FBI looking into 2001 shooting of Black Man by Terrebonne Parish Police

The FBI is investigating a 2001 fatal police shooting that followed an attempted cocaine bust by Terrebonne Parish Sheriff's deputies. "The FBI has been made aware of possible civil-rights violations and is looking into it," FBI spokeswoman Sheila Thorne said. Derrick Diggs Sr., 29, of Houma was killed as he allegedly tried to escape arrest on Dec. 15, 2001, in the parking lot of a convenience store. Diggs tried to flee in a car when officers closed in after an undercover cocaine buy, placing one officer in jeopardy and prompting at least two others to open fire, police have said. Diggs died at a hospital shortly afterward. The two officers named in court documents -- Shane Fletcher and Rusty Hornsby -- were cleared of criminal wrongdoing by a grand jury in August. But Diggs' family and their supporters maintain the shooting was unjustified and illegal. Thorne would not elaborate on how the FBI was made aware of the possible violations. Jerome Boykin, president of the Terrebonne Parish National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said the local NAACP chapter filed a complaint with the bureau following the grand jury's decision. "At this point we're happy to know the FBI's looking into this injustice, the murder that was done to Derrick Diggs," Boykin said. The events since the shooting -- which included a May 2002 indictment against Fletcher and Hornsby that was thrown out on a technicality -- will have no bearing on how the bureau handles the investigation, Thorne said. [more]

Review Board Says Orange County (FLA) Deputy at Fault in Fatal Shooting of Black Man

• Police Shoot & Kill Wrong Suspect -  Thought he had a gun -  Pulling Pants Up

A citizens' review board says an Orange County deputy was at fault when he shot and killed a man last year. Deputy Richard Mankewich was cleared of criminal charges earlier this year. But the nine-member review board found otherwise Monday night, saying it believes Mankewich was guilty of excessive force and abuse of power. Sgt. Richard Mankewich fatally shot Marvin Williams in mid-January when Williams was fleeing from officers. He was mistaken for a homicide suspect. Mankewich told investigators and a grand jury that he thought Williams was going for a gun because he reached toward his waist. But most of the board members believed Williams was pulling up his pants.  As it turned out, Williams was not armed, had no drugs on him and had no outstanding warrants. Williams was also the wrong man, not really the murder suspect they thought they were chasing.Mankewich, a 13-year veteran of the sheriff's office, was the subject of public scrutiny in 1997 when he was involved in the stop and arrest of a Miami police major along Florida's Turnpike. The major filed a civil rights suit that claimed he was stopped because he was black. The suit was later settled.[more] and [more]

• Officers mistakenly thought the unarmed Orange County man was a suspect in a slaying. [more]
• Riot Breaks Out In Orlando After Funeral [more]
• Jury clears deputies in shootings [more]
• Deja Vu with the Boys in Blue [more]

Controversial Columbus Police shooting of Black Man not over

A grand jury may have exonerated a Columbus police officer in the shooting death of Kenneth Walker, but that doesn't mean the case is closed. Activists who see Walker's death as police brutality hope for a civil lawsuit and possible federal charges for violating Walker's civil rights. State criminal charges are impossible now for Muscogee County Sheriff's Deputy David Glisson. A Columbus grand jury said Tuesday there wasn't probably cause for a case. But Glisson could still face a trial, possibly even a federal criminal trial, for the Dec. 10 shooting death of Walker. Then-Deputy Glisson shot Walker during a traffic stop along Interstate 185. Walker and three friends were riding in a gray GMC Yukon seen leaving an apartment that was under surveillance by Metro Narcotics Task Force agents for drug activity. Officers ordered the four men from the vehicle and during that time, Walker was shot twice in the head. No drugs or weapons were found in the Yukon, on Walker or on the other men. Glisson was fired in February. The grand jury considered indictments on felony murder or involuntary manslaughter, but after reviewing the case and a videotape of the incident decided not to indict Glisson. The officer now could face federal charges for violating Walker's civil rights, said Emory University law professor Richard D. Freer. Thousands of these cases are filed each year, he said. [more

Judge: Black Teen's death was unjust - Unarmed Teen with both Hands in the Air Murdered by New Orleans Cops

• 13-year civil case finally has ruling - - Unarmed Teen with both Hands in the Air Murdered by Cops

 It was a long time ago, 13 years to be exact, that the name Corey Horton rang out like a call to action on the streets of New Orleans. In the days after the unarmed 16-year-old was fatally shot by police at a busy Gentilly intersection, state and federal investigations were launched, protests drew hundreds of demonstrators, and the New Orleans Police Department closed ranks around what it determined to be a justified shooting. In Horton's death, some saw a homegrown version of the beating of motorist Rodney King that rocked Los Angeles in 1991. At one rally in Horton's neighborhood, marchers hit the street with a giant banner that read, "Charge killer cops." The pace of the litigation may have been glacial, but the all-but-forgotten lawsuit finally reached a conclusion Nov. 10 when Civil District Court Judge Rose Ledet issued a ruling: Horton suffered a wrongful death at the hands of the city, the victim of police brutality.  "Corey Horton exited the truck with his hands up," Ledet wrote. "He was completely surrounded. There was sufficient manpower available to arrest him. Although the officers reasonably suspected Mr. Horton was armed, there was no evidence of a weapon."  The events leading up to Horton's death were not in dispute. On Aug. 24, 1991, three days after he turned 16, Horton was stopped in clear daylight while driving a stolen Dodge truck. Police were looking for the truck after receiving a tip it had been commandeered by Horton's older brother Anthony, who was wanted in a string of robberies. Instead, the officers found Corey behind the wheel along with Horton's girlfriend, Lekiksha Thompson, and another young woman with her 1-year-old child. Fanguy and two other officers surrounded the truck and ordered the driver to get out. By all accounts, Corey Horton exited with both hands in the air. Several witnesses said Horton never resisted. They said Horton was shot with both hands in the air.  [more]

NYC Cops fatally shoot homeless Latino man

Police fatally shot a homeless man who was attacking a woman with a four-foot aluminum light fixture in Brooklyn early Monday. Jose Feliciano, 44, was shot once in the chest by a police officer around 6 a.m. in front of 599 Sutter Ave. as he approached the officer swinging the 4 x 1 aluminum light fixture.  He was pronounced dead on arrival at Brookdale Hospital Center. While police officials, speaking off the record, said the shooting appears justifiable, City Councilman Charles Barron, whose district includes the area, questioned why the officers didn't try to restrain the man with less deadly police equipment. The chain of events that led to the fatal shooting unfurled in a matter of seconds. Doris Lopez, 34, emerged from her Sutter Avenue apartment headed to the Lucky 1 Deli Grocery across the street for coffee and felt something brush against her hair, she said. "When I turned around Jose was swinging at me," she said. Monday, as Feliciano continued to swing the light fixture, Lopez tried to calm him while running home. Lopez spotted a police car driving down the street and screamed for help."They kept telling him to put the thing down but he kept swinging at him," Lopez said. She said the two officers initially didn't have their guns drawn but eventually one of them unholstered his weapon and fired once at Feliciano. "Let's say everything happened the way the police say it happened," the city councilman said. "They've got to find another way to disarm somebody. If you go through all that training at the academy and two men with batons can't disarm a man holding a metal object then they shouldn't be patrolling these streets. We're not animals out here. They've got to respect our lives. This is ridiculous." [more]

Grand jury clears Elkhart officer in shooting death of Black Man

A grand jury Monday cleared Elkhart Police Cpl. Doug Ryback of any charges in connection with the shooting death of Stanley Creal, 50, who was killed Oct. 6 as police executed a search warrant. Ryback said he couldn't comment on the grand jury's decision, citing policies of the police department and a possible internal investigation, common practice in police shootings. Ryback's relief, however -- and that of several of his colleagues, who spent the day with him -- was evident after the jurors left the Elkhart Circuit Courtroom. Prosecutor Curtis Hill also said little about the case or the evidence, the presentation of which took about 51/2 hours Monday. Grand jurors heard from a forensic pathologist, state police detectives -- state police investigated the shooting -- and Elkhart police officers about the events of that night. Hill did say he believes Creal was unarmed at the time of the shooting, and said after the jury's decision, "There's the inference that there's a belief that (Ryback's) actions were justified." Hill's chief investigator, Bill Wargo, said Creal indeed was unarmed. "He made a movement which the officers felt put them in danger. (It) led them to believe he was going for a weapon. No weapon was found." After the shooting, authorities released a few details, saying officers went to Creal's apartment at 230 W. Jackson Blvd. They got there about 9:30 p.m. to serve a warrant in connection with an investigation into crack cocaine sales from apartment C. Officers forced entry into the apartment after knocking and announcing their presence, according to authorities. [more] and [more]

Feds lend Calumet City a hand

A federal agency is working on a project to assess the relationship between the Police Department and members of the community. The U.S. Department of Justice offered to assist the city in opening the lines of communication between officers and citizens just days after a 15-year-old alleged he was beaten by a Calumet City police officer while in police custody. The Justice Department is still in the early stages of gathering information, but expects to pass on recommendations to the city in late January, said Police Chief Pat O'Meara. Don Pennington Jr., 15, made public allegations he was beaten by a police officer while in custody after he was picked up for jaywalking. In the days that followed, protesters surrounded the police station and City Hall, calling on the city to investigate the incident, suspend the officer involved and repeal the city's jaywalking ordinance. Some say the ordinance, which police have aggressively enforced this year, unfairly targets black youth. The city said the ordinance is enforced due to a large number of complaints from motorists who say youth walk in the roadways and are reluctant to move for traffic. [more]

Taser on children OK, Florida police say

Officials from a majority of law enforcement agencies in Volusia and Flagler counties say they would not hesitate to shoot a child with a Taser stun gun to keep the youngster from harming himself or someone else. The Taser policies of law enforcement agencies in both counties require police to consider everything from a suspect's age to physical and mental condition, but no local agency specifically prohibits using the weapon on a child. "There are those youths out there that are just as capable of hurting someone as any 18-year-old," said Sgt. Pete Moon of the DeLand Police Department. "Each scenario is different." Debra Johnson, a spokeswoman with the Flagler County Sheriff's Office, agreed that age wasn't the only deciding factor. "There are some 12 year-olds out there that are bigger than some adults," she said. The weapons are equipped with electric barbs that penetrate the skin and transmit an electric shock of up to 50,000 volts from the Taser. Tasers also may be used as a stun gun by pressing the weapon against the skin. Law enforcement agencies in the area discussed their policies with The News-Journal after two separate incidents in Miami in which police were accused of using their Taser guns on children -- a 12-year-old girl and a 6-year-old boy -- who officers claimed were endangering themselves. $10-plus million lawsuit filed against the city of Shreveport. [more]

• Taser Stock  falls on New York Times report [more]
  

Claims Over Tasers' Safety Are Challenged

Taser International, whose electrical guns are used by thousands of police departments nationwide, says that a federal study endorses the safety of its guns, but the laboratory that conducted the research disagrees. Taser said last month that the government study, whose full results have not yet been released, found that its guns were safe. Since that statement, the company's stock has soared and its executives and directors have sold $68 million in shares, about 5 percent of Taser's stock and nearly half their holdings. But the Air Force laboratory that conducted the study now says that it actually found that the guns could be dangerous and that more data was needed to evaluate their risks. The guns "may cause several unintended effects, albeit with low probabilities of occurrence," the laboratory said last week in a statement released after a symposium on Tasers, as the company's guns are known, and other weapons intended to incapacitate people without killing them. Taser said Wednesday that it stood behind its October statement.  Tasers are pistol-shaped weapons that fire electrified darts up to 21 feet, shocking suspects with a painful charge. More than 5,500 police departments and prisons now use Tasers, compared with only a handful five years ago. Amnesty has called for police departments to stop using the guns pending an independent inquiry into their safety. The group will release a report next week documenting police abuse of Tasers.[more]

• Pictured above: TASER International Advanced M-Series Taser. Available for $399.95  from RemainSafe.com [shop here]

Miami Police Tasered teen repeatedly

Miami-Dade police said Tuesday that an officer fired her Taser stun gun repeatedly at a 16-year-old car theft suspect, including two electrical discharges administered after he had been knocked to the ground but continued to resist. The incident, which took place Nov. 17 in South Miami-Dade County after the teen was caught driving a stolen car, prompted a police brutality complaint on Monday. Police said the teen was Larue Stokes III of Homestead. While the police statement confirmed Stokes' allegations -- that he was zapped several times while on the ground -- it did not say when he was handcuffed. Stokes claimed an unidentified female detective zapped him after the restraints were placed on his wrists. In their account of the incident, police said the use of the Taser, which delivers a 50,000-volt charge, was justified. According to their statement, detectives chased Stokes and two others after the three bailed out of a stolen car near Southwest 236th Street and 127th Avenue. Stokes ran into some woods, ignoring commands to stop. The woman detective fired her Taser at him, but the two electrical probes that carry the charge didn't make a connection. She reloaded and fired again, this time striking the teen in his chest, according to the police account. Stokes' father said Tuesday he didn't find the police account credible, and he denied his son didn't respect officers' commands. ''How are you going to be shot in the chest while you're running away?'' said Larue Stokes Sr.''My son has no reason to lie about being handcuffed,'' Kelly Stokes said. ``They have totally shattered him. He is willing to take a lie detector test. Are the police?'' Larue Stokes said he has 18 burn marks on his body. He said he was also hit in the leg by a police cruiser after bailing out of the stolen car, which he was driving. [more]

• Police deny teen's Taser account  [more]