Police spotted suspects' car 10 times during sniper spree (PC killed more innocents!)

Washington Post via Mecury News Link ^ | 26 Oct 2002 | Craig Whitlock and Josh White

[OReilly]

The biggest mistake of Moosie and other honchos was not to ask the national police database to kick out those license plates that had been run through many times. 10 times in the case of John Muhammad.

Do you know if those hits are in the national database? (even if the updates are fast enough). I heard a professed expert say that they could not search for multiple hits (I assume he was referring to the local Databases, because he said they are going to be getting a relational database soon) (implying that they could not do a search for multiple inquiries in the local MD and NJ databases).

[eno_]

So it would be a credible defense to you that an accomplice sitting in a getaway car did not know a robbery/homicide ws going to go down? People get life for that, and Schwarz should walk?

[dennisw]

Do you know if those hits are in the national database? (even if the updates are fast enough). I heard a professed expert say that they could not search for multiple hits (I assume he was referring to the local Databases, because he said they are going to be getting a relational database soon) (implying that they could not do a search for multiple inquiries in the local MD and NJ databases).

This is your answer. The 10 hits were on a national database.:

Ten times, authorities thought the car warranted enough suspicion that they ran its license-plate number through a national police database, sources said. Each time, however, they let the driver go after finding no record that it had been stolen or that its occupants were wanted for any crimes.

I am far from a database expert but I think most databases could kick out "most often searched for" if queried. How hard can that be for a computer to do? I doubt that it was done. It may have been suggested but it was never done. What was needed was less racial profiling of white guy shooters & white vans and better computer work

[OReilly]

Do you know if those hits are in the national database? (even if the updates are fast enough).<<<<<< This is your answer. The 10 hits were on a national database.: Ten times, authorities thought the car warranted enough suspicion that they ran its license-plate number through a national police database, sources said. Each time, however, they let the driver go after finding no record that it had been stolen or that its occupants were wanted for any crimes

Not disparaging your quote, but when MD police contact their dispatcher with a license plate, the resultant feedback sounds like it is coming from the MD DMV (from other information that they sometimes provide). I guess you are saying the MD system automatically queries the national system on out of state plates, and the feds could have easily run a search for multiple hits in a certain geographic area?

[Former Proud Canadian]

RE Post #77

The person you were talking to is a certified idiot/PC addled/moron.

[FR_addict]

He has been tried three times. Evidently the juries don't feel like it is an open and shut case like you do. Your example isn't a very good example. Someone sitting in the getaway car would have been in on planning of the crime.

I don't think there was any planning among the police to sit quietly while one policeman decided to commit this crime.

I think it is very likely that this policeman is innocent. Just because he was on duty at the time, does not make him guilty. From what I know about the case, the victim did not implicate him.

[OReilly]

That doesn't work if you drop the mail in a PO box away from where you live.

But they can tell which mail box or group of mail boxes the letter was dropped in, no?

[Cap'n Crunch]

Well, I'm of the opinion that alot of people see that there is money to be made in the higher echelons of police management. Cities look for PC bandaids and don't give a hoot what kind of cops these Chiefs were. They seem to bring all kinds of social engineering ideas with them and pretty much tie up the road cops with psycho-babble instead of good solid police work. Not to mention the federal government sticking their noses in to see if-let me rephrase 'if'-and say 'how many' civil rights violations are happening.

It's a wonder to me how cops at the bottom of the pile do as much as they do and keep a good attitude.

Must be something in the doughnuts.

It seems to me, from my little bit of experience-that cops/detectives-agents at the upper levels believe that the average road cop, given information, is certain to screw the case up and it's better not to tell them anything.

Unless of course they've hit rock bottom and don't have a clue who to look for, then they will throw a biscuit to the road guys to see if they can turn something up.

That's the view from here anyway; afterall, I'm a biased road cop....I'm sure others have a different opinion.

[bvw]

Bump for all our Arabian allies! Chief Moose -- I'd bet he'd support the ports deal.