Man killed by Sunrise police in drug raid had 2 ounces of marijuana

http://www.newsday.com/ ^ | August 10, 2005 | Brian Haas & Kevin Smith

[freepatriot32]

SUNRISE -- Police seized 2 ounces of marijuana at the home of Anthony Diotaiuto after shooting him 10 times, according to information on the drug raid released Tuesday.

Also Tuesday, while many friends and relatives of the 23-year-old bartender and student mourned him at a Davie funeral home, others appeared at a Sunrise City Commission meeting to demand an explanation for the fatal raid

"Do 2 ounces of marijuana constitute a death warrant?" asked Sunrise resident William de Larm, a friend of Diotaiuto's.

[G32]

And ridiculous anarchy-fantasy loons here, like you.

[trubluolyguy]

You sir are a first class moron. I agree this man did not deserve to die. But the police DO NOT carry drop guns, you have seen way too many movies.


By the way I WAS a cop for almost 5 years, I know what they carry and what they don't. Drop guns are NOT in the inventory.

[microgood]

The thing is though that this would have never happened if the SWAT team hadn't have come to his home.

I agree. It is kind of like a driver running away from a cop who hits a pedestrian and kills him. The cops created a dangerous and unnecessary situation(probably to justify the SWAT team's existence) and it ended up in an unnecessary death. The people that ordered this raid (not the cops who were there) should at least get charged with reckless endangerment or negligent homicide for ordering the raid.

Of course there will be no charges because in situations like these the cops investigate themselves and of course will find themselves innocent. The only time local cops get charged with anything is if the Feds get involved.

The only justice that will happen in this case will be the 10 to 20 million the jury will award the family.

One thing that would be good to know is where the gun came from (if untraceable it was a plant) and where the guy was shot (in the back, or front, etc).

[Sir Gawain]

And if you want more bad stuff legal, why not start with meth or something? They're all life destroying. Alcohol can at least be used moderately without the risks.

Well there are a whole lot of problems with your assumptions. You implicitly assume weed is more dangerous than alcohol or tobacco. This is medically proven to be false. You also implicitly assume that legalization has a huge effect on supply and demand. Legalization affects criminal enterprises and price. You legalize, criminals stop dealing because it is no longer profitable. Does making meth illegal stop people from trying it? No. Does making it legal cause more people to try it? No. Cigarettes were illegal to me until 19 but I didn't become a smoker the day I turned 19. Same for alcohol.

[G32]

Unbelievable.

This guy was a criminal, the cops threw some chlorine in the gene pool, and you are recommending a jackpot-style settlement?!

Some conservative!

[7thOF7th]

Simple assessments from a very simple mind! Also it is reveling that you have consumed company time spouting your dribble. I hope the Admin in your org audits your activity and fires your a$$ for wasting company time!

[Dead Corpse]

Cops are good. They enforce Constitutional Laws and help round up criminals who have committed real crimes.

What you are is a whole nuther classification of evil.

[Little Ray]

Or part of your "arsenal" or "weapons cache."

[68 grunt]

... Admin in your org audits your activity and fires your a$$ for wasting company time!

Spoken like a true pig!

[Sir Gawain]

By the way I WAS a cop for almost 5 years, I know what they carry and what they don't. Drop guns are NOT in the inventory.

He has no proof to back up his claim, but your anecdotal evidence doesn't do anything to disprove his claim either. "I was a cop and therefore no cops carry drop guns" doesn't cut it in a logical debate.

[G32]

You really think that if drugs were legal, people wouldn't try them more? Why do you think almost everyone's had beer, but not as many harder drugs? Eh?

It's cause they aren't available to pick up and give it a shot at the 7/11.

[longtermmemmory]

unfortunatly the "rapid knock" raids are because of the dealers who go for the guns.

I did take the liberty of running his name through the public records of dade and broward.

Nothing in Dade, and he only had three 2004 tickets, one in 2003, one in 2002, one in 2001, and a witness subpoena for an accident in 1999. This does not cover any juvenile criminal records which are not public record.

It does not make sense to go for the gun. It also does not make sense to go for the "full swat" team unless they had something on video or audio.

I think the reason he was going for the gun is that he did not believe it was police but rather competition.

[Dead Corpse]

"Who audits the auditor?"

Run along now troll...

[technochick99]

No-Knock Warrants are a travesty.

Mega dittos.

[Sir Gawain]

Why do you think almost everyone's had beer, but not as many harder drugs? Eh?

It's cause they aren't available to pick up and give it a shot at the 7/11.

You got some evidence to support this claim? I have plenty to the contrary.

[dennisw]

It does not make sense to go for the gun. It also does not make sense to go for the "full swat" team unless they had something on video or audio.

I don't think he went for a gun. He ran into a room where there was a gun. He never touched his gun is what I think. 

He had one hour sleep. Maybe he had a few drinks before going to sleep or even some pot. How would you react to Ninja clad masked men with one hour sleep?

[thoughtomator]

Is a law "approved by the people" if it is in direct contradiction to the Constitution? Or does that not matter if you're going after evil fauna?

[G32]

Feel free to provide it. Not that it'll matter.

[calex59]

I do not consider this a legal operation. Had they not broken into his home at 6:15 AM he would not have tried for a gun. He had a CCW, they knew that and they could have arrested this guy without killing him and without breaking into his home at 6:15 in the morning.

They knew where he worked, they could have gone there and picked him up and searched his home with a legal warrent instead of the illegal(in my opinion) no knock warrent. Breaking in and screaming police is a common tatic of home invasion jerks and should not be used by police for something as innocuous as a pot bust, or ever as far as I am concerned.

Anyone breaking into my home will have to shoot or duck lead, depending on how fast I am, be they cops or criminals.

If cops break the law and invade private citizens homes they better be ready to get shot at. They do this far to often, and many times they have the wrong house and kill someone without any cause what so ever. This time the cause was manufactured by the cops when they broke in causing a citizen concerned for his life to go for his gun.

[microgood]

This guy was a criminal, the cops threw some chlorine in the gene pool, and you are recommending a jackpot-style settlement?!

Some conservative!

This is really no different than WACO. It was completely mishandled by the cops from step 1 and the city will pay big time as a result.

If you think someone has to agree that it is OK for cops to empty their clips into someone for 2 ounces of pot to be a conservative than I guess I am not.

A human being is no longer breathing because of total idiocy by the police from top to bottom. The cops are supposed to bring the guy to the judge, not be the judge, jury and executioner as they were in this case.

And the taxpayers will pay dearly for their stupidity.