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Kmart raid cries out for mayor, police chief explanation
Houston Chronicle ^ | August 28, 2002 | Editorial Board

Posted on 08/28/2002 5:49:51 AM PDT by Dog Gone

Last week, Mayor Lee Brown said his Office of Inspector General was investigating the mishandled Aug. 18 police raid that netted 278 arrests, including alleged shoppers and fast food patrons, at a westside Kmart parking lot and nearby Sonic Drive-In. This week, the mayor's director of communications said Brown's assertion was the result of a "miscommunication" between the chief of police and the city attorney, and that the OIG is not, in fact investigating the raid.

Say what? The OIG was created by Brown himself in 1998 to investigate allegations of employee misconduct, both criminal and administrative. There certainly is no one to stop the mayor from calling on the office to look into the matter. At the least, he should know whether he had sought such an inquiry. So the idea that he might be confused on this point is troubling.

Houston residents have been justifiably upset to learn over the span of a few days that city law officers so enthusiastically participated in the sort of sweeping citizen roundup that is a common feature of the garden variety police state, that the police conducted a similar raid on a nearby James Coney Island restaurant a day earlier, and that the officer in charge, Capt. Mark Aguirre, has regularly organized wholesale arrests in other parts of town. And now it is becoming increasingly clear that the kind of leadership that might be expected from a mayor with as extensive a law enforcement background as Brown has is not to be forthcoming.

The mayor should promptly answer a few pressing questions, including whether law-abiding citizens can expect to go about their business without fear of sudden and unexpected arrest, and what steps are being taken to ensure that more free-form mass detentions do not recur.

Those are questions that Police Chief C.O. Bradford is in a good position to answer but won't because, as his spokespeople relate, his policy is to refuse any comment during the course of a police investigation.

So, in fact, an investigation is under way, but by the police department's Internal Affairs Division. But that probe could drag on for months, which means that it apparently could be quite a while before anyone is willing to provide the public with information or assurances.

Meanwhile, Aguirre claims that the OIG has ordered him not to speak publicly about the raid because he is under investigation. The mayor's spokesman says that's not true. Now that's confusing.

Bradford is scheduled to appear before City Council today, (where Brown likely also will be), so perhaps either or both will be willing to answer a few questions when put on the spot by City Council members.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Editorial; Government; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: kmartraid
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1 posted on 08/28/2002 5:49:52 AM PDT by Dog Gone
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To: Dog Gone
A little obsessed on this I see.
2 posted on 08/28/2002 5:52:59 AM PDT by tallhappy
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To: Dog Gone
Have any of the tresspassing charges been dropped?

Seems to me that the longer they wait, the more the city of Houston is going to end up shelling out in civil suits.

At this point, I can't imagine any charges will be pursued against those arrested.

3 posted on 08/28/2002 6:21:21 AM PDT by Ken H
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To: Ken H
Have any of the tresspassing charges been dropped?

With luck, many of those who plead guilty will have by now filed papers to change those pleas (today's the deadline I think). If the stories here are true (e.g. those who plead guilty were released sooner than those who refused) they might have a good shot at getting those pleas reversed, charges dropped, and full reimbursement of legal costs courtesy of a certain police captain.

4 posted on 08/28/2002 6:33:46 AM PDT by supercat
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To: tallhappy
It's a big story, tallhappy. If you don't care for it, ignore it. Nobody is forcing you to come on the related threads.

Is stalking my posts your obsession?

5 posted on 08/28/2002 6:33:48 AM PDT by Dog Gone
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To: Dog Gone
Houston just lost the bid for the 2012 Olympics. You don't have to look very far to see one of those who dropped the ball: The Houston mayor.

Houston deserves what it gets--or doesn't get. This mayor's personal drawbacks are there for all to see, but the electorate doesn't seem to care.

6 posted on 08/28/2002 6:36:47 AM PDT by Illbay
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To: Thud; Arkinsaw; neutrino; Spirited; Fixit; FITZ; sweetliberty; freebilly; Doctor Stochastic; ...
The Houston Chronicle is certainly being tough on the Mayor they worked so hard to get re-elected.
7 posted on 08/28/2002 6:37:10 AM PDT by Dog Gone
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To: supercat
The sad thing is, among those who were arrested were some actual miscreants, those who HAVE engaged in the sort of rowdy behavior that this raid was supposed to address.

That will never be addressed because of this stupid flap, and those folks will go free to trespass and threaten lives and property in the future.

8 posted on 08/28/2002 6:38:32 AM PDT by Illbay
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To: Ken H
Have any of the tresspassing charges been dropped?

I know of one case where the charges were dropped the next day, but as far as I know, most are still pending.

I can't imagine trying to prosecute these people under these circumstances. It would be a nightmare for the prosecution.

9 posted on 08/28/2002 6:40:04 AM PDT by Dog Gone
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To: Dog Gone
But that probe could drag on for months

At least until the incident is no longer in the news and people are thinking of it as just something that happened in the past.

10 posted on 08/28/2002 6:40:04 AM PDT by arthurus
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Comment #11 Removed by Moderator

To: tallhappy
You are the twinky posting to threads you say shouldn't exist. The fact that you are outnumbered 20 to 1 by people interested in this issue doesn't matter, huh?

The simple solution is for you to be elsewhere. Is there a "Fascist Republic" website? Maybe you should start one. You, CJ and KC could hang out there and plot to arrest everyone.

12 posted on 08/28/2002 6:47:30 AM PDT by hopespringseternal
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To: tallhappy
You're as charming as always, tallhappy. If this had been an isolated incident, I wouldn't have mentioned it.

Your comments are always entertaining. Give us some more of them, please.

13 posted on 08/28/2002 6:48:07 AM PDT by Dog Gone
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To: Dog Gone
The leftist and anti-everything crowd do the same thing.

They hate the police, hate the US and hate themselves in general.

They scour news and events looking for things that fit with their paranoid and delusional world view.

It generally relates to police brutality or abuse of power, racism or acts of racism.

These threads have been essentially the same thing.

The majority opinion has seemed to be that the US and police are gestapo. Are fascist.

It seems there is a contingent with pre-conceived notions that the US is this evil regime and that they are in immediate danger of being persecuted. It is a form of mental illness related to paranoia.

Extremist liberals sure have it.

You guys share the same disease.

Thus an event that can be seen to validate the paranoic and delusional world view are obsessed over and are "big stories" endlessly re-hacked and re-played.

14 posted on 08/28/2002 6:48:59 AM PDT by tallhappy
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To: hopespringseternal
Is there a "Fascist Republic" website?

You prove my point.

How does your world view differ from Jesse Jackson or Louis Farrakan or any number of leftist anti-Americans?

15 posted on 08/28/2002 6:51:32 AM PDT by tallhappy
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To: tallhappy
These threads have been essentially the same thing.

Wrong. this is an ongoing, developing story. Some of us are interested.

---

Flyer

16 posted on 08/28/2002 6:53:45 AM PDT by Flyer
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To: Flyer
It is definitely a news story worth posting.

What I comment on is the obsession (look at the number of posts) and the lemming like mantra of "police state" "gestapo" "fascism".

Something ain't right with these boys.

17 posted on 08/28/2002 6:58:30 AM PDT by tallhappy
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To: tallhappy
Oh, you can do better than re-hash the same insults you hurled on the other threads. I want to see more of your brilliant psychoanalysis.
18 posted on 08/28/2002 6:59:31 AM PDT by Dog Gone
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To: tallhappy
Let's leave out the personal attacks. Thanks. AM
19 posted on 08/28/2002 7:00:05 AM PDT by Admin Moderator
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To: Dog Gone
Thanks for the follow-up on the Houston "ice-cream party" arrests. ;)

It'll be interesting to see where this goes.

20 posted on 08/28/2002 7:02:08 AM PDT by Dec31,1999
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