Posted on 11/22/2006 7:35:17 AM PST by Dick Bachert
Atlanta police went to a home on Neal Street in Atlanta last evening to execute a search warrant. When they kicked the door in the only occupant of the home, a 92-year-old woman, started shooting. She hit all three police officers. One in the thigh, one in the arm and another in the shoulder. All police officers will be OK. The woman will not. She was shot and killed by the police.
I'm not blaming the cops here. Not at all. They had a valid search warrant, and they say they were at the right address. Shots were fired, three cops hit, and they returned fire. A 92-year-old woman who was so afraid of crime in her neighborhood that she had burglar bars on every door and window, is now dead.
The blame lies on this idiotic drug war we're waging. We have all the studies we need, all of the comprehensive data is in. We can do a much more effective job of reducing drug use in this country if we'll just take a portion of this money we spend for law enforcement and spend it on treatment programs. A Rand study showed that we can reduce illicit drug usage in this country a specified amount through treatment programs at about 10% of the cost of reducing drug usage by that same amount through criminalization and law enforcement.
There's just something in the American psyche that demands that drug users be punished instead of treated and rehabilitated. We think they're stupid and ignorant for getting mixed up with those drugs in the first place. And you know what? We're right? But look at the messages we send to our children every single day with cigarettes, alcohol, and an endless stream of drug ads on television and in magazines. Drug culture? You bet we have.
That's the most sensible post anyone is likely to see on this, or any other, thread on no-knock raids.
Are you on drugs? How can you consider that we would no longer use the force-of-law to apprehend druggies and then immediately conclude that because of that you would still have to go to their home and apprehend them?
The reason a druggie hides his habits is fear of the police. Without that fear any number of avenues become available to him for intervention and treatment. His employer may detect a problem and make treatment a condition of continued employment. His family, friends or other efforts in the local community will provide help.
If his irresponsible acts while being influenced by drug usage result in crimes, he will still be arrested for the individual crimes and be held responsible, Then one of the conditions of his punishment would certainly be treatment for the drug abuse.
The story I read last night was that the police were "approaching the house" when the woman shot at them. Somebody is lying.
Good morning.
"The story indicates this is the correct house."
The story indicates that the cops burst into a house in a bad neigborhood, in the dead of night, that they believed there was some connection to drugs in the house and that a 92 year old woman reacted to them breaking in by opening fire. Oh, yeah, and the woman is dead and the cops are wounded.
I'll bet that cleaned that neigborhood up.
Michael Frazier
LOL. Cuz junkies first and foremost concern is their job security. Most jobs NOW don't tolerate junkies. That's why junkies do crimes, duh.
If his irresponsible acts while being influenced by drug usage result in crimes, he will still be arrested for the individual crimes and be held responsible, Then one of the conditions of his punishment would certainly be treatment for the drug abuse.
That's my point. Same crap, different day. Forced treatment, forced incarceration. Same difference.
Behind door #1, there's a table with an ounce of weed in a baggie laying on it.
Behind door #2, there's a Muslim terrorist with an AK-47 and a bomb belt.
Which door would you feel safer to open?
I hate drugs. My stepbrother died of a heroin overdose. My big problem with the WOD is the erosion of due process. Seizure laws and no-knock warrants seem to violate the 4th Amendment. The gubmint has used the WOD to expand its tyrannical powers. I don't like that.
A 92 year-old lady is dead, 3 cops wounded. Sounds like a screw-up to me.
Also: did they find drugs in the house? Seems like that would be a big part of the story if they had.
Lots of pertinent info missing here.Although i would find it highly unusual for a 92 yr old woman to be selling drugs,i find it incredible that a woman that age could get off(at least)3 shots and hit what she was aiming at(esp under the circumstances).I'm gonna try to find more info,but could you ping me if you hear more about this?Thanx
"Availability hasn't seemed to have suffered much either, in this war."
By the DEA's own statements, purity of heroin on the streets is the highest it has ever been, and the cost is at a low point.
Supply and demand at work in the illegal drug market?
Sounds like a ptractical solution.
Now, I'm no longer sure that legalization is a bad idea. Obviously, laws against driving under the influence and similar laws would remain, but I'm no longer convinced society is well served by imprisoning someone who uses drugs in their own home where they aren't messing with someone else while doing it.
A quality post. We need more people like you to weigh in on the subject.
Everyone that knows me knows to call before showing up. If you're at my door and you didn't call; I assume the worse, either you're a salesman (and deserving of death) or a cop. Luckily, I'm not a criminal so if it's a cop, he's there for something minor like selling me police man's ball tickets.
These no knock warrants and plain clothes warrants are deadly and need to be stopped. The WOD is not worth an innocent civilian's or cop's life.
You are assuming that the relationship is linear, which is not likely to be true. It never is when discussing the marginal utility of money.
The article does not indicate if she was or was not a dealer.
ONLY that she was 92.
The article implies there are bars on her windows. Are the bars there to keep other drug dealers out? Did she install them?
Remember dealers use unlikely people (minors, older people) as lookouts.
The article also does not indicate if she lives alone.
too many holes in this story reporting.
need more information.
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