Posted on 10/09/2005 12:13:05 PM PDT by pitinkie
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - At least one police officer repeatedly punched a 64-year-old man accused of public intoxication, and another officer assaulted an Associated Press Television News producer as a cameraman taped the confrontations.
There will be a criminal investigation, and three New Orleans Police Department officers will be suspended Sunday, arrested and charged with simple battery, Capt. Marlon Defillo said.
"We have great concern with what we saw this morning," Defillo said after he and about a dozen other high-ranking police department officials watched the APTN footage Sunday. "It's a troubling tape, no doubt about it. ... This department will take immediate action."
The assaults come as the department, long plagued by allegations of brutality and corruption, struggles with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the resignation last month of Police Superintendent Eddie Compass.
The APTN tape shows an officer hitting the man at least four times in the head Saturday night as he stood outside a bar. The suspect, Robert Davis, appeared to resist, twisting and flailing as he was dragged to the ground by four officers. Another officer then kneed Davis and punched him twice. Davis was face-down on the sidewalk with blood streaming down his arm and into the gutter.
Meanwhile, an officer ordered APTN producer Rich Matthews and the cameraman to stop recording. When Matthews held up his credentials and explained he was working, the officer grabbed the producer, leaned him backward over a car, jabbed him in the stomach and unleashed a profanity-laced tirade.
"I've been here for six weeks trying to keep ... alive. ... Go home!" shouted the officer, who later identified himself as S.M. Smith.
Police said Davis, 64, of New Orleans, was booked on public intoxication, resisting arrest, battery on a police officer and public intimidation.
Davis, who is black, was subdued at the intersection of Conti and Bourbon streets. Three of the officers appeared to be white, and the other was light skinned. Defillo said race was not an issue.
Three of the five officers involved were New Orleans officers, and two others appeared to be federal officers. Numerous agencies have sent police to help with patrols in the aftermath of Katrina.
Under normal circumstances, it takes unusually offensive behavior to trigger an arrest on Bourbon Street. But New Orleans police have been working under stressful conditions since the hurricane.
Officers slept in their cars and worked 24-hour shifts after the storm. Three-quarters lost their homes and their families are scattered across the country.
Many officers deserted their posts in the days after Katrina, and some were accused of joining in the looting that broke out. At least two committed suicide.
Conditions have improved - officers now have beds on a cruise ship - but they don't have private rooms and are still working five, 12-hour days.
Compass, the police superintendent, resigned Sept. 27. Despite more than 10 years of reform efforts dating to before he took office, police were dogged by allegations of brutality and corruption.
On Friday, state authorities said they were investigating allegations that New Orleans police broke into a dealership and made off with nearly 200 cars - including 41 new Cadillacs - as the storm closed in.
That's why good gops deserve the utomst respect, because they have to and can put all the personal crap aside and enforce the laws with complete fairness. Whatever was happening should not mean that some old dude has 3-4 big thugs with badges come smash him in the head (Not meaning to imply thses cops were thugs).
I couldn't get away with that behavior because of stuff in my personal life. No one should.
When I see the papers now, with the headlines such as "5 officers needed to subdue man"... I know that none of them knew what the hell they were doing.
I've seen alot of pig piles (pun intended) with 3,4, 5 cops all grabbing at a guy trying to control him. I just stand back and laugh, watching opportunities for techniques pass guys by. I tell them too..."oh, you just missed a kesa or a juji...
They don't know what I'm talking about. And I'm certainly not ready for the Ultimate Fighting Championships. But, I can hold my own. And I know better than to jump on an already big pile. Alot of guys dont, they are just trying to help, so it doesn't look good, especially when they are all doing their own thing and the guy is still fighting.
Then again, I've seem people on PCP that could get hit with a bus and it wouldn't stop them. I'm sure you have too.
A few PCP memories come to mind. We had a guy about 70 who was still powerlifting. He didn't fight with me but I had to pull him off another guy. Real strong for 70 years old.
Precisely
Another Rodney King
I found another thread with the same theme, this other one has a couple of college drop-out witnesses to the 'assault.'
I started reminiscing about the 'good old days' of law enforcement. If something like this happened back then, all of the cops would have pulled out their jacks and slaps and it would have really been ugly.
Guess were kinder and gentler now. And getting sued, arrested and fired for it.
I feel a rant coming on.
First they took jacks away from us because too many people were getting hurt and it didn't look good.
Then they took the choke away from us because it was "killing minorities." In reality guys were doing it wrong.
Then they took pepper spray away because it caused asthma deaths.
Now they are threatening to take tazers away because people have been killed.
So, what's a guy supposed to do?
Use live ammunition and friendly juries ?
I'm feeling liberal tonight. I think the rules need to be much more liberal. I think there need to be more perps shot to death and more executions until it is the criminals who fear to walk our streets rather than the innocent citizens.
Amen.
Whiskey for my men and beer for my horses hahahahahaha
I support public stonings with the state charging for the stones to all who want to participate.
I'm more liberal than you. I think the government has an obligation to provide stones to those who cannot afford them.
ZOT - TROLL! lol. I can't seem to go along with that.
I'll still take you up on the beer and pizza.
L
hahaha.. OK... deal. We're busy tonight, gonna break our record I think (at the pizza shop)
I'm taking a beating on the other thread. Right now anyhow.
Thanks. I tell all the rookies I train to take up some type of grappling. It's the best things for police. I have taken judo, sombo & karate. Judo and sombo are best for police work in my humble opinion.
You be safe too, been nice chatting with you fellas.
One of the guys I work with was just in here. He got in a car chase, bad guy ran his car through somebody's house. The bad guy bailed out and ran into a vacant duplex with two of our guys in foot pursuit.
They caught him on the second floor and he fought. The other cop hit the guy in the head with his fist.
He just went to the hospital, probably has a broken hand.
I have no problem with the cop doing what he did in that scenario. I hope he's ok. I broke my hands several times as a teen racing MX, and they don't work nearly as well now because of it. Why don't you guys use the maglite more often?
It seems in the NOLA case the cops came up to the guy and started to either punch his head or smash it into the wall. The guy was resisting after that, but self preservation instincts are hard to argue with.
We're not allowed to hit anybody in the head with a flashlight, club or jack anymore. The Malice Green incident is a good example, two detectives hit Green with their flashlights and he died.
Best thing is submission holds, in my opinion.
And the carotid choke.
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