Trial in Police Killing of Michael Newby Begins -- Shot 3 Times in the Back

• Louisville Police have Killed 7 Black Men in the last 5 Years
  

Nineteen-year-old Michael Newby was the seventh black man fatally shot by Louisville police in the last five years. The officer who shot him three times in the back is the first to face criminal charges. McKenzie Mattingly goes on trial for murder this week in a case that has sparked protests in Louisville. Many in the city's black community say holding a white police officer accountable for the killing of a black man is long overdue.Mattingly told prosecutors that he was "scared to death" when he shot Newby and believed that the 19-year-old was "trying to go for a weapon." Police say a .45-caliber gun was found in Newby's waistband after he was shot, but Mattingly told investigators he never saw the weapon before he fired.  Court documents confirm that Mattingly was wearing a wire but that his conversations were not being recorded.A wrongful death suit fied against Mattingly also alleges that Newby did not receive adequate medical attention and "died in the street with his hands handcuffed behind his back.[more ] and [more ] and [more ]

• Newby's death came just over a year after the December 2002 fatal shooting of 50-year-old James Taylor. Police shot Taylor 11 times in an apartment after he was handcuffed. Two white officers at the scene said Taylor, who was black, lunged at them with a boxcutter knife. After the officers were cleared of criminal charges by a grand jury, activists stepped up their protests, and Taylor's family filed a civil suit against one of the officers. [more ]

Monitors Fault Prince Georges County Police Reforms

PG Police force is known to be one of the most brutal and racist in the country
The Prince George's County Police Department is struggling to comply with some terms of a federal agreement it signed in January after long-running investigations found systemic abuses within the force, a report concludes.  In its initial evaluation of the department's compliance with the agreement, an independent monitoring team found that the agency has been slow to develop general orders, standard operating procedures and department-wide protocols that address the agreement's terms. The eight-member panel, made up mostly of law enforcement officials from across the country, also found disparities in the reporting of use of force by officers.  The report, parts of which were made public yesterday, is the first assessment of the pace at which the department implements 67 requirements outlined in the agreement, which was spurred largely by allegations of excessive use of force by officers and alleged civil rights violations. The agreement was a result of a top-to-bottom probe of the 1,200-member force that spanned three police chiefs. The report is to be made available today on the county's Web site, www.goprincegeorges.com. [more

Ex-trooper may face federal charges for Striking Unarmed Handcuffed Black Man

Federal authorities are considering charges against a former South Carolina Highway Patrol trooper sentenced to jail this week after being found guilty of assaulting two men during a traffic stop. Although Chad A. Williams was found guilty of two counts of simple assault, Assistant U.S. Attorney Marshall Prince said Thursday that federal authorities are pondering the idea of charging the former trooper with civil rights violations and unnecessary use of excessive force. Williams, 29, was found guilty Tuesday of the two simple assault charges after a two-day trial. Those charges stemmed from a July 20, 2003, traffic stop. The incident was captured on two Highway Patrol dashboard police videotapes. Representing the U.S. Attorney's office in Columbia, Prince attended the trial, saying federal officials were interested in at least two aspects of the events that transpired on the videotape. The fact that two men were assaulted while handcuffed is one concern. Another is the amount of aggression Williams displayed toward the men. [more ] and [more ]

Boston Police Gunned Down Black Man -- Widow longs for `justice'

• Urban League says Bowen's rap sheet does not justify his death

Bowen, 40, was killed in  Roxbury by gunfire from two Boston police officers. Authorities said he threatened the cops with a .40-caliber firearm after a traffic stop and scuffle, but witnesses said he appeared unarmed as he attempted to flee on foot. Police recovered the weapon next to Bowen's body on Brookford Street. Dorothy Bowen said she wants answers from police. Community leaders in Roxbury and Dorchester also want to hear from authorities. Bert Bowen had a 12-page criminal record dating back to 1981 with 53 arraignments, many for armed robbery while armed with a handgun and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. Records indicate he also had three restraining orders taken out against him by a woman who had children by Bowen. The Urban League's Williams said Bowen's rap sheet does not justify his death, which remains under investigation by both Boston police and Suffolk District Attorney Daniel Conley's office. ``Police do a tough job, but we need to look at the circumstances surrounding the incident rather than his background,'' Williams said [more ] and  [more ]

FBI Probes case of Handcuffed Black Man Attacked by Mountain View Police Dog

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating whether two Mountain View police officers violated the civil rights of a man bitten by a police dog Sept. 4. Patrick Terry of Jacksonville, Fla., has said he believes the officers targeted him because he is black. The FBI's inquiry, however, will focus on whether the police commanded the dog to attack Terry or sought to hurt him in any other way. FBI Agent Quy said the FBI routinely investigates cases in which police officers are accused of misconduct. The Mountain View Police Department also is investigating the incident and reviewing training for police dogs. Terry was arguing with his girlfriend two weeks ago when Reuben Gonzalez, an undercover police officer on a bicycle, stopped them and asked if everything was OK, according to a police report. Gonzalez thought the situation might involve domestic violence so he called for backup, and a canine unit drove up. Another officer, Scott Thomas, got out of the car to help Gonzalez handcuff Terry face-down. Seconds later, a police dog named Tino escaped from the car and started biting the back of Terry's thigh, Mountain View Police Chief Scott Vermeer said.Terry, who had eight stitches removed Wednesday, accuses the officers of racial profiling and police brutality and has filed a complaint with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. [more

Sikh Trucker Accuses Oregon Police of Racial Misconduct

Sikh organizations across the country have rallied to support a Yuba City truck driver who says he suffered extensive injuries at the hands of Oregon State Police after being pulled over for no apparent cause. Gurpal Singh Gill, 41, of Yuba City, Calif., was driving north near Milepost 106 when police received a complaint that he had poured an unknown liquid onto the road, according to the Oregon State Police. While following Gill, a trooper noticed that instead of a rear license plate, Gill's 2000 Peterbilt had the license plate number scribbled on the back of the truck, said OSP Sgt. Mark Walkup. During the traffic stop, the trooper reportedly saw a weapon of some kind under Gill's shirt, so he detained him at gunpoint and removed him from the vehicle. While handcuffing him, the trooper reported that Gill appeared to go for the knife under his shirt, so he was physically restrained and arrested, according to an OSP report. Gill believes that racial profiling was to blame for the traffic stop. Gill is a member of the Sikh faith, and his knife -- called a kirpan -- was only worn for ceremonial purposes, the newspaper reported. He told an Appeal-Democrat reporter that he'd been roughed up during his arrest, and that he had never reached for his knife. [more ] and [more ]

Wilimington Police Sued in Death of Mentally Ill Black Man - Shot 9 Times

 
The parents of a Bear man who was fatally shot after stealing a police cruiser last year filed a lawsuit in federal court Monday against Wilmington police, alleging officers used excessive force against their son.The city of Wilmington and the state Attorney General's Office cleared the three officers involved of any wrongdoing in separate investigations, and they have since returned to duty. The officers have not been identified. Charles Brittingham, state NAACP president, accompanied Smith's family to U.S. District Court in Wilmington. Attorneys for the Smiths said the police department will be served with the lawsuit today. [more ]

• Pictured above: Harry Smith Jr. and his son, far right.

• The incident began after Harry Smith Jr. drove his son to the hospital - his second visit in a week - for psychiatric treatment. While he was waiting to be seen by the doctor, Mr. Smith obtained a surgical scalpel and began to puncture himself with it. He left the emergency room of the hospital and commandeered a police cruiser. The police cruiser had been left attended with the motor operating. Afterwards the Wilmington Police Dept pursued Mr. Smith. As the officers were in pursuit they were shooting at him as they gave chase through the inner city residential neighborhood. When Mr. Smith was in a staged roadblock approximately ½ mile from the initial encounter, he stopped the police cruiser. However, witnesses claim that even though Mr. Smith stopped the cruiser the police kept shooting at him without giving him a chance to surrender. There were some 37 casings found at the scene. Mr. Smith didn't have a chance to give himself up after he stopped the police cruiser he commandeered. Mr. Smith was pronounced dead at the scene from nine fatal shots to the back of the head. [more ]

Clarksville Police apologize for raid

Clarksville Police Chief Mark Smith said he will offer two Old Trenton Road residents a written apology for officers mistakenly raiding their home Friday night. According to Smith, the police tactical team received information that a drug dealer lived at 343B Old Trenton Road, but they ended up going to the house next door that only had the letter "B" on the outside -- which turned out to be 341B. The residents of 341B, Teresa Guiler and James Elliott, who are both in their 50s, were sitting in their home watching television when the masked men stormed into the house. Guiler, whose arm was in a sling from a previous injury, told police that they had the wrong man as they pointed a gun at her and Elliott, who is deaf and had recently received a liver transplant, she said. Guiler went to seek medical help after the raid and Elliott will be going to Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville today to be seen by his doctors. Smith said that although he feels terrible about the raid, he insists the officers never used excessive force. But because Elliott resisted, officers had to control him by "bringing him down," he said. Guiler and Elliott's attorney, Tommy Meeks, said what the police did is unacceptable. "What justification can you give to kick a 54-year-old man who's down on the ground," Meeks said about Elliott, who is a Vietnam veteran. "All he saw was men in masks with rifles. He was terrified. Then to get knocked down and stomped. They picked him up like a suitcase. [more ]

LAPD Agrees to New Flashlight Policy in response to Stanley Miller Beating

• NO Officers have been Disciplined in Brutal Miller Beating

The Los Angeles Police Department agreed Tuesday to develop a policy for how and when officers can use flashlights to defend themselves, nearly three months after an officer was captured on videotape using a 2-pound metal flashlight to beat a car-theft suspect. In response to the Stanley Miller beating, LAPD Chief William Bratton said last month the LAPD would design a small-sized flashlight that would essentially eliminate the possibility that it could be used as a weapon. Many officers carry metal flashlights similar to the one used in the Miller beating. At a meeting of the city's Police Commission, members said the LAPD had no clear guidelines for the use of flashlights when officers struggle with suspects. The department said it would review the issue. "We're exploring the options for the flashlight," Bratton said after the hearing. "We're going to a smaller flashlight, that's clear. ...There will be policies appropriate to that flashlight as to how it can be used, when it can be used, for what purposes." [more

Amnesty Int'l: Racial profiling is undermining national security

Authorities' targeting of people because of their racial background or religious affiliation is a deep-rooted problem in the United States, with nearly 32 million people reporting they've been racially profiled, a human rights group said Monday. The report by Amnesty International USA also said at least 87 million people -- one in three -- in the United States are at high risk of being victimized because they belong to a racial, ethnic or religious group whose members are commonly targeted by police for unlawful stops and searches. Racial profiling is a growing problem as the government has expanded its war on terror, the report said. Police, immigration and airport security procedures are the areas where the problem has gotten worse since the September 11, 2001, attacks, it said. Citizens and visitors of Middle Eastern and South Asian descent, and others who appear to be from these areas or members of the Muslim and Sikh faiths, have become more frequent subjects of racial profiling over the last three years, the study said. Such racial profiling is a distraction to law enforcement and therefore, undermines national security efforts, the report said. As police primarily focus on Arab, Muslim and South Asian males, it said, they are more likely to overlook terrorists who are white. [more ] and [more ]

• Pictured above: WHICH ONE?: Former Police chief Charles A. Moose illustrates racial profiling by showing how Martin Luther King Jr. would have been vastly more likely to be stopped in traffic than Charles Manson [more]