Fairfax County Police Watch: 06/29/11

Cops hold YET ANOTHER award ceremony this one in the middle of an auction

Just because this um...portly...police officer looks that way doesn't mean his mentally unbalanced and has issues with his father.

National Police Misconduct report

BART CA settled a portion of a lawsuit for $1.3mil to the mother of Oscar Grant who was fatally shot in the back while he was restrained on a train station floor by a BART police officer. [0] http://bit.ly/koUlTE

Fairfax County VA cop was fired after an 18 month long probe for improper use of deadly force when he fatally shot an unarmed motorist when his truck started slowly rolling forward. The officer wasn’t charged by is still the subject of a federal civil rights investigation. [1] http://wapo.st/kcbqDx

Albuquerque NM settles suit for $950k to family of man fatally shot in the back by cop who was later fired for lying about what happened. [0] http://bit.ly/mRFfMu

Miramar FL & Broward Co FL sued by mentally challenged man exonerated after 29yrs in prison on charges the lawsuit claims were the result of officers intentionally framing him. [0] sunsent.nl/iYKNVc

Natchez MS cop pleads guilty to conspiracy to steal and use a man’s credit cards after beating him in the back of a police cruiser, he and another officer still face other charges in the case apparently. [0] http://bit.ly/lY5vHo

2 Washington DC cops face felony charges for beating man while off duty at bar so badly that he lost an eye [0] http://bit.ly/mK7x0z

A third Washington DC cop is under investigation for allegedly failing to stop those officers as he watched them assault the injured man mentioned above. [0] http://bit.ly/mK7x0z

2 Toronto ON cops sentenced to 1yr home detention for beating man when he called them “the rich man’s army” [0] http://bit.ly/lBqUza

Miami FL police accused of using excessive force on 52yr-old woman & her 85yr-old mom they claim roughed up a cop [3] http://bit.ly/jaANL3

Klamath Co OR deputy resigns before arrested on sexual abuse charges involving multiple women at vacation rental [0] http://bit.ly/m74ZAg

Arizona law enforcement agencies accused of excessive taser use in study by ACLU showing no reduction in shootings by cops [-] http://bit.ly/j24D8z

Savannah-Chatham GA cop arrested on fed drug trafficking & other charges for selling drugs he robbed from people [1] http://bit.ly/j0OOv2

Prince George’s County MD cop pleads to extortion & conspiracy to distribute cocaine & untaxed cigarettes charges [0] http://wj.la/mwmRju

Colorado Springs CO police sued by man falsely arrested on cop’s description of man w/tattoo he didn’t even have [3] http://bit.ly/m3GQjT

Edinburg TX cop arrested on official oppression charge for allegedly trying to kiss 18yr-old during traffic stop [0] http://bit.ly/mT9HLT

Guntown MS cop under secretive investigation after accused of almost running driver off road in cruiser, hazarding a guess I would say this appears to be a possible DUI incident. [4] http://bit.ly/lmyO3w

Charleston SC cop gets deferred sentence deal for breaking T-Mobile store window w/chair in fit of rage at worker [0] http://bit.ly/lUnQL2

Houston TX judge catches flack for filing complaint on cop who writes so many tickets he forgets about them in court[3] http://bit.ly/jUECBm

Houston TX cop fired for throwing tear gas grenade during BBQ cook-off at a rodeo in an off-duty dispute 4mo ago [0] http://bit.ly/j6E8DM

Salt Lake UT Unified police dept officer charged w/7 felony counts for inappropriate use of departmental gas card [0] http://bit.ly/isNXVh

Bennington Co VT deputy charged on allegations he threatened woman he was already charged w/assaulting [0] http://bit.ly/kfD7Uu

Casselberry FL cop arrested on felony charges after investigation into stalking & computer hacking allegations [0] http://bit.ly/iRlTsO

Orleans Parish LA deputy suspended after arrested on assault & violation of protection order charges [1] http://bit.ly/l7YWQc

Morgan County IN deputy arrested for public intoxication at country music concert where he had dispute with wife [0] http://bit.ly/ixZTA3

New Orleans LA cop suspended 5days for breaking man’s car window by hurling bottles & waffles from 10th floor balcony while drunk [0] http://bit.ly/mdwToW

Seattle WA police officer is under investigation after leaving his assault rifle on the trunk of his police cruiser when another officer then drove it away at the start of his shift. (pic) [0] http://bit.ly/kIQTwr

Police misconduct

5 Louisville KY cops sued alleging they beat man suffering from heat stroke while responding to pal’s call for help [3] http://bit.ly/kUc8bB

Hancock Co ME settles suit for $725k to man alleging he was falsely arrested & abused after off-duty deputy beat him[3] http://bit.ly/lZr2uK

Ft Myers FL settles suit for $69k to man claiming he was beat & choked by cop while shackled during interrogation [3] http://bit.ly/lIFlmI

Toronto ON cop gets probation in plea deal for holding taser to cuffed man’s genitals on video during questioning [0] http://bit.ly/kbakNj

New York NY (Manhattan) cop pleads guilty to faking evidence in 2 drug cases and teaching new cops to do the same [0] http://nydn.us/m7yozU

Campbell County TN deputy convicted on 10 of 16 aggravated sexual battery of a 10yr-old child charges [1] http://bit.ly/llg57Z

Harris County TX records indicate deputies are not following US DOJ and Taser Inc guidelines for the use of tasers [0] http://bit.ly/jihGkt

US Capitol police officer arrested on allegations he grabbed congressional employee’s breast & asked if she had bra [0] http://bit.ly/mEOnF2

Hoboken NJ settles suit for $2mil to 5 Hispanic cops claiming problematic SWAT cop discriminated against them [0] http://bit.ly/jqZ4YX

Evansville IN cop suspended 21days for ignoring alarm call while hitting on woman during improper traffic stop [0] http://bit.ly/iip7Cl

Polk Co WI loses suit in $260k jury award to deputy alleging retaliation for helping w/state probe into sheriff [4] http://bit.ly/ijwuxh

Houston TX loses suit in $17k jury award to disabled man injured by police during raid on nightclub [3] http://bit.ly/mqygn5

New York NY police accused of falsely arresting lawyer when he tried to advise client of his rights during arrest [3] http://nydn.us/jeVJcH

Des Moines IA cop charged w/domestic assault causing injury after alleged altercation w/girlfriend while drunk [1] http://bit.ly/kL4tC8

New York NY settles suit for $400k to woman injured in crash w/police truck that ran red light w/o slowing [0] http://bit.ly/iyUfOG

Salinas CA police sgt takes plea deal for probation in elder abuse case for stealing $40k from mom’s account [0] http://bit.ly/jImwJy

Morrogh finds cop he doesn’t love. In other news, hell freezes.

Probe of fatal police shooting goes to federal authorities

By Justin Jouvenal/Post

The Fairfax County prosecutor has turned over the investigation of a fatal police shooting of an unarmed Springfield man to federal authorities, citing complications with the five-month-old case.

Commonwealth’s Attorney Ray Morrogh said the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Virginia has agreed to continue the probe into the death of 46-year-old John Geer, who was shot during a standoff with Fairfax County police in August. No one has been charged in the incident.

“There is a conflict of interest that has arisen in the case,” Morrogh said Thursday. “And there is a second potential conflict of interest that has arisen out of my office. . . . This is the prudent thing to do.”

Morrogh declined to describe the nature of the conflicts because the investigation is ongoing. The U.S. attorney’s office said Thursday that it could not confirm or deny any investigation or comment on pending investigations.

Police went to Geer’s Pebble Brook Court home on Aug. 29 because of a report of a domestic disturbance. Geer’s father, Don Geer, said his son was upset because his girlfriend, the mother of his two children, had decided to leave him.

John Geer had thrown his girlfriend’s belongings in the front yard. She called police and told them that Geer had a firearm. Police said they tried for about 50 minutes to persuade Geer to leave the home, but he refused.

Don Geer said he watched the climax of the encounter. He said that he could not hear what officers were saying to his son but that he saw him standing with empty hands resting on top of a screen door at the home’s entrance.

At some point, John Geer began to slowly lower his hands and an officer opened fire, hitting Geer in the chest, his father said. Geer retreated inside and closed the door. A SWAT team eventually entered the home and found Geer dead.

Don Geer said detectives later told him that his son did not have a gun on him at the time of the shooting but that there was a holstered handgun a couple of steps from the front door.

Don Geer said it appeared to him that the shooting was unjustified, but he was unsure what to make of the probe being turned over to federal authorities.

“I don’t know whether that’s good or bad — if I had a better idea of why they are doing it, I could form an opinion,” he said.

Geer and friends of his son have been critical of how long the investigation has taken, but Morrogh said police and prosecutors were working to explore all the evidence. He did not think federal prosecutors would have to start from scratch.

“No one wants these things to linger on,” Morrogh said.

Our ink will outlast his career

Under the reign of former Chief of Police Rhorer the Fairfax County Police arrested a man for not wearing clothes in his house while he made coffee, set up an eye doctor on a gambling charge and then used the SWAT team to kill him. An investigation into the charge that the Doctor’s primary clients were cops has never been investigated. The police gunned down an emotionally unstable man because cop who shot him wrongly assumed the man was trying to escape. He wasn’t. The cops also shot dead four other citizens under highly questionable circumstances. The department under Rhorer was sued multiple times by citizens. So did they fire Rhorer? Naw they promoted him. According to news reports Rhorer draws a salary of $191,168 per year as Deputy Fairfax County Executive as well as a concurrent pension from the Fairfax County police of $173000 per year.

Occupation by force

According to the most recent U.S. Census figures, nearly one in five Fairfax residents (17.5 percent) is of Asian descent while Hispanics make up nearly 16 percent of Fairfax’s overall population. Those numbers drop considerably when applied to the Fairfax County Police Department, where only 4.3 percent of officers are Asian and 4.1 percent Hispanic. White officers make up 84 percent of Fairfax County’s 1,360-member police department, significantly higher than the county’s general population (54 percent white). Almost 90% of the force lives outside the county.