Inaction in action

Jason Yates of Milwaukee Wisconsin, a retired Navy Vet, attempted to assist police with a minor investigation, when his dog, a Pit Bull got out.    Police then handled the problem with the tact, dignity and respect that citizens have come to expect... they shot the dog, Duke.     After shooting the dog, the police commented on how they were "shocked" that the owners of the dog were "white".  Yates will not be filing a complaint or be taking any action against officers, which sends the clear signal to Police that it's OK to be reckless with firearms with people's pets, property and lives.  

sources:
http://www.wisn.com/r-video/27853513/detail.html
http://www.injusticeeverywhere.com/

What happens to turned-in guns

I have tried in the past to figure out what happens to turned in, and court seized weapons in Illinois.  The only information I could find is that there is no proof of destruction, and no paperwork on their transfers.   Which is why this ex Clarendon Hills Illinois police officer would have gotten away with walking off with a handful of handguns that were turned-in... would have... if not for that "anonymous tip" that informed other officials of this one's misdeeds.   When a handgun is court seized it is defined as being seized for "destruction, or police purposes".    Maybe this is what they meant by police purposes?

Daniel M. Ryan, 48, is accused of stealing five guns in total, including an Ithaca M1911 A1 World War II U.S. Army .45 caliber gun, a Smith and Wesson .38 caliber Airtight Special, and a Connecticut Valley Bobcat .50 caliber gun, said DuPage County State's Attorney Robert B. Berlin....

...Authorities were led to the Westmont man after an anonymous tip in February sparked an investigation into the missing guns, police said. Ryan resigned from the department on April 22, 2011.

While I can hardly believe an Ithaca 1911 was turned in at a gun turn-in event, I find it more astonishing that an  anonymous tip was the reason the police looked for them.  

You want protection?

The Police won't protect you.    Instead, they'll wait until a threat finds you, beats you unconscious, then they'll pose your unconscious body for a photo opportunity.   That's what William Kendrick's lawsuit against College of Dupage Police.  

 William Kendrick's allegations go a step further, alleging that after the attack, a COD officer posed for a photograph with Kendrick as he lay unconscious on the steps of the Student Resource Center.

 
If this sounds far fetched, remember that this is not outside of what police have been known to do, you may recall a few years ago at the G20 summit that police used arrested students as a trophy photo opportunity.    I hold out hope that the Campus Police were documenting William's injuries, but I have not seen the photos, and can't make a solid opinion of it.

These guys are more trustworthy than me?

A young, very drunk girl was ushered into a police car in Chicago where the officers allegedly "took advantage" of her extremely intoxicated state, then got her back to her place where they allegedly continued.

At the victim’s home in the 1300 block of West Greenleaf, she drank and played strip poker with the men, who removed their clothing and sexually assaulted her, prosecutors said. She ended up pounding on her walls and screaming that the officers had sexually assaulted her, prosecutors alleged.

Witnesses saw one of the cops fleeing naked and another putting his police uniform on in the victim’s room after neighbors dialed 911, Sudendorf added.

Please note that these were allegedly uniformed, on-duty police officers.

protection for cops makes easy prey

It is not difficult for someone to buy a police uniform, or to get a fake badge, then claim he's an undercover cop.    It's illegal, but if that person is intent on harming someone, chances are, they don't really care about those other laws either.  

Police are searching for a man who they said posed as a police officer Sunday evening and demanded cash and sex from a woman in the Lincoln Park neighborhood. 

When you make unequal protection for police officers, you extend that protection to criminals posing as police officers.   I might be thinking of a Utopian society where people can defend themselves from anyone if their liberties are invaded.   Sadly much of police work in the modern day is entirely about invading other people's liberty.  Without special protections, those law abiding citizens might legally defend themselves against such attacks.   The down and dirty of it is that special laws preventing you from defending yourself against a police officer if they attack you are uncalled for, and dangerous.   Police officer should not attack you, and should not make unreasonable demands of you... but they do, because they can, and it's protected.   It becomes harder to tell an unprotected criminal, from a protected criminal every day.

Massad Ayoob, Could he ever see?

I posted a response to Massad Ayoob today.   He proclaimed victory over the "cop haters" that invaded his blog comments yesterday, as applying the same false standards that the Brady Campaign applies to CCW holders.   This is simply not true, CCW holders aren't protected by the legal system if they shoot someone on accident (or on purpose) like police tend to be.  If I CCW is suspected of shooting someone on purpose they go straight to jail... if a police officer is suspected... he goes home for a few weeks.   I threw the gauntlet down though.   I challenged him to write a post for all those victimized by Police that can help heal the emotional wounds they have suffered from these terrible experiences.   I doubt I will hear any such wisdom from Ayoob, but I can hope.   I suspect he will never think very deeply on the subject because he has a pretty big fan base of yes-men who are willing to give him verbal dutch rudders all day.

My post:

Mas,
That was a well though out, only mildly offensive response to your last blog entry.

What people want is what our founders wanted for us, equality under the law, or in short, liberty and justice! I would love to trust police officers, but the short skinny of it is that doing that can cost you more money than you make in a year, or even your life! Is it right that police have more privileges, and protections under the law, with less consequence, and higher than average GDP per capita pay?

I have a few friends that are police officers, whom I do trust. But when you watch 12 other officers that you don’t know, arrest your Army veteran fiancee on felony “Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon” charges for having an unloaded fully cased pistol under her back seat on her way to a firearm repair shop, while they have fully loaded, rounds chambered firearms on their hips, all because she interpreted the law’s writing of “within reach” differently than the officers… You start to wonder why the law protects them “better” than it does her, why the law affords them more privileges than it does her. When it costs you over $50,000 to fight that case in court, and find out the Police officers are getting Time-and-a-half to be there… you REALLY start to wonder why the law compensates them better than you. When your fiancee loses her job just for being under felony investigation, and you watch Officers like John Killackey point a gun at someone while drunk in the same general area as your fiancee was busted for not even touching a gun… and you see that officer keep his job… the us vs them mentality kicks up ten-fold.

You see Mas, it’s not that people have blind hatred, it’s that a lot of people have been victimized, and have no recourse other than to move to the country, or become agoraphobic… When you get a lot of victimized people, you get a lot of anger. Instead of calling us out as “cop haters” or watch your peanut gallery give you verbal dutch rudders, why not post on ways we, the victims of the police forces of the United States of America can healthily deal with our victimizations?

That’s it… that’s the challenge! post something constructive for us victims! Suing costs too much money and lawyers are reluctant to take up cases against cops that haven’t been caught on camera, and the chiefs are only interested in protecting the department’s image… So help me find another way for us victims to if not get justice, then at least to heal.

IL officials charged with Misconduct

Former Mayor Randy Kirichkow, former police Chief Tom Fearn and former police Sgt. Brad McCaslin have been charged with official misconduct following video evidence that McCaslin tasered a handcuffed woman in the back of the neck then the police chief choked her.  Video HERE.

Winnebago County State's Attorney Joe Bruscato says an arrest video shows Fearn choking the woman after McCaslin applied a Taser to the back of her neck.
They also face aggravated battery and obstruction of justice charges, among others.

Kirichkow is charged with not taking action once he received information of the abuse.