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 assault, battery, and deprivation of civil rights under false color of authority.
I'd say that's worth about 10 years.
L
Well they sure as he!! didn't "fly" first class out of NO at that time!
Besides, he'll probably like it anyway.
L
Talk to me! (I've been married)
I think 10 years is a little harsh for that reporter. I certainly don't advocate that reporter being raped by homosexuals. I might even give him probation. But then again, I suppose I'm different than you.
"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."
This indicates they confronted, beat and charged the old man just for the hell of it.
Yes, you did advocate homosexual rape, several times. You have also established yourself as a public liar.
"You advocate homosexual rape and lecture us that it is illegal to beat reporters ..."
Welcome to the reality of the American prison system.
Remember all cops should know "don't do the crime if you can't do the time".
The article says he was ordered to leave.
I guess he should have left. The cops should have locked him up too.
What would Geraldo say about a journalist who couldn't take a little shake up?
I didn't see it but I bet that "jab to the stomach" was real vicious.
And the reality of those gay rape fans outside the American prison system
Naturally, according to the liberal media.
And their lemmings.
Yes, NO police are known worldwide as horribly corrupt, but that doesn't mean that EVERY incedent is wrongdoing by the cops.
D@mn, kudos to the mayor for leaving the "cattle haulers" (buses) stagnant and useless.
Who wants to ride a bus anyway?
LOL !
I mentioned Vegas only because in the article I linked to, the owner of the dealership said that some of his cars were spotted in Baton Rouge and Houston. No mention of Las Vegas.
The likes of "Sandy Burglar" commend you for your compassionate view.
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