Posted on 10/28/2006 11:27:01 AM PDT by traviskicks
A Sugar Land woman says police went too far when they burst into her home and arrested her boyfriend and son on drug charges. The raid left her dog dead and caused thousands of dollars in damage.
"It was bang, bang, bang, then there was a boom as they broke the door in, threw the fire grenade, and then shot the dog," said homeowner Margot Allen. "This all happened in anywhere from five to fifteen seconds."
That's how Allen's son and boyfriend describe what happened that day. Sugar Land police acted on a tip. They say they found traces of marijuana and cocaine in her trash after a month-long investigation.
"There's no crack done in my house," she said. "There's occasional marijuana in my house. I don't do it because I don't happen to like it."
Based on the evidence in the trash, a regional SWAT team arrived at the home. Police say they knocked, waited 30 seconds, and then broke in with guns and a concussion grenade. The house suffered $5,000 damage and one officer shot and killed Margot's golden lab, Shadow, when police say it charged toward one of the officers. What did officers find inside?
"A joint half the size of my pinky fingernail and then one about this big," she said, showing a length on her finger. "And not anywhere near this big around."
The Sugar Land Police Department declined an on-camera interview, but they are defending their actions, saying they followed protocol to the letter.
The department says it was determined that the bust would be of a moderate risk. Even though they had no specific threat, they were prepared for firearms in the house and felt obligated to anticipate any resistance or violence. They say killing the dog was regrettable. They also say Allen's boyfriend has a history of drug convictions. But for Allen, it was overkill.
"They treated us like we were terrorists," she said. "They broke the door down. They shot my dog. They set my house on fire."
Both Allen's son and her boyfriend were charged with a Class B misdemeanor for that small amount of marijuana. That's punishable by up to six months in the county jail or a maximum $2,000 fine. Both of them will be in court on January 9.
All that said, if it wasn't for the policies and laws that allow and promote this activity, I dont think we would have officers engaging in it. So my real problem is with our government that believes it has a right to subject its citizens to such treatment on a mere suspicion of (minor)wrongdoing.
"i'm curious how you come to the conclusion that a person who is a drug user (a non-violent misdemeanor offense) is more likely to present armed resistance than a burglar (felony offender)."
I'm curious how you know fopr a certainty that this guy is just a "drug user". I've been in law enforcement for over 20 years. Drug users are far more prone to violence that burglers, even the types involved with minor drug offenses. Again, if they police had reliable and credible information that led them to believe that that residence was being used by individuals to manufacture or deliver cannabis or a controlled substance then the dynamic entry was totally justified. Obviously a judge was convinced of something as a no knock search warrant was issued.
The accused are always innocent until proven guilty. But if facts are developed that would lead a reasonable person to believe that there would be a danger to police in executing the warrant....then I have no problems with them doing what they had to do to stay safe. If that means shooting a dog, so be it. If that means using flash bangs and kicking in doors, so be it.
As I said earlier...there are many facts in this that we simply don't know, and which would go far into establishing if the raid was conducted properly or not.
The fact that some pot was found in the house suggests that if these folks had not been doing something they should not have been doing, they would not have had any problems. The resposnibility for the dead dog and the damages to the house reside with those people that elected to live a lifestyle that exposed them to the possibility that they could be raided. We don't know who their associates were. Were they good friends of know drug dealers. Was a known drug dealer saying that there was a stash in this house? Was there credible information to support a probable cause belief that drugs were in the home? Was the warrant valid? Was the judge aware of all relevant facts about the situation before he/sh issued the warrant? Was there a warrant? If not was there an emergency exigent cirumstance that justified the entry? If so what was the cicumstance? Was the cicumstance reasoable?
There are a whole slate of factors that are in play here...to pass judgement on them without having a solid grasp of all the facts relevant to the decision making process and the conditions encountered by the police as they executed the raid is just knee-jerk in tone and seemingly unworthy of a thoughtful conservative.
Women or woman I wonder?
How many is she exactly?
"They used to do that, just to justify the carnage. Then they discovered we'd sit still for whatever they do no matter what's found, or even if nothing's found at all."
Sic Semper Tyrannis.
Ugh, we primitive, do drug any time. No manu-fac-ture base,
rely on drug grow from ground, ugh! Primitive good.
You're funny.
"That happened here not too long ago (TN). Cops got the address wrong, broke into an elderly couple's home, and the man was shot dead trying to defend his wife. Oh well, so sorry. We were following protocol, after all."
Was that in Lebanon, Tn.?
What really disturbs me is that, after a month long investigation, the fact that some drug residue was found in their trash can justified such action. I should think that if he was more than just a drug user, that after a month of looking they should have been able to find some kind of evidence other than (assumption)roaches and maybe some coke residue. Do you remember the case in Houston a year or so ago where the police mistook some kind of plant a homeowner had growing out by the street for a pot plant, and conducted the same kind of raid on him? He was totally innocent, and found himself face down in his home with a shotgun pointed at his head. Maybe our standard for what justifies this kind of invasive procedure has become a little too loose?
Put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Yes, that is the case I was talking about.
"Can you explain to me why the police need to wear black ski masks when they make these raids?"
The reason I've read on several Cop websites is they wear them to prevent burns in case of an explosion or fire. Of course there's also the ego factor of looking really frightening.
"Yep, this so called drug war has been the greatest corrupter of the police in US history."
Second that. In addition the WOD is funding/building the richest criminal empire in history.
Jeez, you'd think someone in Washington would remember Al Capone, Prohibition, and all that stuff.
It didn't work the first time. Why is it going to be any better the second time?
And the cops got their testosterone up and were able to pat each other on the butt and tell themselves what a good job they did....
At least the jackboots got the 'right' house.
Gusee there is no REALK crime to deal with in sugar land like rape robery murder white collar crime etc etc.
Maybe they could get informants down at the marina to let them know when someone might have an undersized redfish in their cooler. You know those fisherman also own guns, so lets kick the door in and get'em before they can eat the fish.
as earlier noted, this is more a problem of judicial issuance of warrants like these being way to easily granted, and policy decisions that establish a low bar for what qualifies for applying for such a warrant.
I'm disappointed by some here who only see a crime, not the disproportionality of response to it. How about if someone told the police that your teenager snuck a beer up to his room? Its a crime, after all, and if they knock on the door the evil villan will have time to destroy the evidence.
" That happened here not too long ago (TN). Cops got the address wrong,.."
Not the only raid on an innocent homeowner due to wrong information. I am not sure if there is a site that tracks these incidents but I bet it would make interesting reading.
If drugs were legal not only would none of this happen but the huge cartels and probably half the crime in the world would be ended overnight. People get high now and they'll get high if drugs are legal. It's called freedom.
I don't do drugs and wouldn't if they were legal but that's my choice. Choice is part of freedom. No knock violent raids with grenades and machine guns are not.
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