Lawyer representing Delray officer at shooting inquest for 16 Year Old Black Boy has conflict issue

• Police Officer's Lawyer Worked on the Judge's Campaign

Judge removes himself from inquest into shooting of Delray teen
The judge tapped to preside over the inquest into the shooting death of black Delray Beach teen by a white police officer removed himself from the case Wednesday amid questions about his ties to attorneys involved in the hearing. Judge Donald Hafele said those associations were not a conflict of interest, but he was stepping down to ensure public confidence in an investigation that has stoked racial tension. "What is of paramount importance is the absolute integrity of the process and ensuring that a community still in pain is comfortable with the manner in which the inquest is carried out," Hafele told attorneys, NAACP representatives and members of the teen's family assembled for a hearing to discuss the inquest into the Feb. 26 shooting death of 16-year-old Jerrod Miller.  "This is a gut-wrenching decision and probably the toughest decision I've had to make as a professional," Hafele said. His wife, Martha Hafele, was seated in court and wiped away tears as the judge said his decision to step aside "goes against every fiber of my being." Palm Beach County Chief Judge Edward Fine assigned Judge Debra Moses Stephens to take over. Fine said the hearing, expected to last three days, still was scheduled to start Monday. The final decision on scheduling rests with Stephens, who couldn't be reached for comment. NAACP officials began questioning Hafele's involvement in the case when the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Friday that attorney Scott Richardson had served as the judge's campaign treasurer during his 2000 re-election campaign.[more] and [more]

• A two-week delay has been ordered for the coroner’s inquest into the shooting death of a Delray teen at the hands of a local police officer Feb. 26. [more]
  

Milwaukee Police Gun Down Latino Man - Shot 8 Times in the Back

Wilbert Javier Prado Unarmed
A man killed by an off-duty Milwaukee police officer three weeks ago was shot eight times and died of a gunshot to the back, according to the Milwaukee medical examiner's report. The report added that 25-year-old Wilbert Javier Prado was unarmed when he was gunned down. About 10 bullet holes were found on the driver's side of the van Prado was driving. Milwaukee police said the shooting was sparked when off-duty officer Alfonzo Glover pulled over after noticing a van was following him. When Glover got out of his car, the van hit him, setting off a chase on foot and the shooting. The autopsy lists the immediate cause of death as injuries to the heart and lung because of a gunshot wound to the back. In all, Prado sustained multiple gunshot wounds to the back, chest, lower extremities and groin, the report says. The report also states that there was "no weapon recovered on or near the body of the deceased. "Prado's family said he was an illegal immigrant who had been in Milwaukee for about six years and had two young children born in the United States.  The family of Prado has asked for an inquest, and District Attorney E. Michael McCann has said he will call one, but no date has been set. [more] and [more]

• 30 call for justice in march [more]
• ABC News PrimeTime reports on Frank Jude Beating by Racist Milwaukee Cops [more]
  

Black Soldier Says he Was Beaten by Milwaukee Police - On Break from Iraq

A soldier who said he was beaten by Milwaukee police met with the district attorney Monday. Army Spc. Charles Griffin Jr. (pictured) said police threw him to the ground, handcuffed him and beat him last July. Police said they were called to the scene because Griffin was firing a gun in the air, and once they arrived, Griffin resisted arrest. Griffin said he has several scars, a gauge in his head and a fractured arm as a result of the alleged beating. Monday's meeting with the district attorney was more of an informational session. The Fire and Police Commission will decide at a later date whether charges should be filed against the officers involved. Griffin returned to active duty Monday shortly after his meeting with the district attorney.  Griffin said he was out with friends  when four plain-clothed detectives showed up. He said he tried to leave but was attacked by the officers, thrown to the ground and handcuffed before he knew what was happening. Griffin admitted he had been drinking with his friends; it was a final farewell before leaving the next day to return to his unit in Iraq. But he denied doing anything to interfere with the officers.[more]

• Jude case sheds light on Griffin beating [more]
• Soldier discovers home can be as dangerous as Iraq [more]
  

Racist Milwaukee cops charged in Brutal Beating of Frank Jude Want separate trials

Attorneys for three Milwaukee police officers accused of brutally beating a man told the court Tuesday they want separate cases and want to have the trial moved to another county. Jon Bartlett, 33, Daniel Masarik, 25, and Andrew Spengler, 25, have pleaded not guilty to battering Frank L. Jude Jr. while he lay face down in the street outside the house where off-duty officers were partying Oct. 24. The officers were court for a scheduling conference Tuesday. Their two motions must be filed by June 6 and won't be heard by a judge until July 27. That means if the case goes to trial, it won't occur until fall at the earliest. All three men are charged with party to substantial battery. Bartlett and Masarik also are charged with party to second-degree recklessly endangering safety. Masarik faces a third count of perjury. The officers sat in the public gallery of the court Tuesday, near members of Jude's family and Alderman Mike McGee, who told others in the gallery that they were sitting near "killer cops." The charged officers did not respond. [more]

Black Autistic Teenager Is Beat Down by Deputies After Being Mistaken for a Prowler

• DA clears deputies in struggle: Says beating of autistic teenager was unavoidable [more]
  

An autistic Mountain Gate teenager is recovering from a fractured elbow and a head wound after apparently being mistaken for a prowler by three Shasta County sheriff's deputies. Pierre Cowell, 17, whose parents say he has the mental capacity of a 4-year-old and no verbal ability, wandered from his Phaedra Lane home early Friday, his mother said. He had dressed himself in a shirt and jeans, shoes and a denim jacket that fit loosely over his lanky frame. Cowell's mother, Cynthia, said that at 5 feet 11 inches tall and 140 pounds, her son is "very, very thin." A neighbor, who did not recognize him, called 911 after seeing him approach her home about 2 a.m., sheriff's Capt. Tom Bosenko said Monday. The woman, who has two small children, reported that she could hear her doorknob jiggling, Bosenko said. "She was very scared," Bosenko said. At one point, she believed someone had entered her home, which increased the severity of the situation, the captain said. She said the deputies did not know he was autistic until she told them. While she said she understood how such an oversight could be made during a struggle, she was surprised that deputies failed to recognize Cowell's mental disability after he was apprehended. "Being totally nonverbal would be a clue," Cynthia Cowell said Monday. She also questioned the level of force used to control her son and suggested deputies receive better training to avoid future confusion of a mentally disabled person with someone on drugs. "I think I got more upset when I found out the extent of his injuries," she said, adding that she wants to read the police report.  [more] and [more]

$40 million suit filed Against Baltimore Police for Beating Handcuffed Black Man, Delaying Medical Help

Albert Mosley is in a wheelchair, unable to walk and barely able to move his arms. He says it's because a Baltimore officer threw him headfirst into the concrete wall of a police district holding cell. Yesterday, almost two years after he was injured, Mosley filed a $40 million police brutality lawsuit in Baltimore Circuit Court against the police officer, Bryan Kershaw. "I don't want the police to get away with this," said Mosley, 54. Mosley's lead attorney, William H. Murphy Jr., said such violence is "rampant" in the Police Department and pointed to a jury verdict last year that awarded a similar amount to a man whose neck was broken during a 1997 arrest. Kershaw could not be reached for comment, but Lt. Frederick V. Roussey, president of the local police union, said an internal investigation cleared the officer of any wrongdoing. Both Roussey and a police spokesman disputed Murphy's contention of widespread police brutality. According to the complaint, an intoxicated and handcuffed Mosley, who had been picked up on a probation violation, became loud and unruly behind bars at the Western District police station. Kershaw, who was supervising Mosley and four other prisoners, engaged in a shouting match with him and later entered the cell, picked him up and tossed him against the wall, Mosley contends. Handcuffed, Mosley was unable to break his fall. Mosley lay on the cell floor for about 45 minutes, immobile and bleeding from a gash over his left eye, he says. Kershaw and other officers at the station ignored the other prisoners' shouts for help, Mosley says. [more] and [more]

Redwood City settles Lawsuit in Police Beating Death of Latino Man

Without admitting wrong-doing on the part of police, Redwood City settled a wrongful death lawsuit for $250,000 with the family of Ricardo Escobedo, the 29-year-old resident who died after a scuffle with eight officers. The settlement reached in March ends the family’s federal lawsuit, just prior to a scheduled jury trial, said Redwood City spokesman Malcolm Smith. The money will be released as a trust for Escobedo’s two children. Escobedo, known as “Ricky,” died Nov. 17, 2002 after officers responded to a domestic dispute. The official cause of death was a heart attack due to “excited delirium” after the scuffle which included pepper spray, nunchucks and a straight jacket-like wrap, according to the report by Coroner Robert Foucrault. The report also noted traces of methamphetamine in his system. Both internal affairs and District Attorney Jim Fox cleared the officers of any criminal wrongdoing. However, Escobedo’s family refused to accept the findings. They said the amount of force used by the police broke seven ribs and damaged his trachea, leaving him unable to breathe. They unsuccessfully filed claims against the city and battled to have the case re-opened. Without the option of pursuing criminal charges against the officers, the civil suit was the only option left to hold somebody accountable for the death.  [more]

• Cops overlooked crushed neck [more]
• 60 Minutes: You may not find the diagnosis "excited delirium" in a medical dictionary, but it’s popping up more and more around the country, especially when people die right after brawling with the police. [more]

Black Teenager Beaten & Wrongly Imprisoned by NYC Cops Suing City For $10 Million

Darryl Forde spent three months in custody and accused of shooting a police officer. Today he was cleared at family court in downtown Brooklyn. He says he knows he can't get those three months of his life back, but he does want justice. November 17th, 2004: Darryl Forde says he was on his way home after a game of basketball when a ruckus broke out and police tried to make an arrest outside his building. As shots rang out and the crowds dispersed, Darryl says he was thrown to the ground. Forde said, "I was grabbed by an officer and out to the floor, then I got kicked in my left eye. I got four stitches." Though four shots were fired at police officers, his mother says they got the wrong guy. Yvonne Forde, Mother: "They don't care who they get their hands on. They don't care, as long as they got somebody, and they got the wrong child." Today New York City Family Court agreed - clearing Darryl of the crime. Andrew Stoll, Forde's Attorney: "They grabbed Darryl right from the scene. There was no gun, there were no shells, there were no bullets, Darryl passed a polygraph test in this case." Leo Glickman, Forde's Attorney: "The police victimized this time an innocent child, but also the juvenile justice system victimized somebody by taking three months to conduct a trial that should have taken three days." For Darryl it has been a long ordeal that's given him a new goal. Darryl Forde, Former Suspect: "For me to get into law school to prevent this from happening." [more] and [more]

Springfield settles lawsuit for Springfield Police Brutality Claim: Latino Man Beaten by 5 Officers

Springfield has paid $15,000 to settle a brutality suit brought against the city, several police officers and the chief by a Chicopee man who claimed he was beaten into unconsciousness and had to be hospitalized after his arrest more than three years ago. The city settled the suit to avoid trial expenses, city lawyer Edward M. Pikula said. "I think the city recognizes there's a cost of litigation," he said. "We certainly deny that we are liable for this." A trial was scheduled to start April 11. Pablo J. Cotto sued the city and five officers in May 2002 in federal court, claiming he was beaten so badly following his Feb. 23, 2002 arrest that he lost consciousness and was taken to Baystate Medical Center by ambulance. Cotto alleged civil rights violations, assault and battery and other claims. Cotto later amended the suit to name eight officers and Chief Paula C. Meara. The officers named were Pedro Mendez, Thomas Hervieux, Berardino Lochiatto, Michael Mitchell and Joshua Haygood, Detective Joseph Brodeur, Sgt. Charles Sheesher and Lt. Eugene C. Dexheimer. In his lawsuit, Cotto, who is seeking $500,000 in damages, stated that soon after he was put in a cell, five white police officers silently entered, grabbed him and struck his face against the sink, dragged him across the floor and punched and kicked him, causing injuries to his right eye and to his neck, shoulder and other limbs. When the beating ended, the lawsuit states, one of the officers sprayed Mace into Cotto's face and his open wounds. "He got beat up to a pulp for no reason whatsoever in a jail cell," said Cotto's lawyer, Harold I. Resnic. Resnic said Cotto used to work at a supermarket. [more] and [more]

Austin County Police Beat and Drag Disabled Black Man 35 Feet - Racial Tension High

Allegations that police used excessive force in arresting a man with disabilities outside a convenience store have stirred racial tension and a call for reform in this small Austin County city. A community activist group is using the incident to press the city to hire minority police officers, invest in revitalizing the deteriorating black neighborhood on the city's east side and foster better community-police relations by calming fears of incidents of racism. Albert Lane Sr., 51, who is black, charges that racial prejudice and profiling provoked four police officers on the night of Jan. 28 to use excessive force and unjustly arrest him for public intoxication. Lane took a friend, Gerald Scranton, to the store at approximately 8:20 p.m. to pick up wages Scranton claimed Clarence Einkauf owed him. Rose Einkauf said she refused to pay Scranton, the son of black Councilman Joe Scranton, and called the police after Scranton took two beers from a case without paying for them. Lane, who said he drank a bottle of beer the night of his arrest and two beers earlier in the day, filed a complaint on Feb. 11 stating that the officers abused their authority when they pulled him from his truck, handcuffed him and dragged him face-down 35 feet from his truck to the patrol car in front of the store.  "They scarred my knees and arms and knocked my front tooth out," said Lane, who has no use of his right shoulder, a limp in his right leg and slurred speech after suffering a stroke in 1988. Sealy City Attorney Bill Olson is reviewing Lane's complaint. [more]