Mother and 4 children terrified during late night police raid on wrong apartment

Jessica Walker’s splintered door. (Source: KERO)

BAKERSFIELD, CA — An innocent family was terrified when their home was invaded by militarized police officers who had targeted the wrong apartment.  After the door was splintered with a battering ram, 4 young children were forced forced to watch as their half-naked mother was helplessly bound on the floor by armed strangers.

The fright came late in the evening on Saturday, April 19th.  After Jessica Walker put her four children to bed, she prepared to take a bath around 11:00 p.m.

“I was in there getting undressed in the tub when my dog started to bark,” said the young mother.

That’s when crashing sounds were heard from the front door of the apartment.   An unidentified hostile force ripped off the barred steel security door and then used a battering ram to breach through the wooden entrance door.

Ms. Walker was half-nude when she was confronted by the armed home-invaders.  Shocked and frightened, she tried to cover her bare chest with her hands.  Even that attempt at dignity was not tolerated by the strange men.

“They were right there telling me, ‘Come down with your hands up, get down!’ and I’m like, ‘Oh my God, what’s going on.’ My, uh, area was out,” explained Walker.

Jessica Walker describes how she tried to cover herself but was then told to "put her hands up."  

(Source: KERO) 

She was then forced to the ground in submission and handcuffed.  

Her children, awakened by the commotion, saw their mother being bound while half-naked on the floor.

“They were screaming. They were screaming, ‘No, mom, no!’ And they were afraid,” Walker told ABC affiliate KERO.

Finally it was evident that the men, who were from the Bakersfield Police Department, had not found what they were looking for. 

They showed Ms. Walker a photograph and asked her if she recognized the man.  She identified him as a man who lived in a neighboring apartment.

Cops hadn’t misread the warrant, the warrant itself was flawed. The address that was printed on the document and approved by the judge belonged to Walker and her family — not the suspect.  An innocent family was traumatized and endangered because of poor planning and faulty intelligence.

Bakersfield Officer M. Malley (Badge #1046) signed the warrant and swore to its accuracy.  Not only did he request to raid the the wrong address, he made a point to request that it be done at night.

Ms. Walker says she is “very angry” and says that her children are having nightmares because of the incident, and may need therapy.

No-knock raids are performed thousands of times per year in the United States.  These tactics are designed to make the entrance of police officers to be a surprise and indiscernible from a criminal home invasion.  When a confused homeowner makes the mistake of trying to defend his family, tragedy often results.  Given the fact that police raid homes over non-violent offenses and frequently get the address wrong, it is fair to say that all Americans have something to fear with these overused, irresponsible police tactics.

Police use battering ram to break into innocent grandmother’s apartment as she slept

75-year-old Rita Hunter 

(Source: WTVR)

HENRICO, VA — A 75-year-old grandmother was terrified when she awoke to armed intruders beating down her door with a battering ram. The men then claimed to be police and started interrogating her about drugs, telling her that she was under arrest. Despite going to the wrong address, the grandmother says she was never given an apology, nor has the department offered to replace her busted door.

“I thought someone was breaking in to rob or kill me,” said Rita Hunter to WTVR, who endured the wrong-door raid.

The septuagenarian was jolted awake in the early hours of April 10th when she heard repeated ramming against her front door with a blunt object.

It was not until after her door had been breached that she realized that she was being visited by police officers — Virginia State Police. They rushed into her bedroom and accosted her while she was still lying in bed.

Police used a battering ram to beat down an innocent grandmother's door.  

(Source: WTVR) 

The raiders “took my hands with a tie-thing and said ‘You’re under arrest’ and started asking questions,” she recalled.

Mrs. Hunter was questioned about possessing drugs. She grew insulted when they accused her granddaughter of being a criminal. She said that in her 75 years she has never broken the law.

“The more I told them I didn’t know these people [the suspects], the more he continued,” Hunter said.

Police searched through her belongings but ultimately recovered no evidence of any crime. It was finally determined that the police had gone to the wrong apartment; confusing Apartment “E” with Apartment “G.”

The cops moved two apartments down and performed another aggressive raid over drugs.

“I’m very irritated and angry,” said Mrs. Hunter. “[Police] never said I’m sorry, never apologized for having the wrong house…he said you got to get someone to fix that door.”

Mrs. Hunter said that the incident shook her so badly that she’s packing up and moving somewhere else. It is unclear to where she might flee in order to avoid belligerent SWAT teams who are willing to break down doors over non-violent crimes; often invading the wrong homes because they can’t seem to read the targeted addresses properly.

Click to read more stories of Wrong-Address Raids.

Louisville officers fired/demoted for exposing a wrongful conviction

Detective Baron Morgan discovered an innocent woman behind bars.  

(Source: WLKY)

LOUISVILLE, KY — When an esteemed police detective discovered that an innocent woman had spent years in prison for a murder she didn’t commit, he notified his supervisors and tried to make the tragic error known.  Instead of seeing that the new evidence came to light, police brass demoted the whistleblower and kicked out of his unit.  Another veteran officer stood up for the whistleblower, earning him termination from the department after decades of service.  The Louisville Metropolitan Police Department has taken nefarious steps to hide a dark secret.

Wrongfully Convicted

Detective Baron Morgan of the LMPD stumbled upon the wrongful conviction during a routine interview with a suspect in 2012.  

During that interview, the suspect confessed to a shooting a man and dumping his body into the Kentucky River in 1998.  This posed a big problem, since the person sitting in prison for that murder was a woman named Susan Jean King.

Susan King spent 5.5 years in prison for a crime she didn't commit.   

Susan King had been arrested for the crime in 2007, after the murder case had gone unsolved for 8 years.  The victim, Kyle Breedon, was King’s ex-boyfriend.  When prosecutors threatened her with life in prison due to circumstantial evidence, she entered an “Alford Plea” on a lesser charge.  A defendant who gives this type of plea does not admit guilt of the crime, but accepts the consequences, since battling the prosecution would likely lead to worse results.  As such, King accepted a 10-year sentence for manslaughter to avoid the prosecutors’ threats of life in prison.  But all along, they had been threatening the wrong person.

The King conviction had already been under scrutiny by the Innocence Project when they learned that King was only 97-lbs and had only one leg.  It would have been physically impossible for her to have launched Kyle Breedon’s body over the bridge into the river.

Detective Morgan was an 18-year veteran of the force.  When he found out that Susan King was innocent, he spoke out as any moral person would.  He notified his supervisors and contacted the Innocence Project of the new confession.  The suspect, Richard Thomas Jarrell Jr., had revealed all sorts of intimate details about the murder, and revealed that he pulled the trigger just to feel what it was like to kill a man.

LMPD brass evidently didn’t appreciate the embarrassment of having a wrongful conviction exposed, so they punished Morgan, stripped him of his Detective rank, and removed him from his unit.  

He was placed back at the bottom of the department — patrolling the street, working the third shift.   The ranking members of LMPD did not act on Morgan’s evidence regarding Susan King’s wrongful conviction.   Morgan’s integrity was unwelcome as a detective.

Lt. Rich Pearson was fired when he stood up for whistleblower.  (Source: WLKY) 

Things got more scandalous when another officer stood up for Morgan, and received punishment as well.  Lieutenant Rich Pearson had over 20 years of experience as an officer, but when he stuck his neck out for Detective Morgan and Susan King, he was nailed by Police Chief Steve Conrad with trumped up allegations of misconduct and fired.

“The actions the chief has taken against him are nothing short of appalling,” said attorney Thomas Clay, who represents both Morgan and Pearson in court.  Both men filed lawsuits over their mistreatment, which Mr. Clay characterized as a violation of the state’s law protecting whistleblowers.

“This was something that pretty much dropped into Baron Morgan’s lap. He wasn’t out there looking for anything that would cause embarrassment to the Kentucky State Police,” said Mr. Clay to WLKY. “I really can’t explain the hostility that was displayed to Baron Morgan from his own department as a result of doing the right thing.”

Justice Served?

When the Innocence Project entered a motion for a new trial for Susan King, the judge denied it, saying she entered her Alford Plea voluntarily and was not owed a further trial.  She was finally released — not based on the exculpatory evidence, but her eventual parole.

Baron Morgan’s case almost went to trial, but the Louisville Metro Government instead opted to give the detective a settlement of $450,000 at the last minute.  The government insisted that the settlement was not an admission of culpability. Rich Pearson’s lawsuit remains pending.

While taxpayers have given reparations to Mr. Morgan, a great injustice was done to Susan King which has never been officially recognized.  Furthermore, those responsible for of the aforementioned acts have been allowed to remain in positions of power over the citizens of Kentucky.  Has justice been served?

TSA ejects mute, disabled woman from flight because she couldn't speak

Heidi Wright was humiliated by the TSA for lacking the ability to speak. 

(Source: KABC)

LOS ANGELES, CA –  Federal checkpoint agents refused to let a woman board her flight when they interpreted her disabilities and inability to speak as a sign of terrorism.

The TSA's eagle adorned arm patch. 

(Source: David McNew / Getty Images) 

Sherry Wright and her sister Heidi were scheduled to fly from Los Angeles International Airport to Phoenix.  Things started to go badly for the pair when TSA agents asked to see their papers.

Heidi, 58, had a driver’s license that was expired.   This was because she had not driven in years due to an injury a decade ago that left her wheelchair-bound and suffering from strokes.  The condition had left her unable to speak.

The blue-shirted agents became hostile.  Sherry helped her disabled sister show the TSA her “ID, her social and her DMV papers” — all the things the agency claimed the woman needed in an earlier phone call.  But these items were still not enough; the TSA wanted Heidi to speak.

“I was shocked. I was just standing there, tears were coming out and I was like, ‘Are you serious? We can’t get her to talk.’”

Sherry tried to explain her disability, but that did not satisfy them.  

The agents continued to insist that she speak until both women were in tears.

“He just wanted me to make my sister talk, and I couldn’t believe it. I was like, ‘Wow, we’re going to make a miracle right now,’” Sherry said to KABC.  “I was shocked. I was just standing there, tears were coming out and I was like, ‘Are you serious? We can’t get her to talk.’”

No resolution was met.  The Wright sisters were barred from entering their flight because the TSA evidently viewed them as a terrorist threat.  Their plane took off without them.  What should have been an easy flight turned into an arduous 375-mile bus ride.

The TSA is known for preying on the most vulnerable travelers — babies, the elderly, the disabled, and tube-fed children.   But most offensive of all is its callous disregard for the Bill of Rights — an endemic part of the republic’s descent into a police state.

Minister prevented from feeding homeless without permit from Health Department

BIRMINGHAM, AL — Homeless people will have to go hungry if the government has its way in Birmingham. Without expensive permits and abiding by onerous regulations, simple acts of charity are prohibited, and police are standing ready to enforce these restrictions.

A new city ordinance is forcing people like Rick Wood to shut down his weekly homeless ministry unless he pays the government hundreds of dollars and abides by the onerous regulations of the city.

Wood, a Christian minister, was recently shut down by Birmingham Police for serving the homeless in Linn Park.  They demanded that he show them a permit or leave.

“That makes me so mad,” Wood said to ABC3340 News. “These people are hungry. They’re starving. They need help from people. They can’t afford to buy something from a food truck.”

Mr. Wood has been ministering to the homeless for about six years, he said.  He drives in his van to places where he knows the city’s homeless camp out.   One spot he regularly visits is under a bridge where several camping tents are set up.

“I was hungry, I was thirsty, I was naked, I was sick and in prison,” Wood said, quoting Jesus from the Bible. “When you do to them, you do to me.”

But nothing could be less compassionate than the force of government.

The new permits were passed off as “health regulations” but are actually a mechanism to stifle competition in the food industry and protect politically-connected businesses.

“These people are hungry. They’re starving. They need help from people. They can’t afford to buy something from a food truck.”

To abide by the regulations, Rick Wood would have to pay $300 for a “general permit” and apply for a permit to operate a “food truck.”  He would have to abide by extensive red tape.  His hours of operation would be limited.   He would be unable to feed anyone within 150 feet of a brick-and-mortar food establishment.

Feeding the homeless in the city center would be even more regulated.  The “premier permit” would cost $500.

The new rules have been tough on entrepreneurs as well, who have called the ordinance “restrictive and oppressive.”

Wood says he’s going to continue serving the homeless from his church, The Church of the Reconciler in downtown Birmingham.

Sadly, this phenomenon is common in cities across the country.  Police State USA recently covered a story about a group of church volunteers who were threatened by the police for feeding homeless people biscuits and coffee in Raleigh, NC.  There are numerous other incidents that have garnered national attention as of late.  It is unclear why the government feels so threatened by volunteerism and charity.

Man arrested after drinking iced tea in public must take deal or go to trial

A man in plain clothes comes over and starts demanding to see the can of iced tea. 

(Source: YouTube)

FAYETTEVILLE, NC — A man drinking canned iced tea in a parking lot was accosted by a plainclothes beverage cop who demanded to inspect his drink.  He was placed in handcuffs and arrested.   Even though the man was innocent and was only drinking tea, prosecutors are still trying to set him up with probation and community service.

The incident took place on the evening of April 27th, 2013.  Two men were standing by their vehicle waiting for friends to arrive in the parking lot of a state-owned ABC Liquor Store.

One man, Christopher Lamont Beatty, was holding a canned beverage, while his friend, Tino Brown, was recording video using his cell phone.  That’s when the two were interrupted by a man who was interested in the man’s choice of refreshments.

A beverage cop's rage begins to surface.  (Source: YouTube) 

Beatty, who also goes by the name “Xstravagant” or “Xstrav” as his rapping persona, began receiving harassment about the can he was holding.  A man in plainclothes, claiming to be “the police”, insisted that he turn over his beverage for an inspection.  Beatty refused the stranger’s requests, but pointed out that it was only an AriZona-brand drink, “Half-and-Half” iced tea and pink lemonade — not alcohol.

Brown and Beatty pointed out that they didn’t know the identity of the nosy man and that Beatty had committed no crime.   Still, the man demanded to examine his beverage and would not take no for an answer.

The stranger then claimed that Mr. Beatty was under arrest.  He became grabby and ended up putting Beatty in a choke-hold as he took him down to the ground.

The stranger places a choke-hold on Mr. Beatty. 

(Source: YouTube)

(Source: YouTube) 

(Source: YouTube)

The bully, who turned out to be Alcohol & Beverage Control Law Enforcer Rick Libero, forced Mr. Beatty face-down onto the concrete and placed him in handcuffs.

Tino Brown had been recording the whole incident and documented the labeling on the can, showing that it was a non-alcoholic drink.

Beatty was arrested and taken to jail.  He was charged with two crimes; second degree trespass and resisting a public officer.  

Months have gone by and the prosecution has offered a deal.

The assailant starts sizing up his next potential victim.  

(Source: YouTube) 

The government requests that Beatty “submit to a year of probation, do 24 hours of community service, have a mental health assessment, and submit to drug testing and warrantless searches,” reported the Fayetteville Observer.

“It would get it dismissed at the end, but I would still have to take responsibility for my actions, and I felt like I did nothing wrong,” Beatty said.

Beatty could also potentially take this to trial, in which a jury of his peers would have the opportunity to vindicate him of an unjust charge.

Innocent mother shot dead answering door for police

Yvette Smith and her son. 

(Source: family photo)

BASTROP COUNTY, TX — A 47-year-old mother was shot to death in her home after opening her front door for police officers.  

Officers made transparent attempts to justify the shooting by alleging that she threatened them with a gun, even though no evidence corroborates that story, and nobody can imagine the woman holding a gun to anyone.

Just after midnight on February 16th, 2014, two sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to a domestic disturbance at the home of Willie Thomas and his live-in girlfriend, Yvette Smith, 47.   The 9-1-1 caller had alleged that two males were arguing in the presence of a gun.

Bastrop County Deputy Daniel Willis 

Deputies claimed in their official incident report that they arrived at the home and saw one person — Willie Thomas — already outside.  They issued verbal commands for the occupants to to exit.   It alleges that when Ms. Smith finally opened the door, she had a firearm, and “disregarded the deputy’s commands.”  Deputy Daniel Willis, 28, opened fire with his .223 caliber rifle.

But that account doesn’t match with any witness or any evidence.

A neighbor, Joe Acosta, says he was awake when deputies arrived.  

“When I was overhearing it, I heard cooperation going on,” he said.

Besides Willie Thomas and Yvette Smith, who live at the address, the home contained Thomas’s son, his wife, and their three children.   Witnesses say the argument between father and son was about money, not a gun, according to KXAN.

When Thomas, who was standing by the patrol cars, overheard a dispatcher say that they believed a gun was inside, he attempted to inform deputies that was not true.  But then Smith opened the door, and shots echoed through the neighborhood.

“This is a big tragedy for everybody, because, I mean, we feel unsafe now. I mean, an officer shot somebody without the person being armed.”

“She didn’t have the chance to get out the door,” Thomas said to the Austin Statesman.

Thomas says rifle rounds struck Smith in the abdomen and head.  She died at the hospital.

No witness corroborates the story about Smith being armed. 

Family members say she would not have been comfortable holding a gun.

The department contradicted itself by issuing a second statement later in the day.  “We cannot confirm at this time that the female victim was armed with any type of firearm or other weapon at the time of the incident or that she intentionally disregarded any type of officer commands,” it said.   This draws questions about the integrity of the officer(s) who issued the first report.

“This is a big tragedy for everybody, because, I mean, we feel unsafe now. I mean, an officer shot somebody without the person being armed,” said another neighbor, Joe Martinez, to KVUE. “It just hurts, because now you can’t trust an officer here.”

Yvette Smith (Courtesy: Adriana Vela) 

Anthony Bell, the victim’s son, was heartbroken when he heard of his mother’s death.  He says she has been a wonderful mother and never run afoul of the law.  He was informed 6 hours after the shooting.

“I answered the door and there were two investigators there, and they said your mom’s been involved in an accident,” Bell said.  “I thought a car wreck and he said, no, she was shot by an officer and she died. I just lost it then.”

The department seems to have unwittingly admitted the shooting was unjustified by characterizing the shooting as an “accident.” Officials have remained tight-lipped about details to the media.

Sheriff’s officials report that the deputy’s training records have been tampered with by a supervisor, following the shooting.  It seems that supervisor Joey Dzianowski pulled Willis’ records and signed off on training that had not previously received valid signatures.  Two supervisors received demotions and suspensions for the records tampering.

“She was just a loving, caring, genuine person,” Bell told KXAN. “You got a mother of two gone. The woman beat cancer, just got out of knee surgery and was battling diabetes. She was 5-foot-5, 135 pounds, and if you find that aggressive then you need to turn your badge in.

The repercussions for the shooting and record tampering remain to be seen.  Willis, who became a deputy last May, is on paid administrative leave.  The Texas Rangers are investigating the incident.

Answering the door for police is becoming an increasingly dangerous proposition.  This shooting took place within days of a Georgia teenager being shot answering the door for police, while allegedly holding a video game controller.

UPDATE: Bastrop County Deputy Daniel Willis has been indicted for the murder of Yvette Smith. A grand jury reviewed the evidence and deemed that charges were appropriate. The fact that police initially claimed that she had a gun and then retracted the statement surely did not help the officer’s credibility.

View KXAN’s coverage of the shooting here:

Prisoner freed after serving 15 years for baggie of marijuana seeds

By Barry Cooper

Activists, pro bono super lawyers and a federal prosecutor joined forces to free a 57 year old man after serving 15 years of a 30 year prison sentence for possessing a baggie of marijuana seeds. Last year, after exhausting all legal appeals, Dalton Wilson, a model prisoner who earned a psychology degree while behind bars, contacted the NeverGetBusted Free A Prisoner Program who published, “We Taught That Ni&&er A Lesson.” The NeverGetBusted exclusive detailed the story of how Wilson was arrested in 1996 by federal agents in Texas and unfairly convicted by a racist jury.

Leaving his three sons behind, ages seven, nine and eleven, to spend a life behind bars will leave a permanent pained look in the family’s eyes forever.  While the eldest son, Shomari, manages the recordings, Husani, now age twenty-six, became a popular recording artist with lyrics like, “I watched my mama cry for me and broke…my dad in the fed pen jump suit I use to watch the front door and hope my daddy come through.”   This portion of the song can be heard at the closing of the video of Wilson’s first interview that is attached to this story.

The youngest son, Adisa, now age twenty-four, is described by close family friends as a non-stop advocate for his father’s freedom.  

As he has done for years, he continues carrying a backpack containing over ten pounds of legal documents pertaining to his father’s incarceration. It was Adisa who contacted NeverGetBusted after numerous lawyers and appeals failed to free his father. 

During a prison visitation, Adisa received a copy of an article from Maxim Magazine that featured NeverGetBusted.  

Wilson instructed his son to contact the organization and ask for help.

Dalton’s son endlessly carried a “Ninja Turtle” bag containing over 10 pounds of legal documents pertaining to his father’s incarceration.

In January 2013, the NeverGetBusted Freedom Program published Wilson’s story requesting legal assistance and asking the audience to telephone Judge Junell’s office with pleas to release the prisoner of the failed drug war. Nationally famous lawyer and NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) Board of Directors, Attorney Jeff Steinborn, answered the publication’s request and agreed to review the mound of legal documents at no charge.

In March 2013, Steinborn contacted the person in charge of Dalton’s case,  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Miller, who agreed Wilson’s sentence was drastic.  Miller collaborated with Steinborn and together they outlined a legal strategy to free the seed prisoner.

In September 2013, Mr. Steinborn’s wife fell ill so Texas lawyer and President of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, Bobby Mims, was tapped on the shoulder to travel to West Texas for Mr. Wilson’s hearing.  Although Mr. Mims agreed to work for no charge, travel expenses needed to be covered. NeverGetBusted fans were asked to fund Mim’s travel by purchasing a five-hundred-dollar NeverGetBusted Lifetime Arrest Insurance  at the reduced rate of twenty-five dollars.  Within hours, seven-hundred and fifty dollars was raised and forwarded to Mr. Mims who purchased an airplane ticket to West Texas.

Washington attorney, Brandon Rains, legal expert, Tracee Tomich and famous lawyer, Jeff Steinborn, donated their services to free 

In October 2013, federal judge, Robert Junell, signed the order for Wilson to be released on December 9, 2013.   Coincidentally, Wilson is the second drug war prisoner who was the focus of a NeverGetBusted investigation that Judge Junell has released. In 2009, Junell was made famous for releasing a West Texas mother of two, Yolanda Madden, after NeverGetBusted lured drug agents into raiding a fake marijuana grow room.

In November 2013, Wilson was released from prison and placed in the custody of U.S. Immigration.  Sometimes prisoners remain in immigration holding for long periods of time so immigration lawyer, Doug Grannan, donated his craft which resulted in the speedy deportation of Mr. Wilson.

On December 2013, after fifteen years of isolation from the world…after fifteen years of not holding a loved one or touching the fur of an animal…after fifteen years of no private toilet and shower time…after fifteen years of demeaning strip searches…after fifteen years of not interacting with children…Wilson stepped off the airplane in Jamaica and into his mother’s arms a free man. 

Attorney Jeff Steinborn Attorney Jeff Steinborn states, “We were able to help Mr. Wilson despite the fact that the law offered no real remedies. We examined all the possible arguments as to why justice had been frustrated and why Wilson’s case should be revisited by the court.  We had the good fortune to encounter a United States Attorney who agreed with us and wanted to help. Sadly, there are thousands out there whose cases are as shocking as Mr. Wilson’s, and many of their cases are even more difficult to solve.”

Attorney Bobby Mims Attorney Bobby Mims explains, “Dalton Wilson is now a middle aged man with a gentle disposition. He bears no hard feelings and appears to be at peace.  The Assistant US Attorney Jay Miller and Judge Junell did the right thing by granting Dalton an early release from his harsh sentence.  Dalton’s case is just one of thousands that needs to be addressed as it is very clear the Americans no longer want to see people criminalized for possessing a plant.  Hopefully, the government will review more cases like Dalton Wilson’s and free the non-violent human beings that have been incarcerated far beyond what is necessary to address their crimes.”

Since Wilson’s release, According to the New York Times, the Obama administration, in its effort to decrease the embarrassing number of citizens in U.S. prison camps, is taking the unprecedented step of releasing crack cocaine offenders.  Obama is encouraging defense lawyers and prison guards to provide a list of low-level, non-violent inmates whom the president might let out of prison early.  The clemency drive is the administration’s effort to reduce the largest prison population on the planet. Currently, the United States has 5 percent of the world’s population but houses 25 percent of the world’s prisoners, over two million in number.

Testifying on Capitol Hill recently, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said the Bureau of Prisons now eats up 30 percent of the Justice Department’s budget, which strains the department’s ability to do other law enforcement missions.  The real question Americans should be asking is, “Who is receiving 30 percent of the budget to cage millions of non violent Americans?” Since prison stock is now traded based on the number of inmates, I’m sure the shareholders are living lavish while millions suffer the torture of being locked away from their families.

In the past, American presidents, Republican and Democratic, have strongly supported the caging of millions of Americans turning the drug war into what some consider a slow motion holocaust.  Fortunately, and because of activists, pro bono super lawyers and a compassionate federal prosecutor, Americans now have one less prisoner of war to free.

To help Mr. Wilson rebuild his life and to fund the freeing of more prisoners, purchase a “Coughee Pipe,” handmade in Jamaica by the man who spent 15 years in prison for marijuana seeds.  The bottom of each “Coughee Pipe” is personally engraved with Wilson’s name and inmate number. Only 500 available.  Get more details here.

Police open fire on misidentified man, cover up mistake by filing charges against him

Kevion Young. (Source: NBC Los Angeles)

ADELANTO, CA — Police searching for a suspect opened fire on a misidentified man and then charged him with a crime in an apparent effort to justify their mistake.

18-year-old Kevion Young was with his family members in the garage of his uncle’s home shortly after 9 p.m. on January 29th when he stepped outside to urinate along the side of the house.

Family members said it took less than ten seconds for gunfire to erupt outside — just feet away from friends and family, as well as a baby.

Young says he was abruptly approached out of the darkness by men in plainclothes with guns.  Without identifying themselves, according to Young, they opened fire.  Without any other recourse he dropped to the ground while being sprayed with bullets.

“I laid down ’cause they were shooting. I couldn’t do anything. I put my hands on top of my head. I could feel the bullet passing my head. I almost died…. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I was trying to out my hands on my head but they shot me in my leg. I couldn’t even tell them,” Young said to NBC Los Angeles.

He continued:  “I laid down ’cause they were shooting. I couldn’t do anything. I put my hands on top of my head. I could feel the bullet passing my head. I almost died.”

The house had bullet holes visible in the side of the garage, as did the truck parked in the driveway.  The neighbor’s home was shot at least twice.

The deputies were actually looking for a completely different person — a wanted suspect named Robert Pope.

Young was hospitalized for his gunshot wounds.  When he was discharged from the hospital the next day, he says that he expected to go home.  To his surprise, he was told that he was being charged with “assault on a peace officer with a deadly weapon.”

Police claim that after busting Young sneaking through yards, he whipped out 2 knives and attempted to stab them.  Young says he was just taking urination break.

Kevion Young. (Source: NBC Los Angeles)

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” Young said desperately during a phone call from jail.

Darrell Battee, Young’s uncle, was present during the shooting.  

He says he heard about 8 shots fired just seconds after Young walked out of the garage.

“They reacted too quickly they had the wrong house – the wrong people,” Battee told NBC.

Witnesses say they were “positive” that police had not identified themselves before the shooting.  The first time they realized they were cops was after they entered the garage and began to detain everyone.  Everyone was grabbed and thrown into handcuffs.

“They want to try to clean it up, and make it as if the party that is injured is the guilty one,” said another family member to NBC.

Father sentenced to 6 months in jail for over-paying child support

Clifford Hall will go to jail for 6 months for doing too much for his son. 

(Source: FOX 26 Houston)

HOUSTON, TX — A father will spend half of 2014 behind bars for doing too much for his son.  After overpaying child support and seeing his son too often — breaking terms that were secretly modified without his knowledge — a judge sentenced him to a lengthy jail sentence.

Clifford Hall has been doing his best to give care to his 11-year-old son, who lives with his ex-wife.  He pays his child support and visits regularly.  “I’m his father it’s my responsibility to take care of him,” Hall said.

Last November, his child support payments were paid in full.  Sometime between then and now, the child support agreement between Hall and his wife was modified without his knowledge.  Hall wound up overpaying by $3,000, a fact that Harris County District Court Judge Lisa Millard found contemptible.

Another term that was modified without his knowledge was his visitation schedule.  Subsequently, Hall was found to have over-visited his son.

Judge Millard ended up finding Hall in contempt of court.

“When she said I remand you to the Harris County Jail for 180 days my mouth just dropped,” Hall told FOX 26 Houston.

In addition to the six month jail sentence, Judge Millard is forcing Hall to pay his ex-wife’s attorney fees.

“I can’t be there for my son in jail,” Hall said. “I can’t pay child support in jail. This is not in the best interest of the child.”

Hall is correct.  Such heavy-handed actions on the part of the court serve no one.  Not only is the child going to be deprived of his father for the next 6 months, but taxpayers will have to pay the father’s incarceration, and will potentially be forced to subsidize the mother’s living expenses in lieu of the child support payments.

It just goes to show us that no good deed goes unpunished in Police State USA.

Father tased by police upon discovering his toddler’s death

Jermiah Rutledge grieves the loss of his son in handcuffs after being tased by police. 

(Credit: CBS Atlanta video)

FULTON COUNTY, GA — A man grieving the loss of his two-year-old son found little sympathy from the police state in Georgia.  The man, returning home after being notified of the boy’s death, was tased for attempting to enter his own home to see his son.

The unfortunate incident happened in Fulton County this past April when Angela Rutledge stepped into the bathroom for a few minutes, at around 1:30 p.m., leaving her toddler alone with their 8-year-old family dog.  When she returned, she was horrified to find that the pit bull had mauled her son to death.  She ran from the house, screaming.

A 9-1-1 call was placed.  Police soon arrived and took control of the scene.

CBS Atlanta reported that neighbors said when the boy’s father, Jermiah Rutledge, was notified of the attack while at work, he rushed home and tried to enter his home to see what had happened to his son.  Officers advised the man to stay back, but the grieving man continued to attempt to gain entry to his home, saying “You’ll have to shoot me. I’m going to see my son,” according to police spokesman Sgt. Scott McBride.

It was then that police used a taser to subdue the man.

McBride defended the actions of the officers, offering no sympathy to the man who first learned of the death of his toddler, and then was tased for attempting to see him.  ”This is one of those parts of the job we don’t like doing. But we have to protect the crime scene until we know what has happened. We must look at all the possibilities. We can’t contaminate the crime scene,” McBride said according to CBS Atlanta.

Relatives grieve the 2-year-old’s death. (Photo: Ben Gray, AP)

Neighbors felt for the family and were understanding of the man’s reaction.  ”When it’s your own child, you go through something like that, you’re going to be angry, upset, and you’re going to want to see your child for the last time,” said a neighbor according to CBS Atlanta.

Other neighbors were put off at the police use of a taser to subdue the man.  ”He was already hurting from the loss, then to have to go through that, the images haunt me,” said another neighbor.

The man can be seen in video from CBS Atlanta sitting on the ground, crying, with his hands restrained behind his back.

Do you think this was an appropriate use of force?  Let us know in the comments below.

Man assaulted, arrested, and put on trial for walking down wrong side of the street

Police shot at David Blair the moment he emerged from his door. 

(Source: Dallas Morning News)

DALLAS, TX — On his first night staying in a new apartment, an Oak Cliff man says police opened fire on him as he stood in his doorway — unarmed — after he rebuffed their interrogation efforts during an operation to apprehend call girls and johns in the area.  Welcome to the neighborhood.

41-year-old David Blair had just moved into his new residence with his girlfriend and 3-year-old son October 2nd and says he was speaking to his brother on the phone when police officers Richard Cantu and Jesse Aquino exited their cruiser and shined a spotlight in his face.

“I tell them ‘Get that spotlight out of my face,’” said Blair. He said he went back into his apartment; he was entering and exiting the residence as he moved his possessions into his new home. He said when he opened the door again he was met with a hail of gunfire.

“I grab my son and his mom and we go back up to the back room,” he said.  Blair was unscathed from the bullets that flew by him and blew through the walls of his apartment.  His girlfriend and son, Daveion, who were inside, also managed to escape harm.

Police claim Blair came out of the apartment and shined a spotlight of his own at them before they heard a loud bang they believed to be a gunshot. Blair said a detective later told him the officers were probably reacting to the popping sound his screen door makes when it opens and closes.

“They had no business messing with me,” Blair said to the Dallas Morning News.  “What if I came out with my son?”

Reverend Ronald Wright of an area civil rights group called Texas Justice Seekers said the police account “didn’t make any sense.” After nearly being shot to death, Blair was arrested for aggravated assault on a police officer. He was released after several hours in custody.

“I guess I wasn’t supposed to tell them to get the light out of my face,” Blair said.

This incident occurred less than two weeks before Dallas police capriciously gunned down a mentally troubled man outside his home, then lied about him charging with a knife.

And officer Jesse Aquino had been a subject of controversy before. In 2011, the police department concluded he had falsified a report after striking a man he suspected was holding cocaine in his hand. After internal affairs concluded Aquino had lied about details in his report, he was allowed to make revisions to his account of events and remain on the force.

Blair said he isn’t impressed with Aquino’s character, nor presumably the department’s emergency response efforts.  He said after he heard the gunshots and hurried back into his home he “called 911 about four times.”

Fortunately no one was maimed or killed in yet another collision between overzealous police and the innocent citizens they’re ostensibly sworn to protect along the warpath abutting victimless crimes. Blair and his loved ones nearly had their lives snuffed out over a hooker dragnet.  Sadly, so long as violent vice squads are sent out to stomp on victimless crimes, unwarranted state-sponsored violence will continue unabated.

Man assaulted, arrested, and put on trial for walking down wrong side of the street

JACKSONVILLE, FL — A Florida man is suing the local Sheriff’s Office after reportedly being violently assaulted and arrested by a police officer for the crime of “walking on the wrong side of the road” as a pedestrian. In arresting this criminal, the officer punched him in the face and threatened him with a taser.  The offense was taken all the way to trial.

Bobby Wingate (Source: christianpost.com) 

Last December, Bobby Wingate, of Jacksonville, Florida, was on his way to an appointment in the neighborhood of Arlington when he was suddenly stopped by an officer of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Department.

As reported by First Coast News, The officer pulled up alongside Wingate while he walked along Oliver Street and asked him to stop. When he explained to the officer that he was late for an appointment, the officer cited Wingate for the heinous offense of “walking down the wrong side of the road.”

Next, as if to impress upon him the seriousness of the crime, the officer punched him in the face. Then, according to court records, he “engaged his taser.” Fearing for his safety, Bobby Wingate called 9-1-1 for help. On the recording of the call Wingate can be heard telling the dispatcher, “He said do I really want to fight him? I haven’t done anything wrong.”

The Sherriff’s Officer arrested Wingate, charging him with resisting arrest without violence and walking down the wrong side of the road. He then spent the night in jail, and the State Attorney’s Office brought the case against him to trial.

Once in court, the judge threw the case out and dropped all of the charges because of lack of evidence against Wingate. Not the least of which was the arresting officer’s inability to remember which side of the road Wingate was walking on.

“The conduct that is outlined in the transcript and the 9-1-1 call is not only breathtaking, it’s outrageous, it’s disgraceful,” said Andrew Bonderud, Wingate’s civil attorney.”

Bonderud also said he believes client was a target of racial discrimination. His opinion is supported by the staggering absence of any real evidence, suggesting that Wingate was not arrested for anything other than “walking while black.”

Wingate is now suing the department in civil court not out of malice towards the arresting officer, but as a matter of principle. He says, “If I ever see him again, and he needs my help for something, I’ll help him.” In addition to a monetary settlement, Wingate is seeking an apology from the department.

Meanwhile, the JSO Officer at the center of this event is still on the job, and has yet to be investigated internally by the department. The JSO will not comment on either case due to the pending lawsuit.

This incident is a good example of the benefit of knowing your rights when dealing with the police. The ACLU offers a detailed guide on what to do if you are stopped by police. I recommend that in addition to familiarizing yourself with the guide’s main points, you download their handy PDF version (which conveniently folds down into a card the size of your wallet). Keep it next to the laminated copy of CPR instructions that you carry on your person at all times.

As far as the federal government is concerned, individuals are afforded the Fourth Amendment’s protections against unreasonable searches and seizures in the same manner as they apply to property. As such, there is no federal law requiring an individual to identify herself. Hiibel v. Sixth Judicial District Court of Nevada held that the States, however, are free to enact laws requiring citizens to provide their identity, provided the officers have reasonable suspicion that a specific person is involved in a specific crime.

Police-citizen encounters are generally broken down into three tiers: consensual encounters, investigative detentions and arrests. “Stop and identify” statutes, the law in 24 states, fall under the detention category, and allow police to arrest suspects who refuse to identify themselves. While the specifics of each law vary greatly from state to state, there is one constant; without reasonable suspicion of a specific crime, the police cannot force you to identify yourself. The key word here is “reasonable,” and its vagueness allows the police a wide latitude when dealing with the public.

Bobby Wingate appears to have initially been involved in a consensual encounter with the officer. He should have been allowed to terminate the encounter and leave freely without answering any questions or identifying himself. Lacking reasonable suspicion of specific crime, the officer escalated the encounter past the level consensual by asserting that Wingate was walking on the wrong side of the road. The officer’s reasonable suspicion was so vague that he later failed to articulate to the court any of the specifics of the alleged crime.

Having been detained, assaulted, arrested and tried in court on false charges; Wingate will now have his day in court, and justice may yet be served.

In lieu of any apparent crime, the way to find out if the police have reasonable suspicion is to determine if you’re free to go. You can do this by saying, “Excuse me officer. Are you detaining me, or am I free to go?” If the officer says you’re free to go, leave immediately and don’t answer any more questions. As the police state endeavors to legislate our rights into ever narrower parameters, it is more important than ever that we know our rights and understand the threats to our freedom and liberty. The police are counting on our continued ignorance, and we can no longer afford to remain oblivious to the abuses committed against the innocent by those tasked to “protect and serve.”

Chicago jailers laughed while fatally tasing mentally ill man 16 times

Philip Coleman

CHICAGO, IL — An investigation regarding the in-custody death of a mentally ill man has revealed that police tasered him a total of 16 times while shackled.  Video shows that police used the taser as a compliance tool in a jail cell and were laughing during the incident.  The man was also tased repeatedly as he was taken to court and then to the hospital, until he died.

* * * * *

Philip Coleman, 38, was a University of Chicago graduate and masters graduate of UIC.  He had “never been in trouble,” according to his father.  Towards the end of his life he suffered a severe mental breakdown.

“I’ve never seen him out of sorts,” said the neighbor, Dana Robinson, to the Chicago Sun Times.  Robinson said he talked periodically with Coleman and that he was never a troublemaker. “I’ve always seen him laughing, always seen him smiling. Everything was always good with him.”

Philip Coleman giving a presentation. 

(Source: Youtube / CBS 2)

On Wednesday, December 12, 2012, Philip Coleman went through a bizarre episode in which he became disgruntled, barged into his neighbor’s garage, hurled himself at a barbed wire fence, and accosted his mother.

Philip’s father, Percy Coleman, drove around the neighborhood to find his son following the episode.  After finding him, Philip hugged and kissed him, spoke incoherently, then claimed to not know him.

“Who are you? You’re not my father,” Percy remembers Philip saying.  Philip, in a delusional state, then struck his father, knocking off his glasses, and then fell to his knees.  “Anyone that hits their mother is sick. Shoot me. Shoot me,” Philip pleaded.

When police arrived, Philip was outside and incoherent.  “My son spread his arms and started making airplane sounds,” explained the elder Coleman.  He says his son was talking gibberish, bleeding, and clearly needing hospitalization.

Percy says that officers aimed guns at his confused son, barking orders at him.  “I got in front of my son and said ‘You are not going to shoot him,’” Percy remembered.  “I told him, ‘How are you going to give him orders when he don’t understand?’”

“I told them [police] that my son was having an emotional breakdown, and could they please take him to the hospital,” recalled Percy, himself a retired police chief. “And that’s when one of the officers said, ‘We do not do hospitals, we do jail.’ Unbelievable.”

While Philip was being apprehended on the ground, a female police officer claimed that Philip spit on her.  He was hauled off the the police station without further incident.

That evening, while sleeping in a jail cell, officers roused him and gave him his first round of tasings.  According to CBS Chicago:

A police station video allegedly shows six officers entered Coleman’s cell as he lay sleeping and used a TASER on him three times after they told him to stand up.

Attorney Ed Fox filed a lawsuit for the Coleman family and is fighting to get the video released. He says after the TASER was used on Coleman the officers reacted.

“Some of them were laughing,” Fox says. “He was treated like an animal.”

Later Thursday morning, Coleman was tased again during his transportation to his court hearing.  He was tased again at Roseland Hospital.

At first it police claimed that the taser was only used a few times.  

Police documented their use of force by saying the taser was used “to gain control of the subject” after Coleman “became combative.”

But records obtained by CBS Chicago — downloadable records from the taser devices — indicate that Coleman was shocked 16 times during his 22 hours in police custody.  He was arrested at at approximately 7:15 p.m. on Wednesday, and died at 5:37 p.m. on Thursday.

The death outraged many in the community.

“”They shouldn’t be tasing somebody that’s in handcuffs, and ankle cuffs, and mentally ill… Some of them were laughing. He was treated like an animal.”

“I can guarantee you, we will get to the bottom of this,” pledged Coleman’s father.  “I know the game and I know that they’re doing,” Coleman said to WLAS. “I’m in law enforcement. I know what to do. You don’t take someone who is bleeding from the mouth and hands to a lockup. You take him to the hospital because you don’t want the responsibility.”  He added, “All they had to do was follow their own damn law and take him to the hospital. They could keep him under arrest.”

Attorney Ed Fox got to view the jail video and is working to get it publicly released.   “They shouldn’t be tasing somebody that’s in handcuffs, and ankle cuffs, and mentally ill,” he remarked.

“My brother was totally tortured,” said Jacquie Coleman, Philip’s sister.   She told the Sun Times that her brother was “not treated justly, he was treated like an insect.”

“Thirty-eight years old, never been in trouble. No problem until that day,” Percy lamented.  “Because he spit on police they gave him a death sentence.”

The Chicago Tribune reported that Chicago used federal grant money in 2010 to expand its arsenal of Tasers to more than 600. 

The following year, citizens were being shocked at a 329 percent higher rate.