San Jose Police Officer who Shot Dead Unarmed Latino Man on Trial.

The plainclothes state narcotics and parole agents staking out a San Jose  house were looking for a parole violator who was at least 7 inches taller and  50 pounds heavier than Rodolfo "Rudy" Cardenas, 43, a San Jose construction  worker, who drove up in a van to visit the wanted man. But when Cardenas sped off for unknown reasons, he was chased by agents  in unmarked vehicles and later on foot. As Cardenas ran around a building into  a parking lot, narcotics agent Michael Walker allegedly fired through a fence,  hitting the man in the back. Most troubling, the dead man's family and  ambulance records say, after the shooting, paramedics were held back by police  for five critical minutes as Cardenas was bleeding to death. Walker said he shot Cardenas, who was running away from him, only after the man turned slightly toward him, and Walker thought he saw a gun in his hands. No firearm was ever found on Cardenas or at the scene. San Jose police officers who patted down the father of five right after he was shot also did not find a weapon. But later, a crime scene investigator going through Cardenas' bloody clothes found a folding four-inch knife with a black handle in his left, front pants pocket. Walker said that could have been the object he mistook for a gun. [more]and [more] Pictured above: Rudy Cardenas.

FBI to investigate Larry 'Nickey' Hill case: Died in Police Custody

• NAACP may file civil suit

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating the Sept. 13, 2003 death of Larry "Nickey" Hill, who died while in local police custody, A.C. Dumas, president of the Flint, Mich. branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, announced here Monday. Hill, Jr. died Sept. 13, 2003 in police custody after having been pursued in his Corvette by NPD Officer Steve Dallas and Howard County Sheriff's Deputy Brian Cogburn. Hill eventually exited the car and led Dallas and Cogburn on a foot chase until Hill was captured, handcuffed and transported to the Nashville Jail. Hill's Corvette was parked near Monday's rally. A picture of the vehicle is also attached to Hill's tombstone. Hill developed respiratory problems while being booked into jail and was transported by ambulance to Howard Memorial Hospital where he died. The Arkansas State Crime Laboratory in Little Rock autopsied Hill's remains and concluded that the cause of Hill's death was inconclusive." The autopsy did, however, state that Hill likely died from choking on his own vomit. [more]

Latest police shooting angers Black residents in Charleston

The shooting of a 15-year-old boy by North Charleston police officers has left many people in the Chicora-Cherokee neighborhood angry and frustrated at what they said is an out-of-control police department. "There was no need for deadly force," said Lakeisha Lawson, an eyewitness to the shooting. "They didn't have to shoot him." After the shooting, police accompanied by dogs broke up an angry crowd and arrested the teen's mother. Police said the shooting was justified because the teen threatened officers. The teenager led officers on a high-speed chase through the Chicora-Cherokee neighborhood in a stolen truck, police said. According to reports, police only used their weapons after the teen twice tried to run down officers. The teen later was treated and released from the Medical University of South Carolina. [more]

LAPD Chief orders the immediate separation of officers after deadly incidents

• What is he "ordering"? This is already Required.

Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton commanded 88 top-ranking officers Wednesday to tighten procedures when investigating the serious use of force and to move decisively to separate officers to prevent any public perception that they conferred. Bratton said the move was to help avoid a repeat of what happened in the flashlight beating of car-theft suspect Stanley Miller in Compton, where supervisors took about 45 minutes to decide it was a serious use-of-force incident and to separate officers. The delay in separating the eight officers involved at the scene has led to allegations of a coverup. Bratton directed his commanders to immediately implement the highest level of review if there was any doubt about whether officers' actions could lead to a suspect's death. During such a probe, known as a categorical use-of-force investigation, officers must be separated and interviewed individually.[more]

LAPD Solution to Racist Police Brutality: Smaller Flashlights!

Six weeks after a suspect was struck 11 times by an officer wielding a flashlight, Police Chief William Bratton said he plans to abandon the department's large, bulky metal flashlights in favor of smaller, lighter ones. Bratton described the proposal as a direct response to the beating of 36-year-old Stanley Miller, who was captured on videotape being hit with a flashlight on June 23. The debate over flashlight use within the LAPD opened in the wake of the Miller arrest, which drew comparisons to the 1991 beating of Rodney King, an incident that sparked the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Miller filed a legal claim for $25 million in the wake of the beating, saying he had suffered brain damage, spinal injuries and emotional distress. Flashlights currently used by the LAPD can weigh as much as 2 pounds, raising issues about the type of injuries they can cause, said LAPD Inspector General Andre Birotte. Although flashlights can be used by officers to defend themselves if they are in danger, the tools should not be seen as alternatives to batons, he added. [more] Pictured above: Stanley Miller shortly after he was accosted by the LAPD.

• Bratton orders changes [more]

LAPD official says Miller Beating Report won't be out until 8/23

The Los Angeles Police Commission's Inspector General Andre Birotte Jr. said last week that residents should not expect an "a-ha" moment when the LAPD's report on the arrest of Stanley Miller is released later this month. Birotte said that an article in the Los Angeles Times severely misquoted him by suggesting that the report would be released soon, and that it would give residents the insight and analysis they want. Birotte said the report will most likely be released on Aug. 23, 60 days after Miller's arrest, and weeks could pass before any discipline is carried out against the officers involved, assuming they are found guilty of misconduct. [more]

Vegas man dies after police use Taser to subdue him

A 47-year-old man is dead after a police officer used a Taser gun to subdue   him during a struggle. Officers responded late Monday to a condominium complex after someone called   911 to report a roommate who was acting unusual. When officers arrived, they found the roommate, whom the coroner's office identified as Keith Tucker of Las  Vegas, talking incoherently. Authorities say the officers used their batons and a Taser gun to subdue  Tucker after they say he punched one of the officers in the chin and kicked another in the chest and legs. Once they got Tucker handcuffed, the officers   noticed he was having difficulty breathing. Officials say the officers performed CPR and called an ambulance. Tucker   later died at Desert Springs Hospital. Sheriff Bill Young has said he is rethinking the department's policy   following the Taser-related death of a handcuffed man in February. [more]

•  Company that markets Taser Guns Made False Claims: Use of Tasers Linked to Death [more]

McKinney Police Seek dialogue after small riot

Police are seeking a dialogue with black community leaders following a disturbance Saturday night when officers used pepper spray and a dog to control a mob in east McKinney. Some members of the crowd of about 100 people yelled obscenities and incited others to act against officers responding to a fight in progress call at the Manor House Apartments in the 700 block of Bumpass Street, according to police. The officers called for backup units about 10:30 p.m. Saturday who then used pepper spray and a canine to contain residents, police said. Authorities arrested Anthony Duckett, 24, along with his mother Vanessa Duckett, 41 and 26-year-old sister Tekisha Duckett. Anthony Duckett said the crowd grew angry because of the way police handled the situation, using pepper spray on a his 16-year-old cousin, mother and sister. "When these people seen how the police was treating me, they got upset," Duckett said. "I wasn't even fighting back. I wasn't cussing at them." [more]

Racist LAPD Out of Control: Two officers used deadly force against Latino Man

Racist LAPD Out of Control: Two officers used deadly force against Latino Man at the same time a third fired taser gun

• Police claimed that Man Attacked them. Videotape from 5 Camera Angles Show Otherwise.
  

An incident in which two officers fatally shot a suspect who was hit at the same time with a stun gun fired by a third officer has been called a "problem shooting" by Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton. Erick Jerome Garcia, 36, was shot in the early hours of July 16 at a Greyhound bus terminal.  Officers are reviewing videotape taken by security cameras at the facility, showing the deadly encounter from five different angles, according to police sources. Initial accounts described two officers firing at Garcia, who had been acting erratically and had thrown a computer at officers. He allegedly dived through the space beneath the counter with a small, pointed metal object.But LAPD sources said the videotape shows a man at the bus station crawling with the metal object at his side, and being shot by officers from at least 12 feet away. Craig Harvey, director of operations for the Los Angeles coroner's office, said Garcia was shot four times: in the head, chest and leg [more]

Panel: Ohio Police Used Excessive Force in Nathaniel Jones Fatal Beating

• At least 19 Black Men Have Died in Violent Confrontations with Cincinnati police since 1995.
  

A police watchdog panel voted Monday to accept its investigators' findings that three officers who repeatedly struck a black man with nightsticks to subdue him shortly before he died used excessive force and should be severely disciplined. Cincinnati's Citizen Complaint Authority also accepted findings that the three officers and four other officers involved in the arrest of Nathaniel Jones followed improper procedure and should undergo retraining. "Mr. Jones' death was clearly the result of several tragic mistakes," CCA Executive Director Wendell France said. "We cannot and will not say that any of these officers acted with any malice." Jones, 41, died Nov. 30 shortly after a confrontation with police in the parking lot of a fast-food restaurant. Video from restaurant surveillance cameras and a police cruiser showed that Jones knocked over one officer before others jabbed or struck him more than two dozen times with nightsticks. The 350-pound Jones stopped breathing shortly after he was handcuffed. In 2001, there were three nights of rioting after an officer fatally shot an unarmed black man who was wanted on misdemeanor charges when he ran from officers. The officer was acquitted of criminal charges. [more]

• In November the Cincinnati Police fatal beating of Nathaniel Jones was captured on video tape. NO officers were charged in the beating. Nathaniel Jones pictured above. [more]
• Police panel wants officers disciplined [more]