And the cops can't figure out why people hate them so much......

Colorado homeowner owed nothing after police SWAT shootout destroys his house, federal court rules

A federal appeals court in Colorado ruled Tuesday that a local police department does not have to compensate a homeowner whose house was destroyed by 19 hours of gunfire between officers and an armed shoplifting suspect who had chosen to barricade himself inside to evade arrest.

Lech’s home, valued at $580,000, was marked for demolition in 2015 after a SWAT team used armored vehicles to breach the structure, deployed tear gas and explosives and shot 40 mm rounds in an effort to drive the suspect out.

Homeowner Leo Lech didn’t know the subject. The home was rented to Lech’s son and his wife who were not home when the shooter broke in and started his gun battle with the police.

The city had initially paid Lech $5,000 in temporary living assistance. John Lech moved in with his parents and his girlfriend's son had to change schools. His home insurance company paid him $345,000 for the damage but that amount did not come close to covering additional costs related to personal property damage, demolishing and rebuilding the home and taking out a new mortgage on the new house.

“It’s a miracle insurance covered any of it in the first place,” attorney Rachel Maxam told the Post. “Insurance is for fires, floods. There’s no ‘police blew up my house’ insurance.”

The home next door suffered about $70,000 in damage was not compensated by its insurance company.

Lech said he plans to appeal to case to the Supreme Court.

....and that's the last we'll ever hear of that.

Police Cruiser Strikes, Kills Pedestrian In West Falls Church

The officer had a green light when the cruiser struck the pedestrian, according to Fairfax County Police.

By Emily Leayman, Patch Staff

FALLS CHURCH, VA — A Fairfax County police cruiser struck and killed a pedestrian on a major Falls Church area roadway early Sunday, Oct. 20. It was the county's 14th fatal pedestrian crash in 2019.

Police release sketch of suspect in Fairfax County attempted kidnapping

Police have released a sketch of the suspect in an attempted kidnapping earlier this month in Fairfax County, Virginia.

The attempted kidnapping took place on Oct. 13 around 3 p.m. in the area of Wheatwheel Lane and Gallows Road in Annandale.

Police said the juvenile victim as playing with a friend near the roadway of the 3300 block of Wheatwheel Lane when a man picked up the victim from behind.

The child fought off the suspect, who ran from the areaAnyone with information should call the Fairfax County Criminal Investigation Bureau at 703-246-7800.

Fairfax County Police probably overreacted again, killed the guy, and called it a suicide and they’ll get away with it too. Watch and see.

New details emerge about man suspected of killing his mother and nephew in Burke

by Tim Barber/ABC7

BURKE, Va. (WJLA) — A neighbor’s cell phone recorded the gunshots that were fired on the scene of a stand-off in Burke Monday night.

When Fairfax County Police got inside the home along the 6100 block of Wicklow Drive, they found Marcellus William Bounds IV had shot and killed his 67-year old mother Patricia Bounds and his 19-year old nephew Sean Bailes. Bailes briefly attended Robinson Secondary School and Northern Virginia Community College.

Police found the shooter dead inside the home with what appears to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Bounds’ other nephew escaped the Burke home before the shooting. Other family members did not want to talk, so we could not find out who is taking care of the surviving nephew.

A medical examiner will determine if Bounds shot and killed himself or if he was shot and killed by police.

ABC7 could not find a criminal history in Fairfax County, but 10 years ago in St. Johns County, Florida, Bounds was arrested for battery on a law enforcement officer (a 3rd degree felony) and using a firearm while under the influence of alcohol (a 2nd degree misdemeanor).

Fairfax County police give themselves YET ANOTHER FUCKING AWARD...I mean....Jesus

So true

And there's the problem

And this sort of stupidity will continue until we have a national IQ test for cops, until then, the guy behind the patrol car wheel is probably a mouth breather

Fairfax County police officer responding to call strikes, kills pedestrian early Sunday

By Luz Lazo

A Fairfax County police officer responding to a call struck and killed a pedestrian in the Falls Church area early Sunday, police said.

The officer was driving in the eastbound lanes of Arlington Boulevard (Route 50), approaching Graham Road when he struck Carlos Romeo Montoya, 40, at a crosswalk about 12:15 a.m., according to police. Police did not have a current address for Montoya.

There is no indication that the officer had activated the lights or siren of his marked cruiser, but he did have a green light, according to Police Chief Edwin C. Roessler Jr.

“The best information we have right now is the officer did have a green light, was proceeding through the intersection, and that the pedestrian unfortunately was crossing against the ‘don’t walk’ sign,” Roessler said at a Sunday afternoon news conference.

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The area is a busy commercial corridor that has multiple travel lanes and has come to be known as a dangerous stretch for pedestrians.

The incident closed three lanes of the highway for several hours.

Roessler said the officer, identified only as someone with more than four years of law enforcement experience, was responding to a call for service for disorderly subjects.

Police on Sunday were still trying to determine the actual speed of the cruiser at the time of the crash, Roessler said. The posted speed in the area is 45 mph.

Roessler said the cruiser’s in-car video system shows the officer was driving through a green light, eastbound on Arlington Boulevard approaching the intersection of Graham Road, when he struck the man in the left lane. The officer got out of the cruiser to aid the victim until emergency personnel arrived, Roessler said.

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Police said Montoya was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Pedestrians continue to be at high risk on Washington region’s roads, data show

The crash revived concerns about pedestrian safety in the county — where 14 pedestrians have been killed in traffic crashes so far this year — and about that section of Arlington Boulevard in particular, which has a history of tragedies involving pedestrians.

A 36-year-old woman was struck and killed in the area just over a year ago.

The incident also is the latest of several fatal crashes this month involving pedestrians in the Washington region. An unidentified man was killed in a hit-and-run crash in Laurel on Oct. 12. A day later, a 67-year-old Takoma Park man was killed when he was struck by two vehicles at an intersection in the Silver Spring area of Montgomery County. And, last Monday, a 54-year-old Suitland woman was killed in a hit-and-run in Prince George’s County.

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The number of pedestrians fatalities in the region has been on the rise in recent years. Pedestrians accounted for one-third of the 290 traffic deaths in the greater Washington area last year — their largest proportion of the region’s road fatalities in more than a decade, according to data compiled by The Washington Post.

Fairfax County traffic-safety advocates said Sunday’s crash highlights the safety concerns along a portion of highway that is known to have poor lighting and where cars are traveling at high speeds and pedestrians are forced to cross eight lanes of traffic.

“Unacceptable!” tweeted Shawn Newman of the Fairfax Alliance for Better Bicycling.

“This section of Arlington Boulevard is designed for 50+ mph speeds with 8 crossing lanes and minimal light through a dense residential and commercial area,” Newman tweeted using the group’s handle.

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In a separate message directed at the Virginia Department of Transportation, the group tweeted: “Stop just telling people to slow down, build the roads safer.”

The Virginia Department of Transportation is conducting a study of a segment of Route 50 between Wilson Boulevard and Jaguar Trail, including the intersection where Sunday’s crash occurred; a public meeting is scheduled for Monday. As part of the study, the department is considering changes to traffic signal timing, turn restrictions and other pedestrian improvements.

Roessler said the investigation into Sunday’s crash will determine the lighting conditions at the intersection as well as condition of the pedestrian walk signs and the speed of the cruiser; it will also include a forensic medical examination.

The officer involved in the crash has been assigned to administrative duties pending the investigation, Roessler said, and the results will be sent to the Fairfax County commonwealth’s attorney’s office for review.

“All of us in the D.C. area are trying to combat the pedestrian crashes and the fatalities, which is very unfortunate in our urbanizing area,” Roessler said. “This is just horrible. . . . We have an individual that has died. It is traumatic. I pray for the victim, their family, this officer.”

Opinion: Commentary: Capstone to Four Years of Police Reform

By Phil Niedzielski-Eichner and Adrian L. Steel Jr.

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Just in time for the Oct. 8 fourth anniversary of the 2015 release of the Fairfax County Ad Hoc Police Practices Review Commission Final Report, the Board of Supervisors approved full implementation of body worn cameras (BWC) by the Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD). This is one of the Commission’s most significant and consequential recommendations. While a potential aid to criminal prosecution, the body worn camera’s equally important contribution is to foster greater transparency and accountability of all parties during the interactions of the police with the public. Full implementation will begin in May 2020 and take three years to phase in countywide.

The Board’s decision followed the completion of a 2018 pilot study chartered by Police Chief Edwin C. Roessler Jr. and conducted by the American University, which found that there was “… overwhelming support among community members for the widespread adoption of body worn cameras….” and “…consensus among the officers involved in the pilot that body worn cameras will increase the gathering of evidence and help settle complaints against officers.”

The Board’s decision is a fitting capstone to a four-year successful effort by the Board to oversee the transformation of the Police Department from one that was excellent to now being on a clear path to becoming “best in class.”

The Commission’s formation by the Board of Supervisors followed a few high-profile police use of force incidents, with the ultimate catalyst being the August 2013 shooting death of unarmed Springfield resident John Geer in his doorway.

Board Chair Bulova formed the Ad Hoc Commission and her office closely oversaw the Commission’s work over an intensive five-month period in 2015. Charged with “…assessing the (Fairfax County) Police Department’s performance against national best practices,” the Commission made more than 200 recommendations for strengthening the public’s trust and confidence in the Department.

Public Safety Committee Chair Supervisor John Cook combined forces with Board Chair Bulova and Chief Roessler to drive the Board and Police Department to embrace the Ad Hoc Commission’s recommendations. As they complete their many years of service to our community, Bulova’s and Cook’s police-reform efforts will certainly be a key legacy.

The significant reforms for which all can be proud will increase police accountability, divert those who suffer from mental illness into treatment rather than incarceration, reduce use-of-force injuries and deaths, open public access to incident information, and engender public confidence.

Body worn cameras will now complement the dashboard cameras mounted in each FCPD patrol vehicle. The Department’s policy enshrines sanctity of human life as an organizing principle, with de-escalation as the strategy of first resort when confronted with a threat rather than the use of force. Constraints and strengthened supervisory oversight are now in place on police use of vehicle pursuit. “Diversion First” offers alternatives to incarceration for people with mental illness or developmental disabilities.

An Independent Police Auditor (IPA) automatically reviews investigations of death or serious injury cases as well as uses of force when a citizen complaint is filed. A Civilian Review Panel reviews investigations of civilian complaints regarding “abuse of authority” or “serious misconduct” by an FCPD officer and holds public forums to hear from the community. Policies regarding release of information provide for increased public visibility into the Department’s daily activities and performance, with a predisposition to disclose information, regardless of incident controversy. Intense efforts are underway to recruit talented personnel that better reflect Fairfax County’s population diversity.

Sustained effort and energy are still required to move decades-old engrained practices into a “new normal.” Further, those who are “best-in-class” constantly seek to improve.

Tough questions still need to be asked as the County implements body worn cameras. Should an agency other than the Department, for example, control access to the massive amount of data to be collected? Should the IPA or an independent third party audit the program? Heightened expectations alone should give our policymakers pause, particularly when we know that no technology deployment is mistake and error free. Not collecting video data during a controversial use of force incident is bad, missing video data under the Department’s control is worse.

As to the revised vehicular pursuit and stopping policies, it will be important for the FCPD to provide a detailed report to the Board and the public in early 2020 as to the effects of the revised policies, details of 2019 pursuits and vehicle stops, and whether any further changes are needed. It will also be important for the Board to monitor and take any appropriate action with respect to the racial disparity study underway by the Independent Police Auditor.

On this fourth anniversary of the Ad Hoc Commission Report, Fairfax County and its Police Department have achieved many reforms of which to be proud. The temptation will be to declare the mission accomplished. This would be a mistake. The new Board of Supervisors come January must provide vigilant monitoring through performance expectations and progress reports. Not because enough has not been accomplished, though more improvements are needed, but because that’s the norm for best-in-class police departments.

Niedzielski-Eichner and Steel were chair and vice-chair of the Ad Hoc Commission’s Use of Force Subcommittee and spent many hours with a small, loosely configured group of former Commission members dedicated to implementing Commission recommendations, working with FCPD leadership. Steel oversaw as chair the formation of the Civilian Review Panel.

It isn't racism, its stupidity. We hire dumb people to police our communities and as long as it continues this sort of thing will continue.

Texas police officer fatally shoots woman in her home after welfare check

Oct. 12

A black Texas woman was shot and killed by a white Fort Worth police officer who was called to the woman's home for a welfare check, authorities said.

In a statement, the department said it received a call at 2:25 a.m. reporting an open front door at a residence. Responding officers searched the perimeter of the house and saw a person standing inside near the window, according to police.

"Perceiving a threat, the officer drew his duty weapon and fired one shot, striking the person inside the residence," the department stated. In body camera video released by police, two officers search the home from the outside with flashlights before one shouts, "Put your hands up, show me your hands." One shot is then fired through a window.

Officers entered the house and located an individual and a firearm, and began performing emergency medical care.

Fox 4 Dallas-Fort Worth identified the woman as 28-year-old Atatiana Jefferson. She succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. There were no other injuries.

The officer has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation, according to police. He has been with the Fort Worth Police Department since April 2018.

The department released bodycam footage of the incident "to provide transparent and relevant information to the public as we are allowed within the confines of the" investigation, it stated. Any video taken inside the house could not be distributed due to state law.

The neighbor who called 911 about the open front door told Fox 4 the police officers didn't announce who they were or knock on the door before searching the outside of the house.

"When I made that non-emergency call, I didn’t say it was a burglary. I didn’t say it was people fighting. I didn’t say anything to make them have a gun. All they needed to do is ring the doorbell,” James Smith said.

“They didn’t park up front, they parked on the side. They sent SRT, which is the special response team. They didn’t have a plainclothes officer to knock on that door,” activist and pastor Kyev Tatum told Fox 4.

The incident comes less than two weeks after a white former Dallas police officer was sentenced to 10 years in prison for killing her black neighbor inside his own apartment. Amber Guyger said during her trial that mistook Botham Jean's apartment for her own, which was one floor below Jean's.

Guyger, 31, was convicted of murder for Jean's September 2018 death.

This is a good article but this isn't about neoliberal, this is about a police department that plays politics to keep its budget.

What Everybody Is Missing About The Police Chief Who Favors Illegal Aliens Over Americans

Marina Medvin

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 The  neoliberal law enforcement disgrace has just played out in the media.

A leftist police Chief for one of DC’s wealthiest suburbs, Fairfax County, Virginia, announced in a press release that an illegal immigrant was initially investigated by one of his officers for causing a traffic collision, and after the officer was notified that the individual was wanted by ICE, the Fairfax officer surrendered him to ICE custody instead of setting him free. The Chief declared that this officer violated his internal police directive that orders Fairfax County officers to set illegal immigrants free, even if the officers are put on notice that these individuals are wanted by ICE and even if they can lawfully detain the individuals under Virginia law. The neoliberal Chief ordered an internal investigation and accused his officer of misconduct, stating that this officer “deprived a person of their freedom, which is unacceptable.”

Conservatives became outraged at a Chief punishing his officer for following Virginia law. “Based on the information currently known, this officer did NOT violate any law. He simply violated the liberal Chief’s sanctuary city policy and was punished for not following the Chief’s political agenda. This Chief destroyed a young officer’s career in order to pursue his selfish liberal ideations,” I advised Townhall for their report on this issue. Always on the wrong end of immigration issues, Liberals were unsurprisingly elated to applaud a Sanctuary City Utopia that does not enforce the law with respect to illegals.

What most media commentary has missed is the striking problem that the neoliberal Chief presented for Americans: he suspended an officer for briefly depriving an illegal of his freedom by detaining him until ICE arrived, but yet has never announced suspending or investigating an officer who has deprived an American of his or her freedom during an illegal detention or arrest. And, as a practicing Fairfax County attorney, I can personally vouch for the fact that unconstitutional deprivations of freedom have certainly taken place in Fairfax County, and these violations were remedied by the Court, but not by the police department.

“When was the last time that Fairfax County disciplined an officer for violating the rights of an American? Every time a lawyer wins a Motion to Suppress, it means that a defendant’s rights were violated. Yet, the responsible officers do not get publicly disciplined, if at all,” I advised the senior editor of Townhall for his article on this issue.

This is a very important point to digest. When an accused prevails on a Motion to Suppress, it indicates that his Fourth Amendment rights have been violated by the arresting or detaining officer. But does this neoliberal Chief care about his officers violating constitutional rights, true freedom violations? That question can only be answered by asking another question: has this Chief ever suspended and investigated an officer for violating the constitutional rights of an American? Does this Chief even have a directive on how to re-educate a police officer on constitutional rights when an officer’s arrest or detention was deemed unlawful in court? According to trusted sources, the answer is no, to both of these questions.

Moreover, the deprivation of freedom under the Constitution is a violation of freedom that has been recognized by American courts for centuries, the issue that defines our criminal justice system. The deprivation of “freedom” that the neoliberal Chief found unacceptable, however, is a freedom that this Chief personally bestowed upon a group of people that he personally and politically favors, a made-up anti-law-enforcement sanctuary city “freedom.”

By not redressing the constitutional violations of American defendants and only enforcing the politically-motivated “rights” of illegal immigrants, this Chief, undeniably, creates favoritism in his department for illegal immigrants over Americans. This is discriminatory, disgraceful, and wrong.

Cops murder so many dogs I stopped writing about it, I couldn't keep up with the press stories, but please, tell again how law enforcement doesn't attract lunatics

I've been saying this for a decade; the Fairfax County Police are out of control.