The Rise of Unwarranted Paramilitary Raids in America

by admin on 09/09/08 at 6:20 am

It’s the day after Christmas in 2001. You’re 21 years old. After finally putting your 18-month-old daughter to sleep, you’re relaxing in your favorite recliner, nodding off in the flickering light of the television show you’re only half-watching and the string of Christmas lights around your front window. When you hear the sounds of someone trying to kick in your door, you run to your daughter’s bedroom; when someone does break in and kick down her bedroom door, you shoot.

It turns out the man you shot is the (white) police chief’s son, and as he dies of internal bleeding en route to the hospital you (a black man) are arrested, beaten so badly you bleed from your ear for a week, and are left on death row for five years following the bogus conviction (until a judge overturns what was obviously a wrongful sentence). The drugs the cops were looking for — using a warrant that named no one in your household — were never discovered. This is the case of Mississippian Corey Maye, who is still locked up.

Or: you are 57 years old, getting ready for work in mid-May 2003. It’s shortly after six in the morning. A battering ram breaks down your door, and in gets tossed a flash grenade. You can’t breathe, you’re coughing, and the police don’t believe you — they’re looking for a stash of drugs and guns they’ll never find.

Taking no notice of your worsening condition, the overzealous pigs handcuff you, and in little more than an hour, though you’re finally on the way to the hospital, the heart attack caused by this traumatic violation takes your life. This was Alberta Spruill, a church volunteer and city worker in Harlem.

Or it’s November 2006. You’re a fierce 92-year-old woman, frightened by the sounds of someone prying off the burglar bars that cover your front door. You remain determined to protect your home, and when your door is broken down you fire one shot at the intruders. The cops respond by dumping 39 shots into your entryway.

Handcuffed and left to die while the police ransack your home, it turns out the police broke down the wrong door and, realizing the err of their ways, decide to plant drugs in your basement in a surprisingly transparent attempt at covering up their poor judgment. This was Kathryn Johnston of northwest Atlanta. Two of the cops responsible for her death plead guilty to manslaughter last year, and a third was recently convicted of lying in the cover-up.

Imagine instead it’s 2008. Arriving late one night in July, you find a large package which happens to contain marijuana on the grounds of your home. You are the white mayor of a wealthy DC suburb and as it turns out, the victim of a drug smuggling scheme that targets innocent addresses in the UPS system.

You bring the box inside, only to watch in terror as moments later SWAT officers break in and shoot your two beautiful Labradors. As the dogs lay dying, soaking your living room floor, you are held in the very same room, handcuffed for hours. The law enforcement officials don’t — at that time — believe you are the mayor of this suburban town, and to date have not apologized for the killing of your family’s pets.

No one is safe. Last month’s case involving Berwyn Heights mayor Cheye Calvo is one of perhaps 40,000 (yes, forty thousand) such raids each year (see Cato Institute report, Overkill: The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids in America). It has been so widely covered because of the white privilege, class privilege and power of the victims. Many, many lives are taken or ruined by these paramilitary operations, and we can all agree that you’re in much more danger if you happen to be poor and/or a person of color. Another blog about these raids can be found here along with the Cato Institute’s map of raid casualties.

This is not the world I want to live in. Take action now — check out the Drug Policy Alliance’s most recent report — and encourage the U.S. Conference of Mayors to protect themselves and their cities from further unthinkable violence in what has become a police state.

This post was contributed by my dear friend Vera Leone of the Drug Policy Alliance

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17 Comments

Bas

Sep 9th, 2008

Nice posting man. This is a really big problem for the US’ citizens. A country that claims to respect freedoms and democracies yet is a huge violator of all of these themselves. What a hypocritical government you have :-(

Good luck. Fight the powers that be!

Stephen Richfield

Sep 9th, 2008

Welcome to the New Regime! Until the Bush Dictatorship is de throned (meaning also that his “mini-me” McBush doesn’t get elected in November), its only going to get worse.

Jiff
http://www.anonymize.us.tc

Anonymous

Sep 9th, 2008

Can we not end on the rich white guy who’s dogs get killed when earlier we had the two women that were killed.

It kinda ruined the article for me, though this is a very serious issue.

windyridge

Sep 12th, 2008

yes police state it has become and it’s scary. If the repugnicans win again, it will be more of the same. Why do people keep voting against their self interests?

Blackwatch

Sep 21st, 2008

It ia much more likely with communist socialist state coming IF Obama is elected who is a wannabe Chavez…Obama is a Marxist Communist like all good Liberals

Arjun Sharma

Sep 29th, 2008

You know, when you’re a child, you think that things in the grown-up world will make sense, the way things in your own world tend to.

Then, one day, you see or hear something that makes no sense. You run to your parents, or guardians, or teachers, and ask them, “Why did that happen?” And they say, “It’s something you’ll understand when you grow up.”

Then you grow up. But you don’t realize it, because you’re waiting for these things to make sense. But they don’t. Things like the US drug policy, with it’s ridiculous prison sentences and the fact that marijuana is illegal, but consuming alcohol isn’t. Where the police can violently enter a household, and then prosecute the occupants for reacting responsibly to the sounds of what they suspect is an attempted home invasion.

It makes no sense. Either adults lie when they say that things will make sense as an adult, or I’m not one. So I’m just going to go ahead and hope it’s the latter.

keith downs

Oct 24th, 2008

oh boy, i’m glad I don’t live in america

terry wagar

Oct 24th, 2008

Eric Carlson and Joan Wagar, A,K,A, Doubleclick and Mrs Dash,( yes those are there nicknames they gave each other.) admitted to poisoning me while I was a plasma donor back in 2005.
Eric carlson pedofied me behind prison walls and then framed me as a pedophile on march 26th 2007, I caught the crime on a audio recorder I put in Joan’s purse.
there were people in authority helping them with this and nobody in authority will help they pretend nothing happened and refuse to investigate this.
Eric carlson changed his hair color and his name but this is not hidden, only ignored by the authority’s and media
Im disabled from being poisoned and the hospitals refuse to admit Im poisoned.
My Family is in danger from these people and I have no other recoarse but to make these charges public.
My name is Terry Wagar,Im from portland oregon and Im backing up these charges.
I have been threatened with harassment charges by a Sargent walker, She is a portland police officer stationed at the OHSU hospital, for the non crime of reporting a multi murder conspiracy within that hospital.
They dont give a s4!t joan and eric was poisoning a plasma donor!

Samsara

Oct 27th, 2008

Bas had it right. I remember being a kid and hearing terms like “free country” and “justice is blind” and “innocent until proven guilty” but knowing that the people using these terms were just throwing them around out of what…? The government telling them that that is what this country is? Ha!

Was it a free country for the slaves? The women who couldn’t vote? Is it a free country today for my friend who had consensual sex at 18 with a 17 year old and now has to go on public rosters as a sex offender? Is it a free country for the 1st time felon who can no longer vote, possess a firearm OR get a decent job even though he “allegedly” served his time?

Were the folks in this post ” innocent until proven guilty?” If yes, then why did they lose their life, liberty or family member?

And if justice in America Amerika really is blind, then defense attorneys would not be rich and people who were poor would succeed in court. This would be the rule rather than the exception.

Judges are corrupt. Police are brutal. [Now using Tasers against those so-called "innocent until proven guilty" citizens] Legislature is about lobbying. The Presidency is …[...oh I don't even know what that is anymore. Bush/Cheney re-wrote all that.] The Supreme Court is about politics…no longer interpreting the Constitution and erring on the side of individual rights…

But you know…As long as Big Pharma can keep pumping out the Wellbutrin, Paxil, Prozac, Ritalin, Percocet, and Vicodin then maybe “main street” will continue not noticing.

So how is that war on drugs doing? Are the big bad drug users and drug dealers still going to jail? What a government! So glad they are looking out for me.

seriously?

Oct 27th, 2008

here goes…

people, could you make sure you get your facts right before posting? i know it’s difficult to see what’s going on when you are sitting in a cloud of bong smoke, but when the fog dissipates, please pick up some books and educate yourselves on the laws.

cops don’t kick down doors for no reason. they apply for and get a “search warrant” before kicking a door in. and before you get mad at the cops, please realize that a judge signs off on the search warrant based on PROBABLE CAUSE. also, cops just don’t kick in your door like that unless they have reason to believe a felony is being committed on the other side of that door. stop watching tv to get all your “facts” about law enforcement.

the bottom line is, there are two types of people in this world. people who respect the laws put in place by society for the protection and good of ALL MANKIND…

and those who break the law.

the question YOU need to ask yourself is, which one am i?

oh and one more thing. even if you disagree with me, you have what’s called the Bill of Rights in America. this is the best country on the planet (notice how i didn’t write perfect). try breaking the law in another country and see what happens.

…and i’m serious about picking up a book.

admin

Oct 27th, 2008

@ Seriously,

You are wrong about the felony shit. I’ve had my door kicked in for a misdemeanor.

seriously?

Oct 28th, 2008

well i’m disappointed you modified your response. i rather enjoyed your telling me to “put down my books and start breaking some laws” (that’s a good one). but i must say i enjoyed it more when you told me to read another blog because your guess is that i was a cop. think what you’d like. but i mean if what your posting is true and all, why would you have a problem with anyone reading your postings? cops, priests, construction workers, Starbucks employees… the Pope? it could catch on like a bar of “Alice’s Restaurant” (as side note: i’m really glad Thanksgiving is almost here).

but that’s not what i wanted to write to you about…

your door CAN be kicked in for a misdemeanor BUT NOT WITHOUT A WARRANT. here’s a scenario:

let’s say i’m Joe the Jerk and i decide to throw rocks at a stop sign. i tear this sign up with rocks. nothing too serious though. just a few dents here and there. well a neighbor sees me, calls the police, and gives them my description. before the cops get there i get bored, walk across the street, and go into my house.

cops show up, interview the neighbor who points out my house, and shows the cops the sign that i’ve dented up “real nice like”.

the cops can NOT kick down my door and arrest me. the cops most assuredly will be interested in speaking with me and you can BET they are going to be knocking on my door. now if my mom opens the door and invites them in or calls me down to speak with them. i’m toast. they are going to arrest me.

now let’s just say that when they arrest me, they go through my pockets and and find an OZ of weed neatly packed and bundled into smaller zips for selling. they are going to arrest me for that too (as a side note: my mom is going to be the first one in line kicking my ass when i get home).

they can ask my mom if they can search my room. if my mom says no. then they can’t. they have two options at this point. first one is to leave an officer in the house and get an emergency search warrant. the second is to leave, get a warrant, and then kick down the door.

but let’s look at a different scenario, shall we?

let’s say i’m still Joe the Jerk and i’ve move out of my moms house because i’ve decided that at 45 years of age i should really start doing my own laundry. i meet a nice woman and we decide to get married. we live in her house, she works, and i don’t because i don’t feel like it. also, i expect her to do my laundry, make dinner, walk the dog, mow the lawn paint, paint the fence, and pay the bills (hey i said i was Joe the Jerk didn’t i?).

so she comes home one night after a long hard day at the salt mines, and i start in on her because she didn’t make my ham & cheese sandwich just the way i like it (i’ve told her time and time again about leaving the crust on the bread). she tells me to go “eff” myself. i’ve had enough of her lip so i take my belt off and begin to beat her. the neighbors hear the cries for help, me yelling, things breaking, and the dog going nuts. they call the cops.

cops show up, hear the commotion, and bang on the door. no answer. i’m too busy beating her to be bothered. there’s no way i’m going to stop beating her so she can get the door, and since the dog doesn’t have thumbs, he’s not letting them in either.

based on the commotion, screaming, cries for help, and the circumstances surrounding the call, you can rest assured the cops are going to kick in that door. also the dog, doing what dogs do, is going to think, “hey someone is coming in my house who i don’t know. i think i’ll bite them.”. when he goes toward them barking, he gets shot. if i don’t drop the belt when i’m told to do so, there’s a strong possibility i could get shot.

and that my friend, is loosely how things go. but don’t take my word for it. make for the library (real fast like) and pick up a copy of the local laws governing your area today!

admin

Oct 28th, 2008

@ Seriously,

Thanks for replying, I am starting to enjoy your tangents. My door was kicked in after not allowing them to enter with their warrant. Which, should I ever choose to relay my story, I’ll prove they should have never even gotten a warrant. Let’s just say I was in good ‘ol Midland, Texas, home of George W.

Samsara

Oct 28th, 2008

@ admin -

You will never change Seriously’s mind. Never. Never ever ever.

Like Seriously saying there are two sorts of people - although he oversimplified in my opinion - he had the gist right. But let me see if I can make it more accurate. There are really three sorts of people.

1.) Those who think there is nothing higher than the law of man. That this law needs to be respected even if innocents die and pay the price. These would be your “Patriots” who say America is the best place in the world and folks like Seriously.
2.) Those who don’t care and break the law. These folks don’t ever think if the law is just, they simple break the law and take their lumps. Their motivation isn’t “it’s an unjust law” but rather from a self-involved point of view. [From people who speed, or engage in voter fraud to domestic violence, rape...]
3.) Those who - and I think most citizens fit here - try to have respect for the law of man but who know there is a higher law and that man’s law is often corrupt due to the corruption of man. [These would be your scholars, free thinkers, unjustly accused, freedom fighters, your civil rights activists, your non-violent protesters, you, me...]

When Rosa Parks didn’t sit at the back of the bus, she broke the law. And this is my point. Today, Rosa Parks may have been tasered to death for breaking that law.

You know as well as I do that Judges are corrupt too. Getting a warrant is not some trick. “Probable cause” has been reduced to “Maybe” or “My gut tells me so.”

I don’t waste my time trying to educate the first group of people. Of course, I do wonder from time to time how many have been converted due to police brutality or an illegal search…

Tucson Bass Player

Oct 29th, 2008

Kill the Patriot act just for starters.

mattress store

Nov 4th, 2008

this was horrible. just reading it ruined my day.

Michael L

Nov 7th, 2008

Fucking pigs

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