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Police/Suspect Altercations

Law Enforcement: Man Trying to Snuff Joint at Checkpoint Ends Up Dead; Attorney Accuses Police

A Worcester, Massachusetts, man who died after being taken into at a sobriety checkpoint near Andover last Wednesday as he tried to snuff out a marijuana joint was beaten by as many as 20 police officers, an attorney for his family said today. Kenneth Howe, 45, died at the Andover State Police Barracks when police noticed he "became unresponsive" during booking. The official version of the story, promulgated to the local media by Essex County District Attorney's Office spokesman Steven O'Connell is that Howe, a passenger in a vehicle stopped at the checkpoint, made "furtive movement," then "jumped out of the vehicle, struck the trooper, and fled." After a brief chase on foot and an "ensuing struggle," Howe was handcuffed and charged with assault and battery on a police officer. O'Connell said that Howe was taken to the Andover barracks, and, while being booked "slumped over and became unresponsive." He was taken to Lawrence General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 12:45 a.m. last Thursday. But today, attorney Francis King, hired by Howe's widow to represent her and her three young children, painted a starkly different picture of the events leading to Howe's death. Citing the testimony of the driver of the vehicle Howe was a passenger in, King said Howe was pulled out of the truck, beaten by police, and dragged before he collapsed next to a police cruiser. The driver has made a taped statement about what he saw that night, King said. The "furtive movements" were Howe attempting to snuff out a marijuana joint and put on his seat belt, King said. A female state trooper approached the truck, and Howe held up his hands and tried to explain that all he had in his hand was the joint. The trooper then reached into the truck, pulled Howe out, and screamed that he had assaulted her, King continued. "Our position is that he never assaulted her, "King said. Quite the contrary, se maintained: "It appears there were at least 10 to 20 officers all over the deceased, hands flailing." Howe was also "seen handcuffing and slumping to the ground, dragged over to the cruiser," she said. The sobriety checkpoint was staffed by Massachusetts State Police, North Andover police and the Essex County Sheriff's Department. It was stopping every vehicle for a "threshold observation" to check for impaired drivers, a practice upheld by the US Supreme Court. The Essex County District Attorney's Office is investigating, said O'Connell. An initial autopsy has been performed, but the cause of death has not been determined. Toxicology results are also pending. Police said they found one oxycodone tablet on Howe, for which he had a prescription. “At this point, we’re confident the Essex County DA’s office is conducting a thorough investigation and that they are taking the case very seriously,” King said. “I think it’s only fair to allow the DA to conduct an investigation.” You don't need a crystal ball to see the lawsuit waiting to be filed here. But that won't come until after the Essex County District Attorney's Office investigates and exonerates the officers involved.

Cory Maye: Drug War Victim Gets a New Trial


The battle over the fate of drug war victim Cory Maye has been fought quietly in court for the last several months, but Radley Balko brings the long-awaited & exciting news that Maye has been granted a new trial.  

For those new to the case, Maye is a young, single father whose home in Prentiss, MS was raided by police in the middle of the night in late 2001. Unaware that the intruders were police and fearing for the safety of his infant daughter, Maye opened fire and killed an officer. As it turned out, the warrant was for the neighboring unit and Maye had nothing illegal, except marijuana ashes. Nevertheless, Maye was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death. The case has become widely regarded as a classic example of how aggressive drug war police tactics can lead to terrible misunderstandings and injustices.

But it's also become an inspiring illustration of how bloggers and activists can effectively use the internet to fight for justice. Radley Balko's initial coverage of the case at his blog, The Agitator, ignited national interest in Maye's plight. The case drew the attention of an attorney at the prestigious law firm Covington & Burling, which offered to represent Maye pro bono. That changed everything. Maye's death sentence was challenged and overturned. Then, last week, it was announced that Maye will receive a new trial altogether, one in which he will enjoy superb representation and his best chance yet at securing his freedom once and for all.

It's an incredible story that we'll continue to follow as the new trial approaches. For more detailed background on the case, check out Radley Balko's award-winning 2007 report at Reason.

Update: Reason.tv has a good piece on Maye's case as well:



Q: How Dangerous is Drug Law Enforcement for Police? A: Apparently Not Very

Law enforcement likes to argue that it needs to resort to heavy-handed tactics such as SWAT-style raids and no-knock warrants because drug law enforcement is just so darned dangerous. You know the spiel: "We're outgunned and up against crazed drug dealers, so we need to come on like gangbusters for our own safety." But I'm in the process of reviewing police deaths in the drug war since the beginning of 2008 for a Chronicle article that will appear Friday, and so far, I've only found two officers who were killed in drug raids during this time. I'm using the Officer Down Memorial Page and the National Law Enforcement Memorial data bases and I still have to dig a little deeper into the numbers and the discrepancies between the two, but so far, it doesn't appear that enforcing the nation's drug laws is that dangerous for police. For civilians, it is perhaps a different story. Nobody's keeping a data base of citizens killed by the police, let alone those killed by police enforcing the drug laws, although I have a few ideas on where to come up with some figures, or at least some especially horrendous cases. I'll be looking into that, as well. I'll be talking to as many cops, criminologists, and other interested parties as I can, but at this point, it seems that it is going to be hard to justify the overwhelming use of force typical of police drug raids. As much as they would like to think they are, cops are not US military Special Forces units, and drug law violators are not terrorist fugitives. Look for the story on Friday.

Another Botched Drug Raid: Officers Shot, Mistaken for Burglars, No Drugs Found

Over and over again, it just keeps happening:

Three metro SWAT officers were shot last night when they tried to serve a search warrant on a home in Henderson. A resident of the home told Channel 8 that the homes residents had no warning that the police were coming, they hid in a back room and fired at officers through the door thinking it was a break in. Two officers were treated and released according to Sheriff Doug Gillespie and a third will need surgery on his arm. Channel 8 is reporting that no drugs or drug paraphernalia have been found by police. [KXNT.com]

The suspect, Emmanuel Dozier, is now facing 3 counts of attempted murder. Interestingly, he’s also facing cocaine charges although nothing was found in the raid. Of course, whether or not he was involved in drug activity, this appears to be a pretty clear case of a suspect who just thought he was defending his home and family from unknown intruders. As we’ve seen so many times, the use of sudden entry tactics made the situation more dangerous, not safer.

Dozier will undoubtedly face vigorous prosecution, accused of willfully attempting to murder police. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in light of the fact that he had nothing illegal in the house and no reason to initiate a shoot-out with the cops. Stay tuned.

More on the Ryan Frederick Case

Radley Balko has new details in the case of Ryan Frederick, the Virginia man who was charged with murder for killing a police officer who he mistook for a burglar during a questionable drug raid.

The story just gets more complicated all the time, but if one thing remains clear, it’s that the entire case against Frederick is a sham. The loss of life is regrettable indeed, but it is the result of shoddy drug war policing, not premeditated cop-killing by Frederick.

Another Cop Killed in a Drug Raid

This has the makings of another potential paramilitary drug raid legal drama:

An FBI agent was killed early yesterday near Pittsburgh during a raid on the home of a suspected cocaine dealer, who was taken into custody along with his wife. Federal officials later reported that the woman was being charged with the shooting.
…
A lawyer for the couple said Christina Korbe faces homicide charges in connection with Hicks's death, three Pittsburgh television stations reported. Station KDKA quoted lawyer Sumner Parker as saying the Korbes may have believed they were the victims of a home invasion. Federal officials said Christina Korbe was being held by state authorities in connection with the killing.

As he was led away in handcuffs from the Allegheny County police headquarters yesterday, Robert Korbe blamed the shooting on other law enforcement officers.

"They shot their own guy," he told reporters. "I didn't shoot him." [Washington Post]

We just don’t have enough facts at this point, but if this turns out to be another case of a confused suspect mistaking police for burglars (or police shooting each other), then it’s something we’ll be discussing in more detail very soon.
 
Whether it’s a police officer or a suspect, it’s just tragic that so many lives continue to be lost during aggressive drug raids. I agree with Radley Balko who asks why Robert Korbe couldn’t have been arrested outside the home. Busting into people’s houses at 6:00 in the morning is a prescription for disaster. If police can’t find a safer way to do these raids, they need to look harder.

Officer Cleared After Shooting Unarmed Mother and Her Baby

It’s becoming increasingly difficult to imagine a situation in which police could be held accountable for recklessly killing someone in a drug raid:

LIMA, Ohio (AP) - An outside review has concluded that a Lima police officer didn't violate any department rules in the fatal shooting of unarmed woman during a drug raid.

The findings are in a report issued by the Montgomery County sheriff's office.

A jury had previously acquitted the officer of misdemeanor negligence charges, so this is basically the second time his actions have been upheld. For the record, this is what a justifiable police shooting apparently looks like:

Chavalia, an officer of 32-years, had testified that he thought his life was in danger when he fired the shots. He said he saw a shadow coming from behind a partially open bedroom door and heard gunshots that he thought were aimed at him. It turned out the gunfire he heard was coming from downstairs, where officers shot two charging pit bulls. [ABCNews]

They’re shooting at shadows now? I could have sworn that’s not how it’s supposed to work. Maybe the liberal arts college where I earned my criminal justice degree was a little too liberal, but then again I’ve also tried out the "shoot/don't shoot" simulator at a police training facility, and the sergeant’s instructions on when we could legally discharge our weapon bore no remote resemblance to the fact pattern in the Wilson case. The finding here seems to be that as long as one officer shoots a dog, other officers may then panic and shoot anything that moves throughout the house.

Can there be any doubt about the message we send to our public servants when we forgive anything and everything they do in the name of the war on drugs? There’s no point in complaining that policies like this will result in babies being shot, because that’s already happened.

SWAT Raids Often Target Innocent People

In addition to killing an unarmed mother of six and shooting a baby, it turns out that the SWAT team in Lima, OH has been raiding innocent people quite regularly:

LIMA - More than a quarter of the 198 raids by the Lima Police Department SWAT team in the last seven years came up empty-handed without finding drugs, weapons, paraphernalia or money.

And nearly a third of the time, police do not find drugs or a weapon. Drugs alone were found in nearly two-thirds of the raids and a weapon, by itself, was found one-third of the time. [LimaOhio.com]

That’s a lot of innocent doors getting kicked in and a lot of innocent people having guns held to their head. Yet, the Lima PD actually thinks it’s something to be proud of:

"That means 68 percent of the time, we're getting guns or drugs off the street," said Maj. Kevin Martin, who called the numbers a success.

Nothing could more perfectly illustrate the complete detachment that underscores a policy of routinely terrorizing innocent citizens. Think about this: the Lima officer who shot Tarika Wilson claimed that he killed her because he was startled by the sound of gunfire caused by his fellow officers shooting dogs elsewhere in the house. That is sort of thing that can happen during these raids, and they know it.

Thus, Maj. Martin’s statement reveals that Lima PD has learned nothing after killing Wilson and shooting her baby’s finger off. They are proud that some of the people whose lives they endanger in these raids turn out to be actual criminals. The rest just don’t factor into the equation. Not even little babies.

Cheye Calvo Speaks Out Against the Police Tactics That Killed His Dogs

I had the opportunity to see drug war victim Cheye Calvo speak this afternoon at the Cato Institute, discussing the heavily-publicized botched drug raid in which police raided his home and killed his two dogs before discovering that he was actually the mayor and had nothing to do with the package of marijuana they’d tracked through the mail to his address.

Calvo’s story is well known and video of today’s event should be online soon (also featuring excellent presentations by Radley Balko and LEAP founder Peter Christ), so I won’t recap the conversation, except to say that I admire Calvo’s enthusiasm for pursuing accountability on behalf of the many voiceless victims of these same abusive police tactics.

But I would like to address a point raised by Radley Balko prior to the event:

A few commenters have asked why no one taking the pro-hyper-militarized police position will be speaking. As I understand it, several possible candidates were invited, but none accepted. I've actually sought out several opportunities to debate this issue in the past, and had similar problems finding opponents.

I was reminded of this as Calvo described the horrific thoughts that ran through his head upon being ordered to the ground by armed men in his own home. He enumerated several distinct acts of incompetence and brutality that characterized the raid on his home and the killing of his dogs.

*That they never checked who owned the home before raiding and initially literally thought he was delusional when he claimed to be the mayor.

*That they argued their violent entry was his mother-in-law’s fault for "compromising" their operation because she screamed when she saw them pointing guns at her through the kitchen window.

*That they continued to accuse him of behaving suspiciously even after learning who he was and observing considerable evidence of his innocence.

*That they essentially hunted his dogs down within the home, yet insist that the dogs "engaged" officers.

*That the police spokesman told the press that the raid had been conducted appropriately before anyone spoke with the Calvos to hear their side of the story.

This list just goes on and on. We would be dreaming if we thought that anyone would actually come forward to defend these things in a forum that provides equal time and allows questions. Fortunately, unlike so many botched drug raids before it, this incident isn’t going to be forgotten. The FBI is currently investigating the officers’ actions and, to his credit, Mayor Calvo doesn’t seem the least bit interested in letting this go.

Moreover, while there may well have been some actionable violations of protocol, I think the likely conclusion is that the totality of what took place here was essentially legal under Maryland law. While I’d certainly be pleased to see some officers face disciplinary action, I’m much more interested in whether political leaders in Maryland recognize the systemic conditions that brought this outcome about. And that won’t happen if a couple officers take the fall Lynndie England-style. Until the law itself is exposed as an instrument of violence against the innocent, we can be sure the next bloody botched drug raid fiasco is only days away.

Police Raid Wrong Address, Hit Innocent Man With the Butt of a Shotgun

Also from Radley Balko, another horrific botched drug raid. This one happened a couple weeks ago, but didn’t get nearly as much press coverage as the Cheye Calvo raid, maybe because no dogs were shot. These folks must not have had any dogs. Instead, police hit an epileptic man in the head with a gun.

Armed with a battering ram and shotguns, Buffalo police looking for heroin broke down the door and stormed the lower apartment of a West Side family of eight.

The problem is that the Wednesday evening raid should have occurred at an apartment upstairs.

And, that’s only the tip of the iceberg, according to Schavon Pennyamon, who lives at the mistakenly raided apartment on Sherwood Street with her husband, Terrell, and six children.

Pennyamon alleges that after wrongly breaking into her apartment, police proceeded to strike her epileptic husband in the head with the butt end of a shotgun and point shotguns at her young children before admitting their mistake and then raiding the right apartment. [BuffaloNews.com]

And just listen to this pathetic excuse for an excuse:

"We wouldn’t be comfortable discussing the internal investigation," [Chief of Detectives, Dennis J.] Richards said. "We can say comfortably that over 1,100 search warrants were executed last year and 580 to date this year and that, with such a high volume and such a fast-paced environment, it is understandable that mistakes could happen."

No, it’s not understandable! It’s inevitable. It's deeply disturbing. But it is not understandable. If doing multiple aggressive drug raids each day leads to outcomes like this, then stop doing them. If you can’t keep track of the addresses and your officers are clubbing the innocent, then please do something about it and don’t tell us we should be more understanding.

What sort of defense is it to point out that his officers smash down 1,100 doors a year? That, rather obviously, is exactly the problem.