New Haven Police Fatal Shooting of Black Man in Public Housing Elevator Justified

• Police Claim that for NO Reason Mack Lucky Pulled out a Knife & Assaulted Police Officer. Police Dog had Nothing to do with it.
  

State’s Attorney Michael Dearington concluded that a city police officer was justified in using deadly force against Mack Lucky, who menaced the officer with a knife in an apartment building elevator. Officer Elliot Rosa shot and killed Lucky on Nov. 8 in an elevator at 904 Howard Ave., a public-housing complex for senior citizens and the disabled. "Officer Rosa’s use of deadly force in causing the death of Mack Lucky was both reasonable and justified," Dearington wrote in his report. Dearington found that Rosa acted in self-defense and couldn’t retreat in the elevator. Rosa, who had an 8-month-old black Labrador dog with him, was moving into the building as part of a police officer-in-residence program when he encountered Lucky, 57, who lived there for six years. The dog was the subject of the initial confrontation, as Lucky told Rosa the dog had better stay away from him or he’d hit it over the head with his laundry bag. [According to the shooting officer] in the elevator, Lucky pulled out a knife and said in an angry tone that he "had something for" Rosa, the officer told police. As Rosa reached for his weapon, Lucky allegedly lunged forward with the knife. "It was clear to me that Mr. Lucky was attacking me with the knife and I feared for my life," Rosa indicated. Rosa then shot him. The discovery of a knife by Lucky’s hand supports Rosa’s version of events, according to Dearington. "Although there are no identifiable prints on the knife, it makes sense that it belonged to Mr. Lucky," Dearington wrote. "He was known to carry a folding knife and the weapon was found under his right hand." Lucky was shot in the chest. Barbara Fair, coordinator at People Against Injustice, said she isn’t surprised by the outcome of the investigation. "It seems like no matter what police do — they can have someone on the ground and shoot them in the back of the head — they are always justified," she said. "It was sad to see so many elderly people mourning over someone they knew for years," she said. "His kids had nothing but his body in a casket, and for what?" [more]

Unarmed, Black Man Lying Face Down Killed after being Tasered Over & Over Brings Suit - Valejo Police Deny Claim

The case of a Vallejo man who died after police shocked him with a Taser stun gun inched closer to a possible legal showdown Thursday as city officials denied his mother's claim for potentially millions of dollars in compensation. The Vallejo city attorney's office rejected Robinson's claim due to a lack of merit, city spokesperson Mark Mazzaferro said Thursday. Robinson's son, Andrew Washington, who would have turned 22 this Saturday, died Sept. 16, after police shocked him multiple times with a Taser. Police say Washington refused to stop running from officers after crashing a car he allegedly took from a friend without permission. According to a copy of Robinson's claim provided by her attorney, she alleges that "police used excessive force to apprehend (her) son and killed him in the process." The claim names the city, Police Chief Robert Nichelini and unidentified police officers involved in the melee. "Mr. Washington died at least in part due to the wrongful use of a Taser handheld electronic weapon that police officers used to maliciously torment the man, sending repeated and violent shocks through Mr. Washington's body as he was face down on the ground and posing no real or credible threat of force or violence to anyone," the claim alleges. Robinson's claim also argues that police "were negligent in the instruction, training and other guidance" on Taser use. The officers should have known that using the stun gun repeatedly on a person "was likely to cause serious and unjustifiable injury or even death," the claim says.  [more]

• Family Also Suing Taser Manufacturer In a seperate (?) Negligence suit brought on behalf of Andrew Washington Sr. by his 2 year-old son, Andrew Jr., the complaint accuses "manufacturer Taser International of knowingly marketing a dangerously defective weapon as safe and "non-lethal." "Defendants Taser International ... knew that the Taser gun that caused (Washington's) death was defective in design, and that the defective design increased the risk of serious injury and death to persons in normal use of the gun,'' according to the lawsuit filed by Walnut Creek attorney Andrew Schwartz on behalf of Washington's son. [more]
  

Simi Valley police win in Supreme Court case

• Latino Woman Handcuffed & Questioned for 3 Hours after Searching her house
  

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled last week that Simi Valley police didn’t violate a Salvadoran immigrant’s civil rights when they handcuffed her for hours and questioned her. On Feb. 3, 1998, police searched a home on Patricia Avenue where Iris Mena and several other people lived. Police were looking for evidence related to a drive-by shooting. Mena was handcuffed for three hours, and police and Immigration and Naturalization Service agents questioned her and the other occupants about their immigration papers. Mena, a legal U.S. resident, sued the officers, claiming they violated her Fourth and 14th Amendment rights. The lower courts agreed, and a jury awarded her $60,000. James Muller, Mena’s attorney, wasn’t pleased with the high court’s decision, calling it "an overreaction" stemming from the terrorist incidents of Sept. 11. "In the end, Mena will win," said Muller. "But it is another chip away at the civil rights of the population. . . . It’s more down the path of ignoring the Fourth Amendment for these kinds of paranoid fears that were here not supported." Muller said Mena, a petite Latina woman who was 18 at the time, posed no threat to officers after they’d searched the residence—a 15-minute task—and should at that time have been released from the handcuffs. What’s more, he said, during the three hours that Mena was in handcuffs, the drive-by shooting suspect had been in police custody and released. [more]

U.S. jury acquits Chicago cop of brutality against Latino Teenager - Beaten & Handcuffed to a Wall for 4 Days

A federal jury cleared a Chicago police officer of using excessive force after a judge earlier Wednesday threw out the heart of a civil lawsuit alleging that a teenager had been chained to a wall during four days of questioning.  In July 2000 18-year-old Joseph Lopez was beat up by an arresting officer and then held incommunicado for approximately five days. During virtually this entire period, he was restrained in a police interrogation room with his wrist handcuffed to a ring on the wall. His only human contact was with police officers who coerced the teenager into confessing to a murder he did not commit. He was fed only three times during his detention. With no bedding, constantly interrogated, and shackled to the wall on a 10” x 48” metal bench, Lopez was subjected to sleep deprivation, which is widely recognized by international treaties and human rights authorities as a prohibited torture technique. After the close of evidence, U.S. District Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan threw out claims that Lopez had been detained unlawfully, that the conditions of his confinement were unlawful and that detectives had intentionally inflicted emotional distress. In his decision, Der-Yeghiayan held that extraordinary circumstances existed for the extended detention of Lopez, who was arrested in 2000 in connection with the murder of a 12-year-old boy. The charges against Lopez in the case were soon dropped, and another man was arrested. Ordinarily, suspects can't be questioned for more than 48 hours without going before a judge. "The evidence clearly shows that it was Lopez himself who created the delays he now accuses the [police] for," the judge ruled. According to the judge, the Chicago teen lied about his identity, gave false alibis and admitted being the shooter before recanting.  [more]

• Lopez Complaint [PDF] Via ChicagoIMC
  

Black Religious Leaders Keep Pressure on LAPD Over Devin Brown Police Killing

Fearing an investigation into the police shooting of a 13-year-old boy would be swept under the rug, dozens of African-American activists told an LAPD panel today they still want answers about the incident. "We are not going away," the Rev. Ozell Cliff Brazil of Bethel AME Church in South Los Angeles told the Los Angeles Police Commission. He was joined by several other prominent religious leaders identifying themselves as members of the Community Call to Action & Accountability. The group, which was so large that the meeting had to be moved to the Parker Center auditorium, demanded answers from the civilian oversight panel regarding the shooting death of Devin Brown, who allegedly backed a stolen vehicle into a police cruiser. The Rev. Lewis Logan of Bethel AME stood and led the group in prayer just as the commission's public comment period began. He then accused city leaders of breaking their promise of a transparent investigation into the Feb. 6 incident. "We are concerned that the process is under a cloak of secrecy, that it's not open for the public to understand," he said. Another group member, who identified himself as Akili, expressed outrage over the shooting. "We have lost a child, and we will not suffer in silence and grieve by ourselves," he said. Following about an hour of testimony, commission President David S. Cunningham III assured the group that the investigation is being carried out according to department policy.  City News Service March 22, 2005 Tuesday

Lawyer representing Delray officer at shooting inquest for 16 Year Old Black Boy has conflict issue

• Police Officer's Lawyer Worked on the Judge's Campaign

Judge removes himself from inquest into shooting of Delray teen
The judge tapped to preside over the inquest into the shooting death of black Delray Beach teen by a white police officer removed himself from the case Wednesday amid questions about his ties to attorneys involved in the hearing. Judge Donald Hafele said those associations were not a conflict of interest, but he was stepping down to ensure public confidence in an investigation that has stoked racial tension. "What is of paramount importance is the absolute integrity of the process and ensuring that a community still in pain is comfortable with the manner in which the inquest is carried out," Hafele told attorneys, NAACP representatives and members of the teen's family assembled for a hearing to discuss the inquest into the Feb. 26 shooting death of 16-year-old Jerrod Miller.  "This is a gut-wrenching decision and probably the toughest decision I've had to make as a professional," Hafele said. His wife, Martha Hafele, was seated in court and wiped away tears as the judge said his decision to step aside "goes against every fiber of my being." Palm Beach County Chief Judge Edward Fine assigned Judge Debra Moses Stephens to take over. Fine said the hearing, expected to last three days, still was scheduled to start Monday. The final decision on scheduling rests with Stephens, who couldn't be reached for comment. NAACP officials began questioning Hafele's involvement in the case when the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Friday that attorney Scott Richardson had served as the judge's campaign treasurer during his 2000 re-election campaign.[more] and [more]

• A two-week delay has been ordered for the coroner’s inquest into the shooting death of a Delray teen at the hands of a local police officer Feb. 26. [more]
  

Milwaukee Police Gun Down Latino Man - Shot 8 Times in the Back

Wilbert Javier Prado Unarmed
A man killed by an off-duty Milwaukee police officer three weeks ago was shot eight times and died of a gunshot to the back, according to the Milwaukee medical examiner's report. The report added that 25-year-old Wilbert Javier Prado was unarmed when he was gunned down. About 10 bullet holes were found on the driver's side of the van Prado was driving. Milwaukee police said the shooting was sparked when off-duty officer Alfonzo Glover pulled over after noticing a van was following him. When Glover got out of his car, the van hit him, setting off a chase on foot and the shooting. The autopsy lists the immediate cause of death as injuries to the heart and lung because of a gunshot wound to the back. In all, Prado sustained multiple gunshot wounds to the back, chest, lower extremities and groin, the report says. The report also states that there was "no weapon recovered on or near the body of the deceased. "Prado's family said he was an illegal immigrant who had been in Milwaukee for about six years and had two young children born in the United States.  The family of Prado has asked for an inquest, and District Attorney E. Michael McCann has said he will call one, but no date has been set. [more] and [more]

• 30 call for justice in march [more]
• ABC News PrimeTime reports on Frank Jude Beating by Racist Milwaukee Cops [more]
  

Black Soldier Says he Was Beaten by Milwaukee Police - On Break from Iraq

A soldier who said he was beaten by Milwaukee police met with the district attorney Monday. Army Spc. Charles Griffin Jr. (pictured) said police threw him to the ground, handcuffed him and beat him last July. Police said they were called to the scene because Griffin was firing a gun in the air, and once they arrived, Griffin resisted arrest. Griffin said he has several scars, a gauge in his head and a fractured arm as a result of the alleged beating. Monday's meeting with the district attorney was more of an informational session. The Fire and Police Commission will decide at a later date whether charges should be filed against the officers involved. Griffin returned to active duty Monday shortly after his meeting with the district attorney.  Griffin said he was out with friends  when four plain-clothed detectives showed up. He said he tried to leave but was attacked by the officers, thrown to the ground and handcuffed before he knew what was happening. Griffin admitted he had been drinking with his friends; it was a final farewell before leaving the next day to return to his unit in Iraq. But he denied doing anything to interfere with the officers.[more]

• Jude case sheds light on Griffin beating [more]
• Soldier discovers home can be as dangerous as Iraq [more]
  

Racist Milwaukee cops charged in Brutal Beating of Frank Jude Want separate trials

Attorneys for three Milwaukee police officers accused of brutally beating a man told the court Tuesday they want separate cases and want to have the trial moved to another county. Jon Bartlett, 33, Daniel Masarik, 25, and Andrew Spengler, 25, have pleaded not guilty to battering Frank L. Jude Jr. while he lay face down in the street outside the house where off-duty officers were partying Oct. 24. The officers were court for a scheduling conference Tuesday. Their two motions must be filed by June 6 and won't be heard by a judge until July 27. That means if the case goes to trial, it won't occur until fall at the earliest. All three men are charged with party to substantial battery. Bartlett and Masarik also are charged with party to second-degree recklessly endangering safety. Masarik faces a third count of perjury. The officers sat in the public gallery of the court Tuesday, near members of Jude's family and Alderman Mike McGee, who told others in the gallery that they were sitting near "killer cops." The charged officers did not respond. [more]

Black Autistic Teenager Is Beat Down by Deputies After Being Mistaken for a Prowler

• DA clears deputies in struggle: Says beating of autistic teenager was unavoidable [more]
  

An autistic Mountain Gate teenager is recovering from a fractured elbow and a head wound after apparently being mistaken for a prowler by three Shasta County sheriff's deputies. Pierre Cowell, 17, whose parents say he has the mental capacity of a 4-year-old and no verbal ability, wandered from his Phaedra Lane home early Friday, his mother said. He had dressed himself in a shirt and jeans, shoes and a denim jacket that fit loosely over his lanky frame. Cowell's mother, Cynthia, said that at 5 feet 11 inches tall and 140 pounds, her son is "very, very thin." A neighbor, who did not recognize him, called 911 after seeing him approach her home about 2 a.m., sheriff's Capt. Tom Bosenko said Monday. The woman, who has two small children, reported that she could hear her doorknob jiggling, Bosenko said. "She was very scared," Bosenko said. At one point, she believed someone had entered her home, which increased the severity of the situation, the captain said. She said the deputies did not know he was autistic until she told them. While she said she understood how such an oversight could be made during a struggle, she was surprised that deputies failed to recognize Cowell's mental disability after he was apprehended. "Being totally nonverbal would be a clue," Cynthia Cowell said Monday. She also questioned the level of force used to control her son and suggested deputies receive better training to avoid future confusion of a mentally disabled person with someone on drugs. "I think I got more upset when I found out the extent of his injuries," she said, adding that she wants to read the police report.  [more] and [more]

$40 million suit filed Against Baltimore Police for Beating Handcuffed Black Man, Delaying Medical Help

Albert Mosley is in a wheelchair, unable to walk and barely able to move his arms. He says it's because a Baltimore officer threw him headfirst into the concrete wall of a police district holding cell. Yesterday, almost two years after he was injured, Mosley filed a $40 million police brutality lawsuit in Baltimore Circuit Court against the police officer, Bryan Kershaw. "I don't want the police to get away with this," said Mosley, 54. Mosley's lead attorney, William H. Murphy Jr., said such violence is "rampant" in the Police Department and pointed to a jury verdict last year that awarded a similar amount to a man whose neck was broken during a 1997 arrest. Kershaw could not be reached for comment, but Lt. Frederick V. Roussey, president of the local police union, said an internal investigation cleared the officer of any wrongdoing. Both Roussey and a police spokesman disputed Murphy's contention of widespread police brutality. According to the complaint, an intoxicated and handcuffed Mosley, who had been picked up on a probation violation, became loud and unruly behind bars at the Western District police station. Kershaw, who was supervising Mosley and four other prisoners, engaged in a shouting match with him and later entered the cell, picked him up and tossed him against the wall, Mosley contends. Handcuffed, Mosley was unable to break his fall. Mosley lay on the cell floor for about 45 minutes, immobile and bleeding from a gash over his left eye, he says. Kershaw and other officers at the station ignored the other prisoners' shouts for help, Mosley says. [more] and [more]

Redwood City settles Lawsuit in Police Beating Death of Latino Man

Without admitting wrong-doing on the part of police, Redwood City settled a wrongful death lawsuit for $250,000 with the family of Ricardo Escobedo, the 29-year-old resident who died after a scuffle with eight officers. The settlement reached in March ends the family’s federal lawsuit, just prior to a scheduled jury trial, said Redwood City spokesman Malcolm Smith. The money will be released as a trust for Escobedo’s two children. Escobedo, known as “Ricky,” died Nov. 17, 2002 after officers responded to a domestic dispute. The official cause of death was a heart attack due to “excited delirium” after the scuffle which included pepper spray, nunchucks and a straight jacket-like wrap, according to the report by Coroner Robert Foucrault. The report also noted traces of methamphetamine in his system. Both internal affairs and District Attorney Jim Fox cleared the officers of any criminal wrongdoing. However, Escobedo’s family refused to accept the findings. They said the amount of force used by the police broke seven ribs and damaged his trachea, leaving him unable to breathe. They unsuccessfully filed claims against the city and battled to have the case re-opened. Without the option of pursuing criminal charges against the officers, the civil suit was the only option left to hold somebody accountable for the death.  [more]

• Cops overlooked crushed neck [more]
• 60 Minutes: You may not find the diagnosis "excited delirium" in a medical dictionary, but it’s popping up more and more around the country, especially when people die right after brawling with the police. [more]

Black Teenager Beaten & Wrongly Imprisoned by NYC Cops Suing City For $10 Million

Darryl Forde spent three months in custody and accused of shooting a police officer. Today he was cleared at family court in downtown Brooklyn. He says he knows he can't get those three months of his life back, but he does want justice. November 17th, 2004: Darryl Forde says he was on his way home after a game of basketball when a ruckus broke out and police tried to make an arrest outside his building. As shots rang out and the crowds dispersed, Darryl says he was thrown to the ground. Forde said, "I was grabbed by an officer and out to the floor, then I got kicked in my left eye. I got four stitches." Though four shots were fired at police officers, his mother says they got the wrong guy. Yvonne Forde, Mother: "They don't care who they get their hands on. They don't care, as long as they got somebody, and they got the wrong child." Today New York City Family Court agreed - clearing Darryl of the crime. Andrew Stoll, Forde's Attorney: "They grabbed Darryl right from the scene. There was no gun, there were no shells, there were no bullets, Darryl passed a polygraph test in this case." Leo Glickman, Forde's Attorney: "The police victimized this time an innocent child, but also the juvenile justice system victimized somebody by taking three months to conduct a trial that should have taken three days." For Darryl it has been a long ordeal that's given him a new goal. Darryl Forde, Former Suspect: "For me to get into law school to prevent this from happening." [more] and [more]

Springfield settles lawsuit for Springfield Police Brutality Claim: Latino Man Beaten by 5 Officers

Springfield has paid $15,000 to settle a brutality suit brought against the city, several police officers and the chief by a Chicopee man who claimed he was beaten into unconsciousness and had to be hospitalized after his arrest more than three years ago. The city settled the suit to avoid trial expenses, city lawyer Edward M. Pikula said. "I think the city recognizes there's a cost of litigation," he said. "We certainly deny that we are liable for this." A trial was scheduled to start April 11. Pablo J. Cotto sued the city and five officers in May 2002 in federal court, claiming he was beaten so badly following his Feb. 23, 2002 arrest that he lost consciousness and was taken to Baystate Medical Center by ambulance. Cotto alleged civil rights violations, assault and battery and other claims. Cotto later amended the suit to name eight officers and Chief Paula C. Meara. The officers named were Pedro Mendez, Thomas Hervieux, Berardino Lochiatto, Michael Mitchell and Joshua Haygood, Detective Joseph Brodeur, Sgt. Charles Sheesher and Lt. Eugene C. Dexheimer. In his lawsuit, Cotto, who is seeking $500,000 in damages, stated that soon after he was put in a cell, five white police officers silently entered, grabbed him and struck his face against the sink, dragged him across the floor and punched and kicked him, causing injuries to his right eye and to his neck, shoulder and other limbs. When the beating ended, the lawsuit states, one of the officers sprayed Mace into Cotto's face and his open wounds. "He got beat up to a pulp for no reason whatsoever in a jail cell," said Cotto's lawyer, Harold I. Resnic. Resnic said Cotto used to work at a supermarket. [more] and [more]

Austin County Police Beat and Drag Disabled Black Man 35 Feet - Racial Tension High

Allegations that police used excessive force in arresting a man with disabilities outside a convenience store have stirred racial tension and a call for reform in this small Austin County city. A community activist group is using the incident to press the city to hire minority police officers, invest in revitalizing the deteriorating black neighborhood on the city's east side and foster better community-police relations by calming fears of incidents of racism. Albert Lane Sr., 51, who is black, charges that racial prejudice and profiling provoked four police officers on the night of Jan. 28 to use excessive force and unjustly arrest him for public intoxication. Lane took a friend, Gerald Scranton, to the store at approximately 8:20 p.m. to pick up wages Scranton claimed Clarence Einkauf owed him. Rose Einkauf said she refused to pay Scranton, the son of black Councilman Joe Scranton, and called the police after Scranton took two beers from a case without paying for them. Lane, who said he drank a bottle of beer the night of his arrest and two beers earlier in the day, filed a complaint on Feb. 11 stating that the officers abused their authority when they pulled him from his truck, handcuffed him and dragged him face-down 35 feet from his truck to the patrol car in front of the store.  "They scarred my knees and arms and knocked my front tooth out," said Lane, who has no use of his right shoulder, a limp in his right leg and slurred speech after suffering a stroke in 1988. Sealy City Attorney Bill Olson is reviewing Lane's complaint. [more]

Doubts raised in New Orleans Police killing of Black College Student

• Cops Claim they thought Jernard Thomas had a gun. But Witnesses Say Police Saw & Acknowledged that the Gun fell to the ground during the chase.
  

A large pool of blood stained the grass in front of a back-yard woodpile where Jenard "Nordy" Thomas was fatally shot by two New Orleans police officers Thursday night. The officers, Scott Rodrigue and Joseph Waguespack Jr., fired seven or eight shots after Thomas, according to police, stuck a 9 mm semiautomatic pistol in Rodrigue's ribs. Thomas' father, however, is adamant that the plain clothes officers shot an unarmed man. Jerry Thomas said the gun his son had been carrying in his waistband fell to the ground before he bolted into the yard of a home on Piety Street. "I saw the whole thing and my reaction is this: murder," said Thomas, who had followed his son and the officers into the yard. "They knew he didn't have a gun because he dropped it in front of the house. Some other cops brought it to the back and said, "Here's the gun." Another witness also said he saw the gun on the ground near the front of the house. "He did not have a gun when they shot him," Omar Taylor said. Earlier that night, Jenard Thomas, 25, and Taylor, who lives on the same block, went to a nearby salon to have their hair braided.  The officers approached because Thomas acted suspiciously, Defillo said. "When the officers made eye contact, he clutched his waist with both hands," Defillo said. "At the same time, he took off running, which was probable cause under the law to go after him." At the shooting scene, a small bit of evidence -- apparently overlooked during the initial investigation -- seemed to raise additional questions. Several streaks of blood are visible on the side of a rickety wooden doghouse in the front half the yard, about 30 feet from the woodpile. If the blood was from Jenard Thomas, it would cast doubt on the police account that the entire confrontation unfolded in a back corner of the yard where Thomas allegedly pulled the gun. A high school graduate who attended Southern University at New Orleans, Thomas was a devoted father who supported his three children by working at a T-shirt shop when he wasn't in classes, family members said. [more] and [more]

NY Troopers Fatally Shoot at Black Man 27 Times - NO Medical Attention for 6 Hours

Law enforcement officials are investigating a fatal shooting in Yonkers early Saturday in which city police officers and state troopers fired dozens of shots at a Bronx man who had led them on a three-mile car chase. The internal affairs divisions of the Yonkers and state police are looking into the shooting, officials said yesterday, as is the Westchester County district attorney's office. The chase began just south of Exit 1 of the New York State Thruway when troopers tried to pull over the man, David T. Horn, 37, for speeding, the police said. He refused to stop, and exited the Thruway onto McLean Avenue. Mr. Horn, chased by the two troopers along with three Yonkers police officers, sped through several city streets into an alleyway, where the officers got out of their cars to try to arrest him, Yonkers police officials said. Mr. Horn repeatedly backed up and drove toward the officers, officials said, but the car did not hit them. The five officers then fired 27 shots, according to evidence at the scene, the Yonkers police said. Mr. Horn then drove forward for about 100 yards before crashing into a utility pole. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The dead man's family expressed anger that his body was still in the vehicle more than six hours after the crash and that he received no medical treatment for more than an hour because of live utility wires that had fallen on the SUV as a result of the crash. "He might have still been alive," his sister, Patricia Horn, said last night. "Regardless of what happened, no one deserves to be left in the car for seven hours."Officials said the investigation would determine how many bullets had struck Mr. Horn.  [more] and [more] and [more]

• Incidents worry residents [more]
  

Racist Española Police Beat Down Latino Teen

Three officers with the Española Police Department called 17-year-old Juan Campos a mojado— the Spanish term for "wetback"— during a March 17 beating in his home that left him bleeding from his nose and ears, and hospitalized with blood in his urine and his lungs, his attorney, Thomas Clark, said. "These guys beat my client to a pulp," Clark said in court Tuesday before showing photos of his client's injuries to Santa Fe District Judge Michael Vigil. Clark referred to the police officers' actions as use of "deadly force" with "batons, mace, boots and fists."Juan Campos, who apparently challenged the three officers to fight him and then went at them with fists raised.  Assistant district attorney Chris Conlee said that Campos has an "extensive criminal history" in juvenile court, with "over 15 referrals" to the District Attorney's Office. "Nobody -- no matter what their criminal history -- deserves to be treated this way by the police," Clark said. Based on an allegation that officers used excessive force, state police are looking into the incident, said Sgt. Miguel Aguilar, an investigator. According to police when he saw the officers, Campos took off his jacket, put up his fists and challenged them to a fight. He then came toward the officers aggressively, and one of them sprayed him with pepper spray. The officers then tried to handcuff Campos, but he was uncooperative, and it took several minutes for police to get the cuffs on the teenager.  The doctor who examined Campos noted he was lethargic and had slurred speech, swollen eyes, bruises on his face and head, a fractured rib, bruises on the right side of his abdomen and lacerations on both wrists, Clark said, again quoting the St. Vincent report. The cut on Campos' left wrist was described as "significant," he said. Clark said the wrist lacerations indicate to him either the handcuffs were too tight or Campos was beaten after the cuffs were put on him. [more] and [more]

NYC Police Officer who Killed Timothy Stansbury Gets Union Job

Richard Neri, the Brooklyn cop who shot and killed 19-year-old Timothy Stansbury on the roof of a Bed-Stuy apartment building last winter, has been elected to a police union office. In his paid position as a Patrolmen's Benevolent Association delegate in Brooklyn North, Neri will be the new go-to guy for officers in his precinct. Among other duties for the powerful PBA, Neri will be first on the scene in the event a cop, for example, shoots someone and thinks he might need advice. Just one year ago, Neri was on the receiving end of such PBA help. On January 24, 2004, Stansbury was trying to take a shortcut across a roof to get more CDs for a friend's birthday party. He got as far as a door that opens out to the roof when, in the stairwell, he was shot once in the chest by Neri. The African American teen, a McDonald's employee who was working on his high school diploma, was unarmed and had never been in trouble with police. Neri later said he pulled the trigger unintentionally. A Brooklyn grand jury later cleared Neri of any criminal liability. Stansbury's family has filed a civil suit against Neri, who has remained benched, sans gun and badge, pending an internal review of the shooting. He's still on non-enforcement "modified duty" until the NYPD's Firearms Review Board figures out whether to discipline him. How could a cop still under investigation for a deadly shooting—one who can't even carry a badge—be elected to union office? What's obvious to City Councilman Charles Barron, the unofficial spokesman for Stansbury's parents, is the symbolism of Neri's union post. "The Police Brutality Association—that's what I call them. That decision was absurd and unconscionable. They have in effect rewarded him for killing an innocent youth." [more]

• Preventing Another Stansbury [more]
• Teenager's Killing by Officer Was Not Justified, Police Say [more]
  
•  IS THE NYPD'S THIN BLUE LINE PROTECTING A LIAR?  [more]
• Family Of Teen Slain By Police Calls For Arrest Of Officer [more]
• Teens’ documentary about shooting goes to Sundance Festival [more]
• Pictured above:  Timothy Stansbury Sr. with a photo of his son, Timothy Jr., and daughter, Timeterss. [more]