Law and Order in America

eyeball · October 17, 2013

....a hail of 137 bullets...

Yeehaw, now that's, law and order!

Mmmm mmmm crack down!

kimmy · November 7, 2013

So, this actually happened in New Mexico.

A drug dog sniffs a guy's car seat during a routine traffic stop. The dog gives a "positive", leading to the man being anally probed by police.

After "going digital" the police found no drugs, so they did what any reasonable person would do: they took the man to a hospital, where over the next 14 hours the man was sedated, given an X-ray, more anal probes, two enemas, and a colonoscopy. None of this anal violation revealed any evidence of drugs.

Oh yeah, and the hospital is also billing him for the "medical care" he received.

There's something seriously wrong when the police can decide to detain you for 14 hours and anally rape you numerous times because their dog liked the smell of your car seat.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/new-mexico-man-sues-authorities-anally-probed-8-times-article-1.1507651

Oh yeah, this happened before, with the same drug dog:

http://www.kob.com/article/stories/S3210356.shtml?cat=500#.UnuqY-LjXTC

-k

bush_cheney2004 · November 7, 2013

Interesting story, however, probable cause concepts do not stop at the anus, mouth, or any other orifice/cavity given the history of such things for law enforcement.

Shady · November 7, 2013

That's a terrible story. If it's true, I hope he's compensated for what he went through. If what he says happened is indeed the truth. On the bright side, at least he wasn't tased to death in an airport!

bush_cheney2004 · November 7, 2013

Digital examination for and extraction of contraband is certainly nothing new. The circumstances of this particular case may or may not be upheld as police misconduct and a constitutional rights violation, but don't bet on it.

cybercoma · November 7, 2013

Digital examination for and extraction of contraband is certainly nothing new. The circumstances of this particular case may or may not be upheld as police misconduct and a constitutional rights violation, but don't bet on it.

Digital examination is one thing, sedating someone and subjecting them to medical procedures for no other reason than to search for evidence of drug possession is quite another.

Argus · November 8, 2013

Digital examination for and extraction of contraband is certainly nothing new. The circumstances of this particular case may or may not be upheld as police misconduct and a constitutional rights violation, but don't bet on it.

On the say so of a dog which smelled his car seat? And this was done several times in addition to several enemas and finally a colonoscopy?!

Because a dog sniffed his car seat!?

You people rant and rave about being free, and having so many rights. If this is upheld you basically have no more rights than the average Russian - that is, whatever the police feel like giving you on any particular day.

cybercoma · November 8, 2013

It's clear that Americans are being bent over by their government. Quite literally now.

bush_cheney2004 · November 8, 2013

Digital examination is one thing, sedating someone and subjecting them to medical procedures for no other reason than to search for evidence of drug possession is quite another.

Lots of case law for these sort of things at the local, state, and federal level. Perps sure know about it...not sure why others don't. Just ask some Canadians "locked up abroad".

bush_cheney2004 · November 8, 2013

You people rant and rave about being free, and having so many rights. If this is upheld you basically have no more rights than the average Russian - that is, whatever the police feel like giving you on any particular day.

Americans sure do....better than ranting and raving about "mergers" with the very same "police state".

Edited November 8, 2013 by bush_cheney2004

cybercoma · November 8, 2013

Is that so? Do you care to cite this mountain of precedence where the cops have had someone hospitalized, sedated, and given medical procedures like a colonoscopy, all in the pursuit of drugs?

bush_cheney2004 · November 8, 2013

Invasive police searches come in many forms, not just colonoscopies. The general circumstances of such legal searches are described here, but anybody can google specific cases:

When can police conduct a body cavity search?

A body cavity search is one of the most invasive and humiliating kinds of intrusion a suspect can be subjected to, so the constitutional right to be free of these searches is at its zenith. However, there are a few situations in which, despite Fourth Amendment protections, the police may conduct a reasonable body cavity search.

http://blogs.findlaw.com/blotter/2013/11/when-can-police-conduct-a-body-cavity-search.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Blotter+%28FindLaw+Blotter%29

bush_cheney2004 · November 8, 2013

And as for the usual rantings about the U.S. being Russia and lacking in freedoms, I would only remind our dear Canadian neighbours of the Stacy Bonds false arrest, assault, and strip search case in Ottawa, Ontario back in 2008, captured on video for all to see.

Argus · November 8, 2013

And as for the usual rantings about the U.S. being Russia and lacking in freedoms, I would only remind our dear Canadian neighbours of the Stacy Bonds false arrest, assault, and strip search case in Ottawa, Ontario back in 2008, captured on video for all to see.

That wasn't anywhere near as absurd as this, and probably happens about 1000 times a day in the US.

kimmy · November 8, 2013

Interesting story, however, probable cause concepts do not stop at the anus, mouth, or any other orifice/cavity given the history of such things for law enforcement.

Leaving aside the question of whether a routine traffic stop provided "probable cause" for a search of the vehicle by a drug-sniffing dog in the first place, they ran out of "probable cause" long before they got to the colonoscopy. They ran out of probable cause to continue jamming stuff up the guy's ass after the first round of probing, x-ray, and enema failed to produce anything.

Digital examination for and extraction of contraband is certainly nothing new. The circumstances of this particular case may or may not be upheld as police misconduct and a constitutional rights violation, but don't bet on it.

It was police misconduct before they even stopped the vehicle; the dog flunked its certification in 2011 and hasn't been valid since.

This is a case that Lionel Hutz could win; the only question is the exact dollar figure that it's going to cost the tax payers of Hidalgo County.

Invasive police searches come in many forms, not just colonoscopies. The general circumstances of such legal searches are described here, but anybody can google specific cases:

When can police conduct a body cavity search?

A body cavity search is one of the most invasive and humiliating kinds of intrusion a suspect can be subjected to, so the constitutional right to be free of these searches is at its zenith. However, there are a few situations in which, despite Fourth Amendment protections, the police may conduct a reasonable body cavity search.

http://blogs.findlaw.com/blotter/2013/11/when-can-police-conduct-a-body-cavity-search.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Blotter+%28FindLaw+Blotter%29

Fine and well, but this particular case has "gigantic cash settlement" written all over and is going to cost the tax payers a lot of money.

It won't cost the officers a penny out of their pockets or a minute of sleep, of course; the county will pay the costs, and the police themselves will be back on the street after perhaps a short paid vacation or brief reassignment to "desk patrol" duty. It'll be a story they and their buddies can laugh about over drinks after their shift is over.

-k

kimmy · November 8, 2013

And as for the usual rantings about the U.S. being Russia and lacking in freedoms, I would only remind our dear Canadian neighbours of the Stacy Bonds false arrest, assault, and strip search case in Ottawa, Ontario back in 2008, captured on video for all to see.

I believe that our cops are just as bad as yours; I think the only real difference is how much lead the cops on your side of the border are allowed to spray at suspects.

-k

Shady · November 8, 2013

That wasn't anywhere near as absurd as this, and probably happens about 1000 times a day in the US.

A thousand times a day?!? LOL!!

Come'on man. /facepalm

Scotty · November 8, 2013

Fine and well, but this particular case has "gigantic cash settlement" written all over and is going to cost the tax payers a lot of money.

It won't cost the officers a penny out of their pockets or a minute of sleep, of course; the county will pay the costs, and the police themselves will be back on the street after perhaps a short paid vacation or brief reassignment to "desk patrol" duty. It'll be a story they and their buddies can laugh about over drinks after their shift is over.

-k

But if the award is high enough that's it painful to the citizens, meaning there either has to be a tax inrease or they go into bankruptcy, there will be repercussions. Hit them in the wallet and they'll squeal like pigs. They'll make sure the next chief of police knows what to tell his officers about highly intrusive and illegal searches.

Scotty · November 8, 2013

A thousand times a day?!? LOL!!

Come'on man. /facepalm

I don't think that's exaggerated given the state of military policing in the US, the high crime rate, and the belief among so many that whatever the police do it must be okay, and the people who are involved in drugs, or even suspected of it, deserve what they get, especially if they're minorities.

Edited November 8, 2013 by Scotty

GostHacked · November 8, 2013

A thousand times a day?!? LOL!!

Come'on man. /facepalm

Almost a daily thing at the airport with the TSA.

GostHacked · November 11, 2013

A compilation and explanation of the origin of the word 'police'.

Scotty · November 17, 2013

This is a story in The Economist I ran across detailing the growing number of Americans who are non-violent, yet given life without parole. You would think that would be unconstitutional given the petty nature of some of the offenses, but apparently no one cares very much in the land of the free.

LANCE SALTZMAN did not like the way his stepfather, Toni Minnick, settled arguments with his mother, Christina Borg. Once Mr Minnick fired a gun into a wall beside her. A couple of weeks later, says Ms Borg, he threatened to shoot her. So Mr Saltzman went into his stepfathers bedroom and took the gun. He sold it to a friend, who used it in a burglary. Mr Saltzman was charged with burglary, theft and being a felon in possession of a firearmall for taking a gun from his own houseas well as with the burglary committed using the gun, in which he says he took no part. He was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole. He was 22.

http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21589868-shocking-number-non-violent-americans-will-die-prison-throwing-away-key

GostHacked · November 20, 2013

TSA conducting blood tests and breathalyzers in local communities without the local police knowing or involved in the process. So much freedom.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj2kwEWiem4

GostHacked · May 7, 2014

Here is another example of freedom. And could seems to reveal other issues in the education system.

http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/man-arrested-at-school-board-meeting-after-protesting-book-assigned-to-daughter-1.1810191

Now in light of school shootings like at Sandy Hook and others, is this really the type of book that should be assigned to a high schooler??? I do find it strange that the father would protest the sex scene and not the violence regarding school shootings. But either way, how did a book deal with school shootings make it into the class? Kids have been suspended for eating parts of a pop tart to make it look like a gun. And another gets suspended for making the gun sign with his hands. Thing is that specific kid is deaf and his name is 'Gunner'.

A New Hampshire dad was arrested at a school board meeting after protesting a book assigned to his teen daughter that contained what he said was a graphic sex scene.

William Baer attended a Gilford School Board meeting on Monday night where he raised concerns over the Jodi Picoult book "Nineteen Minutes," and in doing so, apparently violated the board's two-minute talk rule.

The book tells the story of a bullied teen who eventually goes on a shooting rampage at his school. The book also contains a sex scene between two teenagers, which Baer thought was inappropriate.

Baer reportedly asked the school board members if they would read the sex scene out loud, but they refused.

In what became a heated discussion, Baer was approached by a police officer who handcuffed him.

The incident was captured on camera.

"You're going to arrest me? Because I violated the two minute rule?" Baer asks the officer.

Wayward Son · May 7, 2014

Here is another example of freedom. And could seems to reveal other issues in the education system.

http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/man-arrested-at-school-board-meeting-after-protesting-book-assigned-to-daughter-1.1810191

Now in light of school shootings like at Sandy Hook and others, is this really the type of book that should be assigned to a high schooler???

It is exactly the type of book that should be assigned.

I applaud the arrest of this person. In a discussion of a book about the themes of bullying and the consequences of bullying, this man did not just exceed his time, refusing to followed the rules that everyone else agreed to for an orderly and constructive meeting, but also interrupted others when they had the floor, refused to stop, and made clear that he would have to be arrested to stop his bullying behaviour.

Favourite quote about the book from the bully's wife: "Why should those ideas be put in their mind?" If you question why an education should be about putting ideas into minds then perhaps homeschooling is the way to go.