Posted on 07/07/2015 6:50:50 AM PDT by don-o
The Waco secret of the day is the surveillance video shot by the Don Carlos Mexican Restaurant in the Central Texas Market Place in Waco on May 17. Dallas Attorney Clint Broden wants a copy.
Recent escapees from Syrian prisons need to know that there was a big news event in that shopping center that Sunday around lunch time. Some arbitrary number of people, some number in the low two hundreds, were detained. One hundred seventy-nine people were arrested. A couple of them were let out of jail that night. Police announced there were about 160 arrests. Eventually, after a couple of days, that number evolved to 177.
The arrestees were all held on $1 million bail by a Dukes of Hazzardesque Justice of the Peace named W.H. “Pete” Peterson. Peterson authorized the arrests based on the testimony of a local detective named Manuel Chavez who has since admitted that he didn’t know who any of the arrestees were or what they had actually done – if anything. Probable cause is just a question of mind over matter. If a lay justice of the peace don’t mind it don’t matter. Chavez didn’t even write the complaint. “Somebody” in the District Attorney’s Office did. Chavez swore on the tattered remnant of his sacred honor that all those people he did not know were members of criminal street gangs who had each committed or conspired to commit murder, capital murder, or aggravated assault. Maybe Chavez had a hunch. Peterson found himself confronted by a ginormous stack of photocopied criminal complaints so he had Chavez swear that the whole stack contained the whole truth and nothing but the truth and then he let it go at that. Maybe Peterson has ADHD.
Afterward, Peterson stated, “I think it is important to send a message. We had nine people killed in our community. These people just came in, and most of them were from out of town.” So much for that “Visit Friendly Waco” tourism campaign. Forget all those “Waco The Texas Tahiti” posters. Sure, maybe a couple dozen hula dancers in training had their dreams shattered but when one door closes another always opens. The for profit jail business and the bail bonds business and the lawyer business in Waco are all trending way up.
Connect The Dots
Broden has been demanding the release of evidence that might illuminate exactly what happened before, during and after a violent confrontation between the Bandidos and Cossacks Motorcycle Clubs and machinegun-toting representatives of the Waco Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and, for all anybody knows, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Security and Exchange Commission, the National Institutes of Health and the Screen Actors Guild. Broden wants a look at the video shot by the Don Carlos Restaurant’s cameras “aimed outside the restaurant” between the hours of 10:30 a.m. and 9 p.m.
The parking lot between the Twin Peaks and the Don Carlos is where that violent confrontation occurred. There is some disagreement among eyewitnesses and people who have spoken to eyewitnesses and reporters who have spoken to people who have spoken to eyewitnesses about who did the shooting and the killing.
First thing after the gunfire stopped, police seized everybody’s smart phone, lest it contain video that might contradict the official account; and video from the Don Carlos and the Twin Peaks restaurant, whose management is being blamed for the shooting. One thing about which the Cossacks and the Bandidos can agree is that they want the video released. The police don’t want any video released and they say that is because they don’t want to interfere with the due process rights of that big stack of names Peterson and Chavez, and Waco Police spokesman W. Patrick Swanton, and Waco Police Chief Brent Stroman and McLennan County District Attorney Abelino “Abel” Reyna accused of murder on international television everyday for two weeks.
Lawsuit
Don Carlos has a dog in this fight. A soulless corporation named DC Waco Restaurant Inc. Doing Business As Don Carlos Restaurant is suing Peaktastic Beverage, LLC Doing Business As Twin Peaks Restaurant and Front Burner Restaurants, LP and Twin Restaurant Investment Company LLC for damages of more than $1 million for, among other things, “Failing to observe and heed instructions from Waco Police Department concerning motorcycle-related special events.”
Don Carlos’ attorneys, who have seen the video Broden now seeks to see, allege that their customers “were trapped inside the establishment as thousands of bullet rounds were fired by law enforcement officials and gang members. Law enforcement agents used Plaintiff’s porch and surrounding walls to protect themselves from incoming fire. At least four cars in the parking lot of Plaintiff’s place of business now have multiple bullet holes in them. Immediately following the incident, businesses surrounding Twin Peaks were closed by law enforcement agents. The Waco Police Department issued a statement indicating it considers the area located in Central Texas Marketplace on Interstate 35 a crime scene. This area includes Plaintiff’s place of business, which has been closed and unable to serve patrons since Sunday, May 17, 2015. At the time of the incident, the owners of Don Carlos Restaurant had discussed selling the business, going so far as to value the business and speak to a broker. After the shootout, that process ended.”
Don Carlos has moved to quash Broden’s subpoena of the video on three grounds: First that Waco police seized the hard drive that held the original video and Don Carlos has retained only digital copies; second that if Brodin wants to see the video he should get a copy from prosecutors; and finally that it would be too much trouble to give Brodin a copy of the video.
In a motion filed this morning, Brodin calls the Don Carlos objections “gobbledygook.”
Silly me. When I see a legal document with a heading "Factual Background" I have a certain logical expectation, based on my knowledge of the English language. Of course, John Roberts should have disabused me of that, but, I guess I am a slow learner.
.... because you are ignorant. But because you cannot admit your ignorance, you have to turn the conversation to a false topic -- your feelings were hurt, but it's perfectly okay if you make it plain you think I'm a right-wing "nutter."
Okay -- I apologize for hurting your feelings. You don't have to apologize for insulting me, I'm okay. Keep it.
Do you feel better now? Good.
NOW let's get back to business. You are okay with the fact that a full two thirds of these supposed "criminal bikers" had zero criminal pasts?
Completely understandable and natural. But in a complaint, the function of that section is to spin - carefully select facts, etc. to make it read like your side should win.
The other function (aside from propaganda) is to give a reasonably concise narrative of what happened, setting the table for the specific allegations and points of law that follow.
Between this story and the shutting down of a middle schooler’s lemonaid stand, I believe we have been hoodwinked about Texas.
Sounds just like every other state in the union.
“Don Carlos’ attorneys, who have seen the video Broden now seeks to see, allege that their customers “were trapped inside the establishment as thousands of bullet rounds were fired by law enforcement officials and gang members. Law enforcement agents used Plaintiff’s porch and surrounding walls to protect themselves from incoming fire.”
I’m a little late to the game so forgive me.
Whatever happened to the supposed “Fact” that Police only fired 12 rounds? Is that still the story or what?
Thanks.
Gld you have joined the conversation. Search keyword: waco to catch what you may have missed.
Whatever happened to the supposed “Fact” that Police only fired 12 rounds? Is that still the story or what?
I dunno. Waco PD has gone completely dark, despite promising at one time to provide "regular updates."
Stroman statement that has been scrubbed from Waco PD facebook
Thanks for the update. Although it didn’t clear much up. Did it?
Another thing and I’ll leave you alone. Up thread there was this: and machinegun-toting representatives of the Waco Police Department
No credibility.
What’s up with that? Did someone, supposedly, screw up and call an assault rifle a “machine gun”. I’ve scanned the article 3 times and I didn’t see it mentioned?
I’ve been keeping up a little with these threads and somehow they always seem to be getting clogged up with....B.S. Yep, B.S. would be a good word. If it was actually a word...Damn. Here we go again!
yes. Ask any ten people if a fully automatic weapon is a “machine gun” and see what answer you get. Better yet, ask 10 random BATF faggots. You might be surprsed.
Do you feel better now?
Good -- let's get back to business. You are okay with the fact that a full two thirds of these supposed "criminal bikers" had zero criminal pasts?
NOW tell me WHY you are okay with the fact that two thirds of supposedly "criminal" bikers had zero zip nada criminal histories, and yet all 117 of them were held on million dollar bail away from their homes, work, and employment for two weeks to more than a month, and charged many thousands of dollars to regain their freedom?
And now those 117 individuals who had never been arrested or charged with a crime in their lives, NOW have permanent arrest records reflecting a very serious charge, that will challenge them on every application or background check for the rest of their lives?
Just for being at a COCI meeting where VERY uncharacteristically (hundreds of such meetings had been held for more than 20 years all over the US with ZERO violent incidents, another FACT you can confirm for yourself if you don't believe me) a tiny handful of thug bikers got in a fight?
Care to explain why you think we're "nutters" for questioning the official police narrative that this was just a bunch of bad thugs getting what they deserve?
Of course it is, the select fire weapons the cops used are assault rifles, for once the media could be correct.
Better yet, ask 10 random BATF faggots.
What the gov't clowns call something doesn't make it so. They have a political motive to muddy the waters. Calling them 'machineguns' helps inflame the uniformed.
Thats nice. HAND
No "if" about it, I've met a lot of very smart guys, Tony is scary smart and very hard to rattle. He was in Marine Recon and did some dangerous things. If he says thousands of rounds were fired he has reason to believe it.
The civil lawsuit he is involved in is aside of what has been happening with the criminal cases. I am appalled at what has been happening in my state where due process has been thrown out the window. What has happened is outrageous. I have never seen anything like it.
-- 177 individuals...
--in a mass arrest at a long-planned, pre-announced public political gathering of an ESTABLISHED 20-plus-year-old nation-wide confederation of peaceful citizens...
-- wherein 117 of those arrested had ZERO criminal histories, yet all were rounded up at gunpoint and incarcerated for two weeks to more than a month with original bonds being set at a million dollars for each and every one of them.
Who gives a flying rat's patoot about the semantics of "machine gun" -- the distractors, that's who. STAY FOCUSED on the ground game -- the mass use of armed force by "civil servants" against law-abiding American patriots they ostensibly "serve," and the subsequent destruction of those law-abiding citizens' reputations, finances, professional and personal lives.
How about responding to THIS post? There is ZERO that insults you in it.
So ... you think that it's just engaging in "nutter" madness to smell something pretty ugly in the fact that out of 177 hardened criminal bikers arrested at Twin Peaks, less than a third actually had criminal records? And then held on million dollar bail, held captive from going to their jobs and paying their bills for two weeks to more than a month, and then had to pay thousands, if not tens of thousands, to get out of jail and AT THAT had to pay many hundreds for the privilege of wearing an ankle monitor? And 117 of these people had absolutely ZERO criminal histories? NOT to mention that of the NINE dead, four had zero criminal records and one of them didn't even belong to a motorcycle club -- er, "gang," in your parlance -- at all?
And now, every single one of those people not only has an arrest record, but one with very serious charges, that they will have to account for on every job application and every background check for the rest of their lives? You think being upset over that is a "nutter" point of view?
THOSE ARE THE FACTS -- nearly 120 people with no prior criminal histories were, at the point of a gun and with the backing of "the law," very harshly punished, their professional and financial lives permanently harmed, WITHOUT DUE PROCESS. The info above is not from a "motorcycle gang propaganda website that started the nutter-right echo chamber meme ..." etc.. They are FACTS.
They MEAN that Civil Servants in law enforcement and the courts have different rights that the citizens/civilians they ostensibly "serve." Civil servants get to skip due process and administer very harsh punishment first if they think it is merited, then if it was wrong, answer for it many years down the line after lots of expensive court fights.
Quite clearly, the courts now fail miserably in protecting citizens and civilians from abusive Civil Servants. Those Civil Servants rule with an iron fist, and the courts will back them up and make innocent law-abiding Americans wait for YEARS after having their financial lives "legally" destroyed, in order for the courts to "sort it all out."
“What has happened is outrageous. I have never seen anything like it.”
In another thread, some posters had asked to debate facts. One of the facts I presented was 170, or so, people had been detained on the same, exact warrants at $1,000,000 bail apiece. I stated that, as far as I knew that had never happened in the history of the United States. Maybe I’m wrong. I don’t think so, but I guess it’s possible.
The intellectual in-curiosity about that one fact alone is to me, astounding. Unprecedented in history. And what you get is blah, blah, blah.
Ir is truly mind boggling - the sheer scale of the audacity.
Anyone interested in accuracy and one not using the language of the Left. A battle that is winnable.
Yes there is a great injustice, where is the ground game of which you speak? Has jack been accomplished? Has the Governor of Texas been lobbied? Unless you are choosing to operate outside of what passes for the justice system all your focus has come to naught so far. There is no way this is going to pass without a reckoning and screaming about a lack of due process isn't going to change that. The Waco PD is going to have to present its case, after which those screwed by this action are going to have to press theirs.
“Don Carlos’ attorneys, who have seen the video Broden now seeks to see, allege that their customers “were trapped inside the establishment as thousands of bullet rounds were fired by law enforcement officials and gang members. Law enforcement agents used Plaintiff’s porch and surrounding walls to protect themselves from incoming fire”
This law suit could be eye opening. With all the Law Enforcement in attendance, what it sounds like we have here is a “Circular Firing Squad”.
That is entirely speculation. However. Based on what we know there were no Bikers at Don Carlos or taking cover at Don Carlos. According to the statement, Law Enforcement was taking cover there. So, if there are ANY 5.56 rounds fired at Don Carlos then Law Enforcement was firing at themselves! I would assume there was return fire....If that truly happened....then...WOW.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.