Posted on 07/19/2002 4:51:57 AM PDT by Wolfie
SHERIFF APOLOGIZES FOR RAID ON WRONG HOUSE
TAZEWELL - Claiborne County Sheriff Eddie Shoffner has apologized privately and publicly to a family whose home he and his deputies raided by mistake Sunday night in a search for drugs and guns.
Masked and heavily armed deputies stormed into the home of Dennis and Kristi Smith, whose son Jordan had celebrated his 5th birthday earlier. The Smiths say they were terrified.
"They were in full gear, big rifles with clips, hollering and yelling and pointing guns at us," Dennis Smith said.
Smith said he was handcuffed and forced to the floor, his wife taken out of bed and searched.
"My son was sitting there, curled up into a little ball and just shaking," he said.
Shoffner said his department made a "terrible mistake."
"We definitely raided the wrong house, and I have apologized to the family, privately and publicly," Shoffner said Wednesday.
Shoffner said information that drugs and guns were at that house had been provided by an informant who has previously provided 27 accurate leads resulting in arrests. The informant will never be used again, he said.
Smith said his family has lived at their home for seven years, their name is plainly visible on the mailbox, and there are three vehicles registered to him in the driveway.
"I just don't see how this could have happened," he said. "They should have done more investigating before they came busting in here like that."
Shoffner said the information his department received was that criminals were using the house and felt it was safe "because a good family had lived there for several years and had just recently moved out."
Shoffner said he followed his deputies to the scene, "and the minute I walked in the door and saw Mrs. Smith in handcuffs, I recognized her because I had seen her before at a 'Walk for Christ' event, and I knew right then we had the wrong place."
Accept in hostage situations or in bank holdups or other similar situations, should a swat team be necessary. I refuse to endorse no-knock raids even though I am in favor of the war on drugs. (No I'm not going to debate that issue on this thread.)
I would recommend a six month prison sentence for every law enforcement officer that participates in wrong door raids. Yes I know boys, mistakes will happen. Yep and those mistakes are costing innocent people their lives across this nation. Then the departments go, "Oops, our bad." On the second offense I'd recommend a two year sentence and a ban on any future employment as a law enforcement officer.
Sorry, that doesn't cut it. The police deserve our support. However the public deserves theirs as well. This police state bull s-it has to stop.
Sometimes you have to show these surburbanites who is boss.
"Shoffner said information that drugs and guns were at that house had been provided by an informant who has previously provided 27 accurate leads resulting in arrests"
It is absolutely amazing that the informant's lead would not be corroborated before engaging in a raid like this.
Whoooeeee!!! Wow!! He APOLOGIZED!!!! That and some small change will get a cup of coffee at Starbucks.
When does this incompetent bastard resign or get fired??
Damm, that pretty hard to check on
Hey what would you expect it is part of the uniform. Oh, my bad, I thought you wrote incompetent badges.
Unless there was gross misconduct on the sheriff's part, he's sueproof. And the municipality does not need to expend a dime on restitution to the victims.
Unless there was gross misconduct on the sheriff's part, he's sueproof. And the municipality does not need [is not legally required I mean... whether it is morally obligated is another story] to expend a dime on restitution to the victims. Why don't we have restitution laws? Britain does.
A single witness or informant should not be a "go ahead" for a swat team. If I my research at work was as lazy as theirs I would be out of a job. Do your homework. Get a warrant.
The "incompetent bastard" is running for re-election right now.
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