Our entire system of justice is built on legal/constitutional protections that are damn near sacred -- the right to due process, a presumption of innocence, protections against self-incrimination and warrantless searches/seizures, etc. But this system only works if it is acknowledged and respected by the government AND the citizenry. If you resist arrest or lead the police on a high-speed chase, all bets are off and your legal rights go right out the window, as far as I'm concerned.
Cases like these are no different than the classic "Wanted Dead or Alive" scenario from the Old West -- where outlaws were stripped of all their legal and constitutional protections after they had demonstrated a wanton disregard not just of the law, but of the LEGAL PROCESS.
Our entire system of justice is built on legal/constitutional protections that are damn near sacred -- the right to due process, a presumption of innocence, protections against self-incrimination and warrantless searches/seizures, etc. But this system only works if it is acknowledged and respected by the government AND the citizenry. If you resist arrest or lead the police on a high-speed chase, all bets are off and your legal rights go right out the window, as far as I'm concerned.Dr. Jekyll and Alberta's Child.
Pick a side.
So police have the power to determine when you're legal rights are non existent? Good to know.
I’ve been on the road, and wifi service has been sketchy, but I wanted to address a few things about this case that I know. I did some investigating on my own when the case first became public a year ago - open records requests, etc. Also, I’m good friends with the almost DA of this district, and we had a long phone conversation about how things work in a DA’s office.
First, the Louisiana State Police said the man died in the vehicle crash, and so stated on an official report. That right there is a crime in Louisiana, false reporting or some such.
So a year ago, the family files a federal wrongful death lawsuit, and this is the very first the public learns anything at all about the case. Remember, the incident occurred TWO years ago, May 2019.
DA John Fitzgerald Kennedy Belton claims that’s when he turned things over to the feds, about May 2020. So he sat on the file for a year, without empaneling a grand jury, or anything else. Now he is hiding behind the feds, claiming his hands are tied.
That is complete and utter bullshit. My attorney friend is an assistant DA in an adjoining district, and came within 400 votes of beating Belton when he was first elected in 2014. The way it works, he says, is the DA’s office gets the case files immediately after any incident, and the DA directs the investigation, not the cops.
So this whole thing has been a big coverup from the get go. And lots of folks have fingerprints on the coverup, and many careers are at stake here.
I had mentioned upthread that Belton thinks he wants to be Louisiana Attorney General. This case is a dagger to the heart of those plans.
A year ago, I executed public records requests to the Union Parish (county) Coroner for the autopsy. She said she couldn’t, because of the “investigation.” Louisiana Law is explicit that no investigation shall prohibit the public release of autopsies. I’m contemplating a lawsuit to enforce the records request.
I also requested from the Union Parish Sheriff reports they generated on the incident. A deputy was at the scene.
Those reports were pretty basic, with times and dates, etc. I don’t think there were any lies, but a lot of stuff appears to have been left out.
I visited with Belton at a meeting several months ago and like I said, he tap danced all around the case. He’s good at that. I told him about the non response from the coroner, and he offered no help in getting the public’s records released.
Leaving aside what culpability the Louisiana State Police may or may not have in Ronald Greene’s death, this thing has been a giant ass coverup from day one. They’re still trying to pull it off. Yesterday, the governor was asked about it, and he’s still trying to say “it’s under investigation” etc, etc. So he’s now part of the problem.
Bottom line, the death occurred in Belton’s judicial district and he has what is known in Louisiana as “original jurisdiction.” That is to say he has complete authority over EVERY criminal case that happens there. He immediately sent it to the feds, hoping that they would keep the coverup going.
It ain’t gonna work. Too many people have seen the video, and several cops and attorneys may loose careers over this.
“It’s not the crime, it’s the coverup.”