Posted on 12/25/2014 9:52:38 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
Following the failure of grand juries in Ferguson, New York, Ohio, and Milwaukee to bring charges against police officers in four separate fatal shootings of young black men, federal authorities are exploring whether federal charges could be brought against the cops. The Department of Justice (DOJ), FBI, and the US attorney's office are examining the deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and John Crawford III, while the DOJ is reviewing the killing of Dontre Hamilton — all four men were unarmed when they were shot dead by police this year.
Theoretically, the officers could face charges under a federal "color of law" statute, if it can be shown that the cops violated the deceased men's constitutional rights. As the Guardian noted Wednesday, however, the statue has "only occasionally" been used to indict officers in shooting and brutality cases. Notably, the LAPD officers who brutalized Rodney King were acquitted on state charges but later convicted under the federal statute for violating his Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable arrest and depriving him of his 14th Amendment due-process rights.
In the cases currently under consideration, federal prosecutors would have to show that the officers involved "acted with the specific intent to use more force than was reasonably necessary under the circumstances," as American University law professor William Yeoman's told the Guardian. Yeomans noted that it is "very rare" that deprivation of rights under the color of law in police in shootings is proven.
While the federal investigations specifically address whether the individuals' civil rights were violated, the impetus for prosecution under color of law cannot be racially driven. While Brown, Crawford, Garner, and Hamilton's deaths have all raised urgent questions of racism in US policing, the already unlikely federal charges would have to be brought without reference to race. In the King case, as political analyst Earl Ofari Hutchinson has pointed out on the Huffington Post, "There would have been absolutely no chance to bring, let alone get, convictions of the officers if there had been even the remotest public hint that race was the sole reason for the federal prosecution. The Justice Department had to bring, argue and try to win their convictions exclusively on the evidence and testimony that the cops violated the federal statutes in beating King."
Hutchinson argued that the same considerations applied to the King case should equally concern the Mike Brown shooting in Ferguson and should thus lead to federal charges against former cop Darren Wilson. "Brown as was King was unarmed. Brown and King were not charged with a crime when detained. Brown as King received injuries after he ceased resisting. Brown as King was abused during an official stop. These, as they were with King, are compelling civil rights violations," he wrote.
The Guardian reported that it will be some time — months or years — before the federal inquiries come to any conclusions.
MAKE IT STOP!
Micheal Brown had a right to punch a cop in the head?
GTH Eric Holder
Top nominee for the most convoluted nonsensical headline of the year?
This would eliminate police everywhere. Who would take on the job knowing if they defend themselves against blacks, their lives are ruined?
Could it be that the Odungobots are seeking some diversion from the crises recently and currently being caused by Odungo? Bringing the illiterate disease-ridden illegal immigrant "children" into this country and then distributing them, the better to spread their diseases? Bringing 9,000 Syrians into this country? Letting go 5 very dangerous Gitmo thugs in return for a traitor? Ending the Cuban embargo without going through Congress? Releasing further dangerous Gitmo thugs so they can rejoin the fighting against us and kill Americans? Trying to influence Israeli elections to oust Netanyahu and bring in a tractable clown like himself?
This is why you don’t put racists into the highest offices in the land.
This is the type of insanity that the Left pulls in elections. When the results are too close to call, they will do a recount until they get the results they want.
Nothing to see here, move along.
The police needs to go on strike - it’s the only way they will be appreciated.
Never happen...
Just give the blacks what they want, have the police ignore them.
New laws should be written that blacks can only rob, attack, kill other blacks.
They should stay away from whites because whites are bad.
No black person could be a cop.
Sad thing is, there are many wonderful black people out there.
There is nothing better than a good cop.
There is nothing worse than a bad cop.
The Rodney King beating did seem a bit excessive to me.
But IMO bringing federal charges was double-jeopardy and should NEVER have happened.
IMO OJ was guilty as sin, the jury voted not guilty even though some of them surely knew he was indeed guilty. That is the right of any juror. Even though he was guilty I would not have supported bringing federal charges in a second attempt to find him guilty of a crime.
Government needs to follow the rules set out in the constitution. We are at a point where the rules are being dispensed with when they are inconvenient... this is very dangerous.
The absurd war on drugs is an appalling example of government not following the rules. It took a constitutional amendment to make alcohol illegal. They dispensed with that when they made marihuana illegal. At first they tried to get around the fact that it would take a constitutional amendment to ban the plant by requiring a tax stamp to legally possess the plant...then they refused to sell the stamps. This was an obvious violation of the constitution...akin to requiring a tax stamp to exercise your 2nd amendment right to own a gun and then refusing to sell anyone the stamps.
Once government is allowed to get away with such shenanigans they will run wild.... and so we ended up with the insane war on drugs... and we have the government routinely violating the double jeopardy rules.
So what rights will we all lose next?
all four men were unarmed when they were shot dead by police this year.
what happened to facts here? Garner wasn’t shot by the police
Justice? Or revenge by the DOJ (Holder)? Is the DOJ now at war against the people of the United States?
HERE is what OBAMA and HIS Mafia are up too
Knockout King Michael Brown had a right punch Darren Wilson so hard it caused Wilson suffer an “orbital blowout fracture to the eye socket.” Michael Brown had a right to shoot Darren Wilson in the left hip. Why did Wilson keep Brown from pulling the trigger and let the gun go off when he pulled it out of his hip? And, Michael Brown had the right to show Darren Wilson how well he can tackle him, like he learned on the Normandy High School football team.
Obama’s war on cops.
Lies make this world go round.
Obama has injected himself and his delusions into Martin/Zimmerman and Brown/Wilson, neither were federal issues.
That set the stage for what has followed.
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