More Cop Corruption Enabled by the Failed Drug War

Detroit police officer Luke Davis is in hot water after his victim's home recording equipment revealed what he and his team are really about during one of their many drug raids.

Story here.

Video below.

TSA Agent Played "Trick" on Passenger

Rebecca Solomon, a 22-year-old student at the University of Michigan, was the victim of a prank by a TSA thug in the Philadelphia airport last December after he planted and pulled a plastic bag of white powder from her carry-on.

Of course, privacy law prevents the identification of this TSA menace or the alleged discipline he might have received, according to regional TSA spokesbureaucrat, Ann Davis.

Again, one of the many downsides of being a "have-not" in a world full of protected Federal "haves" armed with guns and badges. I'm sure Rebecca feels protected and served.

This is what is to be expected when you have Federal bureaucrats charged with the important task of airport security. Naturally, they have no incentive to actually protect the public from dangerous people, because, like all government programs, the lower the performance, the higher the budget. But at least they get paid to have fun and play pranks at the airport at the expense of the unwitting passengers, right?

Police Acted "Properly" Says Panel of ... other Police

COLUMBIA [MO] — An internal investigation by the Columbia Police Department has found no wrongdoing by two officers who used pepper spray and a Taser on Columbia resident Carl Alan Giles, 27, during his Aug. 1 arrest outside the Cafe Berlin.

Giles was arrested that night in an alley south of Cafe Berlin at 21 N. Providence Road on suspicion of public urination and resisting arrest.

Imagine that - a police "internal investigation" determined that fellow police officers acted "properly". Behold, the thin blue line.

To Serve and Protect (Themselves)

Here is a great article by Thomas L. Knapp about the police state.

Illinois State Police Seize and Keep Desirable Cars for Personal Use

Illinois State Police troopers seized a high-performance muscle car and set it aside for the personal use of an influential police official. The Associated Press reported that a suspected drunk driver in a 2006 Dodge Charger was pulled over in January 2007. The troopers used a state seizure law to confiscate the vehicle.

To protect and to serve, right?

Single Atlanta Red Light Camera Brings in $1.3 Million

Red light cameras are installed to save lives, not extort money from the public, right?

911 Operator Is an Arogant Bully

[From LRC]

Here's an example of why the government should not be in the business of providing emergency rescue services. When a 17-year-old high school senior called 911 as her father was having a seizure, the operator cursed at her and hung up - not once, but three time. Then, when she ran to the police department, she was arrested for "disorderly conduct" and "abusing 911."

This service should be provided by trained experts in the private sector, where they would have incentive to actually do their jobs, not by mindless armed bureaucrats who go unpunished unless the local media gets involved.



Click here for article and written transcript of video.

Police Officer Escapes Drunk Driving Charges...

...in Louisiana because he is a cop and his brother is a police chief. One doesn't need to wonder long how this would have played out if this happened to a mere peasant.

Cop Murders Teen Then Plants Gun

[Note: the child cop image above is a representation of the collective level of maturity and intelligence found in our police departments. These "men" (and women) deserve our scorn, not our respect.]

The handgun found near a teenager shot and killed by a Minneapolis police officer in 2006 could not have been carried by the teen, new court documents allege: It had last been in possession of police before it was found next to the body of Fong Lee.

To see a security camera video of the chase before the shooting, click here.

The court filings in a lawsuit filed by Fong Lee's family against Minneapolis police and the officer who fired the fatal shots, along with a review of police reports, witness statements and other documents, raise the possibility that Fong Lee was unarmed when an officer shot him eight times — and that the pistol that officers said they found near his body was placed there after the shooting.

The gun in question had been recovered earlier after a burglary and turned over to police, who kept it as evidence and had never returned it to its owner.

Moreover, Minneapolis police "may have tried to deliberately alter history by writing new reports indicating the gun recovered near Fong Lee's body was not the same gun" that had been recovered after the burglary, according to Richard Hechter, a lawyer representing Fong Lee's family, wrote in an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court on Monday.

"The evidence supports a claim of planting a gun, especially since irrefutable video evidence and eyewitness accounts establish Fong Lee did not have a gun at the time he was killed."

UPDATE: Officer Tickets Driver While Rushing to See Dying Relative

UPDATE: The police parasite who stopped Ryan Moats last week has resigned. Given his limited skill set and level of intelligence, his next place of employment should logically be with the FBI or DEA.

Officer Tickets Driver While Rushing to See Dying Relative

Another one of society's parasites has struck again (with dashcam video).

The Dallas Police Department confirmed Thursday that an officer drew a gun on NFL running back Ryan Moats and his wife after he stopped them [in the hospital parking lot] to give them a ticket even as they begged to hurry to the bedside of their dying mother.

Seconds later, Ryan Moats and his wife explained that her mother was dying inside the hospital. "You really want to go through this right now?" Moats pleaded. "My mother-in-law is dying. Right now!"

"I can screw you over," the officer told Moats. "I'd rather not do that."

"Understand what I can do," Powell concluded. "I can tow your truck. I can charge you with fleeing. I can make your night very difficult." Difficult night? He's at the hospital because his mother-in-law is dying.

As Moats signed the ticket, Powell continued his lecture. "Attitude's everything," he said. "All you had to do is stop, tell me what was going on. More than likely, I would have let you go."

Officer Powell had been informed by Moats, Moats' wife, hospital security guards, and a nurse about "what was going on". Powell chose to exercise the power that the state has granted him to prey on the people without any regard for the situation or the use of discretion. This little man is a menace, a pest, society's unproductive growth.

Ryan Moats was the bigger and better man, and used more tact and courtesy than any man in his circumstances. Many of us reading this article would have let the rage get the best of us and Officer Powell would have turned from a despicable jerk into a murdering, despicable jerk.

UPDATE: The police parasite who stopped Ryan Moats last week has resigned. Given his limited skill set and level of intelligence, his next place of employment should logically be with the FBI or DEA.

Police Give More Tickets During Hard Times

Taken from the Obvious section of the news reel, cities have turned to the police department as a means to generate more revenue through increased ticketing.

The president of a state police union isn't pretending it doesn't happen. James Tignanelli, president of the Police Officers Association of Michigan union, says, "When elected officials say, 'We need more money,' they can't look to the department of public works to raise revenues, so where do they find it? Police departments.

"A lot of police chiefs will tell you the goal is to have nobody speeding through their community, but heaven forbid if it should actually happen — they'd be out of money," Tignanelli says.

It is time for people to realize that today's police force is no longer your grandfather's police force and Mayberry is a fictional location. Today's police force is riddled with bullies and terrorizing thugs searching for justification and financing for their existence.

See also a similar article from the St. Louis Post.

Despite No Charges, Police Still Keep Cash

A man in Indiana felt the long oppressive arm of the state first-hand when police stole $26,000 from him during a traffic stop, despite having not broken any criminal law or charged with a crime.

Police seized the money because the driver could not give an adequate reason for having that much money.

"If it's way, way over and above what a normal person will carry, and if things don't add up (on how it was acquired), we take the money," said Lt. Art Barile, head of the sheriff department's vice and narcotics unit and the Allen County Drug Task Force.

When quizzed by the government thug for a reason for carrying so much cash, one wonders if an "adequate" response from the driver would be "Because I don't trust your banks."

More Police Brutality

I have previously posted cases here and here and here which detail the trend of police corruption. This video shows another situation where those who we have entrusted to enforce the law have overstepped their boundaries yet again. Two 200-pound men vs 15-year-old girl.

One wonders where badged menaces to society like this could find employment if they weren't harassing the populace under the creed "to protect and serve". Is there a puppy kicking career that I'm unaware of?

One more thing: do you think the Feds will investigate these officers for steroid use?

Monopoly On The Use Of Force

There are many dangers with allowing the state a monopoly on the use of force (even at the local level). If a policeman unjustly harms a civilian or commits an unethical act, the likely scenario is that the story is buried by the department. If somehow it makes it to the light of day, that policeman is placed on “administrative leave” (while usually still drawing a paycheck) while the tax-sponsored police department conducts an investigation. The taxpayers pay for the investigation in addition to the attorney fees for the policeman that perpetrated the act (I hesitate to call it a crime because crimes are only committed by the private sector, no?) If somehow the criminal policeman is found culpable, the court will award damages to the victim, and guess who picks up that tab as well? The taxpayers, of course.

But if there were private companies competing for the "business" of the use of force, the situation plays out a lot different and allows for the "rascals to be thrown out" at their own expense. See: Blackwater.

Another real-life example of the competition for the right to use force:

More Police Corruption

Headline: "Atlanta police look to restore trust after drug raid killing"

Three ex-police officers are going to jail after killing a 92-year old woman in her home and planting drugs. Here is a rare case where the prisons are being utilized for "real" criminals, not just users of pharmaceuticals (pharmaceuticals that haven't been blessed by the FDA).

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2009/02/23/johnston_sentencing.html

Government Corruption

As someone who peruses a wide variety of news publications, I see a decent dose of sporadic cases of government corruption peppering the headlines. This morning was no different. In fact, the leading stories on both CNN.com and the online St. Louis Post Dispatch detailed two cases of government corruption from two different branches of the government. These cases you’ll notice are becoming more frequent as the government machine continues to gain size and momentum.

Two Pennsylvania judges have pleaded guilty to fraud charges after receiving more than $2.6 million in kickbacks from youth detention centers.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/02/23/pennsylvania.corrupt.judges/index.html

Two St. Louis police officers have been arrested for obstruction of justice (among other charges and one of the officers has pleaded guilty) after stealing money from drug dealers; planting money, drugs, and a gun; and then covering it up.
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/C9E54DC45609800A8625756600055DFF?OpenDocument

If these offenses are so egregious as to require fellow members of this same body of racketeers (The State) to prosecute and to further bring into question the legitimacy of their operation, one must wonder how many of these cases get swept under the rug and never make it to the light of day. And one must further wonder how the mainstream media, the consummate whipping boy and compliant shill for The State, allowed this information to be published.

Red Light Cameras

According to the police chief of Hazelwood (suburb of St. Louis, MO), it is “none of our business” how much money he donated to a new “advocacy group” whose goal is to promote the use of red light cameras. Lest we forget, the police chief is merely (or used to be) a civil servant whose employer is the people, who have a right to know where their tax dollars are being spent and what kind of public/private relationships are being created. Naturally, we the people should not be concerned about the conflict of interest that arises from a police chief who personally finances a group whose purpose is to directly subsidize his precinct’s revenue. That’s none of our business.

http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/political-fix/political-fix/2009/02/whos-paying-for-new-red-light-camera-advocacy-group/