Free Republic

Sussex police officers PC Stephen Smith and PC Rachel Comotto went on trial in London over the incident involving Donald Burgess, a single-leg amputee and wheelchair user. The officers were accused of using excessive force on Mr Burgess during a confrontation at Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, on 21 June 2022. The pair had denied the charges. A jury at Southwark Crown Court found 51-year-old Smith not guilty of two counts of assault for using Pava spray and a baton. Comotto, 36, was found not guilty of one count of assault for deploying her Taser. The...

In March 2016, top Planned Parenthood officials in California eagerly emailed one another about an upcoming meeting with the state’s then-attorney general, Kamala Harris. The meeting carried so much import that the Planned Parenthood officials met with Harris’ staff ahead of time “to discuss prep,” emails reviewed by The Daily Signal show. About two weeks later, on April 5, 2016, California Department of Justice authorities raided the home of a pro-life journalist in his late 20s—David Daleiden, the head of the Center for Medical Progress, who had recently published videos allegedly showing Planned Parenthood officials gruesomely describing how they extract...

Bombshell allegations by FBI Special Agent Steve Friend contained in a whistleblower complaint filed late Wednesday with the Department of Justice inspector general reveal a politicized Washington, DC, FBI field office cooking the books to exaggerate the threat of domestic terrorism, and ­using an “overzealous” January 6 ­investigation to harass conservative Americans and violate their constitutional rights. Friend, 37, a respected 12-year veteran of the FBI and a SWAT team member, was suspended Monday, stripped of his gun and badge, and escorted out of the FBI field office in Daytona Beach, Fla., after complaining to his supervisors about the violations....

Nowland, a dementia patient, was 5 feet 2 inches tall, weighed 95 poundsA new report on the death of a 95-year-old woman in Australia after police used a stun gun on her has found that the officers administered "a grossly disproportionate response and excessive use of force." Clare Nowland died after police shocked her during an encounter at the Yallambee Lodge care facility, where New South Wales officers found her wandering around with her walker while holding two steak knives. Nowland fell as she convulsed and hit her head, putting her in critical condition before she died.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday launched a scathing criticism of Israel over what he claimed was its excessive use of force during the counterterrorism operation in Jenin. Guterres said the operation had left over 100 civilians injured, forced thousands to flee, damaged schools and hospitals and disrupted water and electricity networks, reported The Associated Press. He also criticized Israel for preventing the injured from getting medical care and humanitarian workers from reaching everyone in need. “I strongly condemn all acts of violence against civilians, including acts of terror,” Guterres was quoted as having told reporters. Asked whether this...

This horror video shows the moment a school police officer slams a young child on the ground twice before dragging the child off camera. The footage was recorded in Vance County middle school in Henderson, North Carolina on Thursday December 12. As the school resource officer — which is a member of law enforcement in charge ensuring school safety — makes his way with the child down the corridor. Then, suddenly, the officer stops and picks the child up before slamming them to the ground. The officer picks the child up off the ground before he slams the student down...

MILWAUKEE -- Police on the scene of a suspicious package in downtown Milwaukee had to play defense when, out of nowhere, a man rushed to the package and spilled out the contents. The unidentified man was arrested for interfering with members of the Milwaukee County Bomb Squad. The bomb squad was on the scene at Wisconsin and Plankinton Avenues early on Monday, May 21 for reports of a suspicious package. The investigation shut down that intersection and several nearby blocks in the middle of the morning commute.The action was captured on camera by several FOX6 News viewers in the area....

A young man with Down syndrome was killed by three cops for wanting to watch a movie—cops claim that suing them sets a bad precedent. The three cops facing a wrongful-death suit in connection with the homicide of a young man with Down syndrome are claiming that they shouldn’t be sued because if the case goes forward, it could set a bad precedent. Apparently, holding police officers accountable for escalating unnecessary force to the point of killing a non-violent, unarmed man with Down syndrome could send a message to other officers that violence against those with disabilities is unwelcome. The...

A U.N. panel against torture on Friday expressed concerns about allegations of “excessive use of force,” including deadly force, by Israeli security forces in Palestinian areas, and warned about authorities barring access to detained suspects, including minors. The Committee Against Torture, which works under the office of the U.N. human rights chief, released its “concluding observations” about Israel and five other countries — France, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the Philippines — as part of regular reviews by the panel. […] In a 12-page segment on Israel, the committee pointed to “allegations of excessive use of force, including lethal force,...

A Santa Rosa teenager who was injured during a violent struggle with seven law enforcement officers near Elsie Allen High School in 2011 has settled his federal lawsuit against the city and Sonoma County for $350,000. The agencies admitted no wrongdoing in the case, but faced risks in trying to convince a jury that the force they used to restrain 17-year-old Marlon Whitmore during a psychotic episode — including pepper spraying, Tasering, and striking him with batons — was justified. cut According to court documents filed by Whitmore’s legal team, the youth was ultimately Tasered 19 or 20 times, struck...

A federal appeals court ruled Friday that three deputy U.S. marshals who shot and wounded a fleeing teenage driver eight years ago cannot be sued for excessive use of force. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said it was not “clearly established” at the time of the shooting that the deputies violated Michael Fenwick’s constitutional rights when they used deadly force to subdue him. The case in Washington, D.C., unfolded amid a national debate over racially charged incidents of police force in Ferguson, Missouri, and New York City. …

It wasn’t a chokehold. That’s just the biggest single distortion in all the talk about the Eric Garner case, in which the public has been misinformed and misled from the start. The Rev. Al Sharpton has never had to put himself in harm’s way to protect our streets against crime, as our police officers do every day. He’s in no way qualified to stand on his soapbox and dictate procedures. I spent decades in law enforcement. During my time with the NYPD, I was responsible for over 1,400 felony arrests — any of which could’ve required the use of deadly...

Charles Krauthammer said Wednesday on "Special Report with Bret Baier" that a grand jury's decision not to indict a New York City police officer in the death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man who died in July after the officer placed him in a chokehold, is "totally incomprehensible." "It looks like they at least might have indicted him on something like involuntary manslaughter at the very least," Krauthammer, a syndicated columnist and Fox News contributor, said. "The guy was unarmed, and the crime was petty as they come. He was selling loose cigarettes, which in and of itself is...

More than 100 officers from the Seattle Police Department are suing the city and the Justice Department, claiming their department's new use-of-force policies put them in danger and violate their constitutional rights. In 2012 Seattle officials agreed to an independent monitor and court oversight of the city's police department as part of a deal with the Justice Department following a report that found officers routinely used excessive force. The civil suit, which was filed Wednesday, names Attorney General Eric Holder, the City of Seattle, Mayor Ed Murray, City Attorney Pete Holmes, and federal monitor Merrick Bob. In the suit, the...

On August 20, 2013, Sherman police stopped Lesa Surratt’s vehicle for failing to signal a lane change. An officer removed Surratt from the vehicle. From there, she was placed in the rear of a patrol car but without performing a search, the suit claims. Surratt’s passenger, Monica Garza, was also placed in the patrol car. Brian McClarin, a narcotics officer, had directed the traffic stop. The complaint acknowledges that Surratt removed a small amount of cocaine she was concealing and began swallowing it. One of the officers realized what was going on “and climbed in the back seat, across the...

Last May, Kelly was asleep in the passenger seat when his friend was pulled over for drunken driving on Interstate 71 between Cincinnati and Columbus, according to The Columbus Dispatch. When Ohio State Trooper Bryan Cook woke Kelly, he was startled and began flailing his arms, according to the lawsuit. Fayette County Deputy Clinton Sines then drew his Taser, opened the passenger door and shouted for Cook to get out of the truck and show his hands as he grabbed the back of Kelly's sweatshirt and tried to pull him out, the lawsuit says. The lawsuit says Sines was apparently...

Santa Clara police fatally shot a woman who they say started attacking them with a baseball bat. Lt. Kurt Clarke said in a statement the officers, whom he did not identify, feared "for their safety," and fired at her about 4:50 p.m. Sunday in the 5000 block of Lick Mill Boulevard after they were called there because she called 911 "making threats to harm herself and others." When they arrived, police said the woman came out of the front door and attacked the officers with the bat. She was treated at the scene but died later at a hospital. Download...

An Omaha police supervisor has been placed on administrative leave as authorities continue to investigate the circumstances of a controversial arrest in north Omaha. The World-Herald has learned that the command officer is Sgt. Aaron P. Von Behren, a 15-year department veteran and one-time recipient of the department's life-saving award. The World-Herald also learned the identity of an officer who earlier was placed on administrative leave: James T. Kinsella, a veteran of nearly five years.

A fight over $5 between Bronx school children escalated to the point where the police were called and a seven-year-old boy was arrested, handcuffed, and kept in custody for 10 hours, according to the child's family, who is threatening to sue the city for $250 million. When Wilson Reyes' mother Frances Mendez arrived at the 44th Precinct, she was shocked to see her son handcuffed to the wall. Mendez said, "My son was crying, ‘Mommy, it wasn’t me! Mommy, it wasn’t me!’ I never imagined the cops could do that to a child. We’re traumatized... Imagine how I felt seeing...

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United States has used excessive force against immigrants along the Mexican border and should cooperate in investigating border killings, including those of many young people, the top United Nations human rights official said on Thursday. "There have been very many young people, teenagers, who have been killed at the border," Navi Pillay, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, told a news conference. "The reports reaching me are that there has been excessive use of force by the U.S. border patrols while they are enforcing the immigration laws," she added. The family of a Mexican teen...