Police State

Police spies slept with, abandoned female targets on taxpayer dime

"It was not unusual for undercover operatives working for the SDS or its sister squad, the national public order unit, to have sexual relationships with women they were spying on. Of the 11 undercover police officers publicly identified, nine had intimate sexual relations with activists. Most were long-term, meaningful relationships with women who believed they were in a loving partnership. It was all standard procedure for the SDS. Some operatives ended their deployments by pretending to have a breakdown and vanishing, supposedly to go abroad, sending a few letters to their girlfriends with foreign postmarks." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPolice spies slept with, abandoned female targets on taxpayer dime

Apparently, Perjury Isn’t a Crime When Police Commit It

"Last October third, a Salt Lake City SWAT team, working with a federal Drug Task Force, kicked in the door of a 76-year-old woman. It turned out that the raiders had attacked the wrong home; the target was the house next door. An internal review learned that officer responsible for the raid, Detective Cooper Landvatter, falsified information in the affidavit filed to obtain the warrant. Police Chief Chris Burbank imposed a 20-hour suspension on Detective Landvatter. However, the officer faces no further disciplinary action or criminal charges for committing perjury and abetting a home invasion that terrorized an elderly woman." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingApparently, Perjury Isn’t a Crime When Police Commit It

“For Your Own Protection”

"Every day in this supposedly free country, police commit an act that was impermissible for their antecedents in imperial Rome: In the name of 'officer safety,' they handcuff American citizens who are not criminal suspects while conducting investigations. Police also routinely inflict summary punishment – using batons, Tasers, pepper spray, or other means – against those who resist being detained without cause. Within a few years police will have at their disposal handcuffs that can impart electrical shocks to detainees." Continue reading →

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New Jersey cop caught punching woman in the face on video

"Police in Elizabeth, New Jersey are investigating footage that has surfaced online of an officer hitting a woman in the face during an altercation outside a nightclub. Authorities told WNBC-TV on Wednesday that the unidentified officer seen in the video, which was posted on YouTube on March 3, is still on active duty while they look into the incident outside a local nightclub." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNew Jersey cop caught punching woman in the face on video

Former Denver cop Hector Paez gets 8 years for assault, kidnapping

"Former Denver Police officer Hector Paez has been sentenced to eight years in prison for sexual assault and kidnapping, the Denver District Attorney's Office announced Friday. Paez, now 33, was in uniform May 16, 2010, when he came in contact with the victim, a 36-year-old woman, and ran a background check on her, finding an outstanding arrest warrant out of Jefferson County. Paez then took the woman to an isolated area and coerced her into 'performing a sexual act to avoid being taken to jail,' the DA's office said when charges were filed." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFormer Denver cop Hector Paez gets 8 years for assault, kidnapping

Ex-sheriff charged with drug distribution, selling guns from evidence

"A former sheriff is due in court Monday for a pre-trial hearing. Former Carter County Sheriff Tommy Adams is charged with two felonies of distribution of a controlled substance, for methamphetamine and cocaine. He's also charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Adams pleaded guilty in April 2012 to federal charges for stealing firearms that had been seized as evidence, then selling some of them. Adams' former deputy, former Carter County Deputy Steffanie Kearbey, pleaded guilty to the same federal charges." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEx-sheriff charged with drug distribution, selling guns from evidence

Texas cop fired for shooting 41 times at suspect, killing him

"A Texas police officer who fired 41 shots at a chase suspect in August has been fired. Michael Allen, 25, was shot and killed after a high-speed chase that began in Garland and ended in Mesquite, Texas. Allen was wanted on suspicion of eluding police in Sasche a few days earlier. Garland police spokesman Officer Joe Harn said Tuter violated the department's general order of use of force and its pursuit protocol. The department at first said that Tuter opened fire in fear of his life, but dashboard camera video raised concerns after it showed that Tuter had rammed Allen's truck and fired 41 shots after he cornered Allen. Tuter reloaded twice, police said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTexas cop fired for shooting 41 times at suspect, killing him

Wash. state bill allows police to search students without parental consent

"A Washington state bill, S.B. 5618, that would allow police officers, or 'school resource officers,' to search students without probable cause or parental consent, passed the State Senate Monday, 30-19. The legislation would allow police to search a student's person, locker and possessions if they are believed to be violating the law or any school rule. Currently under Washington state law, if a school employee has a reasonable suspicion to search a student, they have the right, but a police officer serving as a school resource officer cannot search a student without probable cause." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWash. state bill allows police to search students without parental consent

US DOT Blasts Mississippi For Diverting DUI Funds To Speeding Tickets

"Mississippi police agencies have been diverting federal grant funds intended to combat drunk driving into an expansion of the use of speed traps. The US Department of Transportation's inspector general chided the NHTSA for its lax administration of the 'Section 154' grant program that failed to prevent the misuse of taxpayer money. 2926 citations were issued by 127 state and local police officers using the DUI grant money. The analysis found 73 percent of the officers issued no drunk-driving related citations at all. There were only 147 DUI arrests or citations, and the rest were for speeding, seat belt use or other minor infractions." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUS DOT Blasts Mississippi For Diverting DUI Funds To Speeding Tickets

Texas proposes one of nation’s “most sweeping” mobile privacy laws

"Privacy experts say that a pair of new mobile privacy bills recently introduced in Texas are among the 'most sweeping' ever seen. If passed, the new bills would establish a well-defined, probable-cause-driven warrant requirement for all location information. That's not just data from GPS, but potentially pen register, tap and trace, and tower location data as well. Such data would be disclosed to law enforcement 'if there is probable cause to believe the records disclosing location information will provide evidence in a criminal investigation.' Further, the bills would require an annual transparency report from mobile carriers to the public and to the state government." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTexas proposes one of nation’s “most sweeping” mobile privacy laws