Get Ready (Acquittals loom in the Inglewood cop trial)

National Review OnLine ^ | July 17, 2003 | Jack Dunphy

[End Times Sentinel]

July 17, 2003, 9:55 a.m.
Get Ready
Acquittals loom in the Inglewood cop trial. Will trouble follow?

LOS ANGELES — Do you hear that? If you listen closely, you can hear the faint, far-off sounds of the No Justice, No Peace Hallelujah Chorus practicing their scales and limbering up the old vocal chords. That's right, soprano Maxine Waters, baritone Al Sharpton, bass Jesse Jackson, and all their assembled multitudes may soon be, as is their wont, raising a ruckus. Though the story has been largely eclipsed by other events in the national media, the two Inglewood, Calif. police officers indicted in last July's videotaped altercation with a teenager have been brought before the bar of justice. As the world knows, Los Angeles juries can be prone to irrationality at times, so predictions in such highly charged cases can be dicey, but I'm planning on working some overtime soon. Recall that Officers Jeremy Morse and Bijan Darvish were two of several officers involved in a July 6, 2002 fracas with 16-year-old Donovan Jackson, whose father had been stopped for driving a car with expired registration. The final moments of the incident were captured on a bystander's videotape, and for days and weeks thereafter few in the civilized world could escape the image of Morse slamming the handcuffed Jackson onto a police car's trunk and punching him in the mouth. Morse was charged with assault under the color of authority; Darvish, his partner that day, was charged with filing a false police report. The jury has now heard the prosecution's evidence, and what thin gruel it turned out to be. When prosecutors rested their case on Tuesday, some observers were prompted to ask, "That's it? That's all you got?"

L.A. County Sheriff's Commander Charles Heal, testifying for the prosecution as a use-of-force expert, told the jury on Monday that while he considered Morse's treatment of Jackson excessive, it did not rise to the level that would warrant criminal charges. "If [Morse] would have been my deputy, he would have got his chain rattled in my office," Heal testified under cross-examination. "Would I have filed [criminal charges] on him? No." What, then, the jurors might have wondered, are we all doing here?

Prosecutors sought to rebound from this setback on Tuesday by calling Inglewood P.D. Chief Ronald Banks and LAPD Captain Greg Meyer, both of whom testified that Morse's actions were excessive and inexcusable. But in relying on Heal, Banks, and Meyer as they have, prosecutors run the risk of seeing their testimony undercut by other use-of-force experts to be called when the defense presents their case. All three are high-ranking officers within their departments, and one doesn't get to be a high-ranking officer in any police department by mixing it up in gas-station donnybrooks. I don't care how many articles they've written or how many speeches they've given, I'll bet a paycheck that neither Heal, Banks, or Meyer has gotten his uniform dirty in 20 years. The defense will surely present use-of-force authorities whose expertise is more practical than theoretical, and whose testimony will likely carry more weight with the jury.

As if resigned to defeat, some in the anti-cop crowd were quick to denounce the prosecution's efforts. Max Huntsman and Michael Peterson, the two deputy district attorneys assigned to the case, came in for some colorful criticism from one Najee Ali, head of Project Islamic Hope. "What's up, Steve [Cooley, the county D.A]?" said Ali. "Why did you send us Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis? We want to know how come their best people weren't sent out instead of a comedy act."

An even more enlightening reaction came from Leo Terrel, the seldom-tranquil Los Angeles attorney. Reacting to Cmdr. Heal's admission that he did not believe Morse's actions to be criminal, Terrel nearly blew a gasket. "Are you telling me," he thundered, "that [prosecutors] couldn't find, out of all the use-of-force experts in the state, in the nation, one person that would have been loyal to them, and been on the same page?" Interesting that Terrel, who on his local radio show bills himself as "the fair-minded civil-rights attorney," should call for a witness to tailor his testimony so as to achieve some desired outcome.

We'll be hearing a great deal from Terrel and all the better-known cop bashers if the trial continues on its present course. It will be pointed out ad nauseam that only one black was on the jury, so when the acquittals come there will be all the more reason for the usual suspects to condemn them. All that furniture heisted in the '92 Rodney King riots is bound to be a bit threadbare by now, so some people may be looking forward to a shopping spree, one for which the bill never comes.

The jury may get the case as soon as next week. Look for me at Florence and Normandie.

— Jack Dunphy is an officer in the Los Angeles Police Department. "Jack Dunphy" is the author's nom de cyber. The opinions expressed are his own and almost certainly do not reflect those of the LAPD management.

[SoCal Pubbie]

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say even if there is a not guilty verdict there will be no riots.

[spodefly]

As far as I am concerned, this is not a black/white issues. Nor is it an attack on honorable law enforcement offiers. It is "them" (jack-booted thugs) against "us" (citizens).

Wrong. If the cop had been black and had done the exact same thing the white cop did, Jesse and Maxine and Al would have had to find another gig, because without an evil white oppressing a poor innocent black, there is no story.

[newwahoo]

"What needs to happen if there is an aquittal in this case is for the white community to express its outrage, in a civil manner of course. That would do more to promote race relations than anything else in this case."

Yeah! Let's just go after a cop thats been found innocent all in the name or race relations and diversity! (sarcasm)

[UCANSEE2]

Had the kid done what he was told, none of this would have happened. But his disobeying the law is never the issue in these cases.

I explained before the reasons this 'son' might have disregarded the officers instructions, vis your "done what he was told".

Question: If they told you to take off your blouse, would you?

Before you say that is a ridiculous comparison, I had male officers do a 'bra search' on my 17 year old niece, so I know what goes on. Maybe you haven't had the experience. Compare them wanting you to take off your clothes to believing they are wrongly arresting and hurting your father for no reason. I don't know what happened exactly in this case, I am just being open minded to what I have seen happen.

But his disobeying the law is never the issue in these cases.

Exactly what law was this boy disobeying? You know, maybe this kid "deserved" it. The problem with that type of thought pattern is that the worst thing in the world that can happen to anyone (even you) is that they get EXACTLY WHAT THEY DESERVE. If we proceed with that thought line, then cops do become JUDGE AND JURY. It that what we want in our country?

I think that others have said this too, we must get the whole truth of what happened, and make sure that the BLUE SHIELD isn't being used to cover an officer who stepped over the line. If he didn't, then charges and lawsuits should be dismissed. I don't even care if the boy grabbed him by the nuts, he should then charge the boy with assault, and take him to jail.

SLUGGING the boy in the face, means the COP is no better than the person he ARRESTED, therefore the COP should be charged with ASSAULT, based on the videotape also.

See, the problem is (and I have friends who are police officers) that the police do not believe they are subject to the laws they enforce.

[Catspaw]

I have. Twice. It was no big deal. We were cordial to each other and I was never cuffed.

I've missed out on one of those Life Experience thingies. Foo.

[Centurion2000]

This should be forwarded to the Korean shop owners in LA.

Just in case ;)

[mrfixit514]

You are a loud-mouthed, know-it-all, idiot. Your posts on this thread are laughable. We are supposed to believe that you know more about what happended than the people who were actually there?

[Catspaw]

Please: NO profanity, NO personal attacks, NO racism or violence in posts.

[UCANSEE2]

Let's just go after a cop thats been found innocent all in the name or race relations and diversity! (sarcasm)

NO. Let's use the Justice system to prosecute police officers who commit arrestable offenses while hiding behind their badge. They are to arrest and detain, not to be judge and jury. Every time a police officer is caught on tape beating a suspect, he should be arrested for assault and brought to trial.

The idea that by cops beating suspects, that it will lead to suspects not committing crimes, is ridiculous. It is their anger, the lack of control of that anger, that causes these beatings.

They find it OK to beat an unknown, powerless person, but they won't do the same to , for instance, OJ SIMPSON, after his LA freeway drive. I know someone that they followed for miles, while he drove the speed limit all the way. The instant he pulled over, without asking for explanation, he was drug out of the car, slammed on the ground, and arms twisted behind his back. He did not endanger anyone's life.

They just didn't like it because he didn't pull over RIGHT AWAY.

I had an officer come behind me with his lights on, and I tried to move to the left, move to the right to allow him by. (4 lane freeway) I had no idea he was after me, as I didn't even know what I had done.

He charged me with attempting to elude police (failure to yield to an emergency vehicle), mainly because he was mad, didn't like the duty he had, and thought I was prejudiced against blacks being police officers. (Because I said YOU'RE CRAZY in response to him telling me he was charging me with ELUDING POLICE.)

It wasn't the law or the situation that dictated his actions. It was his belief about my prejudice, the hot day, and his anger having to guard a LADDER that fell off a construction truck. Police have power, and they abuse that power. The law doesn't matter, they are above the law, don't you know?

[Yeti]

It's all I can do to keep myself from going to another forum to post your "public notice."

"Catspaw, FR's own in-house WP/LAT."

[UCANSEE2]

You are a loud-mouthed, know-it-all, idiot.

Personal attacks are not the mark of an intelligent person. He did not deserve this remark. I think you should apologize.

Your posts on this thread are laughable. We are supposed to believe that you know more about what happended than the people who were actually there?

His replies have included only information about what he SAW in the VIDEO, and he noted where he was discussing what things he thought possible, not stating them as proof.

I suggest you have just made a fool of yourself, more than anything else.

[UCANSEE2]

than the people who were actually there?

Were you there?

[Catspaw]

Aw, gee, and it wasn't even my idea.

But the WP/LAT sued FR. I'm not going to be suing my favorite forum. But if someone takes my posts here and puts them up somewhere else without my permission & violates copyright law....well, that's another matter.

And you HAVE read the disclaimer that appears at the end of every FR thread, haven't you? Here it is in bigger print:

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

[SauronOfMordor]

I foresee a brisk sale in ammo this week.

If somebody tries playing games with gun stores being able to sell ammo, I foresee lots of Californians making a trip to Nevada.

[UCANSEE2]

I don't see that apology yet.

[Poohbah]

I'm not worried.

He said more about himself than he did about me.

[UCANSEE2]

Exactly.

[breakem]

huh, as in been here nigh onto 5 years and haven't seen anything like this

[Catspaw]

Ah, well, there is another place, an AF place whose name I cannot mention, that is endlessly lifting FR posts and putting them up there in a rather obsessive-compulsive sort of way. It's just putting them on notice that there are consequences, including copyright violation.

No biggie.

[Yeti]

If you double-dog dare me, I'll go to LP biker bar and post a big long thread with a bunch your posts and a little notice in red at the bottom that says:

The above posts are reproduced for discussion and educational purposes only.