymgr. sannet.gov; fheske@sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher@mail.sdsu.edu; DWilliam@ci.dverside.ca.us; JParkeCH@co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH(~co.san-diego.ca.us; mbobb@pacbell.net; dhbums@lasd.org; smdacus@lasd.org; NKULLA@aol.com; c-novak@ix.netcom.com; EllenSTaylor(~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o~aol.com; rfass(~pomona.edu; Cuquiz~aol.com; wq6i(~earthlink.net; paint2@gateway.net; jemurphyg09(~eadhlink.net; smaxberry@bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla~co.la.ca.us; cburdick(~maui.net; CReeder@indygov.org; cdavis@ultra-tech.com; davisf@nysnet.net; NACOLE95@aol.com; james.johnson@cinlaw.rcc.org; DCasimere@gw.sacto.org; MMonteiro@ci.cambridge.ma.us; Sandovaj@mscd.edu; dede@hawaiian.net; rowaugh@ci.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel @yahoo.com; markids@northwestem.edu; LPMurphy@cityofboise.org; ffinkle@ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS@aol.com; CScott7544@aol.com; mcdonaldp(~dpdchiefinv.ci.detroit.mi.us; ronald.clarkson(~co.mo.md.us; bjackson@oaklandnet.com; LPemzl(~mail.ci.tucson.az.us; jwillia4@ci.phoenix.az.us; RHAaronson@gateway.net; JimFight(~cs.com; mhess@ci.portland.or.us; psalk(~mail.als.edu; rheve@mail.als.edu; asb4~co.clark.nv.us; Sandy-Bauer(~iowa-city.org; Patdcia. Hughes2@ci.minneapolis.mn.us; Dlovelyone(~qwest.net; phileure@hotmail.com; Sfmedley22615@cs.com; irp~co.miami-dade.fl.us; Cdavis(~diocese-gal-hou.org; hector.w.soto@phila.gov; don.luna(~ci.stpaul.mn.us; mike@cdsadr. org; Ellen.Ceisler~phila.gov; EMiller(~ci.miami.fl.us; SGudn@pcweb.net; mumsee1 @mindspdng.com; Illlola@juno.com; jw2b@fuse.net; drjandrewsphd{woddnet.att.net; dheard@ci.mil.wi.us; rramos~contracosta.cc.ca.us; TPgunnl @aol.com; SXH@citymgr. sannet.gov; martina@hdcdojnetstate.ca.us; Slecorre@uottawa.ca; rzoss@mymailstation.com; PZamary@yahoo.com; afryer@seattletimes.com; LSiegel@aclu.org; tiyeluv@hotmail.com; Tim. Ohara@herald-tdb.com; Susan. Sheldon@vedzon.net; d.ramirez@nunetneu.edu; Mvdanielesq@aol.com; sharewhy@hotmail.com; Kelly. Thomton(~uniontdb.com; WLN@sdpdms.sannetgov; RmDuvall@aol.com; Chevigny@tudng.law,nyu.edu; AEHobmn@aol.com; rashbaum@nytimes.com; skolnick@tudng.law.nyu.edu; apc211 @nyu.edu; samwalker@unomaha.edu; spgetty@azstamet.com; Womencops@aol.com; Collina@hrw.org; lynn_davis@la.kirkland.com; hfujie@buchalter. com; rtrotter(~akingump.com; david.weiss@cgu.edu; mcnamara~hoover.stanford.edu; DMack500(~aol.com; mgraham@nctimes.com; rgreenspan@policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE@att.net; bill.finney(~ci.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG@aol.com; nancy_falcon@qc.edu; usmexborder@igc.apc.org Subject: Las Vegas: Rev Bd Chief: Police Filter Information; False Arrest Settlmt Today: May 22, 2001 at 10:35:35 FDT Citizen Review Board CHief: Metro is Filtering Information By Jace Radke <jace@lasvegassun.com> LAS VEGAS SUN The executive director of the Citizen Review Board said Metro Police are filtering public information, and the police union is allowing the advisory group to hear only one side of the story regarding complaints against the department. Andrea Beckman made the con~nents Monday on the Sun's news discussion program "Face to Face with Jon Ralston" on Las Vegas ONE, Cox cable channels 1 and 39. 'The purpose of this board is not to be a witch-hunting committee," Beckman id. "It's not only to protect citizen's rights, it's also to protect _ficer's rights." John Harper, attorney for the Police Protective Association, has advised officers not to appear at review board hearings. He said the board is predisposed to rule against officers. Beckman disagreed. She said 47 of the 50 cases that have come before the review board have either been dismissed, or the board has concurred with the ~indings of Metro's Internal Affairs Bureau. f know if someone wrongly accused me of something, I would want to step forward and say it was false, and here's why," Beckman said. She said Harper was not being fair when he said the board is not following the ordinance and is not providing officers due process. Beckman said that Harper must not have read the ordinance because it states the board chair can determine whether an officer and his attorney can be present throughout a meeting. Beckman also said the idea that the review board should go through only the captain of Metro's internal affairs bureau for records and information relating to complaints was inappropriate. "We're not a paramilitary organization, and we don't have to follow a chain of command," Beckman said. "I think it's totally inappropriate for me or any of the board members to be denied access when any othe~ citizen can pick up the phone and call an investigator." Undersheriff Richard Winget said he had not seen the program and could not comment on Beckman's statements. Winget said Metro is cooperating with the review board and that he and Sheriff Jerry Keller have urged officers to testify at review board hearings. "We have reopened cases, taken their recommendations and have found misconduct where they pointed out misconduct we have missed," Winget said. 'IAll of this is in a small minority of cases they have reviewed. We are ~mitted to be cooperative." Today: May 22, 2001 at 10:35:35 PDT Metro pays $35,000 to county firefighter to settle false arrest suit By Keith Paul <keith@lasvegassun.com> LAS VEGAS SUN Metro Police's fiscal oversight board on Monday approved a $35,000 payment to a Clark County firefighter to settle a lawsuit alleging false arrest and more than $80,000 to settle two other cases. Trina Jiles, a firefighter/paramedic, was arrested in late 1998. She was accused of burglary and conversion of leased property. She was booked into the Clark County jail and later released on bond. She was placed on paid leave from the fire department for several weeks. The charges were dropped weeks later during a preliminary hearing, when police and prosecutors could offer no evidence linking her to the crime of renting a generator and not returning it, her attorney said. "The man involved said it wasn't Trina, and she was at work when it happened," said Frank Cremen, Jiles' attorney. "She was allowed to continue her training she had started, but she was suspended with pay" from the fire ]epartment until the case was dropped, he said. .~vtro's fiscal affairs committee approved the settlement during its monthly meeting on Monday without comment. The committee, composed of two Las Vegas 2 City Council members, two Clark County Commission members and a resident, also approved a $50,000 settlement to Christopher Warpness for an accident that involved a Metro officer and $34,000 to Corey Newman, who also filed a lawsuit alleging false arrest and excessive force. '~ the two false arrest cases, Metro made no admissions of fault but settled .e cases rather than continue to litigate the lawsuits. A trial normally costs about $100,000. Several hundred-thousand dollars in additional costs are needed to prepare for trial, said Lois Willis, Metro's comptroller. Warpness claims he was injured in an auto accident when an officer lost control of a police car that collided with Warpness' vehicle while heading to a call. Warpness was partially ejected and suffered injuries to his head, abdomen and pelvis. He incurred more than $18,000 in medical expenses, police said. Newman was arrested in May 1998 for obstruction and resisting arrest and then booked into the jail, where he was held for 36 hours. Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq{g}aol.com ~nt: Monday, May 21, 2001 12:14 PM : BAttard~d.berkeley.ca.us; Teresa,Guerrero-,Daley~ci.sj.ca.us; SIF~citymgr. sarmet.gov; fheske~sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher~mail.sdsu.edu; DWilliam~ci.dverslde.ca.us; JParkeCH{~co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca.us; mbobb~pacbell,net; dhbums~lasd.org; smdacus~lasd.org; MGrossm~lasd.org; NKULLA~aol.corn; c- novak~ix.netcorn.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o~aol.com; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz{~aol,com; wq6i~eafthlink. net; paintSgateway. net; jernurphygOg~earthlink. net; srnaxbem/~bos.co.la.ca.us; Ornbudla~co.la.ca.us; cburdic~maui.net; CReeder~indygov.o~g; cdavis~ultm-tech.com; davisf~nysnet.net; NACOLE95~aoI.Gorn; jamesjohnson~clnlaw. rcc.org; DCasirnere~gw.sacto.ofg; MMonteiro~d.cambddge.ma.us; Sandovaj~mscd.edu; dnde(g~hawailan.net; rowaugll~}cl .long-beach.ca .us; yogijoel ~}yahoo .corn; maddds~nodhwestern .ndu; LPMurphy@cityorooise.org; ~nkle~ccrb.nyc,gov; CammeS~aol.com; CScott7544 ~aol.com; mcdonaldp~dpdchiefinv.ci.detroit.mi.us; ronald.darksomg~co.mo.md.us; bjeckson~oaklandnet.com; LPerezl ~rnail.d.tuc, son.az.us; Jwillia4t~d.phoenbcaz.us; RHAaronson~gateway.net; JirnFight~cs.corn; mhess¢ci.portland.or. us; psalkCmail.als,edu; ~eve~mail,als.edu; asb~co.clark.nv.us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-city.org; Patdda.Hughes2~d.minneapolis.mn,uS; Dlovelyone~qwest.net; phileure~hotmall.Corn; Sfmedley22615~cs.corn; lrp~c0.miami-dade.fi.us; Cdavis~diocese-gal~hou.org; hector.w.soto~phila.gov; don.luna~d.stpaul.mn.us; mike~cdsadr.org; Ellen.Ceisler~phila.gov; EMiller~d.miami.fi.us; SGudn(~pcweb.net; mumsee1 ¢mlndspring.corn; IIIIola~juno.com; jw2b~fuse.net; ddandrewsphd~worldnet,att.net; dheard~d,mil,wi,us; rmmos~contracosta.cc.ca.us; TIlunnl ~aol.corn; SXl-~citymgr. sannet,gov; madina(~hdcdojnet,state,ca.us; 81ecorre~uottawa.ca; rzossCmymailstation.com; PZamary~yahoo.com; afryer~seattletimes.cam; LSiegel(~adu.org; tiyeluv~hotmail.com; Tim.Ohara{~herald-tdb,com; Susan. Sheldon~}verizon,net; d,ramirez~nunet.neu.edu; Mvdanielesq~aol.com; -~ shamwhy{~hotmail.com; Kelly.Thomton~unlont,db.com; WLN~sdpdms.sannet.gov; RmDuvall~aol.com; Chevigny~turlng,law,nyu.edu; AEHobroni~aol.com; rashbaum~nytimes.carn; skolnick~tudng.law.nyu.ndu; apc211~nyu.edu; samwalker~unomaha.edu; spgetty~azstamet,com; Womencal:~aol,com; Collina~hnN.org; lynn,_davis~la.ldddand.com; hfujie~buchalter,com; drotter~akingump.com; david.welss~cgu.edu; mcnamara~hoover.stanford.edu; DMack500{~aol.com; mgraham~nctirnes.com; rgreenspan~policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE~att,net; bill.finney~ci.stpauLmn.us; DRPPG~aol.com; nancy._falcon~qcadu; usmexborden~igc. apc.org Subject: Providence Rhnde Island recommends Rev Bd; Detroit & FBI; VA Chase Panel Suggests Ways to Improve Providence (RI) Police Dateline: Providence, RI - 5/18/2001 Providence Journal BY AMANDAMILKOVITS A year after being asked to recor~nend improvements to the Providence Police Department, the members of the Blue Ribbon Commission released an interim report yesterday containing four proposals. Three of them -- national accreditation for the police department, recruitment of~inorities, and legal education for officers -- are already being implemented in soma way. But the fourth -- a civilian-review board -- may require amending the Law ~nforcement Officers Bill of Rights. · he interim report was released to update the City Council, and the final -~p0rt will follow in six months, said Commission Chairwo~mn Beverly Wiley. .om there, the City Council will decide whether to accept or reject the reco~nendations. The City Council appointed the commission last spring in the wake of turmoil over the shooting death of Cornel Young Jr., an off-duty black police officer, by two white officers. The shooting also spurred Governor Almond to appoint a statewide commission ' recom~and policies for better policing, ways to reduce racism, and to amine the investigation of the shooting. The Rhode Island Select Commission on Race and Police-Con~nunity Relations is releasing its report at the end of this month. During a year's worth of cor~nunity hearings, the Blue Ribbon Commission heard a range of complaints about the department: that some police officers were rude, that some didn't respond quickly to complaints, and that some seemed out of touch with their communities. Wiley and the commissioners gave City Council President John Lombardi a copy of the interim report at City Hall yesterday. Police Chief Richard T. Sullivan stood apart from them, holding his own copy. Commissioner of Public Safety John J. Partington, who is also a member of the Blue Ribbon Commission, said the recor~nendations illuminated some key points. "I think the commission, by bringing this up, has been a lightning rod," he said. "In the long run, we all want the same thing." The commission recommends: · Accreditation with the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, which covers policies, procedures, management and operations. The national accreditation is considered a mark of law-enforcement excellence, and the commission believes it will help restore confidence in the police department. Mayor Vincent A. Cianci Jr. brought up the idea several years ago, Partington '~id. But the expected cost of $150,000 to $250,000 for training was unting, and aside from making sure the new public safety complex would meet ~ccreditation, the plan never got off the ground, he said. · Continuing education and legal training for police officers at the Ralph R. Pappitto School of Law at Roger Willlama University. The commission wants all police officers to stay informed about changes in the law. However, all Providence police officers are already offered a free education, Sullivan said. · Recruitment drives weighted in favor of minorities and women until the police force resembles the profile of the city. The latest recruitment drive for new police officers focused heavily on seeking minority applicants. Nearly 50 percent of those applying for jobs at the Providence Police Department were minorities, Sullivan said. · Adopting a civilian-review board to investigate and hear citizen complaints involving police officers, and giving it sanctioning power. This could require amending the Bill of Rights. The law was written decades ago to protect officers from frivolous complaints and political influence. But some critics have said it prevents police chiefs from disciplining or firing bad police officers. ~e commission wants a balance. "Police officers get to use the Bill of o~ghts as both the sword and the shield," said Gary St. Peter, the mayorws ~appointee to the commission. "But I'm deeply concerned that any viiian-review board recognize that the rights of police officers also be protected." Although a civilian-review board has been considered controversial, Partington said he believes many police officers will welcome it. "A good cop will welcome a review board because they'll never be before a review board," he said. ~--t Sullivan was more reserved. The department now handles complaints through ; Internal Affairs Division, a closed process that can take months Or years to hear complaints. The delays have caused frustration. The civilian-review board, as the commission proposes, would have sanctioning power in handling the public's complaints and gripes about the police. Sanctions and public hearings cross into the territory covered by the Bill of Rights. Sullivan agreed with mediation, which could speed up the complaint process. But he appeared to balk at sanctions. "I think the final say should come from the police chief," he said. Feds Pouring Over Detroit Police Records Dateline: Detroit, MI -5/18/2001 Detroit Free Press BY SUZETTE HACKNEY Investigators from the FBI and U.S. Justice Department spent this week combing through Detroit Police Department records and surveying precinct commanders about jail conditions as part of the ongoing probe of alleged civil rights violations. The U.S. Department of Justice is conducting a wide-ranging investigation of Detroit police practices. The probe, announced in December, is focusing on allegations that the Police Department has engaged in a pattern or practice of violating individuals' constitutional rights by using excessive force and by improper treatment of people in police lockups. =deral officials would not discuss the status of the probe. "Obviously people can see our investigators are at work, but we're not going to give a road map as to where the investigation is going," Justice Department spokeswoman Cristine Romano said Thursday. On Wednesday, investigators combed through files in the department's records room, where arrest cards, incident reports and crime statistics are kept. In a series of stories since March, the Free Press has reported that Detroit police arrest people for murder at an extrordinarlly high rate, locking up roughly three people for each case. Police officials have admitted that many people weren't suspected of the crime; rather, police locked them up to extract information from them. Detroit's murder-arrest statistics have prompted questions about the accuracy of all crime statistics the department reports to the FBI. Deputy Chief John Clark said four FBI officials visited the department Wednesday and Thursday and randomly audited 1,200 files of crime statistics. Clark said the FBI found that only 0.3 percent were inaccurate. ~owever, Clark said FBI officials found other inaccuracies in arrest atistics, but did not specify those mistakes. "It's something that we need J correct, but it's a finding that is, quite frankly, not serious," he said. Also this week, Justice Department investigators gave a survey to precinct conmtanders asking about the conditions of their lockups and whether they thought one central jail would better serve officers and prisoners. The ~epartment currently has 12 lockups at neighborhood precincts, plus a lockup police headquarters and another at Detroit Receiving Hospital. At least 12 ~ ~ople have died in Detroit police lockups during the past three years, the Free Press has reported. Police Cover Up Claimed in VAHigh Speed Chase Dateline: Winchester, VA - 5/18/2001 The Washington Times By Arlo Wagner A high-speed car chase in which a rookie police officer sped away from a deputy sheriff threatens to hamper the retention efforts of the police chief of this bedroom community, home to a growing number of D.C. cor~nuters Winchester Police Chief Gary W. Reynolds has struggled to keep his force at its fully funded level of 68 officers, losing veterans and would-be recruits to state and federal agencies that offer more money than the city police department's $29,264 base annual salary. The police department has seven vacancies. This city of about 23,000 residents lies near Virginia's borders with Maryland and West Virginia, as well as Pennsylvania's southern border, making it a likely getaway for out-of-state drug dealers, said Chief Reynolds, who has arranged for the federal Drug Enforcement Administration to open an office in Winchester. Police observers here say Chief Reynolds is desperate to keep his staff -- so desperate, in fact, as to gloss over a reckless-driving case involving a newly hired officer accused of speeding up to 110 mph to elude a Frederick County deputy sheriff in February. City and county officials have declined to "scuss the case, saying they know little about it. o me, there has been no cover-up by any law enforcement agency," Chief ~eynolds said. "As far as I am concerned, [Chief Reynolds] is a good police chief," said Mayor Larry T. Omps. Officer Trevor Reinhart, 24, faces a maximum penalty of $2,500 and 12 months in jail when he appears in Frederick County District Court next month on charges of speeding and reckless driving. Judges are inclined to impose jail sentences for speeders driving faster than 85 mph, and officers who are sentenced to jail must be fired, the chief said. According to a charging document filed Feb. 14, county Deputy Sheriff B.A. Kittoe chased down a speeding Grand Am on Martinsburg Pike (U.S. Route 11) between 2 and 4 a.m. on Feb. 4. "The posted speed limit on Martinsburg Pike is 45 mph. I then proceeded southbound on Martinsburg Pike in effort to' catch up to the vehicle. Once I closed in on the vehicle, it appeared to increase its speed, at which point I looked at my speedometer and it registered 110 mph. "The speedometer in my patrol vehicle is calibrated," Deputy Kittoe said in the charging document. "The driver of the vehicle was identified as Treyor D. Reinhart with a Virginia driver's license." The charging document does not identify Officer Reinhart as a police officer or mention that his front-seat passenger was Winchester Police Lt. Tim Rice. There is no information how far Deputy Kittoe chased the Grand Am, if the driver stopped voluntarily, how the driver identified himself or if alcohol was involved. A source familiar with the case told The Washington Times that Deputy Kittoe, .o videotaped the chase, did not administer a field sobriety test and that ~fficer Reinhart i~ediately displayed his badge after stopping. The deputy gold Officer Reinhart to park his car and call for a ride, and when the okie officer did not do that, Deputy Kittoe decided to file charges, the source said. Within hours after the incident, Officer Reinhart called his boss. "Chief, I 4 thought it was best that you hear it from me," Chief Reynolds quoted the rookie as saying. "He said he needed to report it. He didn't know he was going to be charged." The next day, Chief Reynolds ordered an "administrative personnel investigation" to determine if Officer Reinhart had violated department '~gulations, the chief said, adding that the sheriff's office also decided at charges would be filed. Investigators found no violation of department policy, and "I have taken appropriate action," Chief Reynolds said, adding that "I took what I believed to be appropriate action" with regard to Lt. Rice. One form of discipline would be to extend the six-month probation usually allotted to rookies, during which they may be terminated. Chief Reynolds said Officer Reinhart, who was hired on Aug. 21, is still on probation, but declined to say if his probation has been extended. "Since his employment, other than this allegation, there has not been a single complaint from the public or fellow officers about his performance or conduct," the chief said. Officer Reinhart declined to discuss the case. "I'm sorry. I'll have to get with my attorney," he said, refusing to give his attorney's name, which is not listed on court records. Winchester's problems in retaining officers reflects a trend across the state and the country. According to Law Enforcement News of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, fewer job seekers are applying for law-enforcement work. Police agencies in Richmond and Henrico, Chesterfield and Hanover counties had 100 vacancies for officers at the end of last year, according to an article in the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Ex-officer Ends 11 Hour LA Standoff, Commits Suicide Dateline: St. Tamrainy Parish, LA- 5/18/2001 Jackson Clarion-Ledger ~ 11-hour standoff with an armed ex-police officer accused of raping his fe at gunpoint ended early Thursday in Louisiana when the man shot himself ., the head, officials said. John Czako, 30, had been the subject of a 12-day manhunt. Authorities spotted him driving a car he stole Wednesday after invading the Terry home of J.C. Geiselbreth, 83. At 2:30 p.m., officers trapped him in the vehicle on Louisiana 36, near Abita Springs. Czako told negotiators that he would give himself up at 1:30 a.m. Spotlights had been brought in, enabling officers to keep an eye on the car and Czako. But Czako shot himself two minutes before the deadline, said Leslie Cooke, a spokeswoman for the St. Ta~unany Parish sheriff. Czako resigned May 4 from the Pearl River Police Department in Louisiana, sheriff's spokesman Jamas Hartman said. He was accused of kidnapping his 28-year-old wife, a park ranger, from Fontainebleau State Park near Mandeville, La., May 5. The clarion-Ledger normally does not identify sexual assault victims, but authorities identified the abducted woman as Czako's wife. Czako kept deputies at bay by holding at least one handgun aimed at his own head, said James Hartman, a spokesman for the St. Tammany Parish sheriff. · lice said Czako disarmed his estranged wife and took her to Mississippi, .ere he raped her at least twice before she escaped at a Clinton hotel by a__sking staff for help, Hartman said. ~ne's in a safe house at an undisclosed location," Hartman said Thursday. "According to local media reports, Czako and his wife each had an order of protection against each other." The couple have two children, Hartman said. Czako faced federal kidnapping charges in Louisiana, said Sheila Thorne, a ~RI agent working out of New Orleans. And he would have faced charges of home vasion and vehicle theft in Mississippi. Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq~aol.com "'qt: Saturday, May 19, 2001 10:03 AM BAttard{d.berkeley,ca.us; Teresa. Guerrero-Daley{d,sj.ca,us; SIF{citymgr,sannet.gov; fheske{sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher~mail,sdsu.edu; DWilliam{ci.dverslde.ca.us; JParkeCH{co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH~,o.san-diego.ca.us; mbobb~pacbell.net; dhburns{lasd.org; smdacus~lasd.org; MGrossm~lasd,org; NKULLA~aoLcom; c- novak{ix. netcom.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o~)aol.com; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz{aol.com; wq6i{earthlink, net; StuHotmes~aol.com; paint2 {~gateway.net; jemurphy909~eadh~nk.net; smaxberry{bos.co,la.ca.us; Ombudla{co.la.ca.us; cburdick{maui.net; CReeder~indygov,org; cdavis~ultra-tech.com; davisf{nysnet.net; NACOLE95{aol.corn; james,johnson~dnlaw.rcc,org; DCaslmere{gw. sacto.org; MMonteiro~d.cambddge,ma.us; Sandovaj~mscd.edu; dede{hawaiian.net; rowaughi~d.long-beach.ca, us; yogijoel{yahoo.com; markiris~northwestern.edu; LPMurphy{cityofbotse.org; ~nlde~ccrb.nyc,gov; CammeS{aol.com; CScott7544~aol.com; mcdonaldp~dpdchiefinv,ci.detroitmi.us; ronald.darkson~co.mo,md,us; bjackson{oaklandnet.com; LPerezl {mail,d.tucson.az.us; jwillia4{d,phoenix. az. us; RHAaronson~Oateway.net; JirnFight~cs.com; mhess~ci.podland,or. us; psalk{maiLals.edu; rheve~mail.als.edu; asb~co,dark. nv.us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-city.org; Patdda. Hughes2~ici.minneapolis.mn.us; Dlovelyone~qweSt.net; phileum~hotmail.com; Sfmedley22615{cs.com; irp~co,miami- dade.fl.us; Cdavis~diocese-gal-hou.org; hector. w.soto~phila.gov; don.luna{ci,stpauLmn.us; mike({~edsadr, org; Ellen. Cetsler{~phila.gov; EMiller~cLrniami.fl.us; SGudn~pcweb.net; mumseel{~mindspring.com; IIIIola~juno.com; jw2b~fuse.net; drjandrewSphd~hvoddnet.att,net; dheard{ci.mil.wi.us; rmmos~contracosta.cc,ca.us; Trgunnl~aol.com; SXH~citymgr.sannet,gov; martina~hdcdojnat.state.ca.us; Slecorre~uottawa.ca; rzoss~mymaiistation.corn; PZamary{yahoo.com; afryeri~seattletimes,com; LSiegel~adu.org; tiyeluv{hotmail.com; Tim.Ohara{herald-tdb.com; Susan.Sheldon~vedzon.net; d.rafnirez~nunet.neu.edu; Mvdanielesq~aot.com; sharewhy{hotmail.~om; Kelly.Thomton{~uniomdb. com; linda.legerrette{earthshareca.org; WLN{sdlxIms.sannet.gov; RmDuvall{aol.com; Chevignyt~tudng,law,nyu.edu; AEHobron{aol.com; rashbaum~nytimes.corn; skolnick{tudng.law, nyu,edu; apc21 l{nyu.edu; samwalker~unomaha.edu; spgetty{g}azstamet.com; Womencops~aol.com; Colllnaehfw.org; lynn,.davis~la,ldrkland.com; hfujle~buchalter,com; rtrotter~}akingump.com; david,weiss{cgu,edu; mcnamara{hoover.stanford.edu; DMack500~aol.com; mgraham{nctimes,com; rgreenspan{policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE{~att. net; bill.finney{ci.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG{aol.com; nancy_falcon{qc.edu; usmexborder~igc.apc,org Subject: Miami 1. Calls for Oversight; 2. XChief Targets Former Cops; 3, Asphyxia Death Miami Herald: Call renewed for panel on police use of force BY ANDREA ROBINSON May 18, 2001, arobinson@herald.com Nick Singleton was not born when Arthur McDuffie was killed, but the two men were inextricably linked in the minds of dozens of people gathered Thursday night in Allapattah to remember people who died at the hands of police. The group renewed a call for creation of an independent civilian panel with subpoena powers to review actions where excessive police force is alleged. John de Leon, outgoing president of the Greater Miami chapter of the American ~ivil Liberties Union, told the crowd gathered along Northwest 17th Avenue at ]th Street that a generation had come of age since black residents first demanded such a board. In that time, more men -- especially black men -- have lost their lives, he said. Twenty-one years ago, there were demands for a civilian review board to make sure there would not be another McDuffie," de Leon said. "Since then there has been Singleton, Johnson and Dorvil." De Leon was referring to Nevell Johnson, who was fatally shot in a video arcade by a Miami police officer in 1982, and Marc Dorvil, who died earlier this week in a North Bay Village patrol car after a scuffle with police. ~ami-Dade Police investigators are awaiting results of an autopsy on Dorvil. ~_e two most-recent deaths have once again raised concerns about how local police agencies treat black men. Community members, with the support of Miami Mayor Joe Carollo, have called for an independent investigation into the police shoorings. The Rev. Richard Dunn, pastor of Word of Life Baptist Church, and leaders of such organizations as the NAACP, PULSE, Brothers of the Same Mind, the ACLU and the Miami-Dade Con~aunity Relations Board pitched that idea for the civilian panel earlier this month during a meeting with Police Chief Raul Martinez. "The police department doesn't have the power to call a civilian review board," department spokesman Delrish Moss said later in an interview. "That power lies in the hands of the city fathers," meaning the mayor, conunission and city manager, he said. Moss noted that in meetings with community members and police, Carollo and Commissioner Arthur Teele Jr. have discussed creating a review board. "They've definitely said that's something needed," Moss said. LEADERS CRITICIZED Brian Dennis, a member of Brothers of the Same Mind, criticized local government leaders for spending more money on police presence than on economic development in black neighborhoods. 'You have to wonder that the crime has gone down, but we still have more lice programs," Dennis said. But he also slammed groups such as the NAACP and the Urban League, which he said only show up when there has been a fatal shooting. The vigil, in its fifth year, was to conmlemorate the life of McDuffie, a Mianli insurance salesman who was beaten to death in December of 1979 by several white Miami-Dade police officers. The acquittal of four officers involved -- on May 17, 1980 -- triggered three days and two nights of rioting that left 18 dead and $100 million worth of destruction in Miami's inner-city areas. Members of his family were at Thursday's memorial service, along with relatives of Singleton, Dorvil and Johnson. Marlyn and Nevell Johnson Sr. said they came out to support the Singleton family. They and other relatives were wearing T-shirts that showed their son's face. Marlyn said she was troubled by the Singleton shooting. "That's just another cop shooting another innocent child, just like they did with Nevell." Singleton was shot and killed on the roof of a house in Overtown after he and Gil Falcon, 19, bailed out of a stolen Jeep that police were chasing. Police said they heard gunshots and returned fire. No gun has been found. OFF PATROL DUTY e three Miami policemen who fired at him -- Brian Wilson, 24, Rafael oorroto, 35, and Javier Gonzalez, 31 -- remain off patrol duty while detectives investigate their role in the shooting. 2 And Tiffany Singleton, Nick's sister, said that even after three meetings with police, she still has no answers as to why her brother was killed. It was the first time she had attended a McDuffie vigil. never thought I'd attend under these circumstances," she said. · ~mi Herald Published Friday, May 18, 2001 Ex-chief targets former officers Calls for review of homicide cases BY AMY DRISCOLLAND GAIL EPSTEIN adriscoll@herald.com Miami's former police chief on Thursday called for police and prosecutors to broaden their review of homicide cases involving two detectives who obtained confessions from Jerry Frank Townsend that may have wrongly convicted him of murder twice in 1980. Kenneth Harms, the city's police chief from 1978 to 1984, said any cases based on confessions obtained by the two officers should be reviewed now that prosecutors have said they believe Townsend's convictions may have been based on tainted confessions. "I think every confession . by those officers during that time frame ought to be reviewed with the same questions in mind," Harms said. In Broward, Townsend is being cleared of several murders 22 years after he confessed to them. DNA evidence has pointed to another killer -- Eddie Lee Mosley -- in two murders originally blamed on Townsend. And in two more murders, prosecutors there are now asking judges to vacate life sentences being served by the Hallandale Beach drifter, now 49. "? drama shifted to Miami-Dade after prosecutor David Waksman said on 3nesday that he plans to reconunend to the state attorney that Townsend's two Miami murder convictions be overturned. He said the two detectives '- James Boone and Bruce Roberson, now both retired -- asked leading questions of Townsend, who has mental capacity of an 8-year-old. Roberson did not return calls. The Herald could not locate Boone. State Attorney Katherine Fern~ndez Rundle said Thursday that she has no plans to launch a wholesale review of past cases involving the two detectives because she has not yet made a final judgment about the legitimacy of the Townsend convictions. "We don't know what the status of those cases is yet. We have not come to a conclusion on those cases," she said. "We are presently reviewing them. The detectives are looking through their files." Prosecutors plan to meet with homicide detectives today for complete reviews of all the cases against Townsend in Miami-Dade. That includes the two murder convictions -- the 1979 murder of Wanda Virga, 44, and the 1977 murder of Dorothy Gibson, 17 -- and a rape conviction in 1979. Prosecutors say they believe the rape case will stand because there were witnesses to the attack. rms, who headed the police department during the time of Townsend's ~nvictions, said the state attorney's office serves an important function as "the check and balance" on the police department in such reviews. Fhey have to see whether a case has prosecutorial merit," he said. Herald staff writer Meg Laughlin contributed to this report. 3 Published Saturday, May 19, 2001 Police takedown probe questioned DAVID KIDWELL AND JOSEPH TANFANI ~idwell@herald.com ON TAPE: A witness to a police takedown captured on videotape an officer subduing a man. Miami homicide investigators may have overlooked key evidence in the death probe of a schizophrenic dishwasher who suffocated while being pinned to the ground by Miami police officers -- later cleared by the detectives. One piece of that evidence -- a videotape of the deadly March 30, 2000, takedown shot by a neighbor across the street -- wasn't collected or viewed by investigators even though its owner says he sought them out to tell them about it. Homicide Sgt. Willie Everett has denied he knew about the videotape, and that the person who took it told him that day he saw nothing of Arturo Francisco Sarduy's confrontation with police. It is one of several inconsistencies in Everett's homicide report, according to a lawyer for the victim's family. Miami Police -- already under federal grand jury investigation into possible cover-ups in at least a half-dozen shootings by police officers -- say neither the officers involved nor the homicide detectives did anything wrong. As proof, police refer to an autopsy report that says Sarduy, a 38-year-old former Air Force mechanic, died because of a controversial medical phenomenon that causes unexplained asphyxia in people being restrained by police. ~at autopsy report says Sarduy did not die because of deadly force at the hands of police. Sarduy's windpipe was fractured, but the pathologist said the injury was not severe enough to cause his death. The emergence of the videotape more than a year after Sarduy's death prompted the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner's Office on Friday to re-open its case. Associate medical examiner Reinhard Motte, shown a copy of the videotape by The Herald, said the original autopsy finding lists the cause of death as accidental "restraint asphyxia due to excited delirium" and needs to be re-examined. The findings conclude that Sarduy, in a highly agitated state, died from being restrained on his stomach in handcuffs. The theory has been debated in pathology journals for years. After viewing the tape only once, Motte said his office's findings may not change, "but it needs a lot more study. This is a critical piece of evidence. I wish we would have had it earlier." Sarduy's family last year filed a federal lawsuit accusing the department of conspiring to protect the officer by ignoring important evidence. "These investigators weren't there to find out the truth in this case," I~id Richard Diaz, the family's lawyer. "They were there to protect their ~n. To cover up and make it not look so bad." Diaz said he has been contacted by FBI investigators in the grand jury probe. =olice responded that day to a dispatch of a "possible Baker (mentally ill person) or drunk" after two 911 calls reported him acting erratically, 4 weaving in and out of traffic, and lying down on the median strip near the intersection of Le Jeune Road and Northwest Fourth Street. Veteran patrol officer Jorge Linares was the first to arrive, pulling his car into the parking lot Of an International House of Pancakes where Sarduy ' 7ked as a dishwasher. Less than five seconds after Linares gets out of his car, Sarduy looks as if he is about to spread his hands on the patrol car, according to the video. Linares puts One hand on the back of Sarduy's neck and tries to grab Sarduy's arm as if to handcuff him. Sarduy then appears to fling an elbow at Linares, who immediately grabs Sarduy around the neck and wrestles him to the ground. For several minutes, Linares, other officers and a Federal Express delivery man are on top of Sarduy. Exactly when they realized he wasn't breathing is unclear, but dispatch tapes indicate police weren't taking the situation seriously at first. one of the officers at the scene calls for an ambulance. "Go ahead and dispatch rescue here," one office~ tells dispatch. "The subject is possibly passed out. I think he's acting, but send them as a precaution." Nearly four minutes later, this call: ~'Advise rescue to step it up. He's not breathing." Linares declined to be interviewed, but his attorney Ronald Cohen said the video's appearance proves his client did nothing wrong. '~In my view, it's clear that Mr. Sarduy swung his arm at my client," Cohen id, "Everything officer Linares did was justified." Angel Calzadilla, executive assistant to Miami Police Chief Raul Martinez, said that Linares did not use excessive force in restraining Sarduy. "It's a split-second decision," he said. "If he goes into a restaurant and grabs a butcher knife, suddenly we have a hostage situation and shame on that officer for not taking action when he had a chance." In the following hours and days, three homicide detectives led by Everett would take some 20 sworn statements before closing their case in a final report written by Everett. Sarduy's mother, Nilma Sarduy, says that Miami police should be punished. "I'm alone now, they've taken my soul, my only reason for living," she said. ~'He (Linares) didn't talk to him, he didn't even try to talk to him." Diaz points to several inaccuracies and omissions, including: The first paragraph of Everett's narrative said the officers went to the IHOP that day "in reference to a violent subject." There was no mention on the 911 tapes or the dispatches that Sarduy was being threatening. '~he homicide case was closed without a statement from Linares, who asserted ~s Constitutional right to remain silent. "Just because you're a police officer doesn't mean you don't have the same rights as anyone else," said Cohen, who is advising Linares to remain silent. The first incident report written that day by officer Fernando Torres didn't mention anything about Sarduy acting violently that day. He was instructed by homicide detectives to write a second report several hours later. That report discusses how Sarduy allegedly assaulted Linares, Torres said in his deposition in the federal civil case. 9 formal statements were taken from three witnesses who had negative things say about Linares' actions that day. Cindy Tumi, one of the IHOP waitresses, said detectives were not interested in talking to her or other workers that day. Detectives returned to the restaurant three months later, but Tumi was not there and she was not interviewed. "He was, like, helpless. He wasn't moving, he wasn't fighting, but they kept pushing on him," Tumi told The Herald Friday. "I do not feel it was called for." Another was Jorge Ortega, the man who first called 911 and the one who videotaped the entire incident from his balcony. According to Everett, Ortega sought out the detectives that day to tell them that he had seen Sarduy acting erratically, but nothing else. Ortega "stated that he did not observe the apprehension of the subject," the report says. Ortega, 44, a store manager for Verizon wireless, says that's not true. "Of course I told them. I had no reason not to tell them. They knew I had a tape, and I have no idea why they never took it," Ortega told The Herald. "I told them everything I saw that day. Maybe they got confused or something, I don't know." Calzadilla said that he does not believe Ortega's story. £f that's the case, where was this tape all this time?" he said. He called Everett a "very thorough" investigator who would not overlook evidence. Everett did not return phone calls from The Herald. The case remains officially open because the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office has not made a final ruling. But prosecutor Abbe Rifkin, who was assigned the case, said she is convinced Linares did nothing improper. "Of course it bothers me when allegations like this are made," Rifkin said. "But right now, I don't have any indication that there was any attempt to skew this investigation." Rifkin said she decided to take the case to inquest -- a formal hearing before a judge -- after Diaz gave her a copy of the videotape two months ago. "I don't see anything on the videotape that changes my mind," she said. "But I thought it best because of all the allegations to do everything in public." A date for the inquest has not been set. Page 1 of 3 Sandy Bauer From: Womencops@aol.com Sent: Thursday, May 17, 2001 10:46 AM To: MaryJeni@aol.com Subject: CA Think Tank Praises Boston PD/Canadian Cop Slams Woman's Head into Cruiser CA Think Tank Praises Boston PD Dateline,' Boston, HA - 5/17/2001 Boston Globe By 3ohn Ellement A think tank in California has offered high praise for the Boston Police Department's handling of youth violence in the 1990s. It also has found that police in Boston and other cities must continue to strengthen ties to the communities they serve. In a 180-page report scheduled for release today, PolicyLink of Oakland said that community-based policing, as used in Boston for a decade, should be a strategy used nationwide. The report praised several programs that had been credited for what has become known as the "Boston Miracle." These included Operation Ceasefire, which targeted juvenile crime by offering jobs; threatening prison; and proposing Operation Nightlight, in which probation officers and police kept watch on teenagers and potential troublemakers, The study praised Boston police, saying they had forged strong ties with communities based on faith, and with community groups. It also said police had sought jobs, rather than prison time, for teenagers. But Boston should not rest on its laurels, the principal author, Haya Harris West, said in an interview. "The question for Boston, at this point," she said, "is, ' You have done well at some of the things. Are there other areas for community involvement they have not yet explored?"' The study emphasized a crucial element in community policing: creation of a body with independent oversight of internal police discipline and policies. "The credibility of a community oversight entity is increased with an external, independent board," Harris West said. "Community oversight provides an opportunity for the police department to receive input from the community about the delivery of police services." The study also recommended that police departments try unrelentingly to recruit new officers from minority communities, so that the force reflects its population. 5/17/2001 Page 2 of 3 The Boston Police Department's superintendent-in-chief, James Hussey, said he had not seen the full report. He said he welcomed any study that would give the department ideas for Boston. Hussey also said that some of the proposals are in use, though not in the same form. While there is no independent oversight of the Boston police, Hussey said, department critics have long been welcome to offer their views. Hussey also said that the Massachusetts chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Police Practices Coalition, have helped to shape internal affairs policies. "Tell me the ACLU is not external," Hussey said. "They will be our first critic if we do something wrong." Hussey added that at least six officers had been pulled off the streets, and that they had been used solely to recruit Boston residents for the most recent civil service exam. Similar efforts have been underway for at least a decade, he said. PolicyLink is a nonprofit research, communications and advocacy organization. Zts authors wrote the report with the Advancement Project, a policy and legal action group with offices in Washington and Los Angeles. Canadian Cop 81ams Woman'$ Head into Cruiser Oilteline-' Ottawa, Canada - 5/17/2001 Ottawa Citizen Ron Corbett A 34-year-old woman caught on video apparently having her head slammed into a police cruiser by an officer has filed a lawsuit for $150,000. Julie Cayer is suing Constable i~lartin Cardinal, his partner, known only as Constable ]ohn Doe, and the Ottawa Police Services Board for general and punitive damages for "emotional pain and suffering." The civil suit claims the amount of force used by the police officer "far exceeded that which was required in the circumstances." Ms. Cayer was allegedly handcuffed at the time of the incident last November. The officers' actions "were malicious and serve to undermine the public's confidence in police officers," the suit continues. It is alleged officers responding to a domestic dispute in Ottawa arrested I~s. Cayer for being drunk in public. The suit claims she was pepper-sprayed and then handcuffed. It continues: "Cayer was then escorted by Cardinal and Doe to their patrol car, where she was forced face down over the hood of the car and was 5/17/2001 Page 3 of 3 searched. While Cayer was still handcuffed, Cardinal grabbed Cayer by the hair and repeatedly smashed her face into the hood of the car." A videotape of the incident was taken by a man testing his new camcorder and came to light two weeks ago. The sound of Hs. Cayer's head hitting the vehicle can be heard on the recording. At a press conference yesterday Ms. Cayer said: "1 hope this will make a difference and set a good example because 1 don't think it was right, the way [ was treated that night. I believe [Const. Cardinal] should be punished for what he did that night." She said she had not filed a complaint against the officer last November because "nobody would have believed me." She added, "Zt was horrible, it was terrifying. I try to forget most of the time. I need some time, I still do need some time, just to relax." Hs. Cayer said she did not believe all police officers were bad, but she wanted the ones who were to understand that excessive force was unacceptable. After the videotape was made public, Const. Cardinal was charged with criminal assault and Police Act charges of unlawful exercise of authority and discreditable conduct. He is scheduled to appear in court on May 31. Chief Penny Harrington Author, "Triumph of Spirit" available at Amazon.com National Center for Women & Policing (a division of the Feminist Majodty Foundation) 8105 W, 3rd Street Los Angeles, CA 90048 323-651-2532 5/17/2001 Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq(~aol.com .,~tftt: Monday, May 14, 2001 1:46 PM BAttard~ci.berkeley.ca.us; Teresa. Guerrero-Daley~d.sj.ca.us; $1F~citymgr.sannet,gov; fheske~sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher~mail.sdsu.edu; DW'dliam~ci.dverside.ca.us; JParkeCH~co.san-diego.Ca.us; PPa~r. eCH¢co.san-diego.ca.us; mbobb~pacbelLnet; dhbums~lasd.org; smdacus~lasd.org; MGrossm~lasd.org; NKULLA~aol.Com; c- novak~ix.ne~com.com; EllenSTaytorl~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o~aol.com; dass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz~aol.com; wq6i~earthlink. net; StuHolmes~aol.com; paint2 ~gatewsy.net; jemurphyg09~eadhlinlcnet; smaxberry~bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla~)co.la.ca.us; cburdick~maui.net; CReeder~indygov.o~g; cdavis~ultra-tech.com; davisr~nysnet.net; NACOLE95~aol.com; jamesjohnson~cinlaw. rcc.org; DCasimere~;pv.sacto.org; MMonteiro~ci.cambddge.rna.us; Sandovaj~mscd.edu; dede~hawaiian.net; rowaugh~d.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoelCyahoo.com; marki~s~norttwvestem.edu; LPMuq}hy~cityorooise.org; ~nlde~iccrb.nyc. gov; CammeS4~aol.cOm; CScott7544~aol.com; mcdonaldp~dpdchiefinv.d.detroit. mi.us; mnald.claW, son~co.mo. rnd.us; bja~ldandnet.com; LPerezl CmaiLci.tucson.az.us; jwillia4~ci.phoenbcaz.us; RHAaronson~gateway.net; JimFight~cs. com; mhess~ci.portland.or. us; psalk~mail.als.edu; mve~maiLals.edu; asb~co.clark.nv. us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-city.org; Patricia. Hughes2~d.minneapofis.mn.us; phileure~hotmail.com; Sfmedley226154~cs.com; irp~co.miami-<lade.fi.us; CdavLs~diocese-gal-hou.org; hector.w~soto~phila.gov; don.luna~ci.stpaul.mn.us; miket~cdsadr. org; Ellen.Ceisler~phjla.gov; SGudni~pcweb.net; mumsee1 ~mindspdng.com; IIIIola~)juno.com; jw2b~fuse.net; ddandrewsphd4~worldnet.att.rmt; dheard~ci.mil.wi.us; rramos~contracosta.cc.ca.us; Trgunnl~aol.com; SXH~citymgr.sannet.gov; marlina{~hdcdojnet.state.ca. us; Slecon~uottawa.ca; rzoss~mymailstation.com; PZaman/~yahoo.com; afryer~seattletimes.com; LSiegel~adu.org; tiyeluv~hotmail.com; Tim. Oham~hemld-trib.com; Susan. Sheklon~)veriZon.net; d.ramirez~nunet.neu.edu; Mvdanielesq~aol.com; sharewhy~hotmail.com; Kelly.Thorntoni~uniontdb.com; |inda.legen'~eCeadhshareca.org; WLN~sdpdms.sannetgov; RmDuvatl~aol.com; Chevigny~turing.law.nyu.edu; AEHobron~aol .corn; rashbaumCnytimes.com; skolnick~tu~ng.law.nyu .edu; apc211 ~{~nyu.edu; samwalker~unomaha.edu; spgetty~azstamet.com; Womencops4~aoLcom; Collina~hrw. org; lynn._davis~la.kirkland.com; hfujie~buchalter. com; rtrotter~akingump.com; david.weiSs~cgu.edu; mcnamara~}hoover.stanford.edu; DMack500i~aoLcom; mgmharn~nc~imes.com; rgreenspan~policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE{~att. net; bill.finney~d.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG~aol.com; nancyjalconi~qc.edu; usmexborder~igc.apc.org Subject: I San Diego RacPmf Update; 2 NY'rimes OpEd: Fallacy of RaG°rof SDPD reports racial skew in traffic stops By Joe Hughes San Diego Union Trib STAi~F WRITER May 12, 2001 Nearly 170,000 traffic stops over the past year show that San Diego police are stopping and searching African-American and Latino motorists in disproportionate numbers, a San Diego Police Department study shows. ~ "We still don't know why," said police Chief David Bejarano, who expressed concern and frustration over the findings released yesterday. The study examined 168,901 vehicle stops citywide in 2000. African-American ~-torists accounted for 11.7 percent of those stops and 26 percent of vehicle rches. African-Americans make up 8 percent of the 15-and-over population in San Diego, according to the study. Latinos accounted for 29 percent of the vehicle stops and 32.7 percent of ~t~hicle searches, but make up 20.2 percent of the 15-and-over population, the tdy found. Whites accounted for 48.1 percent of the vehicle stops and 24.5 percent of vehicle searches, but make up 58.8 percent of the 15-and-over population. Even though whites were less likely than African-Americans and Latinos to be searched, officers were more likely to find contraband in the possession of ~nite drivers, according to the study. Contraband was found on 17.4 percent ~ white motorists searched, 15.9 percent of African-American motorists rched and 12.6 percent for Latino motorists searched. "Extensive vigilance needs to be t~ken to get to the bottom of the disparity," said Jil~na Mcwilson, executive vice president and chief operating officer of the San Diego Urban League, Jordan Budd, managing attorney for the American civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial counties, agreed. "We know racial disparity exists within the San Diego Police Department," Budd said. "Now we need to find out why." Both Wilson and Budd praised Bejarano for undertaking the study. Bejarano and others pointed out that several factors can skew the statistics. For example, San Diego has a large but unknown number of Latino drivers from Mexico. And though police collected data on where the stops were made, the report released yesterday did not provide that information, pending further analysis. Police mare heavily patrol areas such as City Heights and downtown, neighborhoods with large minority populations, in large part because of cozenunity pressures. Also, police are using the 1990 census for their population figures. Census figures from 2000 show a growth in the minority population. The department ~n't use the latest census figures because they have not been broken down determine the 15-and-over driving-age population. Most experts say that with such shortcomings, statistics can be faulty. "You need additional facts," said Margo Schlanger, a Harvard Law School professor. Bejarano said the study is just a beginning. "I want to concentrate on what is being done and should be done about the information," he said. "We also will continue to meet with the community to discuss implications of the findings," said Bejarano, w~o discussed the report with his officers before he made the findings public. No one is calling the San Diego Police Department racist. "I am proud of the dedicated men and women of this department, who provide excellent service to this city and its people," Bejarano said. "I have tremendous confidence in in our officers, and I am confident that our continued efforts on this ir~portant issue will ultimately enhance our good r~lationships with communities we serve." b~aarano is already working with the nonprofit, Washington-based Police Executive Research Form to seek answers and develop standards to eliminate any racial profiling or police bias that may exist. · '~ are att~-Tting to provide training guidelines, recommendations and ~ources to address the problem," Bejarano said. "A draft report is about done and we should have some results within a few months." 2 The San Diego Police Department was one of the first law-enforcement agencies in the country to voluntarily study whether its Officers engage in racial profiling. The study -- the initial results were released in September -- was commissioned because of concern from co~nunity leaders that people of color ~-~e being singled out for vehicle stops. Now, almost half of the 50 largest cities and hundreds of smaller towns have started keeping and analyzing records of traffic stops. In San Diego County, police in Chula Vista, Escondido and Oceanside are also undertaking studies of who they pull over. Studies in Oceanside and Escondido show that minorities are being pulled over roughly in proportion to their population. Chula Vista just began its study. NTrimes May 13, 2001 The Fallacy of Racial Profiling By DAVID COLE and JOHN LAMBERTH It is no longer news that racial profiling occurs; study after study over the past five years has confirmed that police disproportionately stop and search minorities. What is news, but has received virtually no attention, is that the studies also show that even on its own terms, racial profiling doesn't work. Those who defend the police argue that racial and ethnic disparities reflect not discrimination but higher rates of offenses among minorities. Nationwide, blacks are 13 times more likely to be sent to state prisons for drug convictions than are whites, so it would seem rational for police to assume that all other things being equal, a black driver is more likely than a white driver to be carrying drugs. But the racial profiling studies uniformly show that this widely shared ---tumption is false. Police stops yield no significant difference in -called hit rates -- percentages of searches that find evidence of ~awbreaking -- for minorities and whites. If blacks are carrying drugs more often than whites, police should find drugs on the blacks they stop more often than on the whites they stop. But they don't. In Maryland, for example, 73 percent of those stopped and searched on a section of Interstate 95 were black, yet state police reported that equal percentages of the whites and blacks who were searched, statewide, had drugs or other contraband. In New Jersey, where police have admitted to racial profiling, searches in 2000 conducted with the subjects' consent yielded contraband, mostly drugs, on 25 percent of whites, 13 percent of blacks and only 5 percent of Latinos. A study of stop-and-frisk practices in New York City in 1998 and 1999 found that while police disproportionately stopped young black men, the hit rates were actually marginally higher for whites than for blacks or Latinos. And while 43 percent of those searched at airports by the Customs Service in 1998 were black or Latino, illegal materials were found on 6.7 percent of whites, 6.3 percent of blacks and 2.8 percent of Latinos. Other studies corroborate that drug use and dealing are equal opportunity offenses. The Public Health Service reports, based on anonymous surveys, that b~acks, at 13 percent of the population, account for 15 percent of illegal ]g users. Hispanics are 11 percent of the population and 8 percent of ~legal drug users, and whites are more than 70 percent in both categories. A National Institute of Justice study found that most users report getting their drugs from dealers of their own racial or ethnic background; so dealing rates are likely to track user rates. These figures suggest that race and 'hnicity are simply not useful criteria for suspicion. The Customs Service's experience is illustrative. In late 1998, the service adopted refor~ designed to eliminate racial and gender bias in its searches. In 2000, it conducted 61 percent fewer searches than in 1999, but seizures of cocaine, heroin and Ecstasy all increased. From 1998 to 2000, hit rates for whites and blacks increased by about 125 percent, from less than 7 percent to 15,8 percent, while hit rates for Latinos increased more than fourfold, from ~-8 percent to 13.1 percent. ~erhaps most important is that every year the vast majority of both blacks and whites are not arrested for anything. A generalization linking race or ethnicity to crime will therefore inevitably sweep in many innocent people. ~nd police will miss guilty people who don't fit their stereotypes. A~ cities from New York to Cincinnati have seen, reliance on race corrodes the legitimacy of the criminal justice system by reneging on its promise of eq~alityo But that's old news. The new news is that racial profiling just doesn't work. David Cole, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center, is author of "No Equal Justice: Race and Class in the ~merican Criminal Justice System." John Lamberth is associate professor of psychology at Temple University. Sandy Bauer From: Sueiqq4~aol.com ~,~-mt: Tuesday. May 15, 2001 3:28 PM BAttard~ci.berkeley.ca.us; Teresa .Guerrero-Daley~ci.sj,ca.us; SIF~citymgr. sannetgov; fheske~sdccd.cc. ca,us; ctsher~maiLsdsu.edu; DWHliam~ci.dverside,ca.us; JParkeCH~co,san-diego.ca,us; PParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca.us; mbol~pacbelLnet; dhbums4~lasd,org; smdacus~lasd.e4g; MGrossm~lasd,org; NKULLA~aol.com; c- novak~netcom,com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo,com; HGoldh2o~aol,com; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz~aoLcom; wq6i~eadhlintcnet; StuHolmes~aol.com; paint2 ~}gateway.net; jemurphy909~earthlink.net; smaxbem/~bos.co,la,ca. us; Ombudla~co.la.ca,us; cbugdick~maui.net; CReeder~indygov.on3; cdavis~ultra-tech.corn; davisf;nysnet.net; NACOLE95~aol.com; james.johnson~cinlaw. rcc.org; DCasimere~gw.sacto.ogg; MMonteiro~.caml~dge,rna,us; SandovajCmscd.edu; dede~iian.net; rowaugh~ci.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel~yahoo,com; markirts4~no~hwestem.edu; LPMurphy~cityot'ooise,org; ~nkle~ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS~aol.corn; CScott7544¢aol,com; mcdonaldp4~dpdcffiefinv.ci,detroit.mi.us; mnald.darkson¢co.mo,md,us; bjackson~oaldandnet.com; LPerezl;mail,ci.tucson.az.us; jwillia4~d.phoenix,az, us; RHAaronson~gateway.net; JimF~ght4~cs,com; mhess~ci,portland.or.us; psall~mail.als,edu; rheveCmail.als.edu; as~co.dark,nv. us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-city, org; Patdda. Hughes24~ci.minneapotis. mn. us; phileure~hotmail.com; Sfmsdley22615~cs,com; irp~co. miami-dade.fi.us; C, davis~iocese-ga~-hou.org; hectOr.w.soto~phita.gov; don. luna~ci,stpeul.mn.us; mike~cdsadr. org; Blen,Ceisler~phila.gov; $Gudn~pcweb. net; mumsee1 (~mindspring.com; II~ola~]~juno.oom; jw21~se,net; ddandrewsph~worldnet.attnet; dheard~ci.mil.wi.us; rfamos~contracosta.cc.ca.us; Trgunnl {~aol.com; $XH{~cityrngr. sannet.gov; martina~hck:dojnet.state.ca.us; Slecorre~uottawa.ca; rzoss~mymailstation.com; PZamary@yahoo.com; afryer~seattletimes.com; LSiegel~,actu.org; tiyeluv~hotmail.com; Tim. Oham~herak~trib.com; Susan.Sheldon~verizon.net; d.mmirez~nunet. neu.edu; Mvdanielesq~aoLcom; shamwhy~.hotmail.com; Kelly. Thomtort~uniontrib.com; linda.legen~tte~earthshareca.org; WLN~sdpdms.sannet.gov; RmDuvall~aoLcom; Chevigny~turing.law.nyu.edu; AEHobron~aol.com; rashbaurn~nytimes.corn; skolnick~turing.law. nyu.edu; apc211 ~nyu.edu; samwalker~unomaha.edu; spgetty(i~azstamet.com; Womencops~aol.com; Collina~hnN.o~g; lynn_davis~la.ldrkland.com; hfujie~buchalter. com; rtrotter(~akingump.com; david.weiss~cgu.edu; mcnamam~{~hoover.stanford.sdu; DMactcSO0~aol.com; mgmham~nctimes. com; rgreenspan~poticefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLECatt.net; bill.finney~ci.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG~aol.com; nancy_falcon4~qc.edu; usmexbofder~igc.apC.o~g Subject, Questions Re I S Fla Police; 2 Oklahoma Justice System & 3 DEA Stars Questions put s. Florida police under fire In 11 years, inquest judges cleared Dade officers in at least 102 killings BY JOSEPH TANFANI AND MANNY GARCIA Miami Herald jtanfani@herald.com At least 102 times in the past 1t years, when police officers in Miami-Dade County killed someone on the job, judges have held an inquest -- the last line of review in deciding whether the officers did anything wrong. All 102 times -- including at least three City of Miami cases now under investigation by a federal grand jury -- judges ruled in favor of the officers, a federal grand jury, records show. ~e judge only hears what the prosecutors want the judge to hear, said Marilyn Sher, a civil attorney who has won big judgments against Miami Police in misconduct cases. "It's one-sided. The judge is in a tough situation." Federal prosecutors are investigating at least six shootings by Miami c"tcers, trying to determine if officers shot without justification, then % ad to cover up their actions with the tacit approval of supervisors. Five of the cases initially were signed off as "good shoots" in a series of reviews by Miami police homicide d~tectives, major-crimes prosecutors, internal affairs investigators, a city police firearms review board and finally, a court inquest. ~ one of those cases cleared by police and state prosecutors, 73-year-old ~hard Brown was killed in a rain of 123 bullets fired by members of Mianli's ~WAT team. In March, federal prosecutors arrested five veteran Miami officers indicted on charges of obstructing justice for their part in that shooting. "Obviously we're not perfect," said Miami Police Chief Raul Martinez. "On the Richard Brown case, prosecutors found no criminal wrongdoing, but the federal prosecutors feel there's obviously something there we missed." In the Brown case, County Court Judge Catherine Pooler presided over the inquest and expressed little sympathy for Brown, calling him a drug dealer and gun owner living in a "reasonable fast lane." "it is unfortunate that the police officers had to come in and shoot him," Pooler said. "I am sure the police officer who did the shooting is feeling very unhappy." In addition to the Brown case, federal prosecutors are looking at these cases: The June 1997 case involving a homeless man shot in Coconut Grove. Jesus "Jesse" Aguero, a 13-year veteran, was acquitted in March on charges of planting the weapon. Officers Jorge Castclio, who fired the shot, and Oscar Ronda still await trial on perjury charges. The Nov. 1995 shooting of Derrick Wiltshire and Antonio Young, two 19-year-old suspected tourist robbers shot in the back following a chase near an Interstate 395 overpass. suspected gun throwdown case on April 1996 involving another robber, Steve Cartar. Officer Aguero, saying he saw a gun, fired at Cartar and missed. But investigators believe the gun may have been planted. An April 1998 case, in which SWAT officer Arturo Beguiristain shot a suspect in the back after the man allegedly pulled a gun at him. The March 1999 death of landscape worker Jesse Runnels, who brandished a toy gun at officers and was ruled a "suicide by cop." "It's a code," said attorney Barry Greff, a criminal defense and plaintiff attorney, who has represented several feanilies of relatives killed by Miami police officers. "It's the police policing the police," he said. "They have to live with each other and work with each other, and that Iaakes it difficult. There are certain cases that reach a high-profile, and they just cannot get ignored and they have to get prosecuted." He represented the family of Clement Anthony Lloyd Jr., one of two men killed by Miami patrol officer William Lozano in January 1989. A Miami jury convicted Lozano of manslaughter later that year, but he won an appeal and was acquitted in May 1993 by a new jury in Orlando. Greff said Miami settled t~e Lloyd case for about $500,000. ~feff also represented the family of Leonardo Marcado, a Wynwood drug dealer beaten to death in 1988 by Miami detectives. Greff said he recalls the city settled the case for about $190,000. ~-spite the settlements, Chief Martinez said some officers believe their ~leagues are quick to make them scapegoats. "They think IA [Internal Affairs] is out to get them, that they manufacture evidence against them." 2 Not all police shooting cases go to a judicial inquest. Prosecutors also may choose to simply file charges against police or to take the case to a grand jury. Miami-Dade prosecutors have filed charges against police officers in at least six shooting cases since 1977, according to prosecutors. I~uests are not like trials. ~_quests are not like trials. In many cases, the judges hear only from police witnesses, and almost never from either the victim's associates or from the officers who actually did the shooting. Most inquests last just one to three hours. In the inquest of Young and Wiltshire, shot in the back, Judge Pooler found that the police acted properly when faced with a dangerous situation from "predators looking for Christmas money." "I don't know what else they're supposed to do," Pooler said at the end of the inquest, according to a transcript. "The streets have been taken over to a degree by people who think the appropriate way to make a living is to com~it robberies on innocent people." Prosecutors defend the system, saying the inquests are designed to provide public oversight of a decision that has already been made -- that no charges are justified. "The facts are the facts," said assistant state attorney Elyse Targ, who has presented evidence for 41 inquests since 1994. "We're not there to convict anyone· or not convict. We're there to present everything, and leave it in the judge's hands." Miami-Dade is the only county in the state that holds inquests, according to Ed Griffith, a spokesman for the state attorney's office. Other state attorneys, when deciding not to file charges in police shoorings, simply c'~se the case without a hearing, he said. 2he truth is, if you want a rubber stamp, you just put out a memo," Griffith said. After the Brown indictment, Chief Martinez ordered a review of the way Miar~i police investigate shootings. Saying he intends "to do everything we possibly can to seek the truth," he created a review committee last month to examine all shootings since 1990. "If it is determined that wrongdoing did occur· we must and will identify and discipline those who violated their sacred oath," Martinez wrote in a memo to City Manager Carlos Gimenez. Herald staff writer Gail Epstein Nieves contributed to this report. Scandal Questions Okla. Justice The A~sociated Press, Tue 15 May 2001 OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Looking like a lawman out of the Old West in his cowboy hat, boots and black string tie, Bob Macy has sent 54 people to death row, more than any other U.S. district attorney now in office. · with Macy about to retire after 21 years, he and his legacy are under a~Eack because of his reliance on a police chemist accused of shoddy or slanted work. Some 1,700 cases prosecuted by his office are being examined by federal and ~te authorities looking for problems with Oklahoma City police chemist ce Gilchrist's work. Statewide, 11 inmates whose cases she worked on have been executed, and 12 others are under death sentences. 3 An FBI report said she misidentified hair and fiber evidence in at least five cases, including that of Jeff Pierce, who was prosecuted by Macy's office on rape charges. Pierce was freed May 7 after DNA testing of semen confirmed his innocence. He had spent 15 years behind bars. ~rce contends Macy and Gilchrist had to have known he was innocent. "They knew the whole time and they just covered it up," he said. "They duped the jury. They duped the public." Doug Parr, a board member of the Oklahoma Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, faulted Macy for continuing to put Gilchrist on the witness stand despite indications of problems with her work. Macy, who has defended Gilchrist from criticism in the past, has said that a wrongful conviction is the last thing any prosecutor wants and that it never would have happened if modern DNA testing had been available in 1986. Macy did not return repeated calls seeking further comment. But David Prater, an Oklahoma County assistant district attorney, defended his boss: "They'll see at the end of these investigations, the truth will come out and there will not be any evidence that this office engaged in any illegal, wrong or unethical behavior or conduct." Citing advanced age, Macy, 70, announced last month that he is retiring this su/~ner with a year and a half left in his term. Macy was appointed in 1980 and was later elected five times. Nicknamed "Cowboy Bob," he ropes steers in his spare time. His office is adorned in Western memorabilia, including a movie poster for the Wyatt Earp tale "Tombstone" that carries the inscription "Justice is Coming." 2y's brand of hard-nosed prosecution has always been popular with local _=sidents, but many are now upset over Pierce's wrongful conviction and have been calling radio talk shows and writing letters to the editor. Parr said that Macy, whose tactics have been condemned in a number of court decisions during his 21-year career, created an environment where prosecution witnesses may have felt they had license to stretch the truth. "When a police officer or chemist is caught doing something improper in court, they are not punished or disciplined in any way," he said. "That's a systematic problem." In 1987, for example, the Southwestern A~sociation of Forensic Scientists found that Gilchrist violated the group's code of ethics, but it declined to discipline her. It was acting on a complaint from a forensic scientist, who accused her of "egregious testimony" beyond her scientific expertise. In 1988, Macy and Gilchrist were criticized by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals when it overturned a murder conviction. The court said Gilchrist gave "personal opinion beyond the scope of scientific capabilities," and Macy conmlitted misconduct in co~unenting on facts not in evidence. I~ast year, a judge removed Macy from the murder case involving Oklahoma City ~ing co-conspirator Terry Nichols after Macy committed "a blatant, open ~olation of the rules of professional conduct" by explaining to the media how he wanted to put Nichols to death. No charges have been brought against Gilchrist, who was a police chemist from ~80 to 1993, when she was promoted to an administrative position. Speaking recently on CBS' "60 Minutes II," Gilchrist said detectives 4 started calling her "black magic" after a defense attorney mockingly marveled at her ability to do things with evidence that nobody else was able to do. Gilchrist said she did the best job she could with the technology available. .'ve always told the truth," she said. "I've never lied to anyone about _~ything. If you don't want to know the truth, don't ask me because I'm not going to sugar-coat anything for you." DEA office filed false arrest data, agents say By Lenny Savino KNIGHT RIDDER NEWS SERVICE May 15, 2001 WASHINGTON -- The Drug Enforcement Administration's Caribbean office routinely falsified its clain%s of drug arrests and seizures for at least three years, according to five present and former agents who worked there. Agents in the DEA's office in San Juan, Puerto Rico, claimed credit for hundreds of arrests that were in fact made by local police, the agents told Knight Ridder. A former supervisor estimated that 70 percent of the arrests the DEA claimed from 1998 through 2000 were phony. "It got so bad," said the former supervisor, "that agents were checking the newspapers every day to see who was arrested so they could go get the information and transfer it onto DEA arrest cards." The office investigates substantial drug cases in Puerto Rico and supervises DEA agents who provide information about drug activity in other Caribbean nations. ~ n DEA officials use arrest figures to measure the performance of an office ~ its leadership, and higher numbers can lead to more resources for that ._lice. In the San Juan office, for example, arrest nu/nbers tripled in the late 1990s and the staff size doubled. The agents said many of the arrests DEA agents claimed in San Juan involved only a few grams of cocaine or an ounce or two of marijuana. At the time, the San Juan office was supposed to pursue only cases involving more than five kilograras (11 pounds) of cocaine or more than 50 pounds of marijuana. The five agents, who spoke on the condition they not be identified, said they were reprimanded, demoted or transferred after they complained about inflated reports to their superiors at the San Juan office. In a brief interview May 3 in a congressional hallway, DEAAdministrator Donhie Marshall said an internal investigation of "all the issues" involving questionable arrests in San Juan was under way. He said it would be "inappropriate" to cor~nent until the review was completed. President Bush has since nominated former Rep. Asa Hutchinson, R-Ark., to succeed Marshall, a Clinton administration appointee. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., a member of the Senate Judiciary Conm~ittee, has asked the General Accounting Office to investigate whether DEA, Customs, Navy and st Guard personnel involved in the drug war have been routinely overcounting arrests and seizures. Sessions, a former prosecutor, said overcounting drug arrests "gives a false sense of accomplishment" to the nation's anti-drug campaign. · agents said veteran DEA agent Michael Vigil, who headed the San Juan office at the time they charge the statistics were being inflated, demanded 5 more impressive arrest statistics. Vigil then argued that his office needed more resources to cope with a growing threat. DEA spokesman Michael Chapman demanded to be told in advance what questions a reporter intended to ask as a condition for interviews with Vigil or ~L~rshall. After receiving the questions, Chapman said neither Vigil nor rshall would comment. Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq@aol.com Sent: Tuesday, May 15, 2001 3:02 PM ' BAttard~d,berkeley,ca.us; Teresa. Guerrero-Daley{~d,sj.ca.us; SIF(~citymgr. sannetgov; theske~sdccd.cc. ca,us; cfLsheri~matl,sdsu,edu; DWilliam{ci,riverside.ca.us; JParkeCH{~co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH{co.san-diego,ca.us; rnbobb~pac, bell,net; dhbums~lasd.org; smdacus~lasd.org; MGrossm{}lasd.org; NKULLA@aol.com; c- novak(~ix.netcorn.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o{aol.com; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz{~aol.corn; wq6i~earthlink.net; StuHolrnes~aol,com; paint2 ~gateway.net; jernurphy909{earthlink, net; smaxberry{~bos.co.la.ca.us; Ornbudlai~co.la.ca.us; cburdick{maui.net; CReederl~indygov.org; cdavis{ultra-tech.corn; davisf{nysnet.net; NACOLE95{~aol.com; jamesjohnson@dnlaw. rcc.org; DCasimere(~gw.sacto.org; MMonteiro~d.cambddge.rna.us; Sandovaj{mscd.edu; dedeq~hawaiian.net; rowaugh{d,long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel (~yahoo.com; markids~northwestem.edu; LPMurphy{~cityofboise,org; ~nkle{ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS{aol.com; CScott7544{)aol.com; rncdonaldp~dpdchiefinv.ci.detroit.mLus; ronald.darkson~co.rno.rnd,us; bjackson{oaklandnet.com; LPerezl {mail.ci,tucson.az.us; jwillia4{d.phoenix.az. us; RHAaronson{)gateway.net; JimFighti~cs.corn; rnhess4~d.podland.or. us; psalk~rnail.als.edu; rheve(~mail.als.edu; asb~co.dark. nv.us; Sandy-Bauer{iowa-city.opg; Patrida,Hughes2{)d.rninneapolis.mn.us; phileure~hotmail.com; Sfrnedley22615{~cs. com; irp~co.miarni-dade.fi.us; Cdavis~diocese-gal-hou.org; hector. w.soto{phila.gov; don.luna{ci,stpaul.mn.us; mike~cdsadr. org; Ellen. Ceisler~phila.gov; SGudn{~pcweb.net; rnurnseel {rnindspring.com; IIIIola{~juno.com; jw2b~fuse.net; ddandrewsphd{woddnet.att.net; dheard{}d.mil.wi.us; rrarnos~contracosta.cc,ca.us; Trgunnl{aol.com; SXH{citymgr. sannet.gov; martina{hdcdojnet.state.ca.us; Slecorre@uottawa.ca; rzoss~mymailstmion.corn; PZamary{yahoo.com; afryer~seattletirnes.corn; LSiegel4~adu.org; tiyeluv{~hotmail.corn; Tirn,Ohara{heralcktdb.com; Susan. Sheldon@verizon.net; d.ramirez{}nunet.neu.edu; Mvdanielesq~aoLcom; sharewhy{)hotmail.com; Kelly. Thomton{uniontdb.com; lindaJegerrette~earthshareca.org; WLNi~sdpdms.sannet.gov; RmDuvall{aol.com; Chevigny(~tudng.law.nyu.edu; AEHobron(~aol.corn; rashbaum{nytirnes.corn; skolnick(~tudng.law. nyu.edu; apc211 {nyu.edu; sarnwalker{unornaha,edu; spgetty{azstamet.com; Womencops~aol.com; Collina{hnN.org; lynn_,davis~la,kirldand.com; hfujie{}buchalter. com; rtrotten~akingump,corn; david.weiss~cgu.edu; mcnamara{)hoover.stanford.edu; DMackS00~aol.corn; rngraharn{~nctimes.com; rgreenspan@policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLECatt.neI; bill,finney(~cLstpaul.mn.us; DRPPG~;mol.corn; nancy_falcon~qc.edu; usmexborder~igc.ap~.org Subject: Phil: Police Discipline System Report (Mar 2001) Report: Philly Cop System a Problem The Associated Press, Tue 27 Mar 2001 PHILADELPHIA (A2) -- A study released by the police department's internal monitor says the department's system for disciplining police officers is "dysfunctional." The 64-page report praised disciplinary reforms instituted by Police Commissioner John F. Timoney. But it called the current system of punishing police officers "inscrutable" and "inconsistent," The Philadelphia Inquirer reported in Tuesday's editions. The study's author, Ellen Ceisler of the city's Integrity and Accountability ~fice, reviewed 400 disciplinary cases in 1999 and 2000, and found many Zicers received minor suspensions for serious charges. According to the report, the department handed a five-day suspension to an officer who, based on "overwhelming evidence," left a shooting victim to . on the street. An officer with a history of disciplinary problems investigated a burglary complaint and made sexual advances toward a woman in the residence, the report says. He was suspended for five days. In September 1999, an off-duty officer became involved in a fight at a nightclub and pointed his loaded service revolver at other patrons, The ~port says he was not disciplined. ~ong with about 20 cases in which officers received little or no penalty, the report cited a dozen cases in which disciplinary actions were recommended by the Police Board of Inquiry but never approved by the co~nissioner. In other cases, punishments had been approved but not enacted. Timoney did not return phone messages from the Inquirer about the report. Mayor Street's spokeswoman, Luz Cardenas, said Street would have no comment. The report was not connected to allegations that surfaced over the weekend regarding the cover-up of a police captain's alcohol-related car accident. Timoney meted out 20-day suspensions Monday to Capt. James J. Brady, the high-profile commander of the homicide unit, and Lt. Joseph DiLacqua, who allegedly orchestrated the cover-up of Brady's 1998 accident. Critics say the punishment wasn't harsh enough. "That is a ludicrous response. It just shows in some ways how the culture of this department has finally beaten down the cormmissioner's own creativity and commitment to reform," said Stefan Presser, legal director of the Philadelphia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. But Timoney said the punishments were fair. "I believe in redemption," he told reporters Monday. "You can go out there and do good works, take your medicine like a good soldier, and then move on ~ith your life." D(XXXXXX .~ntact Report's author: Ellen Ceisler at Ellen,Ceisler@phila.gov Page 1 of 4 Sandy Bauer From: Womencops~eol,com Sent: Saturday, May 05, 2001 10:56 AM To: MaryJeni~eol.com Subject: Detroit Cdrne 8tats a Mysten/ Detroit Crime Stats a Mystery Dateline: Detroit, HI - 5/4/2001 Detroit Free Press BY DAVID ASHENFELTER Police Chief Benny Napoleon appears to be giving the FBI and Detroiters conflicting statements about the accuracy of Detroit crime figures. FBI officials in West Virginia say Napoleon told them in a phone call last week that Detroit's 2000 crime figures are solid and that he plans to say so in a letter next week to the agency's crime-reporting section. But in an interview with the Free Press on Thursday, Napoleon reiterated that the department's antiquated computer system prevents the city from giving the FBI a true picture. One of Napoleon's executives has estimated that figures for some crime categories may be off by 10 percent or more. "They're as accurate as they've been over the years and I don't know of any other way to give them more accurate information with the technology we have," Napoleon said. "These are the best numbers we've got. They can take them or leave them." If the FBI rejects Detroit's data, some of the city's federal law-enforcement grants could be in jeopardy. FBI officials said Napoleon expressed confidence in the accuracy of DetroiCs numbers in a phone conversation with them last week. Based on his assurances, the FBI tentatively agreed to accept and publish them. But the FBI still has concerns about Detroit's high homicide arrest figures, which have been skewed by the department's practice of arresting witnesses as well as suspects. Asked Thursday to reconcile Napoleon's conflicting statements about the accuracy of Detroit's data, the FBZ's Maryvictoria Pyne said: "At this point, we're waiting for the chief's letter." The accuracy -- or inaccuracy -- of Detroit's crime numbers is important on many fronts. Besides being required for federal money, the figures are 5/7/2001 Page 2 of 4 significant to a city battling to overcome an image as an unsafe place at a time when it seeks to attract new residents and businesses. Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer has used the department's crime data to show the city is the safest it's been in 30 years. Seven large posters on display in the lobby of City Hall tout a drop in crime in recent years. Alfred Blumstein, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and an expert on crime statistics, said police departments need to compile accurate data so they can figure out how to combat crime and so the public can assess the safety of their communities. Two weeks ago, Napoleon and Commander Dennis Richardson of the major crimes division said the department had been reporting inaccurate crime data for the past 17 years because of old computers. But instead of underreporting crime -- a practice that has embarrassed other departments that cooked their numbers to make their cities look safer -- both Napoleon and Richardson said Detroit has been inadvertently inflating its figures. They said the city's outmoded crime reporting system prevents them from correcting records once they're entered into the computer. For example, some car theft complaints turn out to be cases where a resident loaned his car to a drug dealer in exchange for crack cocaine, Napoleon said. But there's no way to correct the figures once they're reported as a crime, he said. One crime category -- homicides -~ is accurate, Richardson said. That's because the department counts homicides by hand. But he can't vouch for the accuracy of the other seven crime categories: rape, robbery, assault, burglary, theft, car theft and arson. The Rev. Edgar Vann Jr., chairman of the Detroit Board of Police Commissioners, said overcounting is as bad as undercounting, "It's very disturbing," Vann said, "If we're reporting crime figures on the high side, we're still not getting a true picture of where we stand on crime and safety in Detroit, which affects the image of the city and insurance rates, which ultimately affect taxes and real estate values. This is a problem that's a real spider web. It's a very serious problem." Vann said Thursday the commission plans to invite a representative from the city's data processing department to a meeting this month to find out what the city is doing to solve the problem. Mayoral spokesman Greg Bowens said Archer wants the most accurate figures. 5/7/2001 Page 3 of 4 'lFhat's why, Bowens said, the city asked the FB! and Hichigan State Police to send a team of trainers to Detroit this month to help police employees to do a better job of recording and reporting crime data with existing equipment. But Bowens and Napoleon agreed that in the long term a new computer system is needed. Chronology of controversy Detroit police have made a sedes of conflicting statements explaining the extraordinarily high number of people they arrest for murder and about their crime statistics in general, In 1999, the most recent year for which verified data are available, Detroit police made 1,152 muffler arrests -- with just 415 killings. That's almost three arrests for every homicide. Experts say the number of murders and arrests should be about equal. Detroit has reported similar numbers to the FBI for years. February: When FBI statisticians question the numbers, the police department insists they are accurate. March 8: A department spokeswoman tells the Free Press the high numbors are the result of people jailed for interfering with murder investigations, fighting with investigators and harboring suspects. March 20: Police Chief Benny Napoleon and Deputy Chief Sidney Bogan, in a series of interviews, say it's sometimes necessary -- and is the department's policy -o to take homicide witnesses to headquarters for questioning even if they don't want to go. Napoleon says a substantial pertion of the people arrested for murder are witnesses. March 22: At a news conference, Napoleon says his statements were misrepresented. Later, before the city police commission, Assistant Chief Harvin Winkler blames the high arrest numbers on bookkeeping and computer problems. April :13: Napoleon and Cmdr. Dennis Richardson of the major cdmes division acknowledge in interviews that the city has reported inaccurate crime and arrest data to the Michigan State Police and FB! for 17 years, blaming aging computer equipment and programs. They say homicide figures are correct because they are counted by hand. April 27: FBZ officials say Napoleon assured them in a phone call that Detreit's crime data are correct. Nay 3: Napoleon, in an interview, says he didn't tell the FBZ the numbers are 5/712001 Page 4 of 4 accurate. Rather, he states, he said they are as accurate as the city can make them. Chief Penny Hardngton Author, 'T'dumph of Spidt" available at Amazon .com Nafional Center for Women & Policing (a division of the Feminist Majority Foundation) 8105 W. 3rd Street Los Angeles, CA 90048 323-651-2532 5/7/2001 Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq~aot.com Sexit: Sunday, May 06, 2001 8:14 PM BAttard~ci.berkeley.ca.us; Teresa. Guerrero-Daleyi~..i.sj.ca.us; SIF~cityrngr.sannet.gov; fheskeq~sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher~mail.sdsu.edu; DWilliam~ci.rtverskle.ca.us; JParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca. us; mbobb~pacbell.net; dhbums~lasd.org; smdacus~lasd.org; MGrossm4~lasd.org; NKULLA~aol.com; c- novak~ix.netcom.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2oCaoLcom; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz~aol.com; wq6i~earthlink. net; StuHolmes~aol.corn; paint2 ~g)gateway.net; jemurphyg09~earthlink.net; smaxberry~bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla~co,la.ca.us; cburdick~maui.net; CReeder~indygov.org; cdavis~ultra-tech.com; davisf~nysnet. net; NACOLE95~aoLcom; james.johnsonig~dnlaw. rcc.o~g; DCasimere~gw.sacto.org; MMonteiro~ci.cambdclge.ma.us; Sandovaj~r, scd.edu; dede~hawaiian.net; rowaugh~ci.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel ~yahoo.com; maddds~northwestem.edu; LPMurphy~cityofooise.org; ~nlde{~ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS~aol.com; CScott7544~aol.com; mcdonaldp~dlxlchiefinv.ci.detroit.mi.us; mnald.darkson~co.rno.md.us; bjackson~oaklandnet.com; LPerezl ~mail.ci.tucson.az.us; jwillia4~ci.phoenbcaz. us; RHAaronson~]ateway.net; JimFight~cs.com; mhess~ci.portland.or, us; psalk~mail.als.edu; ~eve{~mail.als.edu; as~co.darlLnv.us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-city.org; Patricia.Hughes2~d.minneapolis.mn.us; phileure~hotmail.com; Sfmedley22615{~cs.com; iq~co.miami-dade.fl.us; Cdavis~diocese-gal-hou.org; hector. w.soto~phila.gov; don .luna~d.stpaul.mn.us; mike~cdsadr.org Cc: SGu~n~pcweb.net; mumseel~mindspdng.com; IIIIola~juno.com; jw2b~fuse.net; drjandrewsphd~woddnet.att.net; dheard~ci.mil.wtus; namos~contracosta.cc. ca.us; Trgunnl~aol.com; SXH{~itymgr.sannet.gov; fleichma~uottawa.ca; elima4~uottawa.ca; maffina~hdcdojnetslate.ca.us; Slecorre~uottawa.ca; rzoss~mymailstation.com; PZamary~yahoo.com; afryer~seattletimes.com; LSiegel~adu.org; tiyeluv~hotmaiLcorn; Tim.Oh~emld-trib.com; 8usan. Sheldon4~verizon.net; d.mmirez~nunetneu.edu; Mvdanielesl~aol.com; sharewhyChotmail.com; Kelly.Thomton{~uniont~b.com; linda.lege,,rte~earthshareca.org; WLN~sdpdms,sannet.gov; RmDuvall~aol.com; Chevigny~tudng.law. nyu.edu; AEHobron4~aol.com; rashbaum~nytimes.com; skolni~ring.law.nyu.edu; apt21 l~nyu.edu; samwalker~unomaha.edu; spgetty~azstamet.com; Womencops~aol.com; Collina~hrw. Org; lynn._davis~la.ldrldand.com; hfujie~buchalter.com; rtrotter~akjngump.corn; david.weiss~cgu.edu; mcnamara~hoover. stanford.ndu; DMack500~aol.com; mgmham{~nctimes.com; rgreenspan{~policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLECatLnet; blll.finney~ci.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG~aoLcom; nancyjalconl~lc. edu; usmexborder~igc.apc.org Subject: Finding Embers in fie Ashes (Discussion: Will Cincinnati Happen Elsewhere) NYT May 6, 2001 Finding Embers in the Ashes By ERIC SCETT LEVELAND -- CAN it happen here? In the aftermath of three days of violence between police and roving crowds of protesters and vandals in Cincinnati last month, the question has hung over other American cities in distress. To be sure, there was a specific trigger to the unrest in Cincinnati: the fatal Shooting of an unarmed black teenager by a white policeman after years of cox~31aints by black residents that they were victims of racial profiling ~-~ excessive police force. But deeper root causes -- intensified racial and economic segregation; the f~;ther bollowing out of city centers; and mounting minority frustration over ' ~g bypassed during the last decade's prosperity -- simmer in many other ~.3or yet shrinking cities that have not erupted, like Baltimore, Philadelphia and this aging Rust Belt industrial center that is trying to reinvent itself after five decades of declining population. The economic undercurrent to the urban riots of the 1960's is evident today. Of course, at least some of the economic glory of the 1990's filtered down to low-income minority groups. Black unemployment rates dropped, though they are ~ill higher than rates for whites. Poverty levels declined, though they are .11 worrisomely high. African-Americans gained greater political power in ~ates, cities, and Congress. Yet it is at the very moment when momentous change seems within reach, that minority frustrations are likely to hit a boiling point, say urban affairs experts. "When change is possible, people feel much bolder and turn outward, and won't accept the excuses for why things aren't going well," said WilllamE. Spriggs, director of the National Urban League's Institute for Opportunity and Equality in Washington. "If that's not addressed, you've created a powder keg." These concerns are heightened in the nation's declining cities - about one out of four major urban centers in the last decade -- which suffered middle- class, white flight, but in most cases failed to draw the immigrants and service industries that helped offset declines elsewhere. In northern industrial cities, like most here in Ohio -- where all but one of the 15 largest cities lost population in the 1990's -- the 2000 census helps reveal a growing spatial divide that separates rich and poor and diminishes economic opportunity for the most needy. The economic geography has been changing. While metropolitan areas have been sprawling outward, the poorest residents remained bunched downtown, Yet'job growth now tends to be greatest in the suburbs, often hard to reach on mass transit. "A lot of these issues stem from the concentration of poverty in a decentralized economy, where opportunity drifts out to the suburbs while the poor, particularly the minority poor, stay behind," said Bruce Katz, director ' the Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy at the Brookings Institution Washington. And as cities spread out, many traditional social buffers ~ainst economic and community shocks, including churches and a vibrant black middle-class, are now isolated from low-income people. "When we have high levels of racial and economic segregation, people live separately and don't interact," said Paul A. Jargowsky, a political economist at the University of Texas at Dallas. "Many minorities' interaction with the white cor~mlnity is limited to law enforcement or minimu/n-wage jobs. That creates a contempt and distrust." Even when economic opportunity beckons, it may have the perverse effect of bypassing and, in some cases displacing, those most in need. The area where rioters took to the streets in Cincinnati, the Over-the- Rhine neighborhood, is actually experiencing a renaissance. The Main Street entertainment district has undergone a facelift. Upscale housing has displaced crack houses. It's a story of urban revival that's being played out in former pockets of poverty from New York to Los Angeles. Middle-class whites will leave their suburban homes for the city, but most expect the police to be there in force to protect them. So police officers, many critios say, often harass the long-time minority residents to assuage newcomers. "Is there something about the gentrification of certain neighborhoods that ~ breed police enforcement that hassles people, and stark, in-your-face ~entment among low- income population meeting head-on with affluent whites?" asked Claudia J. Coulton, co-director of the Center on Urban Poverty =' ~ Social Change at Case Western Reserve University here. So far, Cleveland has largely avoided this pitfall, in part through a mini-housing boom that is revitalizing increasingly diverse neighborhoods. Middle-class blacks are returning from the suburbs. But lower-income blacks may feel like Sara Hakim, 34, a nurse and former Gulf War veteran who parks cars at a downtown hotel and plans to leave: "There's no room for growth." ~ othermajority-black cities like Detroit and St. Louis, black control of levers of power, from the mayor's office to the chief of police, has ~ften helped defuse tensions even in bleak economic times. SO the question is, what ignites a city? In Cincinnati, as in the Los Angeles riots in 1992, the volatile combination of race relations and police behavior triggered violent protests. "Could this happen in any city? The answer is yes, but the conditions are hard to tease out," said Jeremy Trayis, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute who is a former deputy New York City police commissioner. There is no universal prescription to help cities cope with these issues, but many have taken steps that help. Most police officers here and all new officers in Boston, for example, must live within the city limits. Pittsburgh subjected its police departament to Justice Department oversight to settle litigation. In Cleveland and Denver, civic, corporate and cozenunity leaders have worked closely to develop strategies to revive downtowns. Since the turmoil in Cincinnati, business leaders have been involved in programs for sunTaer jobs. But civic leaders and urban experts are keeping a wary eye on the flagging economy. "In declining cities, there's less money for police and other services," Eric H. Monkkonen, a professor of urban history and policy studies at the University of California at Los Angeles. "If cities begin a period of decline with a problematic police department, those problems will get worse." Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq~)aol,com S~_nt: Sunday, May 06, 2001 8:18 PM BAttard~ci.berkeley.ca.us; Teresa.Guerrero-Da]ey~ci.sj.ca.us; $1F{~citymgr. sannet.gov; fheske~sdccd.cc.ca.us; cf~sher~mail.sdsu.edu; DVVilliam{~ci.dverside.ca.us; JParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca.us; mbobb~pacbell.net; dhburns~lasd.org; srndacus~lasd.org; MGrossm~lasd.org; NKULLA~aOLCom; c- novak~ix.netcom.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o~aol.com; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz~aoLcom; wq6iq~earthlink.net; StuHolmes~aol. com; pa]nt2 ~gateway.net; jemurphyg09~earthlink. net; smaxbern/~bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla¢co.la.ca.us; cbumlick~maui.net; CReeder~indygov.org; cdavis~ultm-tech.com; davisf~nysnet. net; NACOLE95~aol.corn; jamesjohnson~cinlaw.rcc. org; DCasimere~gw.sacto.olg; MMonteiro~ci.cambridge.ma.us; Sandovaj~mscd.edu; dede~hawaiian.net; rowaugh~d.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel ~yahoo.corn; maddris~northwestem.edu; LPMurphy~cityorooise.org; ~nlde~ccrb. nyc.gov; CammeS~aol.com; CScott7544~aol.com; rncdonaldp~dpdchiefinv.ci.detroitmi.us; ronaid.clarkson{~co.mo.md.us; bjackson~oa]dandnetcom; LPerezl~rnaiLd.tucson.az.us; jwillia4~d.phoenix.az. us; RHAaronsom~gateway.net; JimFight~cs.corn; mhess~ci.portland.or. us; psalk~mail.als.edu; ~eve~mail.a]s.edu; asb~co.dark. nv. us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-clly.org; Patdcia. Hughes2~d.minneapo|is. mn.us; phileure~hotrnail.corn; Sfmedley22615~cs.com; irp~co.rniami-dade.fi.us; Cdavisq~diocese-ga]-hou.org; hector.w.soto~phila.gov; don.lunai~d.stpaul.mn.us; rnike~dsadr.org Cc: SGudn~pcweb.net; murnseelCmindspdng.com; IIIIola~juno.com; jw2b~fuse.net; ddandewsphd~woddnet.att.net; dheard~ci.mil.wi.us; rmmos~contmcosta.cc.ca.us; Trgunnl~aol.com; SXH~citymgr. sannet.gov; fieichma~uottawa.ca; elirrm~uottawa.ca; martina~hdcdojnet.state.ca.us; Slecorre~uottawa.ca; rzoss~myma]lstation.com; PZamary~yahoo.com; afryer~seattle(imes.corn; LSiegelCadu.org; tiyeluv~hotmail.com; Tim. Ohara~hera]d-tdb.com; Susan.$heldonCverizon.net; d.ramirez~nunetneu.edu; Mvdanielesq~aoLcom; shafewhy~hotrnail.com; Kelly. Thornton~uniontrib.com; linda.legerrette~earthshareca.org; WLNCsdpdms.sannet.gov; RmDuva]l~aol.com; Chev'~gny~tudng.law.nyu.edu; AEHobmn~aol.corn; rashbaurn~nytimes.com; skolnick~turing.law.nyu.edu; apc211 ~nyu.edu; samwalker~unomaha.edu; spgettyCazs~met.com; Womencops~aol.com; Collina~hrw. org; lynn_davis~la.kirkland.com; hfujie~buchalter.com; rtrotte~akingump.com; david.weissi~cgu.edu; mcnarnara~hoover.stanford.edu; DMack500~aoLcom; mgraharn~nctirnes.corn; rgreenspan{~policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE~)att. net; bill.~nneyCd.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG~aoLcom; nancy_fa]con~qc.edu; usmexborder~igc.apc.org Subject: Orange County, Ca]; New Jersey &Tucson, Az Incidents LATimes Sunday, May 6, 2001 Deputy's Arrest Casts Doubt on Trial Testimony Crime: After he is accused of trying to alter patrol car videotapes, prosecutors drop two cases in which he was going to testify. By STUART PFEIFER, Tiraes Staff Writer The arrest of an Orange County Sheriff's deputy on suspicion of trying to erase patrol car videotapes has prom~ted prosecutors to dismiss two cases in which he was expected to testify, and the public defender's office is reviewing other cases involving the deputy. Prosecutors contend that Deputy George Kluchonic asked a civilian employee to erase videotapes of his dealings with two crime suspects, including one he altegedly cursed at and shoved onto the hood of a car. The misdemeanor charges of attempted evidence destruction could present dibility problems for Kluchonic in trials and could lead to appeals by ~_~pects convicted because of his testimony, defense lawyers and legal e~perts said. "If he's a critical witness with little or no corroboration, then the ~_Jsecution will have significant problems," said Brent Romney, a professor at Western State University College of Law in Fullerton and and a former Orange County prosecutor. Orange County Public Defender Carl ~olmes said his staff will likely take the unusual step of serving a subpoena on the Sheriff's Department for a list of every arrest Kluchonic has made and then consider appealing convictions based on his testimony. Already, the charges against Kluchonic, 43, have prompted the end of two iminal cases. One involved the Oct. 23 arrest of a Trabuco Canyon man accused of methamphetamine possession. Kluchonic testified at a preliminary hearing that the suspect dropped a cigarette pack containing a small amount of the illegal drug. But because of the charges against Kluchonic, prosecutors dismissed the case last week. The second case involved a youth who allegedly resisted arrest when Kluchonic tried to detain him after a family dispute. Prosecutors dropped a charge of resisting arrest after viewing a tape that showed Kluchonic cursing and shoving suspect Cory Baima. This week, Baima filed a claim against the department seeking damages for false arrest and assault. A Sheriff's Department spokesman declined to comment on the allegations. Ktuchonic, who has denied wrongdoing, is on paid administrative leave. The 15-year department veteran is a former Azmy military police officer and past recipient of the south Orange County deputy of the year award. Kluchonic's lawyer blamed the charges on a misunderstanding and said another sheriff's ea~ployee disputes that he sought to erase the tapes. Still, attorneys at the public defender's office expressed concern over the allegations and said they would seek to challenge his credibility if he were called as a witness in any pending trials. "The fact that he has previously tried to suppress evidence which may have been helpful to a defendant raises serious issues about his credibility and whether the evidence he has procured is accurate," Holmes said. The nature of the charges against Kluchonic portrays him in a negative light and puts his credibility in jeopardy, especially in cases in which he was the only witness, legal experts said. Romney sees a parallel in larger police corruption probes such as the ~ Angeles Police Department's Rampart inquiry, which has resulted in anates being released from prison after revelations about officers' credibility cast doubt on their convictions. "The obvious inference is if he tampered with evidence in one case, he can't be trusted in others," Romney said. Kluchonic could invoke his 5th Amendment protection if questioned about the allegations by defense attorneys, Romney said. ~ald while the most significant impact will be in upcoming trials, defense attorneys could use the new allegations to appeal past convictions. "If a defendant was convicted based primarily on this officer's testimony, with little or no corroboration, that might be grounds for granting a writ," Romaey said. Sunday, May 6, 2001 200 Protest N.J. Officer's Shooting of Unarmed Man FromAssociated Press IRVINGTON, N.J.--About 200 demonstrators staged a peaceful rally Saturday to protest the killing of an unarmed black motorist by a white police.officer. Protesters marched through city streets, with a police escort, to the steps of police headquarters, where the Rev. A1 Sharpton led the crowd in -~nts of "No justice, no peace!" "They must understand that when you shoot one of us, you shoot all of us. We are not anti-police; we are anti-police brutality," the New York City - tivist said. Authorities said Officer William Mildon fired his weapon at Bilal Colbert on Monday after Colbert, 29, refused to get out of his car and shifted into reverse, striking the officer's leg with his car door. A grand jury will review the shooting, which happened in this community on the west side of Newark. Police had issued a warrant for Colbert's arrest after a similar incident April 14, when Officer Clinton Franks stopped Colbert for a traffic ~ olation. Franks was bumped by a car door but was not seriously hurt, zhorities said. Mildon fatally shot another black motorist four years ago. Police said Keion Williams, 24, tried to flee a traffic stop and dragged Mildon, breaking the officer's leg. A grand jury decided not to indict Mildon in the May 9, 1997, shooting. The Rev. William Rutherford, who earlier in the week had called Mildon a racist murderer, said the conununity should stay calm while authorities investigate the shooting. He also called for Mildon's suspension without pay. Mildon's lawyer filed a libel and slander suit Friday against Rutherford, but the clergyman said he stoodby his con~nents. Mildon has an unlisted home telephone number and could not be reached for comment Saturday. There was no immediate response to calls to the police department. Among the people at Saturday's rally was Colbertts brother, Willie Humheft. He noted that Colbert was driving his girlfriend's daughters to school when he was shot. One girl was in the car at the time, while another had gone into a store to get snacks, police said. "Something should have been done then, and for . . . sure something needs to be done now," Humbert said. "They killed him right in front of his kids." On Friday, a mediator and a community relations director from the U.S. Justice Department met with Mayor Sara Bost and other local officials. "We asked them to come here to help us through this so there won't be an escalation in the com=nunity," Bost said. '"legations of Threats by Police After Tucson Rioting Dateline: Tucson, AZ - ~/2001 A~izona Daily Star y M. Scot Skinner and Joseph Barrios A Tucson police captain confirmed that some people who called internal affairs immediately after the April 2 riot were told they could be arrested if they complained about police behavior. Capt. Terry Rozema, the department's chief of staff, said Thursday that he didn't know how many people the secretary spoke to the day after the North Fourth Avenue riot. He said he thinks it was only one or two. Greg Proctor, 25, said he called internal affairs the day after the riot to complain that he was pepper-sprayed as he left his job at Plush, a Fourth Avenue nightclub. Proctor said the woman who answered the phone told him and his roommate, who also wanted to complain about excessive force, to "feel free to make a complaint." "If you complain, it makes it easier on us. That means you were on Fourth Avenue after the dispersal order was given and that makes you a suspect," Proctor said the woman told him. Proctor, a student at the UA, said an officer pepper-sprayed him with no warning. ~ama said that a fez~le caller to internal affairs told a City Council member that she was sirailarly discouraged from complaining about police. lat's how we became aware of the situation," said Rozema. He said the secretary was told that same day, April 3, to encourage people to come in with their complaints. "It's an outrage," said Paul Gattone, an attorney with the Southern Arizona People's Law Center. "This is something we've been concerned about for years, that the police actively discourage complaints by threatening them." id Rozema: "In internal affairs, it's real important that we are up-front with people about the potential of them incriminating themselves. The secretary thought she was doing the right thing." In other developments: * Television news footage of the riot convinced a judge that police arrested the wrong men for destroying a city sign on Fourth Avenue. Two misdemeanor charges against Yann Gavillot were dismissed April 21, and a city prosecutor said the real perpetrator got away. "It's easy to see how it happened," said Alan Merritt, supervising city prosecutor. "Gavillot has a unique hair style, and the man who was destroying the sign had a similar hair style." Gavillot, 20, a UA geosciences sophomore, had been charged with one count of criminal damage and one count of resisting arrest, both misdemeanors. He spent a night in jail. * Saying they hope rioters can be identified and arrested, UA officials have created a Web site with photographs of rioters. Sandy Bauer From: 8uelqq~aol.com 8~,nt: Monday, May 07, 2001 11:15AM BAttard~i.berkeley.ca.us; Teresa.Guermro-Daley(~ci.sj.ca.us; SIF~cityrngr.sannet.gov; fheske~sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher~mail.sdsu.edu; DWilliam~ci.dvefside.ca.us; JPafi~eCH4~co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH~co.san-diego,ca.us; mbobl~pacbell.net; dhbum,,~lasd.olg; smclacus~lasd.olg; MGrossm~lasd.org; NKULLA4~aol.corn; c- novak~ix.netcom.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o(~aol.com; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz~aol,com; wq6i~)earthlink. net; StuHolmes~aol.com; paint2 ~gateway.net; jemurphygOg~ear~hlink.net; smaxberryCbos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla~co.la.ca.us; cburdick~)maui.net; CReeder~)indygov.org; cdavis~ultra-tech.corn; davisf(~nysnet.net; NACOLE95~aol.corn; james.johnson~cinlaw. rcc.org; DCasirnem~gw.sacto.ofg; MMonteiro~ci.cambridge.ma.us; Sandovaj~mscd,edu; dede~hawaiian.net; rowaugh{ci.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel{yahoo.com; rnarkiris{northwestem.edu; LPMurphy4~cityofboise.org; ~nkle~ccfo.nyc.gov; CammeS~aol.com; CScott7544~aol,corn; mcdonaldl~dlxlchie~nv.ci,cletroitmi.us; ronald.clarkson{co.mo,md,us; bjacksoneoaklandnet.com; LPemzl{mail.ci.tucson.az.us; jwillia4¢ci,phoenix.az.us; RHAaronson{~gateway.net; JimFtght~cs.com; mhess~d.portland.or. us; psalk~mail,als,edu; rheve{~mail,als.edu; asb~co.dark, nv.us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-city,org; Patrida. Hughes2{ci.minneapolis. mn,us; phileure4~hotmail.com; Sfrnedley22615{cs.com; irp{co.miami*-dade.~.us; Cdavis~diocese-gal-hou,org; hector,w.sOtoCphila.gov; don.luna4~ci,stpaul,mn.us; mike{cdsadr, org Cc: SGurin{pcweb. net; mumseel{}mindspdng.com; IIIIola{juno,corn; jw2b{fuse.net; clrjandrewsphd{~vvoddnet.att.net; dhearffi~ci.mil.wi,us; rramos~contracos~a,cc.ca.us; Trgunnl{aol,com; SXl-li~cityrngr.sannet.gov; ~eichma{~uottawa.ca; elirna{uottawa.ca; rnartina~hdcdojne{,state.ca,us; Slecorre~uottawa.ca; rzoss~mymailstat'~on.com; PZamary~yahoo,com; afryer~seaffietirnes. com; LSiegel~adu.org; tiyeluv¢hotmail.com; Tirn,Ohara{herald4rib.com; Susan,$heldon~verizon.net; d.rarnirez{~nunet.neu,edu; Mvdanielesq~aol,corn; sharewhy~hotmail.com; Kelly.Thomton~uniontdb.corn; linda.legerrette{earthshareca.org; WLN{sdlxlrns.sannet,gov; RmDuvall{aol.com; Chevigny{turing.law. nyu.edu; AEHobron{aol.com; rashbaurn{nytimes.com; skolnick~turing.law.nyu.edu; apc211{nyu.edu; samwalker~unomaha,edu; spgetty{}azstamet,com; Womencops~ao|.com; Collina~hrw.org; lynn_davis~la,kirldand,com; hfujie~buchalter.corn; rtrotter{akingump.com; david.weiss{cgu.edu; mcnamam~hoover.stanford.edu; DMackS00~aol,com; mgraham~nctimes.com; rgreenspanl~policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE{att. net; bill.~nney{)ci.stpaul.mn.us; DRPPG~aol,com; nancy_falcon{)qc.edu; usmexborder~igc.apc. org Subject: Motives at Issue In Cuts to Minnesota Agency for Cdme Victim From the Minneapolis Star Tribune, May 6, 2001: Motives at issue in cuts to agency for crime victims By Doug Grow / Star Tribune A tiny state agency is reeling, perhaps because of an insidious form of police and political brutality. The Office of Crime Victims Ombudsman, which two years ago released a highly critical report of how Minneapolis police responded to a rape victim, is in a fight for survival. Leading the attack on the agency is state Rep. Rich Stanek, R-Maple ~ove, who has been rapidly ascending in dual careers as cop and ~.itician. A~ a pol, he's becoming ever more prominent in the debate . crucial state issues. As a Minneapolis cop, he recently was ~=omoted to inspecto=, the third-highest rank in the department. ~_~nek is chairman o[ the House Judiciary Finance Committee, which recently slashed the budget of the Office of Crime Victims Ombudsman 1 by two-thirds and stripped the office of its independence by folding it into the Departmant of Public Safety. The action, a minuscule part of an omnibus finance bill, was passed by the House on Monday. Laura Goodman-Brown, a former Minneapolis cop who has headed the v~-~ims' agency since being appointed by Gov. Arne Carlson in 1992, onvinced that Stanek's attacks represent personal politics at the ugliest. She says that from the time her office issued a report in 1999 about how ineptly Minneapolis police responded to a gang rape of a 14-year-old girl, Stanek has been launching attacks at her and the agency she heads. The report said that police officers failed to detect the sexual assault and that the department then failed to correct the mistakes. The day after it was made public, Goodman-Brown says, the ombudsman's office received a legislative request for a report on its travel records. An audit later showed no untoward practices in the agency. The full attack came this year, catching Goodman-Brown by surprise. "I think it's personal, and I think there's no justification for what's happening," she said. Stanek said there's "no merit" to Goodman-Brown's charge. He added that he was "disgusted that she's airing this out in the media." He called his cou~nittee's efforts regarding the agency "an efficiency move." Perhaps they are. But they smell like vengeance. Though the full House passed the 281-page bill that included the looting of the Office of Crime Victims Ombudsman, the momentum for going after the agency comes from one place: the conmLittee Stanek leads. governor's office had proposed full funding for the agency, and ~ ~ Senate has voted for that. "I don't understand why they're doing this in the House," said Sen. Jane Ranum, DFL-Minneapolis. "This is the one independent agency that looks at whether law enforcement has done its job regarding victims. I've worked with [Goodman-Brown]. She's extremely competent." The agency was created in 1986 in response to a belief among members of the public that crime victims didn't have a voice in the criminal justice system. The ombudsmsn's office was to be a place where crime victims from around Minnesota could turn for advice, solace or help. The agency currently has the equivalent of 5.7 full-time employees and a budget of $379,000 a year. The agency was part of the Department of Public Safety when it was formed, but Goodman-Brown lobbied successfully for autonomy in 1997. "We have to be separate from an agency that we're supposed to be able to review," she said, explaining why she opposes being put back under the public-safety umbrella. Stanek disdainfully says that "80 to 85 percent" of the ombudsmsn's annual caseload begins and ends with a phone call. c-odman-Brown doesn't dispute that. Most victims can be helped in one two phone conversations, she said. P · every year, victims come through the door with complex grievances ut the system. Complex grievances like those of the mother of the 14-year-old rape victim. How, the mother wondered, could police have seemed so indifferent to her daughter's plight in the 1998 case? The girl, wearing a shirt soiled with 80 semen stains, was ticketed for being out past curfew. Only two of the 10 men involved were arrested; they eventually were found guilty of rape. The mother also questioned how the Minneapolis Police Department's internal-affairs officers f--~d no wrong-doing in the handling of the case, and she wondered ~t the civilian review board's failure to step up. The ombudsman's office investigated the mother's con~olaints and found that the police -- at all levels -- had failed the mother and child. Goodman-Brown said the 37-page report was given to the Police Department. When the department didn't respond, she gave the report to the media, which did respond, with big stories. First, the cops got mad. Now, it appears they're trying to get even. © Copyright 2001 ~tar Tribune. All rights reserved. )ffleer says chief igni~r,Jd allcitations' - limcsunionconl http: xx x% x~ .timesunion.corn AspSIories,sto...oryKey"57475&BCCode-HOME&newsdate=)i41U I .......... ,< --*--,,: By KIM MARTINEAU, staff writer ..... ',,,....,.,~;;;il ..... First published: Friday, May 4, 2001 Officer says chief xgnored allegations Albany Ue o ition,affaWs office H EiI I ~,~- ~.~'~,~. ~u~.,~ claims he told Kaczmarek of possible corruption An internal affairs officer warned Schenectady Police Chief Gregory Kaczmarek about reports of cops illegally taking drugs and money ~om people, but the chief discouraged him from investigating the allegations further, according to a deposition in a civil lawsuit The warning came at least a y~r beBre an FBI corruption probe into the city department led to the arrests of two police officers for shaking down a drug runBet. In the deposition, Eric Yager, the lieutenant in charge of the department responsible for investigating police misconduct, said he expressed concern several y~rs ago about rumors that patrol officers were going after drug cases without authorization, according to a transcript made public Thursday. "1 told him I was afraid that there ~s patrol division officers that were entering the vice investigations scenarios without proper training and were not following proper procedures or policies," said Yager, who retired in 1999. "And that they might be doing some acts that would be considered illegal, and 1 thought that it would be proper for him to look into it or open an investigation." "What was his reply?" asked attorney Keyin Luibrand, who deposed Yager last week. "He w~ inclined not to believe it and not to open an investigation." The deposition was made in connection with a civil rights lawsuit brought by three individuals who were arrested on minor charges and allegedly strip-searched at the police station's jail block, I of 5 5/4/01 2:42 PM ricer says chiefiglmred allc~ations' - tinlcsunion,com hltp: xxxxxxtimesunion.conl AspStorics!sto...oryKcy 57475&BCCode~'HOME&newsdatc 5/4/01 Luibrand is the lawyer representing the plaintiffs. Yager's comments come at a time when the department is facing scrutiny on two fronts: in an ongoing federal investigation into corruption allegations, and a review, also by federal officials, to determine whether officers in the department show a pattern of abusing people's civil rights, such as strip-searching suspects detained on minor charges or stopping people without probable cause. Yager's deposition and interviews with sources familiar with the investigation also paint a picture of a department marked by internal jealousies and rampant overtime. In his deposition, Yager admits that the information given to him about officers taking money and drugs from people were just "rumors" or "second-hand rumors" but that they came from a potentially credible source: other officers working on his shift. "1 would have investigators come to me and say that they suspect that drugs and money were being ... taken from citizens in violation of procedures and policies," Yager testified. He said he told Kaczmarek about the complaints sometime in 1997 or 1998 but that Kaczmarek dismissed them and accused Yager of having "sour grapes." "He felt that 1 was perhaps professionally annoyed because the patrol division was making arrests, and the vice squad was not making as many arrests during that one small period," Yager said, according to the transcript. "Were any names given to you of police officers who were alleged to have been taking money from citizens," Luibrand asked. "There were rumors and there were some names attached to the rumors," Yager responded. Yager said the names attached to the rumors included Lt. Michael Hamilton and Officer Nicola Messere. Neither officer has been charged in connection with the allegations. He also indicated that officers Michael Siler and Richard Barnett were not identified by the people making the complaints. Both Slier and Barnett have 2 of 5 5,4:01 2:42 PM 3fficersayschiefignoredallegations'-limesunion.com hllp::;~ww.timcsunion,comlAspStoriesisto..,or}Key 57475&BCCode-HOME&newsdale:S/4:01 been indicted on charges of taking drugs from a source on the street and then using the drugs to pay for leads on criminal activity. Barnett has been convicted in a plea agreement with federal prosecutors. Slier has pleaded not guilty. Hamilton, who was Siler and Barnett's patrol supervisor, has been suspended from the police force since November in connection with the federal criminal probe. He is not charged with a crime. For three consecutive years, until 2000, Hamilton was the highest-paid official in Schenectady, doubling his base salary by working long overtime hours. In 2000, he was the second highest-paid official, earning $109,600. "Some of the patrol officers seemed to be going off on their own course of action without the training needed to do vice investigations," Yager said. "There was one memo that I recall that (former) Commissioner (Charles) Mills signed that directed patrol officers not to run vice squad investigations without a vice investigator present," he said. While Yager received verbal complaints from his fellow officers, the officers failed to provide him with any written citizen complaints. "1 really had nothing to bring forward in the way of a written statement or a signed statement that would say there was any improprieties happening in the patrol division," he says. "It was always second-hand information, and the one conversation I had with the chief ended with his not encouraging me to start an investigation," Yager testified in the deposition. Yager couldn't recall whether Hamilton and Messere worked the same shift. "There was so much overtime," he said. "lt's hard to say who was on which shift anyway." Hamilton's lawyer, E. Stewart Jones, denied Yager's allegations. "Lt. Yager has a long history of animosity towards Michael Hamilton, of almost pathological jealousy of Michael Hamilton's success as a police officer. "He has a hundred reasons to not tell the truth and 3 of 5 5/4/01 2:42 PM ,t,)fficersayschiefignoredaliegali~ms'-Iimcsunionclml blip ~xxx~x,limesunion.comAspStoricsslo.--orSKeY 57475&BCCode"HOME&ne';,sdate'5~4/01 he's not telling the truth," Jones said. Yager could not be reached for comment. Yager was one of four Schenectady police officers accused of beating a decorated Vietnam veteran in his home in February 1989 after mistaking him for a murderer. A jury ultimately awarded the veteran, John Rodick, $2.8 million in 1992, following a civil trial. Kaczmarek refused to respond to Yager's allegations, saying he'd save his comments for his own legal deposition. "1 can't wait to get under oath and respond to those accusations but I'm not going to do it in the media," the chief said. Another officer, Lt. Dan Johnson, who worked in the Police Department's internal affairs unit, testified in a separate lawsuit that Kaczmarek was slow in investigating citizen complaints when he was assistant chief prior to 1996. "It was Chief Kaczmarek who was not getting back to you for the complaints that you were referring to him?" Luibrand asked. "Yeah," replied Johnson. "Did Chief Kaczmarek speak to you after he became chief about his role in not returning to internal affairs complaints that had been delivered to him while he was assistant chief'?" "No," said Johnson. "He never mentioned two words about that." Kaczmarek refused to respond to Johnson's testimony and attacked both his and Yager's credibility. "The people around here know what kind of officers they are," he said, refusing to elaborate. Messere could not be reached for comment~ Kaczmarek called on the FBI to investigate his department in the summer of 1999, after a string of incidents, culminating in a complaint that Barnett and Siler had picked up a black man from Hamilton Hill and dropped him on a darkened road in Glenville after hurling his shoes into the woods. 2.5 Send this story to a friend 4 of 5 5/4/01 2:42 PM Page 1 of 4 Sandy Bauer From: Womencops@aoLcom nt: Tuesday, May 08, 2001 4:00 PM To: MaryJeni~aol.com Subject: Schenectady Council Wants Civilian Overnight of Police/S18M Paid by Chicago Schenectady Council Wants Civilian Oversight of Police Dateline: Schenectady, NY - 5/8/2001 By MICHAEL DeHASI Gazette A call to bring back a civilian commissioner to oversee the police force generated support within the City Council on Monday night, although some council members said they want time to consider such a move. Councilman Frank Maurizio, chairman of the Public Safety Committee, said he supports the concept of a police commissioner, but also wants to see the results of an ongoing federal investigation of the department. Cost is also a factor, said Maurizio, who was reacting to a proposal made by Councilmen David Bouck and 3oseph Allen. Bouck said there's a "huge lack of trust" in Chief Gregory T. Kaczmarek, and Allen said he no longer feels comfortable talking to the chief because of the recent revelation that Kaczmarek lied to the council in August 1999 about an aspect of the federal investigation. "Fro not here trying to bring down Greg Kaczmarek," Bouck said. "-xtremely hard to trust this individual, now or in the future, regardless of hat the investigation finds." Bouck also called for the appointment of three captains to serve as shift commanders, higher salaries for the assistant chiefs and a reduction in the chiees salary. Kaczmarek, who sat quietly just a few feet from Bouck and Allen as they spoke in a committee meeting in City Hall, said afterward the council has cut his management budget only to then criticize the level of oversight in the department. Kaczmarek said he's confident his leadership will be vindicated when the federal investigation is complete, and questioned who would want the job of police commissioner. "ln the current political state of this community, anybody that would want to come in here as police commissioner would have to have his head examined," Kaczmarek said. In the summer of 1999 Kaczmarek joined the mayor in asking the FBI to investigate allegations of misconduct by some officers. So far two have been charged with shaking down a drug dealer; one has pleaded guilty. The U.S. .~ustice Department is considering whether to conduct a separate inquiry into alleged civil rights violations. Mayor Albert P. ]urczynski has stood behind Kaczmarek throughout the investigation and a string of controversial revelations and embarrassing 5/10/2001 Page 2 of 4 incidents involving the chief. .lurczynski doesn't see the need for a police commissioner at this time. The mayor's support would be important if the city wants to hire a commissioner, said Council President Denise Brucker. The last police commissioner, Charlie Hills, was hired in the early 1990s with the backing of the council and former Mayor Karen .lohnson, she said. .lurczynski, who was a city councilman before becoming mayor in 1996, was among those who supported hiring NilIs as the commissioner. Mills left the job following a stormy tenure. Despite the controversy surrounding the department today, Jurczynski said the situation differs from 11 years ago. "If I felt hiring a police commissioner was the right thing to do, I'd do it myself," .lurczynski said. "I wouldn't have waited for the council to tell me." $18M Paid by Chicago Averts Run-in With Cochran Click Here For Discussion: [] Dateline Chicago, IL - 5/8/2001 Chicago Sun-Times BY FRAN SPIELM AN AND ABDON H. PALLASCH The Daley administration agreed Monday to pay a record $18 million to the family of LaTanya Haggetty, averting a trial starring celebrity lawyer .]ohnnie Cochran. As part of the settlement, Nayor Daley will meet privately with the parents and brother of Haggerry, an unarmed civilian shot to death after a police chase two summers ago. The price tag is the highest for such a case in Chicago, and legal scholars warned it may end up costing the city more to settle claims in the future. "This is an expensive lesson for the city--police have to treat people with respect. They can't be profiling. They can't shoot at cars," Cochren said. Flashing the rhyming lydcism he used defending O. 3. Simpson, Cochran said the Haggerry trial scheduled to start this morning could have been "galvanizing, very polarizing" for the city. Corporation Counsel Hare Georges said she decided to settle because of the "incredibly unique circumstances" that prompted the police board to fire three officers for engaging in an unauthorized chase, including Serena Daniels, who fired the fatal shot. "We've also got a very volatile situation that Z felt was necessary to be closed," Georges said, noting that another unarmed civilian had been killed by police the same weekend as Haggerry. The $18 million award is triple the highest award the city previously paid in a wrongful death case. 5 / 10/2001 Page 3 of 4 "Zf this case didn't have all of the publicity surrounding it and the emotionally charged aspects that everyone is aware of, it would be settled for a fraction of what they're talking about," probably $2 million to $4 million, said C. Barn/Montgomery, who defended Metra in a trial that resulted in a $30 million award to violinist Rachel Barton. The city has paid more for cases where police have used excessive force on people who survived and faced high medical bills. Because Haggerty's was a wrongful death case, city attorneys would have argued only her projected lifetime income should be counted. "A normal wrongful death action would only be for the amount of money the survivors would miss because of the death," said Bruce Ottley, a DePaul University law professor who wrote the book on Illinois tort law. "A lot of people are now going to say, ' Well, she got $20 million. Z think our person deserves $20 million.'" Had the Haggerty case gone to trial, the award against the city also would have been reduced by whatever blame the jury assigned to Raymond Smith, Haggerty's companion who refused to stop for police. Settlement talks began last week with a phone call from Georges to James Montgomery, Cochran's partner who held Georges' job under former Mayor Harold Washington. The two sides apparently were so close they took the weekend off, resuming Monday and reaching an agreement at 4:55 p.m. "We haggled over dollars," Montgomery said. Daley never had a problem with a request from the victims' relatives to meet with Haggerty's parents and her brother, Maurice. Nine million dollars will be paid to the Haggetty family July 1. The rest will be sent Nov. 1. The City Council must approve the settlement. Cochran and Montgomery's Chicago firm stands to receive a third of the settlement. The family also wants Brainard Park on the South Side to be renamed for Haggerty, though that is not part of the formal settlement. A 26-year~old computer analyst, Haggerty was shot to death June 4, 1999. Patrol Officer Daniels said she fired because she feared for her life and mistook a silver padlock for a gun. But there were no fingerprints on the padlock in Smith's car. Witnesses told police Haggerty had a cell phone in her hand. Fraternal Order of Police President Bill Nolan accused Daley of allowing Haggerty's relatives to "rape the city with their huge demands." 'q'hey're sending a message that any time a police officer makes a mistake in good faith, just sue the city, hire .~ohnnie Cochran and you're going to get a large settlement. Everybody wins--except the police officers," Nolan said. Georges denied the city ran scared from Cochran, arguing his "flamboyance" may not have played well in Chicago. 5 / 10/2 O0 1 Pag~ 1 of 3 Sandy Bauer From: Womencops@aol.com Sent: Tuesday, May 08, 2001 9:47 PM To: MaryJeni~aol.com Subject: Controversial San Jose police audit released; Protest Held in Slaying of Man by Controversial San Jose police audit released; NAACP questions 'complaint decrease' Copydght 2001 The Chronicle Publishing Co. The San Francisco Chronide...05/08/200f Matthew B. Stannard After years of critidsm, the San Jose Police Deportment was the target of fewer formal complaints - and fewer civilians were shot by officers - last year than in 1999, the city's independent police auditor reported yesterday.Just hours after the report was released, however, the president of the local chapter of the NAACP took the department to task, accusing San Jose officers of treating him rudely during a recent stop.He suggested that behavior could be widespread, making people afraid to complain about police misconduct and skewing the auditor's numbers. He also repeated the NAACP's 2-year-old call for video cameras in all police cars to record police dealings with the public. Nonstheless, the auditor and the NAACP agreed on severel recommendations for the Police Departmenfs future. They include steps to ensure that officere do not ir~midate or retaliate against people who complain of excessive force, ~nd to track the races of people searched by police. The department was one ~fthe first in the state to record the race of each motorist stopped by police.Police Chief William M. Lansdowne said he'd consider the recemmendations."We're probably one of the most progressive departments in the state, if not the country, in dealing with race-based issues," he said. "We work very hard at being the most professional police department we possibly can be."Previous reports from the auditor have seen increases complaints of police abuse, fueling cdtidsm and leading to an investigation by the civil grand jury. But the new report found that the department made "significant gains in public trust and customer satisfaction" in the pest year. The report found that about three-quarters of the San Jose residents who had contact with police dudng 2000 said the officer involved was courteous and helpfoL Two-thirds believed that San Jose Police Department "treats people fairly."Even more encouraging, said Police Auditor Teresa Guerrero-Daley, although overall complaints increased slightly in 2000, from 349 in 1999 to 374 in 2000, formal complaints - the most sedous - declined slightly. Unnecessary force complaints dropped by 26 percent. The San Jose department has also been criticized by civil libertafians and the Santa Clara Grand Jury, among others, for having a high number of officer-involved shootings in an area with such a low cdme rate. In 1999, the department began a process to review officer-involved shootings, and the auditor reported yesterday that the number had fallen from seven that year to five in 2000. In addition, a smaller percentage of the shootings in 2000 were fatal - 60 pement compared with 87.5 percent. However, Rick Callender, president of the San Jose/Silicon Valley branch of the NAACP, said the auditors numbers were probably skewed by underreporting on the pert of people who had had ~xpedences similar to his recent encounter with the police.Callender said he had been strolling through San Jose on April 24 when he was stopped by ~fficers looking for a "tall black men with a light beard" - his general 5/10/2001 Page 2 of 3 descdplion.Callender said one of the three officers he had spoken with dudng the contact was "nice," but the other two were aggressive, responding to Callender's questions by ordedng him to "just be quiet (and) stand there.""lf I had asked any more questions, I would have been going downtown, 'ested for resisting arrest," Callender said.The NAACP is calling on the ~nayor and pelice chief to improve officer sensitivity training, to begin tmckiag the races of people searched in addition to the race of those stopped by police, and to install video cameras in all police cars to record encounters.The independent auditor's prim an/recommendations were similar, calling for the same expanded racial trecking and for a formal policy banning harassment or retaliation against citizens or other officers who complain about officer miscenduct. E-mail Matthew B. Stannard at mstannard@sfchmnide.com. Protest Held in Slaying of Man by Police; Violence: Family, friends of 18-year-old accuse Huntington Beach force of racism after learning be had a toy gun when shot. The probe is continuing. Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times Los Angeles Times...05/OS/2OOf CHRISTINE HANLEY, DANIEL YI, TIMES STAFF WRITERS More than 60 protesters marched on Huntington Beach Ckh/Hall and police headquarters Monday, charging radsm after investigators confirmed that the gun an 18-year-old farm worker allagedly pointed at officers during a fatal weekend shooting was a toy dfle. Toting handwritten signs saying, "We don't trust the H.B. Police any more," relatives and friends questioned police accounts that Antonio Saldivar, who has no histon/of violence, pointed any weapon at officers before he was killed. Saldivar was shot about 1:40 a.m, Saturday after a short chase by a patrolman that began and ended in a '~redominantly Latino neighborhoed, a few blocks from the small stucco ,partmerit Saldivar shared with his extended family on Queens Lane. "(Police) do what they want because we san't do anything about it," Susana Campos, Saldivar's sister, said in a tearful intelview. "if he was carrying a gun, where is it?. Where are the fingerprints?" Huntington Beach Sgt. Chuck Thomas, who met with Campos at police headquarters during the demonstration, asked the community to have patience, promising that investigators would get to the bottom of things. "A tremendous amount of sympathy goes out to this gentleman's family as well as the officer," Thomas said. "VVe don't become police officers to hurt people." Thomas said the shooling occurred after officers spotted Saldivar late at night, wearing dark clothes, suspiciously peering into a parked pickup tnJck near Ash Street. INhen approached by a uniformed officer, Saldivar fled on foot, Thomas said. The officer eventually caught up to him and found Saldivar crouched behind a car. The officer, in both English and Spanish, ordered Saldivar to stand up and show himeft. When Saldivar did so, he was pointing the rifle at the oflicer, Thomas said. Thomas said he has no explanation as to why Saldivar would pick up a toy gun with police chasing him: "Thst's ven/puzzling. Unfortunately, we may never know." Orange County sheriffs detectives are investigating the officer-involved shooting. Sheriffs spoken Sgt. Steve Doan on Monday said a toy dfle was confiscated from the scene and is being considered as evidence, describing it as 20 inches long with a wood stock and blue steel barrel. "I'm sure it looked real to the officer at the scene that night," Doan said. Investigators would not disclose whether Saldivafs fingerprints were on the gun or reveal where or how many times he was shot. Police ~fficials also refused to disclose the name of the offcar involved in the shooting despite a 1995 state appellate court ruling that found that the public interest for full disclosure outweighs the rights of deputies to have their names withheld. Huntington Beach City Atty. Gall Hutton said the 5/]0/2001 Page 3 of 3 officers name is being withheld because of rumors that local gang members have threatened Huntington Beach officers because of the shooting. Hutton did not provide details about the rumors. "1 am concemed about the life of the officer," she said. During Monday's protests, Saldivar's family and friends ast doubt on the police account of events, saying that Saldivar was a peaceful, hard-working teenager who did not cause trouble. "We come to this country to work," said Saldivar's mother, Epifania Huertero, a hotel housekeeper."We're not criminals," she said. "The police are racists. not fair that the police kill. The police are supposed to help the youth, not kill them." Chief Penny Harrington Author, "Triumph of Spirit" available at Amazon .com National Center for Women & Polidng (a division of the Feminist Majority Foundation) 8105 W. 3rd Street Los Angeles, CA 90048 323-651-2532 5/10/2001 Page 1 of 2 Sandy Bauer From: Womencops@aoLcom at: Tuesday, May 08, 2001 9:53 PM To: MaryJeni~aoLcom Subject: DrugsTrafficking Probe Continues ONE POLICE PLAZA; Confidential; Drug-Trafficking Probe Continues Copyright2001 Newsday, inc. Newsday (New York, NY)...05/07/2001 By Leonard Levitt; STAFF WRITER Federal officials are investigating whether one or mare police officers were involved with a recently demoted deputy inspector accused of narcotics violations while in a Bronx homicide-narcotics task force six years ago, sources told Newsday yesterday. The deputy inspector, Dennis Sindone, was demoted to captain Fdday, less than a manth alter Commissioner Bernard Kedk had promoted him. Alter the promotion, he had been placed on modified assignment, his badge taken from him. Police sources say his promotion, which came alter he had been a captain for about a year, had been recommended to Kedk by a sergeant in Kedk's secu~j~ detail who had served with Sindone in the same Bronx task force. Kerik's spokesman Tom Antehen declined to comment. Police sources said the task force was put together in the 1990s as police officials determined that most homicides were drug related. The unit, which ~worksd closely with the datec'dve bureau, was disbanded about a year and a ~r ago, the sources said. In what appears to be the first whiff of major ,-Jice corruption under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, the department has pertrayed Sindone's actions as isolated and occurring while he was off dub/, but sources said the feds are investjgating the possibility that more cops may have been involved. Neither the department nor the feds have described the specific allegations against Sindone. But three sources told Newsday last week that Sindone is accused of protecting a drug shipment, a charge his altomey Philip Karasyk said, "Sindone categorically denies." Most disturbing to top department officials is, first, that Sindone, an 18~yearveteran, is the highest ranking department official ever implicated in alleged drug trafficking and, second, that he was enormously well-regarded at One Police Plaza. As a chief for whom he worked put it last week, "If Dennis did this, he must have been desperate." Police sources say the allegations against Sindone were first brought to be feds by a confidential informant seeking a better deal for himself alter his arrest on undisciosed charges. Yet despite the source of the allegations, no one in the department has rushed to defend ~Sindone. A top police of~dal said last week, "The question is not whether or not Sindone will lose his job but whather or not he will go to jail." Apparently, the feds have more than the word of a confidential informant. *** Alan's List. Here are some of the folks Comptroller Alan Hevesi says advise him on police issues in his mayoral campaign: Former police commissioner Bill Bratton, who has endorsed Hevesi's dval, Mark Green; Philadelphia police commissioner John Timoney, who Hevesi says he last spoke to seven manths ago; and current commissioner Kedk, who recently criticized Hevesi for accusing the Police Department of racial profiling. Now here are the people Hevssi says he would consider for police commissioner if elected mayor: 'Rmaney; former commissioner Ray Kelly; current first deputy Joe Dunne, who Hevesi ;knowledges he barely knows; Keitk (which would make him the first police ..ommissioner retained by an incoming mayor); and Bratton (which would make 5/10/2001 Page 2 of 2 him the first police commissioner in dty history to have backed a rival candidate). f Penny Harrington Author, "Triumph of Spirit" available at Amazon .com National Center for Women & Pollring (a division of the Feminist Majority Foundation) 8105 W. 3rd Street Los Angeles, CA 90048 323-651-2532 5/10/2001 .Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq{~aol.com Serl~ Thursday, May 10, 2001 9:05 AM To. BAttard@d.berkeley,ca.us; Teresa.GuerTero-Daley{ci,sj,ca.us; SIF{citymgr. sannet.gov; · eske{sdccd.cc.ca.us; c~sher{~rnail.sdsu,edu; DWdliarn{d.dverside.ca.us; JParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH{co.san-diego.ca.us; mbobb~pacbell,net; dhbums~lasd.org; smdacus~lasd.org; MGrossm{lasd.org; NKULLA~aol,com; c- novak{ix. netcorn.com; EllenSTaylor(~yahoo,com; HGoldh2o~aol.com; rfass{pomona.edu; Cuquiz{)aol.com; wq6i{earthlink.net; StuHolmes~aol.com; paint,?. {gateway.net; jemurphyg09(~earthlink. net; smaxberry{}bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla{~co,la,ca.us; cburdick@maui.net; CReeder~indygov.org; cdavis~ultra-tech.com; davisf{nysnet.net; NACOLE95~aol.com; james.johnson{~dnlaw.rcc.org; DCasirnere{~gw.sacto,or9; MMonteiro(~ci.cambddge.rna.us; Sandovaj{mscd.edu; dede~hawaiian.net; rowaugh{~d.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel{yahoo.com; marldris~northwestem,edu; LPMuFphy@cityorooise.org; ~nkle@ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS(~aoLcom; CScott7544{}aol.com; mcdonaldp~dpdchiefinv.ci.detroitmi.us; ronald.clarkson(~co.mo.rnd.us; bjackson{~oaklandnet.com; LPerezl(~maiLd.tucson,az.us; jwillia4{~ci.phoenix.az. us; RHAaronson{gateway.net; JimFight{cs,corn; mhess4~ci.portland.or, us; psalk~maiLals.edu; rheve{mail,als.edu; asb~co,dark. nv.us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-city.org; Patricia. Hughes2@ci.rninneapolis.rnn.us; phileure~hotmail.com; Sfmedley22615@cs.com; irp~co,rniami-dade.fl.us; Cdavisi~diocese-gal-hou,org; hector.w.soto~phila,gov; don.luna{ci.stpaul.mn.us; mike{cdsadr.o~g; LCeisler~_,aol.com; Ellen.Ceisler~phila,gov; SGudn{pcweb,net; mumsee1 @rnindspring.com; Illlola{juno.com; jw2b{fuse,net; ddandrewsphd{woddnet.att,net; dheard{ci.rnil.wi.us; rramos~contracosta.cc.ca.us; Trgunnl {aoLcom; SXH(~citymgr.sannet.gov; elima{uottawa.ca; martina{hdcdojnet. state,ca.us; Slecorre~uottawa.ca; rzoss~mymailstation,com; PZamaryq~yahoo.com; afryer~seattletimes,com; LSiegel@aclu.or9; tiyeluv{~hotmail.com; Tim.Ohara{herald-tdb.com; Susan. Sheldon(~vedzon.net; d,ramirez{~nunet.neu.edu; Mvdanielesq{aol,com; sharewhy~hotrnail.com; Kelly.Thomton~uniontdb.com; linda.legerrette{earthshareca,org; WLN{g~sdpdms,sannet,gov; RmDuvall@aol.com; Chevigny@tudng.iaw.nyu.edu; AEHobron(g)aol.com; rashbaum{nytimes,com; skolnick{~tudng.law. nyu,edu; apc21 l{~nyu.edu; samwalker{unornaha.edu; spgetty{~azstametcom; Womencops~aol.com; Collina{~hrw.org; lynn_davis~la.kiddand.com; hfujie{buchalter.com; rtrotter{}akingump.com; david.weiss~cgu,edu; mcnamara@hoover.stanford.edu; DMack500{~aol.com; mgraham{nctimes.com; rgreenspan@policefoundation.org; BAP, BARAPYLE{~att.net; bilLfinney{ci.stpaul.mn,us; DRPPG{aoLcom; nancy_falcon@qc. edu; usmexborder~igc.apc.org Subject: Miami: Fed Role Solicited in Police Shooting; Police Coverups Alleged Miami Herald 5 3 01 Fed role solicited in police shooting Black leaders end meeting unhappily BY NICOLE WHITE AND ELAINE DE VALLE edevalle@herald,com After a three-hour meeting Wednesday with black community leaders, Miami's mayor, city manager and police chief called for the FBI and U.S. attorney's office to help investigate a fatal police shooting of an unarmed teenager in Overtown. "There"s not a lot of faith or trust in the Internal Affairs section of the Miami Police Department -- and not just from the African-American community, but across all lines by Miamians, period," Mayor Joe Carollo said. "While I believe the vast majority of the men and women of our police d ~rtment are doing an outstanding job, we have serious problems i :rnally," Carollo said. "We have some people who apparently have felt that, because of the culture in the past, they can do anything and get away with it. And this has to be addressed." Three officers have been teassigned to desk duty in the aftermath of Monday night's slaying of Nicholas Alexis Singleton, 18. Singleton was shot dead on the roof of a house after he and Gil Falcon, 19, bailed out of a stolen Jeep that police were chasing. Police said they heard gunshots and returned fire. No gun has been found. ~lcon, who posted $5,000 bond Wednesday night, said he and Singleton picked up two girls -- ages 13 and 16 -- at a gas station in Overtown. Minutes later, they saw the police lights behind them, and he panicked. "Nick told me not to stop because he had warrants out on him," Falcon said. "But I did." Me said the two jumped out and ran. "I was just scared. I didn't know what to do," he said. The two ran through yards and approached a house at 714 NW 10th St. They climbed a fence to get on the roof to hide. "I heard the shots," Falcon said. "They were shooting when I jumped over the fence.'~ When he got on the roof, Singleton pushed him off just after he was shot. "He saved my life," Falcon said. "It's sad, because I can't thank him. They killed him just like that." He insists neither was armed. "We didn't have any guns. If Nick had a gun, he would have told me," he said. ~ter Nick pushed him off the roof, officers apprehended him. fhey kept asking, 'Where's the gun? Where's the gun?' And I kept telling them, 'I don't have a gun.' ~' Singleton's death comes as a Miami federal grand jury is looking into six previous shootings for possible civil rights violations. Four people were killed and two injured in those cases, which occurred between 1995 and 1999. Miami Police spokesman Delrish Moss said the federal agencies' involvement would give added weight to the city's own investigation. 'TRYING TO BE FAIR' "We basically opened ourselves up to them and said, 'Feel free to look at this and make sure we dot our I's and cross our T's. Just to ensure people that we are trying to be fair and equitable about this," he said. Some community leaders said they were not satisfied with what they heard at the police headquarters meeting with Carollo, City Manager Carlos Gimenez and Police Chief Paul Martinez. Several activists, including the Rev. Richard Dunn, left before the meeting ended. Dunn, a former city commissioner, said city officials tried to calm the group rather than give them answers. "It's time for us to uproot some of the police officers who just don't seem have any value for black life," said Dunn, pastor of the Word of Life tist Church. "We don't condone stealing cars. But that is not a capital o~fense. These officers need to go to jail, because we're tired of them 2 having no consequences for their actions." LEADERS 'OUTRAGED' Pie and other black leaders said they were "outraged and disgusted" with the = of information from police. "I don't know what happened at that shooting. But I do know they got to stop using the young black man for target practice," said Rose Green of the Overtown Advisory Board. "Nothing is changing in the city of Miami," said Hattie Willis, president of Con~nunities United. Police declined to release the personnel and Internal Affairs records of the three officers, because homicide detectives were reviewing them. Investigators have questioned two teenage girls who remained in the Jeep, Moss said. "They are only considered witnesses." The three officers -- Brian Wilson, 24; Rafael Borroto, 35; and Javier Gonzalez, 31 -- have been "administratively teassigned," Moss said, standard practice during an inquiry. NO STATEMENTS The three declined to give voluntary statements to investigators on the advice of a Fraternal Order of Police attorney, FOP President A1 Cotera said. He said the officers would make statements if ordered to by investigators. "I'll get themat home and march them into the department myself," he said. ( ~ra said the recent federal indictments of some Miami SWAT teem officers involved in one of the six questionable shootings has fellow officers keeping a tight lip. "These SWAT officers gave voluntary statements the very same day of the incident," he said about the officers indicted in the death of 73-year-old Richard Brown. "Five years later, those statements are being used against them. . . People are not talking. Nobody feels comfortable anymore." Reached at home, Officer Gonzalez declined to talk to The Herald. "Not yet. Until I see my attorney, I can't comment," he said. RECENT HIRES ~_ll three officers are recent hires of the department. According to a city employee database, Wilson and Gonzalez were hired in June 1998. Borroto was hired in March 1997. Monday's incident began on Northwest 10th Street at Third Avenue. Wilson radioed that he was behind a red Jeep listed as stolen on a BOLO -- be on the lookout -- sheet. Moss said he did not know when it was taken. As Wilson pursued the Jeep, it sped west on 10th and stopped at Seventh Court. Singleton and Falcon started running and ended up on the same rooftop. F ~r the foot pursuit began, a report of "shots fired" was radioed to ~ .ce headquarters, Moss said. But after inspecting the shooting scene and a four-square-block area around it, no gun has been found, he said. It was not known whose bullets, or how many, hit Singleton. Evidence markers on the street indicate that 16 shots were fired from where the three officers were standing· Falcon was charged with third-degree grand theft auto. ~~.e medical examiner's office did not release details of the autopsy pending the police investigation but said Singleton's body would be released today to the Hall Ferguson Funeral Home. Miam_i Police coverups are alleged Federal grand jury reviews officers' acts in shoorings BY GAIL EPSTEIN NIEVES AND DAVID KIDWELL gepstein@heratd.com SEE ALSO Fed role solicited in police shooting A federal grand jury in Miami is investigating a series of controversial shoorings by Miami Police, looking at whether officers concEitted unjustified shoorings and then covered them up with the tacit approval of supervisors. Included in the civil-rights inquiry so far are six shootings that took place between 1995 and 1999, according to police, lawyers and grand-jury subpoenas reviewed by The Herald. Those shootings, which involved several close-knit bands of officers, claimed four lives and injured two people. Criminal corruption charges have already been lodged against officers in two of the six shootings. Miami Police have identified a third and possibly fourth case as instances where police planted guns on unarmed suspects in an attempt to justify shoorings. ond the circumstances of each case, prosecutors also are examining whether u~partment brass -- internal Affairs bosses in particular -- tacitly encouraged officers to "cover up" problematic shootings by failing to thoroughly scrutinize the incidents, according to a federal investigator familiar with the grand jury probe. All of the shoorings were first reviewed by Mi~ml Police homicide and Internal Affairs investigators, the firearms review board and by a county judge at a probable-cause hearing called an inquest. "They're looking to see if there was any wrongdoing by the officers," said Maj. Paul Shepard, co~=nander of the Internal Affairs unit. "I guess in the cases they've chosen to look at they feel there are some questions that weren't answered in our investigations." Shepard said the department has no objection to the federal review, which he said he knows little about. "We're not trying to cover up anything," he said. "I think we're a competent, professional organization, and if we can be improved, more power to us." Police Chief Raul Martinez did not return a phone call seeking comment. Allan Kaiser, the lead prosecutor on the case, declined comment. For now, the investigation focuses on two cadres of officers, some former 'ercover street narcotics detectives and others on the department's SWAT a. Several of the officers have been involved in repeated shootings. 4 FATAL SWAT SHOOTING Included in the probe is the fatal 1996 shooting of a 73-year-old Miami grandfather, Richard Brown, who was shot by the SWAT team in a spray of 123 ~llets. Five veteran Miami officers were arrested in March on federal :truction of justice charges in the case. They were Sgt. Jose Acuaa and officers Ralph Fuentes, Eliezer Lopez, Arturo Beguiristain and Alejandro Macias. Brown's f~mily sued the city, alleging the killing was a police "throw-down" -- in which officers planted a gun to justify shooting an innocent man. The police department cleared the officers, but the city settled the suit for $2.5 million. Lawyers said at least six officers who were on the Brown shooting scene but who were not indicted were subpoenaed to testify to the grand jury in March. They included officers William Abraira, Raynard Gilbert and Willie Jones, Lt. Mike Peter and Sgts. George Velez and Curtis Hoosier. When the officers arrived at the grand jury, they learned the session had been canceled that day. They were released from their subpoenas and asked to give voluntary statements, lawyers in the case said. At least one, Lt. Peter, did. Roy Kahn, Acu~a's attorney, said federal authorities are on a "fishing trip" looking for stronger evidence against his client. "I think they are sending out subpoenas in an effort to squeeze all these guys," he said. iVE INCIDENT Also under review is another highly publicized incident that the department identified as a gun-planting case: the June 1997 shooting of an unarmed homeless man in Coconut Grove. Jesus "Jesse" Aguero, a 13-year veteran and longtime member of the department's elite narcotics squad, was accused of planting the weapon. A Miami-Dade jury acquitted him in March. Officers Jorge Castello, who fired the shot, and Oscar Ronda are charged with perjury. Their prosecutions are still pending. A fourth officer, Rolando Jacobo, was convicted of perjury after he admitted he lied about the gun on crime scene reports. He testified against Aguero. In addition to those cases, a grand jury subpoena dated April 19 asked the police department for Internal Affairs records on the following cases: On Nov. 7, 1995, undercover officers Aguero, Jorge Garcia, Israel Gonzalez, John Mervolion and William Hames fired at least 34 shots that killed two suspected tourist robbers near an Interstate 395 overpass. Derrick Wiltshire and Antonio Young, both 19 and shot in the back, were killed as they fled. Both had inoperable handguns. Another suspect who was captured has maintained the two were unarmed. ~ families of both dead men have filed civil rights suits. OFFICERS SUBPOENAED Among those subpoenaed by the grand jury are Officer Roland B. Sampson, and sgts. Rafael J. Martinez, Eduardo Martinez and Juan M. Gonzalez. April 13, 1996, police caught up with a couple of suspected robbers at h~rthwest Third Avenue and 43rd Street. One of them, Steve J. Carter, made a run for it. Officer Aguero, riding with Acua~a, took off after him. Aguero said in a sworn statement that Carter turned toward him with a gun. He fired several times and missed. Acu~a also told investigators he saw Carter with a weapon. Carter was caught hiding in a shed. Beguiristain found a gun a few yards away, under leaves. But from the start, Carter insisted he had no gun. And police investigators believe him. They think one of their own planted a Rossi .38 special. When investigators later traced that revolver, it led them right back to the officers who they believe planted it. Police say the gun was stolen by officers during a drug raid five months before it mysteriously appeared on Carter's crime scene. They just don't know which officer. In April 1998, SWAT officer Beguiristain shot a suspect in the back after the suspect atlegedly "pulled the gun at" him and Officer Raimundo Socorro. Beguiristain said he later found the suspect's gun nearby, SECOND GUN The next day, crime scene technicians found a second gun -- raising guestions '~ut the source of the first one. On March 23, 1999, SWAT officer Macias shot and killed Jesse Runnels, a hard-drinking and suicidal landscape maintenance worker who police said brandished a toy gun to provoke his own killing. Police said these were his last known words: "Suicide by cop! Death by cop! Come in and kill me!" Runnels had been troubled for months. That night, officers found him in his front yard bleeding from several cuts and waving a butcher knife. He threw the knife at them, missing. They sent for SWAT. Macias fired after he saw Runnels holding what looked like a real gun, police said. But they declined to say whether Runnels pointed the toy at Macias, or to give other details. Lawyers said grand jury subpoenas have been issued for three officers who were on the Runnels scene: Anthony Utset and Sgts. Frank G. Fernandez and Robert Rambo. Michael Palahach, the lawyer for Runnels' family, said his clients are pleased that the federal government is pursuing the matter criminally. 'he family is pleased with any action by any goverrm~nt agency that will .d to the truth," Palahach said. 6 But Macias' defense attorney, William Matthewman, called the federal probe "a total waste of time." He said the Runnels case was a "clean shoot." Matthewman said his client and other officers have been involved in multiple shootings because they are called to very dangerous situations. ink about it," Matthewman said. "They're in a SWAT team. Where do they gor They go to situations like Columbine. They aren't writing parking tickets." Sandy Bauer From: Suelqq(~aol.com ~'- '~t: Thursday, May 10, 2001 1:42 AM BAttard~ci.be~eley.ca.us; Temsa. Guerrero-Daley~)ci.sj.ca.us; SIF~citymgr,sannet.gov; fheske~)sdccd.cc.ca.us; cfisher~imail,sdSu.edu; DWilliam~ci.riverside.ca.us; JParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca.us; PParkeCH~co.san-diego.ca.us; mbobl~pacbell.net; dhbums~lasd.opg; smdacus~lasd.oq]; MGrossm~lasd.org; NKULLA~aoLcom; c- novakl~ix.netcom.com; EllenSTaylor~yahoo.com; HGoldh2o~eol.com; rfass~pomona.edu; Cuquiz~aol.com; wq6i~eafthlink.net; StuHolmes~aol.com; paint2 ~}gateway.net; jemurphyg09~earthlink.net; smaxberry(g~bos.co.la.ca.us; Ombudla~i}co.la.ca.us; cburdick~maui.net; CReeden~indygov.org; cdavis~ultra-tech.com; davisfi~nysnet.net; NACOLE95~aOLcOm; james.johnson~cinlaw.rcc.org; DCasimem~gw.sacto.org; MMonteiro~ci.cambrklge.ma.us; Sandovaj~mscd.edu; dede~hawaiian.net; rowaugh4~ci.long-beach.ca.us; yogijoel ~yahoo.com; markiris4~northwestem.edu; LPMurphy~cityofboise.oq}; ~nkle~ccrb.nyc.gov; CammeS~aol.com; CScott7544~aol.com; mcdonaldpt~dpdchiefinv.ci.detroitmi.us; mnald.clarkson~co.mo.md.us; bjackson~oaldandnet,com; LPemzl ~mail.ci.tucson.az. us; jwillia4~ci.phoenix.az.us; RHAaronsonl~gateway.net; JimFight~cs.com; mhess~ci.portland.or,us; psalk~mail.als.edu; rheve~mail.als.edu; asb~co.clark.nv.us; Sandy-Bauer~iowa-city.op~; Patdcia.Hughes2~ci.minneapolls.mn.us; phileuret~hotmail.com; Sfmedley22615~cs. com; irp~co.miami-dade.fl.us; Cdavis~diocese-gal-hou.org; hector,w.soto~phila.gov; don.luna(~ci.stpaul.mn.us; mike~cdsadr. org; LCeisler~aol.com; Ellen. Ceisler~phila.gov; SGurinCpcweb.net; mumsee1 ~mindspring.com; Illlola~ijuno.corn; jw2b~fuse.net; ddandrewsphd~woddnet.attnet; dheard~ci.mil.wi.us; rmmos~contracosta.cc. ca,us; Trgunnl~aol.com; $XH~r.,ityrngr. sannet.gov; efima~uottawa.ca; madina~hdcdejnet,state.ca.us; Stecorre~uottawa.ca; rzoss~mymailstation.com; PZamary~yehoo,com; afryer~seattletimes. Com; LSlegel(~aclu.org; tiyeluv~hotmail.com; Tim.Oham~hemld-tdb.com; Susan. SheldonCvedzon.net; d.ramirez~}nunet.neu,edu; MvdanielesqCaol.com; sharewhyig~hotmail,com; Kelly.Thomton~uniontrtb,com; linda.legenette{~eadhshamca.org; VVLN~sdpdms.sannet.gov; RmDuvall{giaol,com; Chevigny~tudng.law.nyu.edu; AEHobron~aol,com; rashbaum~nytimes. com; skolnick~tudng.law. nyu.edu; apc211 ~nyu.edu; samwa|ker~unomaha.edu; spgetty~azstamet.com; Womencops~aol.com; Collina~hnN,org; lynn_davls~la.kirldand,com; hfujie~buchalter. com; rtrotter~}akingump.com; david.weiss~cgu.edu; mcnamarai~hoover.stanford.edu; DMack500~aol.com; mgmham~nctimes.com; rgreenspan~policefoundation.org; BARBARAPYLE~att,net; bill.finney~d.stpaul,mn.us; DRPPG~aol.com; nancy,_falcon~N:lc.edu; usmexborder~igc. apc. org Subject: After Vegas RevBd Rept, Sgt To Fired for False Reporting Today: May 09, 2001 at 10:47:57 PDT Sergeant may be fired over probe of officer misconduct By Keith Paul <keith@lasvegassun.com> LAS VEGAS SUN ~heriff Jerry Keller started the process Tuesday of firing a sergeant accused covering up for an officer during an internal investigation of a . ~sconduct complaint. Keller signed Commander Mike Ault's recoP~aendation that Sgt. Dan Southwell be fired after department charges of neglect of duty and falsifying a police port were sustained. That sends Southwell's case to a pre-termination board, which will hear the case and send a ~ecommendation to Keller, Undersheriff Richard Winget said. The board can recon~nend Southwell's firing or a lesser punishment, but Keller has the final say on the discipline. Southwell was relieved of duty last week after an internal affairs "restigation alleged he falsified reports in his investigation clearing ricer Richard Splinter of raisconduct. "If you lose your integrity, it's difficult to remain a police officer in a world where your word can send people to jail," Winget said. "We expect our supervisors to conduct fact-based investigations to determine if officers' actions are proper and will tolerate nothing less." Southwell, 40, a 13-year Metro veteran, could not be reached for comment this morning. Jon Tignor filed a complaint against Splinter claiming the off-duty officer pulled back his shirt to show Tignor his gun. Tignor, umpiring a baseball game, ejected Splinter from the game shortly beforehand. Southwell, a patrol sergeant who supervised Splinter, conducted an investigation of the complaint and cleared the officer. But Tignor filed a complaint with the Citizen Review Board, which called Southwell's investigation shoddy. Metro concurred with the board's assessment and reopened the case. During the review of Southwell's investigation, internal affairs detectives found information in his report that appeared to have been concocted. Southwell stated in his report a North Las Vegas Police lieutenant who was called to the ballfield found no wrongdoing on the part of Splinter. When the lieutenant was contacted, he claimed he never made such a statement, Winget 'id. alice also found that a witness Southwell said was questioned about the incident never made a statement to police, Winget said. The review board said in its report that Southwell didn't even interview two of the three witnesses named in the incident report filed by Splinter. "The investigating Officer interviewed only two witnesses, the officer who was the subject of the complaint and one other witness who had been friends with both the investigating officer and the officer charged with misconduct," the board wrote. Southwell contacted Tignor, but "based upon his experience," decided Tignor "was drunk and uncooperative." The board found Tignor doesn't drink, but he does have a speech impediment, the board said in its decision. The new internal investigation sustained a misconduct complaint against Splinter and uncovered the suspected problems with Southwell's investigation, Winget said. Splinter's discipline for his conduct will be recommended by his supervisors, but most likely will not be as severe as what Southwell faces, If Southwell is fired, he can appeal the decision. rainget said there was only one officer he can remember who falsified a police port, and he was fired. An arbitrator ruled Metro had to rehire that officer, but Winget said the officer was accused of falsifying another report and was fired again. Page 1 of 4 Sandy Bauer From: Womencops~aol,com Sent: F~clay, May 04, 2001 10:31 AM To: Ma~/Jeni~aol.com Subject: Coveraps of Miami Police Shoolings Alleged A federal grand jury in Miami is investigating a series of controversial shootings by Miami Police, looking at whether officers committed unjustified shoorings and then covered them up with the tacit approval of supervisors. Included in the civil-rights inquiry so far are six shoorings that took place between 1995 and 1999, according to police, lawyers and grand-jury subpoenas reviewed by The Herald. Those shoorings, which involved several close-knit bands of officers, claimed four lives and injured two people. Criminal corruption charges have already been lodged against officers in two of the six shoorings. Miami Police have identified a third and possibly fourth case as instances where police planted guns on unarmed suspects in an attempt to justify shootings. Beyond the circumstances of each case, prosecutors also are examining whether department brass -- Internal Affairs bosses in particular -- tacitly encouraged officers to ' ' cover up" problematic shoorings by failing to thoroughly scrutinize the incidents, according to a federal investigator familiar with the grand jury probe. All of the shootings were first reviewed by Mlami Police homicide and Tnternal Affairs investigators, the firearms review board and by a county judge at a probable-cause hearing called an inquest. · 'They're looking to see if there was any wrongdoing by the officers," said Maj. Paul Shepard, commander of the Internal Affairs unit. ' 'I guess in the cases they've chosen to look at they feel there are some questions that weren't answered in our investigations." Shepard said the department has no objection to the federal review, which he said he knows little about. · ' We're not trying to cover up anything," he said. ' 'I think we're a competent, professional organization, and if we can be improved, more power to us," Police Chief Paul Martinez did not return a phone call seeking comment. Allan Kaiser, the lead prosecutor on the case, declined comment. For now, the investigation focuses on two cadres of officers, some former undercover street narcotics detectives and others on the department's SWAT team, Several of the officers have been involved in repeated shoorings, FATAL SWAT SHOOTING Included in the probe is the fatal 1996 shooting of a 73-year-old Hiami 5/7/2001 Page 2 of 4 grandfather, Richard Brown, who was shot by the SWAT team in a spray of 123 bullets. Five veteran Miami officers were arrested in March on federal obstruction of justice charges in the case. they were Sgt. 3ose Acufia and officers Ralph Fuentes, Eliezer Lopez, Arturo Beguiristain and Alejandro Macias. Brown's family sued the city, alleging the killing was a police · ' throw-down" -- in which officers planted a gun to justify shooting an innocent man. The police department cleared the officers, but the city settled the suit for $2.5 million. Lawyers said at least six officers who were on the Brown shooting scene but who were not indicted were subpoenaed to testify to the grand jury in March. They included officers William Abraira, RaynaN Gilbert and Willie 3ones, Lt. Hike Perez and Sgts. George Velez and Curtis Hoosier. When the officers arrived at the grand jury, they learned the session had been canoeled that day. They were released from their subpoenas and asked to give voluntary statements, lawyers in the case said. At least one, Lt. Perez, did. Roy Kahn, Acu~a's attorney, said federal authorities are on a ' ' fishing trip" looking for stronger evidence against his client. · ' I think they are sending out subpoenas in an effort to squeeze all these guys," he said. GROVE INCIDENT Also under review is another highly publicized incident that the department identified as a gun-planting case: the 3une 3.997 shooting of an unarmed homeless man in Coconut Grove. 3esus ' ' 3esse" Aguero, a 3.3-year veteran and longtime member of the department's elite narcotics squad, was accused of planting the weapon. A Miami-Dade jury acquitted him in March. Officers 3orge Castello, who fired the shot, and Oscar Ronda are charged with parjury. Their prosecutions are still pending. A fourth ofF~er, Rolando .lacobu, was convicted of perjury after he admitted he lied about the gun on crime scene reports. He testified against Aguero. In addition to those cases, a grand jury subpoena dated April 19 asked the palice department for Internal Affairs records on the following cases: On Nov. 7, 3.995, undercover officers Aguero, 3orge Garcia, Israel Gonzalez, 3ohn Mervolion and William Haines fired at least 34 shots that killed two suspected tourist robbers near an Interstate 395 overpass. Derrick Wiltshire and Antonio Young, beth 3.9 and shot in the back, were killed as they fled. Both had inoperable handguns. Another suspect who was 5/7/2001 Pag~ 3 of 4 captured has maintained the two were unarmed. The families of both dead men have filed civil rights suits. OFFZCERS SUBPOENAED Among those subpoenaed by the grand jury are Officer Roland B. Sampson, and Sgts, Rafael 3. Martinez, Eduardo Hartinez and Juan t4. Gonzalez. On April 13, 1996, police caught up with a couple of suspected robbers at Northwest Third Avenue and 43rd Street. One of them, Steve 3. Carter, made a run for it. Officer Aguero, riding with Acufia, took off alter him. Aguero said in a sworn statement that Garter turned toward him with a gun. He fired several times and missed. Acu~a also told investigators he saw Carter with a weapon. Garter was caught hiding in a shed. Beguidstain found a gun a few yards away, under leaves. But from the start, Carter insisted he had no gun. And police investigators believe him. They think one of their own planted a Rossi .38 special. When investigators later traced that revolver, it led them fight back to the officers who they believe planted it. Police say the gun was stolen by officers during a drug raid five months before it mysteriously appeared on Carter's crime scene. They just don't know which officer. Zn April 1998, SWAT officer Beguiristain shot a suspect in the beck alter the suspect allegedly ' ' pulled the gun at" him and OfFset Raimundo Socorro. Beguiristain said he later found the suspect's gun nearby. SECOND GUN The next day, crime scene technicians found a second gun -- raising questions about the source of the first one. On Harch 23, 1999, SWAT officer Macias shot and killed Jesse Runnels, a hard-drinking and suicidal landscape maintenance worker who police said brandished a toy gun to provoke his own killing. Police said these were his last known words: ' ' Suicide by cop! Death by cop! Come in and kill me!" Runnels had been troubled for months. That night, officers found him in his front yard bleeding from several cuts and waving a butcher knife. He threw the knife at them, missing. They sent for SWAT. Macias fired after he saw Runnels holding what looked like a real gun, police said. 5/7/2001 Page 4 of 4 But they declined to say whether Runnels pointed the toy at Macias, or to give other details. ~awyers said grand jury subpoenas have been issued for three officers who were on the Runnels scene: Anthony Utset and Sgts. Frank G. Fernandez and Hichael Palahach, the lawyer for Runnels' family, said his clients are pleased that the federal government is pursuing the matter criminally. · 'The family is pleased with any action by any government agency that will lead to the troth," Palahach said. But Macias' defense attorney, William Matthewman, called the federal probe · ' a total waste of time." He said the Runnels case was a ' ' clean shoot." Matthewman said his client and other officers have been involved in multiple shoorings because they are called to very dangerous situations. · 'Think about it," Matthewman said. ' 'They're in a SWAT team. Where do they go? They go to situations like Columbine. They aren't writing parking tickets." MIAMI HERALD ' Chief Penny Harrington Author. "Tdumph of Spirit" available at Amazon .corn National Center for Women & Poticing (a division of the Feminist Majority Foundation) 8105 W. 3rd Street Los Angeles, CA 90048 323-651-2532 5/7/2001