Which one do you think this guy is?
Posted on 04/07/2006 12:28:35 PM PDT by JTN
Sometime this spring, the Supreme Court will hand down its decision in the case of Hudson v. Michigan. At issue is whether or not police who used an illegal "no-knock" raid to enter a defendant's home can use the drugs they seized inside against the defendant at trial. To understand the importance of this case, some background is in order.
As the name indicates, a "no-knock" raid occurs when police forcibly enter a private residence without first knocking and announcing that they're the police. The tactic is appropriate in a few limited situations, such as when hostages or fugitives are involved, or where the suspect poses an immediate threat to community safety. But increasingly, this highly confrontational tactic is being used in less volatile situations, most commonly to serve routine search warrants for illegal drugs.
These raids are often launched on tips from notoriously unreliable confidential informants. Rubber-stamp judges, dicey informants, and aggressive policing have thus given rise to the countless examples of "wrong door" raids we read about in the news. In fact, there's a disturbingly long list of completely innocent people who've been killed in "wrong door" raids, including New York City worker Alberta Spruill, Boston minister Accelyne Williams, and a Mexican immigrant in Denver named Ismael Mena.
(Excerpt) Read more at slate.com ...
Why is it necessary to use these violent tactics for suspects who have not been shown to be violent or for petty crimes. One example was a guy suspected of exceeding his daily limit of fish.
Which one do you think this guy is?
Where is our confusion here?
lol...
I'm glad you are still on the force, we need good cops out there to reign in the bad.
People might have the impression that I'm a 'cop basher'. This is incorrect, I respect and admire good LEO's. But the gung-ho types really need to be controlled. I know if someone breaks into my house in the early morning hours, unannounced, I would treat that person or persons as hostile and take appropriate measures.
I was with Dallas PD for a while. Most street officers thought the "SWAT" (back then it was "Tactical") teams were, with a few exceptions, the biggest bunch of primadonnas around. I watched the show twice out of curiosity and had to turn it off. It was all, "Look at me, I can kick down a door, and my wife is ready to bitch me out when I get home because I forgot her birthday."
Don't care much for no-knocks either or abuse of any other police tactics either. IMHO, if someone ain't about to get killed, then there better be a darn good reason you didn't knock and announce
(from bio.)(snip)For the last 15 years I've been a police officer (it beats working for a living) for a municipality in Pierce County. The highlights of my police tour of duty have been serving on a Street Crimes/Narcotics Unit for five years and four years as a SWAT Team sniper. All in all, it's been a pretty humbling experience. I never thought I'd be a cop in my younger days, but what the heck...I'm pretty good at it. Some of the high points over the last year have been complaints from "concerned" citizens about me telling folks to arm themselves and listening to Rush Limbaugh on duty.
I have a few hobbies which include home-brewing beer, mostly wheat based ales.(snip)
I find the WOD part of a large hypocrisy. I mean, wth are the various government agencies spending billions of $$$ vilifying in various methods cigarettes (and other tobaccy products) and liquor products which are all perfectly legal. Yet the governments reap windfall tax revenue from smokes and booze. Yet the true illicit and dangerous narcotics remain untaxed, billions of dollars of our money is spent and civil forfeiture laws are abused and the focus seems to be on punishing honest subjects…I mean citizens, who get hosed every time they want a smoke or a beer. Smacks of hypocrisy in my book. The end of the WOD would mean the end of many a bureaucrat’s job I suppose, but it’s time to win it or tax it. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not for legalization of narcotics, but the time to crap or get of the pot is long past due(snip)
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You mention in your bio. that you brew beer and that you have some problems with the way the war against drugs is carried out. From what I can tell your problem with the WOD's is that the governments can't seem to derive enough revenue from citizens who participate in illicit substances.
What I'm curious about is if a citizen planted a few cannabis plants for personal use (like you do on brewing your beer) and smoked the cannabis on private property - do you think the governments should be trying to convict that citizen of a crime?
My comment is not needed here, these folks are kicking themselves in the teeth just fine HG !!.........LMAO !!
Not quite. But if the government doesn't seem fit to win the WOD, then I can live with certain gov't controls that would tax dope, not meth or MDMA, like legal products liquor and cigarettes. So it might as well tax dope but if in some weird fantasy we decide to shut it down, then good. But until that time, I'll do my job as always.
What I'm curious about is if a citizen planted a few cannabis plants for personal use (like you do on brewing your beer) and smoked the cannabis on private property - do you think the governments should be trying to convict that citizen of a crime?
No prob. Keeping in mind not all private property is closed to the general public, personally I'd say limit it to the home and don't let me know about it. Professionally, I've looked the other way in similar cases a few times to get bigger fish. My beer rocks btw...8>)
FReegards to you and your brother!
Lets just say I'm not quite there but I'm familiar with LEAP. Some good arguments on that end.
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Yea - I agree with you on the meth and MDMA needing to be suppressed with stiff penalties.
Yea - I agree with you about the cannabis only being used on "home property".
Yea - I'll take your word for it that your brew rocks.
BTW - I've sampled some domestic produced and Canadian cannabis that rocks!
I hope you wouldn't mind being pinged into quality cannabis discussions. You seem to be in a position to add balance.
There must be an echo in here.
Something I have said often.
Preach it, brother.
People who have not had a recent "encounter" don't understand this. It is a completely foreign notion to them---until they become "acquainted".
Great post.
You are correct about this generalization of cops. I know some cops, and I like them. They're good fellas, and a lot of them would give you the shirt off their backs, because they joined the force to help their fellow man. I genuinely believe that.
Having said that, there are a few that should never have been given a badge. Period. I've met them, too, and they do a disservice to the guys I know and like, unfortunately. The rogues, like bad doctors, need to be reigned in by their own, or by lawsuits, or whatever it takes, because they're a danger to all of us, including their compadres.
The sooner, the better.
Be careful out there.
You can still buy it. Consuming it or transporting it can lead to a world of trouble.
Remember the story I related about my co-worker who had a cooler full of picnic supplies that was cited for "open container" because he had 9 UNOPENED beers in a cooler in the bed of his pickup (not the passenger compartment), and that particular brand and container type is sold in increments of 6?
Convicted day before yesterday.
Busting down the door is the greatest danger of all. Especially if it is my home.
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