Police chief placed on administrative leave after officers raid family’s house in Galveston, city announces

Click2Houston ^ | January 30, 2023 | Moriah Ballard,

[Morgana]

GALVESTON, Texas – The city of Galveston’s police chief has been placed on administrative leave as an investigation into a raid at a family’s home begins.

Police Chief Doug Balli has been placed on a 10-day administrative leave by the city manager.

This comes amid an internal investigation being conducted, focusing on a possible failure of communication surrounding a raid at a house on Avenue O exactly one week ago.

Galveston Police Department officials are keeping quiet, but home surveillance footage points to what’s been described as a disturbing sequence of events one family says should’ve never happened.

“My kids and I were home sleeping,” said Erika Rios. “About 2 a.m., we were awakened by wooden pellets flying through our doors and sounds of the Galveston Police Department [saying] ‘Come out with your hands up.’”

Family members can be seen exiting the home one by one in the video.

Officials say they were there looking for a suspect involved in a murder from Jan. 20 where 25-year-old, Malik Dunn was found shot on the 3900 block of Sealy and later died.

They say the suspect was a man by the name of Cameron Vargas who had visited Rios’ home but left hours earlier.

The Galveston County District Attorney’s office now saying Vargas was misidentified and is not a suspect.

“The original suspect, Cameron Vargas, is no longer a suspect. After the DA’s Office consulted with Galveston PD, they decided not to move forward with charges against Mr. Vargas,” said Kevin Petroff with the Galveston County District Attorney’s Office.

Rios says the damage for her and her family had already been done.

“I was scared, screaming,” said her daughter Chelsea Peralez. ”I ended up going to my brother, asking what they were doing, and they continuously kept shooting the wooden pellets.”

[fireman15]

Pretty sure I'd make a loud public outcry via print media and TV.

This happened over 20 years ago and we did make enough of a fuss to ruffle a few feathers. I even had some police connections at the time. But we got nowhere...

[moovova]

“While I agree with you in general, no knock raids are also concerned with minimizing the ability to destroy evidence (like flushing the drugs), etc. “

If the cops stop a suspect 5 miles from his house...how’s he gonna flush 5 kilos down the commode?

[taxcontrol]

An Arrest warrant DOES allow them to enter the suspects residence and locate and arrest the individual. This is also normally “expanded” to cover where the fugitive located, for example, at their work location.

The grey area is when they LEO has bad information or incorrect address.

Absent a warrant, there is no authority to enter. In Payton v. New York, the Supreme Court held unconstitutional a law in New York that allowed law enforcement to enter a residence without a warrant in order to arrest a suspect for a felony.

Arrest warrants provide the government with the right to arrest a suspect where he or she may be found. This often includes a residence where an officer has a reason to believe the suspect lives even when this is not the address of the individual’s residence.

[MeganC]

An arrest warrant for someone who may have been seen somewhere is not a license to kick down the door, assault or kill everyone inside, or to arrest and detain occupants or even people passing by a given location.

A topical video that has a delicious amount of schadenfreude in it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJrehPekp1Q

[Paul R.]

Or anytime after the suspect exits the house...

Is not life (innocents nearby, the cops, and even the suspect unless KNOWN to be violent & armed) more important than evidence?

[Paul R.]

Maybe legally it is, but, it should not be.

[MeganC]

“Maybe legally it is, but, it should not be.”

Agreed. Back when I started on FR there was someone who posted all the time about how the Holocaust was legal. People got all tweaked about that like s/he was a Nazi when in fact the Germans were careful to make the Holocaust legal.

All manner of tyranny can be legal. It doesn’t make it right and it doesn’t excuse the tyrants who enforce it.

[csvset]

This comes amid an internal investigation being conducted, focusing on a possible failure of communication

[ro_dreaming]

More and more police departments (of all stripes, county patrol, constable, sheriff, etc.) are nothing more than revenue generating departments for their organizational structure.

Meaning - all they do is take money away from citizens, and give it to the government.

[ro_dreaming]

Do kids have to die before that is the law not just that woman in Louisville, Ky?

Now, wait a minute...

It was a no-knock raid, but they knocked.

The boyfriend was standing in the living room and fired at the officers.

She was standing next to the boyfriend and was shot and died.

The malfeasance was the guy they were looking for was already arrested earlier - but they were looking for the drug money now.

[ro_dreaming]

By law they have to repair any damage from a raid at the wrong house, etc.

But, maybe that law came about after your incident.

[Hiddigeigei]

"Maybe legally it is, but, it should not be."
“The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the forces of the Crown. It may be frail, its roof may shake; the wind may blow through it; the storm may enter, the rain may enter -- but the King of England cannot enter; all his force dares not cross the threshold of the ruined tenement!” --- William Pitt the elder in Parliament.

[TalonDJ]

“I am all for no knock SWAT Raids in the dead of night, so much that in order to perfect the practice, every Judge in the County should be SWAT Raided in the dead of Night at random, at least twice a year.”

Oh, I like this but lets make it better. What is the rate at which SWAT raids accomplish nothing? 1 in 5? 4 out of 5? Whenever a judge signs off on a raid warrant there should be that exact same chance that the raid really goes to the judges house. Every time they sign one they should be asking themselves how likely it is that they just sent people to kick in their own door.

[jocon307]

Kids have already died horrible deaths, in Waco and elsewhere.

[StAnDeliver]

"It was a signed no knock warrant. One dude said he heard them announce there presence, stated earlier he didn't hear them. He was the only 'witness' in the entire apartment who heard them. There is [sic] no videos of the police entry or announcing the intent to search the address."

• The no-knock warrant was converted to knock-and-announce at the squad meeting that evening.

• The 3 LMPD officers knocked-and-announced. Repeatedly.

• Having overheard the commotion, the Old Black Man upstairs ran down on the apartment stair landing and told them to 'be leavin that girl alone'.

• That's how the Grand Jury knew the 3 LMPD officers had knocked-and-announced: Old Black Man gave identical testimony to the Grand Jury in Frankfort, thus eliminating Castle Doctrine.

• Mattingly was first through the door. Walker shot Mattingly in the leg, severing his femoral artery, and nearly killed him.

• When questioned, Walker blamed St. Bre for firing the shot.

• Cosgrove physically yanked Mattingly out of the way and fired back, killing St. Bre, as the cowardly Walker dived out of the way.

• Cameron handled the Grand Jury masterfully.

• St. Bre's momma walked away with 12M in taxpayer monies.

• Case closed. I'll LOL at posts like yours til the cows come home.
  

[Theoria]

Mr.Sarpee wasn't old, and gave several different accounts of the situation. If you have any video evidence them identifying themselves and entry, please post a link. As of now, .gov produced zero video evidence of the entry. If you want to trust government, that is on you, especially in this day and age.

Mattingly said that there shouldn't be bodycam on while conducting the search.