Who Watches The Watchers

Deputy in viral DUI checkpoint video has checkered past

"Channel 4 News has learned some new information about the Rutherford County sheriff's deputy who is seen in a viral video at a July 4 DUI checkpoint. Deputy AJ Ross has faced scrutiny in the past and has actually worked for the department on two different occasions. His personnel file shows Ross left the sheriff's department in 2004. He resigned instead of being terminated after failing to show up to testify in court on a day when he had dozens of criminal cases on the docket. He also missed a grand jury appearance, according to the file. On top of all that, Ross lied about having insurance when he rear-ended someone in his pickup truck, the file shows." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDeputy in viral DUI checkpoint video has checkered past

The State: Always the Accuser, Never the Defendant

"As Harvey Silverglate points out, each of us commits at least three acts each day that could be described as felonies by any reasonably ambitious prosecutor. By using NSA-provided metadata to conduct a 'pattern of life' analysis of a targeted individual, law enforcement agencies could probably contrive an excuse to arrest practically anybody at any time. This capacity will dramatically expand opportunities for official retaliation against Mundanes who seek redress for abuses committed by police – including family members of deceased victims." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe State: Always the Accuser, Never the Defendant

Perverted Judge Perverts Judgment With Pre-Signed Blank Arrest Warrants

"Michael Henderson, a former captain in the Murray County, Georgia Sheriff’s Office, has pleaded guilty to obstruction and witness tampering by retaliating against a woman who filed a complaint against a local judge. Henderson and a deputy sheriff staged a pretext traffic stop on a vehicle in which Mrs. Garmley was a passenger, a conspiracy to retaliate against Mrs. Garmley by planting methamphetamine in a small metal container hidden on the underside of the vehicle. Charges against them were dropped shortly after Judge Cochrane was forced to resign. In his letter of resignation, Cochrane admitted that he had illegally pre-signed blank warrants for police officers." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPerverted Judge Perverts Judgment With Pre-Signed Blank Arrest Warrants

Steroid abuse has become a major problem among police officers

"A national expert who's been studying steroid use in all types of subcultures from athletics to the military believes 'tens of thousands' of cops all across the U.S. are on such illegal drugs. A recent scandal in New Jersey turned up 248 public safety officials — most of them cops — who were getting steroids prescribed by a steroid-abusing doctor, and New Jersey officials responded by ordering random police drug testing. The biggest concern most people have over steroid 'juiced' cops is the potential for increased aggression in someone who's armed and trained to use everything from pepper spray and stun guns to firearms." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSteroid abuse has become a major problem among police officers

Rape and sexual assault run rampant in juvenile justice system: Justice Department survey

"Hundreds of teen-agers are raped or sexually assaulted during their stays in the country’s juvenile detention facilities, and many of them are victimized repeatedly, according to a U.S. Department of Justice survey. The teens are most often assaulted by staff members working at the facilities, and fully 20 percent of those victimized by the men and women charged with protecting and counseling them said they had been violated on more than 10 occasions. The Justice Department survey involved more than 8,500 boys and girls. In all, 1,720 of those surveyed reported being sexually assaulted." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRape and sexual assault run rampant in juvenile justice system: Justice Department survey

Man faces charges after impersonating a cop with help from sheriff’s deputies

"Last fall, Brian Sean Jones got into uniform, strapped on his gun and a badge and got in an unmarked Maricopa County Sheriffs Office truck. He made four stops that evening: one for a teen caught speeding, one of a suspected prostitute and her customer, one for a car driving without its headlights on, and one woman suspected of DUI. There was just one problem: Brian Sean Jones was not a sheriff’s deputy. Jones utilized his position at a local car dealership to ingratiate himself with now-fired Chief Deputy David Hendershott to gain access to uniforms, other police equipment, cars, ride-alongs and even the badge he was carrying on the night he got caught by a Phoenix police officer." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMan faces charges after impersonating a cop with help from sheriff’s deputies

Judge Finds Cop Not Guilty of Assault After Refusing to Watch Video of Assault

"A St. Louis cop is caught on video, slamming his forearm across the face of a handcuffed teenage suspect. However, when Bruce stepped in front of the judge to be tried this week, the judge refused to watch the video that came from a surveillance camera from the back of a police transport vehicle. As a result, Judge Theresa Counts Burke found him not guilty. But the head of the police union, Jeff Roorda, who is also a Missouri state representative, fully agreed with her decision not to view the video because he believes videos should only be used to protect police, not hold them accountable. Roorda is now going to help Bruce get his job back." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJudge Finds Cop Not Guilty of Assault After Refusing to Watch Video of Assault

Texting while judging: Judge texted assistance to prosecutors during trial(s)

"Not only is the judge who texted advice to prosecutors still on the bench, the assistant prosecutor accused of passing on her texts has herself been elected state district judge! Further evidence that the mechanisms for holding prosecutors and judges accountable for misconduct in Texas simply aren't effective or functional. A report by a court observer from the DA's office found that this was 'not the first time' the judge had provided such ex parte assistance and the lead prosecutor said her second chair was 'in her ear all the time regarding information she believes to be given her by Judge Coker via text during trial,' not just in this case but in others." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTexting while judging: Judge texted assistance to prosecutors during trial(s)

Virginia: $10 Million Red Light Camera Caught With Short Yellow

"One of the most profitable red light camera intersections in Virginia Beach, Virginia has been pulling in millions based from faulty engineering. The automated ticketing machine at the corner of Great Neck Road and Virginia Beach Boulevard generated $10 million worth of red light camera tickets, only to see profits tumble 64 percent when the yellow signal timing was extended by half-a-second in January. The longer yellows provide only partial relief, as the city and its for-profit vendor Redflex Traffic Systems of Australia have issued 92 percent of the tickets to drivers turning right on red in a perfectly safe manner." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingVirginia: $10 Million Red Light Camera Caught With Short Yellow

More inmates say guards at St. Louis jail forced them to fight ‘gladiator-style’

"Thirty inmates at a St. Louis jail want to join a class-action lawsuit saying they were forced into a 'gladiator-style' fight club — all for the amusement of guards. The potential for additional plaintiffs comes a year after the original suit was filed against the city and alleges a systemic problem at the Medium Security Institution, which is nicknamed the Workhouse. 'What was happening was the guards were actually taking inmates out of the cells, placing them in cells with other inmates and forcing them to fight each other,' Brown told St. Louis radio station KMOX. The station said the city has filed a response denying the allegations." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMore inmates say guards at St. Louis jail forced them to fight ‘gladiator-style’