Posted on 09/28/2006 5:26:29 PM PDT by Sir Gawain
Children handcuffed in police drug raid Dog also killed during bust; 18-year-old charged with misdemeanors, violation
By MIKE GOODWIN, Staff writer First published: Wednesday, September 20, 2006
SCHENECTADY -- A police strike team raided a woman's Prospect Street apartment and handcuffed her children and killed her dog early Tuesday in a $60 pot bust. The woman called it excessive force and a case of mistaken identity, but officers said they stormed the home for a good reason: One of her sons was selling marijuana there.
The Police Department's tactical squad knocked down the front door of the upstairs apartment at 110 Prospect St. and flooded into the apartment shortly after 6 a.m.
"I heard a big boom. My first reaction was to jump out of bed. We were trying to find where our kids were at and all of a sudden we had guns in our faces," said 40-year-old Anita Woodyear, who rents the second-floor flat.
During the ensuing chaos, police handcuffed two of the woman's children, Elijah Bradley, 11, and 12-year-old Victoria Perez, and shot at her dog in the kitchen before killing it in the bathroom, Woodyear said.
"That seems like an awful lot of firepower for marijuana," said Fred Clark of the Schenectady chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. "That's like spending $125,000 for $5."
Woodyear said she suspected police had intended to search a neighboring home, but had the wrong address on the search warrant. Neighbors said they suspect illicit drugs are dealt at other homes on the block.
"No apology, no 'sorry about your dog,' " she said.
But police said they have no reason to apologize. They said they raided the house because Woodyear's 18-year-old son, Israel M. Bradley, sold three plastic bags of marijuana there for $40 on Sept. 15. They allege he sold two other bags of marijuana in the house for $20 on Aug. 28, they said.
In addition, police said Bradley was carrying marijuana in the home on Sept. 1.
"We had the absolute right house. We had the absolute right target," said Assistant Chief Michael Seber.
Police said Bradley was one of several drug dealers they have under investigation on Prospect Street.
"The whole street is a mess right now. We'll be back," Seber said.
Bradley was arrested and charged with misdemeanor counts of criminal sale of marijuana, an offense punishable by up to one year in jail. He was also charged with unlawfully possessing marijuana, a violation.
Police Lt. Peter Frisoni said Bradley admitted he sold from the apartment in a statement to investigators after the raid.
"The moral of the story is: If you don't want officers barging into your house with their guns drawn, don't let drug dealers stay with you and deal drugs out of your apartment," Frisoni said.
Woodyear said she is appalled about the way her children were treated -- and said her 12-year-old daughter was hit with pepper spray.
The dog, a pit bull terrier named Precious, urinated on the floor in fear and tried to run from the police before it was killed, Woodyear said.
Police said the animal was aggressive and left them no choice but to shoot.
Elijah Bradley said he awoke to find armed men in his home. "They had the shotgun in my face," the 11-year-old said. "I punched at him. I didn't know who he was."
Police said they had reason to have weapons drawn. Their search warrant noted that among the things they planned to search for were firearms, although no handguns were found.
The NAACP has previously criticized how police conduct raids, most notably during an incident earlier this decade when a Hamilton Hill girl was held at gunpoint and handcuffed after her mother agreed to allow police to search their home for an armed man. The family later sued the city, but the jury awarded no damages. But Paul DerOhannesian, a defense attorney and former Albany County prosecutor, said such a response may have been warranted if police believed there were guns in the house.
"This type of search warrant execution can be very dangerous from a law enforcement point of view," he said.
"You're going to have a heightened sense or need for security for officer safety. You literally have no idea what you're walking into."
Simpler than what, a person that thinks there' a pit that would pee and run?
He rolled over and wet himself when my 6 month old Papillon barked at him.
One of the funniest damned things I've ever seen....
L
****"This type of search warrant execution can be very dangerous from a law enforcement point of view," he said.***
So they made this dangerous raid for 60 bucks worth of Marijuana.
Now I am as anti-dope as anyone on this forum. I hate drugs, but these guys screwed the pooch. they got the wrong house and wont admit it because it may make them liable. No police force in their right mind would raid a home for 60 bucks worth of Marujuana.
But at least they got to wear their swat,ninja suits and Combat boots. Got their jollies busting down the door and shooting the dog. Now try getting some real dope dealers dickweeds, Try busting a Coke dealer or heroin dealer,or an amphetamine factory. Get some priorities before you kill someone for a reefer.
That would explain why the dog viciously fled from the kitchen into the bathroom.
I think the first shot might of motivated the dog to run into the bathroom. If it did go there. Could be the dog was wounded and they finished it off. The first shot though would have been when the dog got vicious in the first place.
I am surprised that in the article the woman did not deny any knowledge of drug sales going on....that is usually the first thing that comes up. And bottom line....its a pit bull....and just a dog
The dog was not only not threatening, they had to chase it down. Killing the pets, no matter what the circumstances of the raid truly is considered one of the perks of going on a raid.
these idiots need to lose their jobs
$60 worth of weed will buy a lot of dougnuts.
My daughter has such a dog. It is a brindle pit bull and purely a coward. The problem is that my daughter raised it. I told her to get it trained by someone else but she just couldn't do that. She wanted a sweetheart and she got one. He is quite useless.
Interesting. I wonder if police knocked down your door and harmed something you cared about if you'd be so cavalier?
Evidently the boy was selling pot from the home. If the family didn't want the cops in there, they should have told the boy not to do it. The cops had a valid warrant for that house that a judge signed.
" So it is mean and nasty. That's just too bad."
Given the circumstances, the cops had the right to be there. Any thing mean and nasty opposing them and posing a threat to them, is likely to be rightfully shot.
Would the same standards be applied to an encounter with an armed suspect ? Specifically, would the cop have to be shot before returning fire to defend him(her)self ?
It's probably better just not to sell drugs out of your home, and avoid all these sticky little problems.
They need to lose their freedom for the next decade, too.
Did anyone think that you could tell if the dog was running away or not by looking at where it got shot? If its rear end got hit, it was probably running away!!! :-p
How can you prove that the dog peed and ran away?I have noticed that when people are in trouble(with the law, for instance)they make up stories to reduce their culpability. If you weren't there, you don't know what really happened. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion,tho.
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