Ridiculous Police News (Specific events)

[Nephlite]

Doesn't surprise me. American Penal Institutions are some of the most corrupt places in the world. One thing you learn in Law Enforcement: Never underestimate the greed and ruthlessness of a human being when it comes to survival. And in most cases, survival means blood money and power.

[6souls]

Texas judge: Search warrants can be obtained based on predictions of future crimes

Police in Texas may now obtain a search warrant based on “a prediction of a future crime,” according to a dissenting judge on the state’s criminal appeals court.

The ruling by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals came last week, ending a controversial case in which police searched a house before obtaining a warrant but were still able to present the confiscated evidence during a trial.

The incident began during the summer of 2010, when police in Parker County, Texas, staked out Michael Fred Wehrenberg’s home for a month. According to the Dallas Observer, authorities allegedly received a tip from a confidential informant stating Wehrenberg and his associates were “fixing” to cook meth in the home. Without obtaining a search warrant, they walked into the home and arrested the people inside.

It was only after arrests were made that police sought out the warrant necessary to confiscate the meth-making material in the home, including boxes of pseudoephedrine, stripped lithium batteries, and other items. On the warrant application, however, police declined to mention that they had actually been in the house prior to obtaining authorization for the search, mentioning only the informant who tipped them off.

During Wehrenberg’s trial, his attorney argued the confiscated material was inadmissible due to the fact that police seized it illegally. The judge overruled this request, saying federal “independent source doctrine” allows such evidence when a third party – the unnamed informant – tells police about it beforehand.

As a result, Wehrenberg pleaded guilty to one count of possession and another count of intent to manufacture. He was sentenced to five years in prison.

The Second Court of Appeals then overturned the trial judge’s decision, but ultimately the Court of Criminal Appeals agreed with the original ruling. As the Observer reported, the majority opinion written by Judge Elsa Alcala stated that while Texas law prohibits illegally obtained evidence to be submitted, federal precedent allows it if first confirmed by an independent third party.

One justice, however, did not agree. In the dissent, Judge Lawrence Meyers wrote that the only reason police decided to apply for the warrant is because they had previously entered the house illegally.

“Had the officers entered the home and found the occupants only baking cupcakes, the officers would not have bothered to then obtain the warrant at all,” Meyers wrote, according to the Observer. “It was only after unlawfully entering and finding suspicious activity that they felt the need to then secure the warrant in order to cover their tracks and collect the evidence without the taint of their entry.”

Meyers also dismissed the idea that the informant’s tip was actually confirmation by a third party, writing that it was merely a prediction.

“Search warrants may now be based on predictions of the commission of future crimes,” the judge wrote.

http://rt.com/usa/texas-warrants-fut...on-crimes-449/

[mallister]

So much for that pesky bill of rights.

[MF Perm tha Fineass]

So much for that pesky bill of rights.

This is Texas we're talking about here

[mallister]

They are sort of selective on which parts of it they're fond of.

[Abandon]

Texas judge: Search warrants can be obtained based on predictions of future crimes

http://rt.com/usa/texas-warrants-fut...on-crimes-449/

wasn't there a tom cruise movie about this

[quannum]

wasn't there a tom cruise movie about this

yep, minority report
http://www.dvorak.org/blog/wp-conten...2/precrime.jpg

also, 1984
http://www.apfn.org/apfn/tcrime.gif

[BaneTheBrawler]

i liked that movie. was cool.

[Aristio]

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=438301036347

Not sure if everyone can see this.

Cop shoots a dog while in no danger what so ever. Blames it on the dog was vicious.

Edit: Video is quite old, may be a repost.

[Ghost_Wheel22]

I'm more angry that the cop had to use more than one bullet. That shit is ridiculous.

Also happened several years ago.

[Nephlite]

Heh. Those guys had no idea what they were doing. That dog ran circles around them. Story was the dog growled at a neighbors kid before they were dispatched. At least the owner got a settlement:

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/c...da171bc16.html

ST. LOUIS • A federal case involving a LaGrange, Mo., police officer who fatally shot a man's dog has settled in the plaintiff's favor for $50,000, the man's attorney said.

The case was set for trial early next week and was settled last month.

In a suit filed in January 2012 in federal court in St. Louis, Marcus Mays of LaGrange alleges a LaGrange police officer illegally seized his property — an 18-month-old American bulldog named Cammie — by shooting and killing it in March 2010. LaGrange is in Lewis County, about 145 miles northwest of St. Louis.

Mays' attorneys argued that the police officer's job was to capture the animal, not kill it, and that lethal force was unreasonable. They also accused the city of LaGrange of failing to train Officer Doug Howell in how to safely capture animals.

[myreality]

New Mexico man awarded $1.6 mln after cops subjected him to illegal anal probes

A New Mexico man has settled his case against Hidalgo County and the City of Deming after it was revealed that police there forced him to undergo numerous anal probes and other invasive medical procedures against his will.

Both the city and the county settled their portion of the lawsuit with David Eckert for a total of $1.6 million. According to the local KOB TV, Hidalgo County will reportedly pay out $650,000 to Eckert, while Deming will pay $950,000.

Eckert has also filed a lawsuit against the doctors and hospital involved, though there’s been no resolution on that front and it may ultimately go to trial.

Pulled over for a minor traffic violation, Eckert was flagged for holding drugs by a K-9 unit, which would later be found to be operating under expired certification. Police suspected Eckert was carrying drugs in his anal cavity and sought out a search warrant, but then transported the man to a hospital outside of the warrant’s jurisdiction when the first establishment refused to conduct the search on ethical grounds.

At Gila Regional Medical Center, however, doctors performed eight separate medical procedures against Eckert’s protests, including two rectal finger examinations, three enemas, and a colonoscopy. None of these procedures uncovered any drugs.

"It was medically unethical and unconstitutional," said Eckert’s attorney, Shannon Kennedy, to the Associated Press. "He feels relieved that this part is over and believes this litigation might make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else."

Eckert spoke out about the situation for the first time in a written statement.

"I feel that I got some justice as I think the settlement shows they were wrong to do what they did to me,” he wrote, according to KOB. “I truly hope that no one will be treated like this ever again. I felt very helpless and alone on that night. My family and I hope that people understand that I don’t want my face linked with jokes related to anal probing. For this reason, I asked my attorneys to issue this statement in the hopes that the media will respect my privacy.”

News of Eckert’s situation sparked a chain reaction of similar revelations. Another local man, Timothy Young, was singled out by the same K-9 unit and subjected to finger examinations and X-Rays at the same medical institution. No illegal substances were found.

Another situation also unfolded at a border crossing near El Paso, Texas, where a dog allegedly alerted authorities to the possibility of drugs on a New Mexico woman. Though officials reportedly did not seek out a search warrant, the woman was strip-searched and had her vagina probed by a female officer.

All these cases have raised questions about police behavior and the war on drugs.

“It's terrifying," said Laura Schaur Ives of the American Civil liberties Union in November. "I think law enforcement has been emboldened, particularly when it comes to drug interdiction. It's kind of anything goes. You couple that with drug interdiction at the border and you have a recipe for serious civil liberties violations."

.http://rt.com/usa/new-mexico-anal-probes-737/

[Tyrath]

That was settled quicker than I thought it would.

[Melena]

That was settled quicker than I thought it would.

It was a pretty shitty situation that I'm sure the police wanted to wipe away clean, though it did mean flushing down 1.6mil.

[Tyrath]

It was a pretty shitty situation that I'm sure the police wanted to wipe away clean, though it did mean flushing down 1.6mil.

[mallister]

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/oddnews/...223247155.html

[Nephlite]

Saw this earlier on an Intel Brief. Hahahaha! What a bunch of jackasses...

[Melena]

He's lucky they didn't give him an enema....... Jesus some people just shouldn't be anywhere near a badge....

[Nephlite]

I'm actually quite concerned this guy got his rights violated so badly and he didn't even think to call a lawyer? Sounds a bit over the top for that many procedures happening at once without some type of representative being present to at least put a hold on the warrant till it gets cleared up in booking. Charge me or let me go. Fuck a warrant. Never heard of anything more than just the usual finger bang they do for cavity searches.

[Nephlite]

http://articles.philly.com/2014-01-1...oner-charles-h

tldr;

Kid runs from the police and allegedly assaulted some of them. Female officer frisks him and ruptures one of his testicles during the frisk. What the fuck...