They shot him dead for stealing sunglasses while they were in a wooded
area, out of public sight AND THEY GOT AWAY WITH IT
-
Two FCPD leaders dropped from wrongful death lawsuit over fatal police
shooting
August 11, 2025
Two Fairfax County Police Department commander...
In Lawsuit, SPD Learns the Cost of Disrespect
by Rick Anderson Tue., Nov 26 2013 at 09:35AM
Seattle Police officer Ben Kelly and convicted felon Charles Shateek Smith had apparently never met until a night in January 2009, when Kelly sized up Smith to be a “fucking asshole.” When the cop confronted the 28-year-old for impeding traffic while ambling across Rainier Avenue South, then patted him down for weapons, he found two: a pellet gun that looked like a handgun, and a loaded revolver—a “little fuckin’ 22,” in Kelly’s words. As a six-time felon, Smith was illegally armed.
A judge would later rule that Kelly’s search was illegal, and suppressed the gun as evidence. Smith, facing up to 15 years in prison for being an armed offender, was released.
But as some cops and citizens might see it, it was street justice. Kelly got a convicted robber and burglar off the streets, and Smith was held eight months behind bars awaiting the court’s decision. As some might have suspected, he went on to re-offend, convicted six months later of breaking into the apartment of his baby mama and choking her. He’s now doing 10 years in prison.
Kelly went on to earn accolades from his fellow cops that year for shooting and killing fugitive Maurice Clemmons two days after he slew four Lakewood police officers. Kelly was honored nationally and locally, becoming SPD’s Officer of the Year.
But today Kelly’s faulty jaywalk arrest of Smith has cost taxpayers thousands in legal fees and a $15,000 settlement won by Smith, who filed a lawsuit from his prison cell. He claimed the cop’s disrespectful attitude and wrongful search led Smith to lose his job and family.
In the civil case officially concluded last week, U.S. Judge Richard Jones thought the felon had a point. “Officer Kelly violated the Fourth Amendment when he first arrested Mr. Smith, and violated it again when he searched Mr. Smith incident to that arrest,” Jones said. He thus was not immune to a lawsuit, and “the only question remaining for trial is the amount of Mr. Smith’s damages.”
The city bargained that down to $5,000 for Smith’s attorneys and $10,000 for Smith, to be held in a trust until his 2020 release. News about the settlement sparked considerable comment last week, and most seemed to line up with Cop of the Year Kelly. OK, he swore a lot. But he nabbed an armed felon. “Civil rights my ass!” said one commenter.
News stories left out some details, however, such as what exactly Kelly said to Smith as he rolled up and singled out the suspect from a crowd of jaywalkers. “Come here!” he barked, and when Smith didn’t immediately oblige, Kelly exited his car and exclaimed: “Fucking asshole! When I tell you to fucking get over here, get the fuck over here. I’m going to be fucking cool with you and then what the fuck? He starts walking away from me. What the hell are you doing?”
Hunter Abell, Smith’s attorney, saw this as “yet another instance of SPD engaging in egregiously unconstitutional behavior towards minorities,” his client being black and the cop white. Thankfully, he said, “this case did not result in Mr. Smith being killed or seriously injured,” a reference to, among others, the fatal police shooting of Native American John Williams, tragically shot down by SPD Officer Ian Birk in 2010 seconds after the woodcarver was told to drop his knife.
In a deposition, Kelly insisted the shakedown was justified because he arrested Smith for “pedestrian interference” with traffic, a misdemeanor. But, ruled Jones, “The evidence, taken in the light most favorable to Officer Kelly . . . permits only one reasonable conclusion: Mr. Smith was no different than the typical jaywalker.”
Kelly had also claimed he saw Smith “completely stop [and] stare down” a driver, forcing his car to halt. But under questioning, he admitted to being 40 to 50 feet away at the time.
Jones did give the cop a break, saying Smith could recover damages for the arrest but not for the long jailing afterwards. But Jones also wanted to say something about the cost of disrespect.
“What Mr. Smith was doing, apparently, was violating Officer Kelly’s personal rule against not responding in three seconds or fewer to police commands. What Officer Kelly was doing was engendering disrespect for law enforcement and, by extension, the criminal justice system.”
A community judges its police by their conduct, Jones noted, and “When an officer verbally abuses a suspect for no reason whatsoever, he discredits everyone in the system.” Yes, cops on the street sometimes have to use abusive language. But “the circumstances that confronted Officer Kelly do not remotely qualify. . . .
“His conduct promotes disrespect and disdain for every police officer, even those who treat suspects with respect, integrity, and professionalism. The court is not in the habit of addressing conduct that does not bear on the liability of the parties before it, but it would be a disservice to the justice system to permit Officer Kelly’s conduct to pass without mention.”
randerson@seattleweekly.com
Journalist and author Rick Anderson writes about crime, money, and politics, which tend to be the same thing.
Arcola cop gets three years for shakedowns
TUSCOLA — A former Arcola police officer who was shaking down Spanish-speaking Douglas County residents for cash has been sentenced to three years in prison.
Douglas County Judge Mike Carroll on Tuesday sentenced Rogelio Javier Gutierrez, 34, of Humboldt, for official misconduct and intimidation.
The charges stemmed from conduct that Gutierrez admitted committing while he was an Arcola officer in 2011 and 2012. He also served as police chief in Humboldt.
Gutierrez resigned both positions around the middle of 2012.
Douglas County State’s Attorney Kevin Nolan said the conduct for which Gutierrez was sentenced involved an April 2011 incident in which he told an Arcola man that his name would be placed on a list of people who didn’t have an appropriate driver’s license unless he gave Gutierrez $500. The man handed over cash intended for his daughter’s birthday party and presents.
The other incident happened in February 2012 when Gutierrez pulled over a car on Illinois 133 and told the occupants, in fluent Spanish, that their license plate tag was expired. When the wife protested, Gutierrez then declared that the husband’s license was not valid and he would need to post $300 “bail” or face being arrested and having their car impounded.
The couple from Terre Haute, Ind., had no cash because they spent it on new clothes for their children at the Tanger Outlet Mall in Tuscola but an adult male friend with them paid the money. Back home, the wife told the principal at the school where she was working as a janitor what had happened and that woman encouraged her to cooperate with Douglas County authorities. State police then began investigating Gutierrez in early 2012.
Gutierrez was arrested in March 2012. He had been free on bond but was ordered to begin his prison sentence immediately. He was also ordered to pay about $3,900 in restitution.
Nolan asked for a 10-year prison sentence for Gutierrez on the intimidation convictions, the more serious of the offenses, and presented written statements from other alleged victims for Carroll to consider.
"We have statements and police reports documenting 10 more folks. My gut says there are more but people are still afraid to stick they heads up because they are afraid they will be hauled away by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement),” Nolan said.
Gutierrez was represented by Champaign attorney Mark Lipton, who asked for probation or periodic imprisonment for his client.
Gutierrez works as a personal trainer in the Arcola area.
The charges stemmed from conduct that Gutierrez admitted committing while he was an Arcola officer in 2011 and 2012. He also served as police chief in Humboldt.
Gutierrez resigned both positions around the middle of 2012.
Douglas County State’s Attorney Kevin Nolan said the conduct for which Gutierrez was sentenced involved an April 2011 incident in which he told an Arcola man that his name would be placed on a list of people who didn’t have an appropriate driver’s license unless he gave Gutierrez $500. The man handed over cash intended for his daughter’s birthday party and presents.
The other incident happened in February 2012 when Gutierrez pulled over a car on Illinois 133 and told the occupants, in fluent Spanish, that their license plate tag was expired. When the wife protested, Gutierrez then declared that the husband’s license was not valid and he would need to post $300 “bail” or face being arrested and having their car impounded.
The couple from Terre Haute, Ind., had no cash because they spent it on new clothes for their children at the Tanger Outlet Mall in Tuscola but an adult male friend with them paid the money. Back home, the wife told the principal at the school where she was working as a janitor what had happened and that woman encouraged her to cooperate with Douglas County authorities. State police then began investigating Gutierrez in early 2012.
Gutierrez was arrested in March 2012. He had been free on bond but was ordered to begin his prison sentence immediately. He was also ordered to pay about $3,900 in restitution.
Nolan asked for a 10-year prison sentence for Gutierrez on the intimidation convictions, the more serious of the offenses, and presented written statements from other alleged victims for Carroll to consider.
"We have statements and police reports documenting 10 more folks. My gut says there are more but people are still afraid to stick they heads up because they are afraid they will be hauled away by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement),” Nolan said.
Gutierrez was represented by Champaign attorney Mark Lipton, who asked for probation or periodic imprisonment for his client.
Gutierrez works as a personal trainer in the Arcola area.
Nassau Cop Sentenced to Conditional Discharge in Menacing
A Nassau County Police officer convicted of pointing his gun at the head of a Farmingdale bartender has been sentenced to a conditional discharge.
Richard Hefferon, 48, who was convicted of third-degree menacing, a misdemeanor, for the 2011 incident, was sentenced Tuesday to a conditional discharge that includes 150 hours of community service, continued therapy with quarterly reports to the courts, and a $500 fine.
This sentence, handed down by Judge Rhonda Erin Fischer, follows about two years of court- and NCDA-monitored therapy. Hefferon also received an order of protection barring him from having a weapon while not on-duty, the Nassau District Attorney's office said.
Hefferon was off-duty when the incident occurred at about 5:50 a.m. on April 26, 2011, Hefferon had several drinks at the South Main Street Pub in Farmingdale when he aimed a loaded police-issued weapon at bartender Charlie Ball's head. The incident was captured on security cameras in the bar, authorities said.
He was arrested in June, 2011 and could have faced up to a year in jail.
“I turn my back and I turned back around and the the next thing I know, he’s got this gun out and pointed right at me,” Ball said at the time. “It could have gone a different way."
Hefferon then a 17-year veteran of the Nassau County Police Department, was immediately placed on restricted duty after the incident and his weapons were confiscated, authorities said.
Richard Hefferon, 48, who was convicted of third-degree menacing, a misdemeanor, for the 2011 incident, was sentenced Tuesday to a conditional discharge that includes 150 hours of community service, continued therapy with quarterly reports to the courts, and a $500 fine.
This sentence, handed down by Judge Rhonda Erin Fischer, follows about two years of court- and NCDA-monitored therapy. Hefferon also received an order of protection barring him from having a weapon while not on-duty, the Nassau District Attorney's office said.
Hefferon was off-duty when the incident occurred at about 5:50 a.m. on April 26, 2011, Hefferon had several drinks at the South Main Street Pub in Farmingdale when he aimed a loaded police-issued weapon at bartender Charlie Ball's head. The incident was captured on security cameras in the bar, authorities said.
He was arrested in June, 2011 and could have faced up to a year in jail.
“I turn my back and I turned back around and the the next thing I know, he’s got this gun out and pointed right at me,” Ball said at the time. “It could have gone a different way."
Hefferon then a 17-year veteran of the Nassau County Police Department, was immediately placed on restricted duty after the incident and his weapons were confiscated, authorities said.
Haledon special officer charged in second gas station robbery -
Print | E-mail HALEDON — A former Haledon special police officer, already in jail on charges of robbing a 7-Eleven in Wayne, was charged Monday with robbing a convenience store at the Citgo gas station on Haledon Avenue, police said. Valerio Rodano, 25, who lives in Wayne, told a store clerk that he had a gun in his sweat shirt pocket when he robbed the store at the Citgo on the evening of Nov. 12, George Guzman Jr., a borough police officer, said in a statement. Rodano fled on foot after the store clerk handed over $430, Guzman said. Earlier that same morning, police said, Rodano committed an armed robbery of a 7-Eleven on Valley Road in Wayne. Police have said they recovered a handgun at his home during an investigation of that crime.
A Haledon police officer, Detective Lt. Chris LeMay, recognized Rodano while watching a video surveillance from the gas station robbery, Guzman said. The suspect was then picked out of a photo lineup by a store clerk, he said. Rodano confessed to robbing the gas station during an interview conducted by borough police at the Passaic County Jail, Guzman said. Deputy Chief Kevin Gottheiner praised his patrol officers and detectives for solving the case, saying they had done “an exceptional job.”
Rodano resigned from his job as a part-time Class II special police officer with the Haledon police in 2009, Guzman said. Class II officers are allowed to carry guns while on the job. He was charged with first-degree robbery and his bail was set at $250,000, Guzman said
A Haledon police officer, Detective Lt. Chris LeMay, recognized Rodano while watching a video surveillance from the gas station robbery, Guzman said. The suspect was then picked out of a photo lineup by a store clerk, he said. Rodano confessed to robbing the gas station during an interview conducted by borough police at the Passaic County Jail, Guzman said. Deputy Chief Kevin Gottheiner praised his patrol officers and detectives for solving the case, saying they had done “an exceptional job.”
Rodano resigned from his job as a part-time Class II special police officer with the Haledon police in 2009, Guzman said. Class II officers are allowed to carry guns while on the job. He was charged with first-degree robbery and his bail was set at $250,000, Guzman said
Alabama Sheriff’s Investigator Indicted for Unlawfully Detaining and Assaulting Handcuffed Man at County Jail
| U.S. Department of Justice November 22, 2013 |
WASHINGTON—The Department of Justice announced today that a federal grand jury in the Middle District of Alabama has returned an indictment against J. Keith McCray, a criminal investigator with the Macon County, Alabama Sheriff’s Office for violating the rights of a man he unlawfully seized and assaulted.
McCray, 41, is charged with two counts of deprivation of rights under color of law and one count of witness tampering. On July 4, 2013, the victim was going door-to-door in McCray’s neighborhood attempting to sell alarm systems. According to the indictment, McCray unlawfully seized the victim using a firearm and then brought the victim to the county jail. The indictment alleges that at the jail, McCray struck the victim while he was handcuffed, which resulted in bodily injury. The indictment further alleges that McCray engaged in witness tampering when he intimidated the victim and corruptly persuaded him not to file a complaint for the assault.
If convicted, McCray could face a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each deprivation of rights count. He could face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the witness tampering charge.
An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Alabama Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jerusha T. Adams of the Middle District of Alabama and Trial Attorney Chiraag Bains of the department’s Civil Rights Division.
McCray, 41, is charged with two counts of deprivation of rights under color of law and one count of witness tampering. On July 4, 2013, the victim was going door-to-door in McCray’s neighborhood attempting to sell alarm systems. According to the indictment, McCray unlawfully seized the victim using a firearm and then brought the victim to the county jail. The indictment alleges that at the jail, McCray struck the victim while he was handcuffed, which resulted in bodily injury. The indictment further alleges that McCray engaged in witness tampering when he intimidated the victim and corruptly persuaded him not to file a complaint for the assault.
If convicted, McCray could face a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each deprivation of rights count. He could face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the witness tampering charge.
An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Alabama Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jerusha T. Adams of the Middle District of Alabama and Trial Attorney Chiraag Bains of the department’s Civil Rights Division.
cop gets 12 years for forcible sodomy
A former Garden Grove police
officer was sentenced Friday to 12 years in state prison for forcibly
sodomizing three women.
Jesse Andrew Green, 36, of
Huntington Beach was found guilty Sept. 6 of three counts of forcible sodomy,
but a jury was not able to reach a verdict on one count of rape, according to a
statement from the Orange County district attorney's office.
The defendant was reported to
have dated the three women from April 2006 to November 2009 while working for
the Garden Grove and Calexico police departments.
Prosecutors argued that Green
became aggressive with the women during what started as consensual sexual encounters.
The defendant made derogatory
statements to the victims, such as calling them names, and told them that
"he had herpes or AIDS and that he had transmitted the disease to
them," according to the statement.
Three of the victims provided
statements to the court, one verbally and two in writing.
The women stated that they
trusted Green because he was an officer and appeared to be nice, but realized
that he had betrayed them, according to the district attorney office's.
The three women, who did not
know each other, filed charges against Green in October 2010. A fourth victim
claimed that she had been raped by the defendant in 1998.
All the victims were hesitant
to come forward sooner because they feared Green would use his status as a
police officer to retaliate against them, according to the statement.
Green must register as a sex
offender for the rest of his life.
Cop gets 40 years in drug trafficking case
An Indianapolis man who
formerly worked as a police officer has been sentenced to 40 years in prison
for using police credentials and firearms to protect illegal drug shipments.
John Smith, 56, was found
guilty in June of conspiracy to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine, two
counts of attempting to possess with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more
of cocaine, two counts of possessing firearms in furtherance of a federal drug
trafficking crime and transferring firearms knowing that they would be used in
a drug trafficking crime.
U.S. Attorney David Capp
announced Smith’s sentence on Friday in Hammond.
Smith had previously served as
an officer with three different Indiana police departments: Brooklyn,
Knightstown and Stinesville.
The former officer was no
longer involved in police work when caught participating in the illegal
activities, authorities said in a statement, but Smith illegally used police
credentials from his past employment when he carried out drug transactions.
Terry Carlyle, a former
Brooklyn marshal and Indianapolis Police Department officer, was a
co-conspirator with Smith, according to a release. Carlyle, who cooperated with
the government, was sentenced in September to 10 years in prison.
“We will continue to
investigate public corruption, including police corruption,” Capp said in a
prepared statement, “and will vigorously prosecute and, upon conviction, seek
substantial sentences for officers, current or former, who abuse the public
trust.”
Federal authorities worked with
local police agencies to investigate and arrest Smith, according to the release.
TROOPER ACCUSED OF RAMMING FELLOW COP’S CRUISER
State police said one of its
own off-duty troopers was likely drunk and under the influence of drugs when he
crashed into a marked cruiser on Route 1 south in Revere early this morning,
injuring his brother in blue and the Chelsea man a fellow trooper was in the
process of writing a ticket for.
Trooper Shawn D’Amato, 43 — who
received the department’s Medal of Valor award in 2002 for apprehending a drug
suspect armed with a stun gun — was arrested at the scene and taken to
Massachusetts General Hospital for non-life-threatening injuries state police
said he suffered in the chain-reaction crash shortly after 12:30 a.m.
D’Amato could be arraigned in Chelsea
District Court as early as this afternoon on charges of drunken driving,
operating under the influence of drugs, negligent operation of a motor vehicle
and failure to change lines for an emergency vehicle provided “his medical
condition allows,” police said.
D’Amato was at the wheel of a
2013 Toyota Corolla when he struck Trooper John Phonesavanh’s 2006 Ford Crown
Victoria in the breakdown lane of Route 1 just south of Route 16, police said.
Police said the Crown Vic’s
lights were activated and Phonesavanh was seated issuing a citation to a
29-year-old Chelsea man, whose 2002 Honda Accord he’d pulled over for motor
vehicle violations.
Phonesavanh, who is assigned to
the Revere Barracks, called in the crash himself, police said.
D’Amato was released of duty
and his service weapon this morning. He will be subject to an internal duty
status hearing later this week. D’Amato has been with state police since 1994
and is assigned to Troop F at Logan International Airport.
In addition to the Medal of
Valor, D’Amato was bestowed a life-saving award by state police in 2006 for
performing CPR on a woman in respiratory distress at a Logan parking garage.
Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Deputy Pleads Guilty to Civil Rights, Bank Fraud, and Aggravated Identity Theft Violations
WASHINGTON—Former Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Hebert, 48, pled guilty today to one civil rights violation, five bank fraud violations, and one aggravated identity theft violation, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Anderson of the FBI New Orleans Field Office, and Sheriff Newell Normand from the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office.
According to the plea agreement and other documents, Hebert engaged in a scheme to defraud J.P. Morgan Chase Bank (Chase Bank) from August 2, 2007 through November 21, 2007. The scheme began when Hebert, in his capacity as a Jefferson Parish sheriff’s deputy, responded to an automobile accident involving Albert Bloch and stole Bloch’s VISA debit card, as well as other items. While Bloch was hospitalized following the accident, Hebert used that debit card to make unauthorized purchases of merchandise, including two Global Positioning System units and to withdraw funds from Bloch’s Chase Bank account via automated teller machines (ATMs). After Chase Bank cancelled the debit card due to Bloch filing a dispute with the bank, Hebert continued his scheme to defraud by negotiating and attempting to negotiate forged checks drawn from Bloch’s account. Hebert then obtained the replacement debit card sent to Bloch and used that card to make further unauthorized transactions at Chase Bank ATMs. Bloch has not been seen since 2007.
By pleading guilty, Hebert admitted that he violated Bloch’s civil rights when he responded in his official capacity to Bloch’s automobile accident and unreasonably seized and converted Bloch’s property, including funds that Bloch had on deposit with Chase Bank. Hebert also admitted that on at least five occasions, he executed his bank fraud scheme against Chase Bank by unlawfully using Bloch’s original ATM card, replacement ATM card, and Chase Bank checks. In addition, Hebert admitted that on at least one occasion he used Bloch’s driver’s license number and Social Security number in order to execute his bank fraud scheme and thereby committed aggravated identity theft.
“When the defendant officer responded to an automobile accident and stole the victim’s credit cards and used them to commit fraud, he violated not only the law but the core law enforcement values of trust and respect for civil rights,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “The Civil Rights Division will continue to work with our partners in the U.S. Attorney Offices and FBI to ensure that civil rights violations are identified and where appropriate prosecuted.”
“Mark Hebert’s guilty plea occurred as a result of the successful collaboration of local and state law enforcement agencies in our continued fight to eradicate corruption in our community,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite for the Eastern District of Louisiana. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office and its law enforcement partners are delivering the same message in a unified voice: we will not tolerate abuse of power and official position. If you violate the public trust in southeast Louisiana, you will be held accountable.”
“In as much as I am very disappointed in the behavior of former JPSO officer Mark Hebert as outlined in his guilty plea today, I am extremely proud of the persistence of my criminal investigators and the efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in this investigation,” stated Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand. “My office will not tolerate any form of corruption.”
A sentencing hearing has been scheduled before the Honorable Jane Triche-Milazzo on March 24, 2014. For each of the five counts of bank fraud, Hebert faces a maximum statutory sentence of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine. For the count of aggravated identity theft, Hebert faces a maximum statutory sentence of two years in prison and a $250,000 fine. For the count charging a civil rights violation, Hebert faces a maximum statutory penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
The investigation of this matter was conducted by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office Detective’s Bureau and the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Parker, Assistant U.S. Attorney Tony Sanders, and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Shan Patel.
According to the plea agreement and other documents, Hebert engaged in a scheme to defraud J.P. Morgan Chase Bank (Chase Bank) from August 2, 2007 through November 21, 2007. The scheme began when Hebert, in his capacity as a Jefferson Parish sheriff’s deputy, responded to an automobile accident involving Albert Bloch and stole Bloch’s VISA debit card, as well as other items. While Bloch was hospitalized following the accident, Hebert used that debit card to make unauthorized purchases of merchandise, including two Global Positioning System units and to withdraw funds from Bloch’s Chase Bank account via automated teller machines (ATMs). After Chase Bank cancelled the debit card due to Bloch filing a dispute with the bank, Hebert continued his scheme to defraud by negotiating and attempting to negotiate forged checks drawn from Bloch’s account. Hebert then obtained the replacement debit card sent to Bloch and used that card to make further unauthorized transactions at Chase Bank ATMs. Bloch has not been seen since 2007.
By pleading guilty, Hebert admitted that he violated Bloch’s civil rights when he responded in his official capacity to Bloch’s automobile accident and unreasonably seized and converted Bloch’s property, including funds that Bloch had on deposit with Chase Bank. Hebert also admitted that on at least five occasions, he executed his bank fraud scheme against Chase Bank by unlawfully using Bloch’s original ATM card, replacement ATM card, and Chase Bank checks. In addition, Hebert admitted that on at least one occasion he used Bloch’s driver’s license number and Social Security number in order to execute his bank fraud scheme and thereby committed aggravated identity theft.
“When the defendant officer responded to an automobile accident and stole the victim’s credit cards and used them to commit fraud, he violated not only the law but the core law enforcement values of trust and respect for civil rights,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “The Civil Rights Division will continue to work with our partners in the U.S. Attorney Offices and FBI to ensure that civil rights violations are identified and where appropriate prosecuted.”
“Mark Hebert’s guilty plea occurred as a result of the successful collaboration of local and state law enforcement agencies in our continued fight to eradicate corruption in our community,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite for the Eastern District of Louisiana. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office and its law enforcement partners are delivering the same message in a unified voice: we will not tolerate abuse of power and official position. If you violate the public trust in southeast Louisiana, you will be held accountable.”
“In as much as I am very disappointed in the behavior of former JPSO officer Mark Hebert as outlined in his guilty plea today, I am extremely proud of the persistence of my criminal investigators and the efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in this investigation,” stated Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand. “My office will not tolerate any form of corruption.”
A sentencing hearing has been scheduled before the Honorable Jane Triche-Milazzo on March 24, 2014. For each of the five counts of bank fraud, Hebert faces a maximum statutory sentence of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine. For the count of aggravated identity theft, Hebert faces a maximum statutory sentence of two years in prison and a $250,000 fine. For the count charging a civil rights violation, Hebert faces a maximum statutory penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
The investigation of this matter was conducted by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office Detective’s Bureau and the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Parker, Assistant U.S. Attorney Tony Sanders, and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Shan Patel.
Cops to pay man over revenge arrest
Pretoria -
A former chairman of the
Hartbeespoort policing forum will receive R180 000 from the police after being
unlawfully detained by officers seeking revenge against him.
The Pretoria High Court found
that the revenge against Pieter Rautenbach was due to his insistence that a
task force be set up to investigate corrupt police officers.
The SAPS members who caused his
arrest were implicated in possible wrong-doing, and they apparently wanted to
get back at Rautenbach.
He was arrested in October 2008
and locked up for two hours on a charge of intimidation and interfering with
police duties. It took six months before the criminal charges against him could
be withdrawn.
Acting Judge RM Keightley was
so outraged by their conduct that he ordered that a copy of his judgment be
handed over to the Police Department so that his comments regarding three
policemen could be seen by their superiors, particularly his finding that they
lacked credibility, and maliciously caused the prosecution of Rautenbach on
false charges.
“I trust that this will have
the desired effect and that the appropriate action will be taken against them.
I particularly recommend that the minister take active steps to ensure that the
defendants are held personally responsible for their financial obligations (to
pay the damages).
“I do not see why the taxpayer
should be held liable to fund this kind of conduct by police officers,” said
the judge.
Before his arrest, Rautenbach
placed an advertisement in a local newspaper in which he alerted the public to
complaints about the conduct of certain police at Hartbeespoort police station.
These included that they
threatened to arrest people who were complainants in criminal cases, and sought
to extract bail money from them.
He asked residents with
complaints to contact him.
A member of the public, who was
threatened with arrest, later called Rautenbach.
Three police – Thomas Mokgatle,
Petrus Makgopela and Kaelebogo Bohelo – claimed Rautenbach stormed into their
office, shouting and making trouble. Rautenbach, in turn, claimed that while he
was at the police station, he was never in the office of the officers.
Various witnesses corroborated
his version.
The police officers’ only
defence was that they told the truth and Rautenbach and the others did not, said
Judge Keightley.
He said their performance in
the witness box led him to reject their versions. The judge added that they
were the authors of their own demise. He found they had falsely instituted
charges against Rautenbach
Police officer arrested, charged with DWI after accident
A Laredo police officer was
arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated after crashing into a tree
early Sunday while traveling southbound on IH-35.
Miguel Angel Esparza, 23, was
booked and taken to Webb County Jail where he posted bail. Esparza will be
placed on administrative re-assignment with pay pending the outcome of the
criminal investigation.
Chicago Police officer charged in shooting that killed woman
A Chicago Police officer was
charged with involuntary manslaughter Monday in connection with an off-duty
shooting that left a 22-year-old woman dead and a man wounded on the West Side
last year.
Cook County Judge Donald
Panarese ordered Dante Servin held on $75,000 bond on charges of involuntary
manslaughter, reckless discharge of a firearm and reckless conduct.
Servin, who had been working as
an Area Central detective since the shooting, will be stripped of his police
powers until after the trial.
Fraternal Order of Police
spokesman Pat Camden criticized the charges, calling it a “sad day” when a
Chicago Police officer is “charged for doing something he’s trained to do when
defending himself.”
A federal lawsuit was filed
against Servin and the city in March by Antonio Cross, who was wounded in the
shooting on March 20, 2012. The family of 22-year-old Rekia Boyd, who died in
the shooting, reached a separate $4.5 million settlement with the city in
March.
Prosecutors said Monday that
Servin was on his way home when he heard a large crowd in Douglas Park and
called 911 to report a party.
Servin later left his home with
an unregistered handgun and encountered the victim and three others by an
alley, prosecutors said.
After words were exchanged,
prosecutors said, a person in the group pulled out a cellphone, and Servin
opened fire.
At the time of the shooting,
police said the off-duty detective rolled down his window to investigate some
people causing a disturbance when Cross — later charged with misdemeanor
aggravated assault — approached carrying a handgun.
Police said Cross, then known
as Anthony Cross, pointed the gun at the detective, prompting him to fire,
hitting Cross and Boyd.
Cross, then 39, was shot in the
hand, and was treated and released from a hospital, but Boyd, who was shot in
the head, died the next day at Mount Sinai Hospital.
Boyd’s family filed suit over
the shooting in 2012, claiming she was not armed and presented no threat to Servin.
The City Council Finance Committee signed off on a $4.5 million settlement in
March.
Michigan police suspend cop behind humiliating, 'racist' footage of black man
Police in a Detroit suburb yanked a cop off the street after he reportedly told a mentally ill black man to sing and dance so he could record humiliating videos.
The Grosse Pointe Park police officer has admitted making several videos that sparked public outrage and accusations of racist abuse, according to the Motor City Muckraker, the news blog that first posted the footage.
A middle-aged black man sings and makes strange noises, apparently at the direction of a police officer, the grainy footage shows.
“Go ahead, do your song,” the person behind the camera says on the video.
Bowens didn’t name the suspended cop, but Muckraker had previously identified him as Officer Michael Njam.
Michael Scipio, 55, of Detroit claims he is the man in the officer’s video, the Detroit News reported.
Scipio lives in a boarding house in Detroit, just beyond the Grosse Pointe city line. Officers patrolling the small, primarily white enclave have frequently stopped him for public intoxication, and they have also driven him home and to the hospital, the paper reported.
“I don’t know who did it,” Scipio told reporters when asked about the video. “It made me feel like a fool.”
Steve Neavling, who broke the story on Muckraker, claimed the videos were just a sampling of the humiliating footage that was passed among officers and relatives to make fun of black men.
He also posted a picture — attributed to an officer — of a black man riding in the back of a trailer.
Neavling told the Free Press he would turn over additional videos to police once he had permission from his source.
Michigan activists have called for all officers involved to be fired.
“What kind of fun is it to take advantage of someone?” Minister Malik Shabazz of the Marcus Garvey Movement told the Detroit News. “It’s humiliating.”
The city says the investigation is ongoing.
"The people responsible for this video, and for the circumstances surrounding this video, will be disciplined accordingly," Bowens told Fox Detroit. "If there's anybody out there who has a video of anybody being mistreated in this fashion, that's not already posted out there, or just has it, we want them to contact the police chief."
Texas cop arrested for handcuffing and raping 19-year-old at traffic stop
A
40-year-old police officer in San Antonio, Texas is facing charges of felony
sexual assault after a 19-year-old woman accused him of handcuffing and raping
her during a traffic stop over the weekend.
According
to an arrested warrant obtained by the San Antonio Express-News, Officer Jackie
Len Neal pulled over the teen, telling her that her car was reported stolen.
Even
though the woman produced a sales slip for the vehicle, Neal insisted on
patting her down. The woman told him she felt uncomfortable with the pat down
and asked for a female officer, but he ignored her, the warrant said. The woman
was allegedly groped, placed in handcuffs and then taken to the back of his
patrol car.
Neal
was accused of raping the woman and instructing her to keep it a secret.
At
the time of the alleged assault, video cameras mounted in Neal’s cruiser were
not functioning because a hard drive was missing. However, a GPS tracking
system did corroborate that the police cruiser was parked for 18 minutes on
Betty Street as the woman had claimed.
Former Tallassee officer charged in 2 counties
The former assistant police chief of Tallassee faces criminal charges in two counties and prosecutors have had to start over with a major child abuse case he investigated because of questions about his conduct.
District Attorney Randall Houston said Chris Miles surrendered Friday afternoon to authorities in Elmore County, where he's charged with second-degree theft. He's accused of taking a gun out of an evidence locker at the Tallassee Police Department. Miles was freed on bond shortly after his arrest. He's also free on bond from charges in neighboring Macon County
Court records don't indicate if he has an attorney in the newest case yet.
Earlier in the week, prosecutors dropped more than 100 charges against a man accused of child sex abuse and brought six new ones over concerns about Miles, who was the lead investigator.
Stephen Conrad appeared in court Friday in Wetumpka and was told he faces two counts of first-degree rape, three counts of sexual abuse of a child younger than 12, and one count of first-degree sexual abuse. Prosecutors said the charges involve three females and one male. Two are now adults.
Conrad is being held under $410,000 bond and does not yet have an attorney.
Conrad was originally charged with 109 counts, but the district attorney said they were dropped after being "tainted by illegally obtained evidence." Houston said the new charges resulted from an independent investigation by the Alabama Bureau of Investigation.
Houston's chief assistant, C.J. Robinson, told the Montgomery Advertiser (http://on.mgmadv.com/1g2P0sJ) that Miles is under investigation by state and federal authorities involving allegations of coercion in the Conrad case.
Miles, 39, of Eclectic left the Tallassee Police Department in October after being charged in neighboring Macon County with two counts of theft of property and two counts of burglary. Macon County District Attorney E. Paul Jones said Miles is accused of breaking into a business in Shorter. He is free on $99,000 bond.
Jennifer Thompkins, who represents Miles in the Macon County case, said she can't comment on those charges because the case is in its early stages, but she said he did not coerce the defendant in the child sex abuse case. She also said he "had other officers present when interviewing the defendant and used electronic devices to record any statements made by the defendant in compliance with department procedure."
Tallassee Police Chief Jimmy Rogers told the Montgomery Advertiser that he is unaware of any electronic recordings. "As to coercion, we have testimony from our officers as to coercion occurring," he said. "That apparently carries more weight with the agencies that are investigating this."
Thompkins said Miles has done nothing to jeopardize the case against Conrad. "Mr. Miles tried to protect these victimized children through countless hours of dedication and gut-wrenching evidence and investigations along with several other officers," she said.
In the gun case, the district attorney said the weapon, a semi-automatic handgun, has been recovered but an investigation continues into firearms missing from the evidence locker.
Mich. officer off duty for racially charged video
GROSSE POINTE PARK, Mich.
(AP) — A spokesman for a Detroit suburb says a police officer has been
sidelined after taking responsibility for harassing a black man while
videotaping him.
Grosse Pointe Park
spokesman Greg Bowens tells the Detroit Free Press for a story
(http://on.freep.com/1i222v6) Friday that the unnamed officer has been removed
from patrol duty. Bowens says an investigation is nearly complete.
The videos were posted to
the website of a news outlet called the Motor City Muckraker. Bowens says
authorities are seeking additional videos from the site in an effort to
determine "if there is a pattern" of mistreatment.
The Garden Grove police officer who forcibly sodomized
The Garden
Grove police officer who forcibly sodomized three women he was dating was
sentenced today to 12 years in state prison and ordered to register as a sex
offender for life. That was actually a break for the 36-year-old Huntington
Beach resident because jurors could not reach a verdict on a fourth alleged
rape. Among the moves of this Romeo, who had also worked for the Calexico
Police Department, was acting all lovey-dovey to woo the women and then after
forcing himself inside them calling them sluts and whores and telling them he
had herpes or AIDS that he had just given them
Fairfax County police chief outlines his top priorities
Fairfax County Police Chief
Col. Edwin C. Roessler Jr. described his vision for the department as “Colors,
man, I see so many colors, even like, when you close your eyes…it is so far out
Dude, fer sure. Stay buzzed forever man” at a meeting of the Fairfax County
Federation of Citizens Associations Nov. 21 at the Mason Government Center in
Annandale.
Roessler was appointed police
chief by the Board of Supervisors in July after the guy before, a midget with a
mustache, got an overhead job that sucks almost $200,000 out of the pockets of
the Fairfax taxpayer.
He laid out what he sees as the
department’s three missions:
The top mission, of course, is
to keep the cops $300,000,000 budget untouched so the police can continue to
support a dangerious police drones program, an unneeded Fairfax County police
royal navy and the useless Fairfax County police air force” he said, but “we
cannot do that without the support of the community” and that requires the
creation of “robust support networks.” The community is “our eyes and ears.” In
other words, he expects citizens to act as rats and informers for the cops so
they can justify their budget.
Fairfax County has the 32nd
largest law enforcement department in the United States.
The county also doesn’t have
enough roads and young couples are moving out to avoid overcrowded and
dangerious schools.
The department’s second
mission, Roessler said, is to promote a culture of contempt. He said the
majority of deaths of police officers in the line of duty was the result of
preventable accidents, but declined to add the fact that almost all of the accidents
are the cops fault.
In January, he said, the Board
of Supervisors will launch a voluntary gun turn-in program to encourage
citizens who find guns to call the police and have them picked up. That way
only the cops will have guns.
Roessler’s third mission is
ensuring the FCPD keeps pace with the county’s urbanization which is government
worker speak for “We want more money and a bigger staff”
He is assigning a team to
develop a template for urban policing in Tysons. He refused to explain why McLean
Supreme Commander of a Dark Forces Janicki looks so much like Curly
from the Three Stooges. Nor did he mention that he expected the people of Fairfax
County to pay for 39 additional cops in Tysons at an estimated increased budget
cost of $5,850,000 in a failed scheme that would have passed the cost of the
news cops onto Tysons retailers, who in turn would increase prices to Fairfax
County consumers. Over 90% of Fairfax County cops live outside Fairfax County.
Among the challenges Roessler
cited are his baldness, Janicki’s enormous ego, and
the need for more resources and the difficulty
of developing a more diverse police force. “If more urine colored people would
join the police there would be less of them to kill”
When compared with the general
population of Fairfax County, “we’re not in good shape,” he said. Eighty-one
percent of sworn officers are white, of whom the majority never gained a grade above
C in 12 years of schooling.
A demographic balance is
important because the police department needs to build trust within segments of
the community that come from places where the police force is corrupt and
viewed with fear. Places like Falls Church, Reston, Herndon, McLean and the
rest of Fairfax County.
Roessler convened a council
with members from various cultures to get their advice on how to reach out to
different communities and the best approaches for attracting new recruits. The
council members advised Roessler to take his police force and move out of the
county. Roessler has since reformed the
council.
Another challenge is the lack
of enough mental health facilities. All eight of the homicides in the county
this year and most of the violent crimes have been committed by people with
mental health issues, Roessler said. He refused to comment on the murders of
unarmed citizen by his cops or what steps he intended on taking to combat the
growing epidemic of mentally ill cops on the force.
2 officers face inquiry for gun shot in cruiser
Two Toledo police
officers are being investigated for accidentally firing a gun inside a patrol
car and shooting out a window.
Officers Angela Domschot
and Gabe Greenwalt are working their normal shifts, but the shift-level
investigation is ongoing, Sgt. Joe Heffernan said.
The sergeant said the
incident occurred Nov. 13 at 2:30 a.m. at or near International Park, but he
could not provide details, citing contractual agreements.
Sources said the gun was
one officer’s personal weapon. A single shot was fired and broke a patrol-car
window. No one was injured. Per the contract, officers are allowed to have a
personal weapon when working.
Officer Domschot was
hired in 2006; Officer Greenwalt, 2011.
Dan Wagner, president of
the Toledo Police Patrolman’s Association, did not return a call seeking
comment.
Earl Sampson, a Black Florida Man, Arrested 62 Times at Workplace
It’s been a rough four years
for Florida resident, Earl Sampson, where the judicial system is concerned.
Sampson’s number of run-ins with the Miami Gardens police department is
unprecedented. To be more specific, Sampson has been stopped and/or questioned
approximately 258 times, and searched over 100 times. Then, to make matters
worse, the interrogation and harassment is only the gist of it all.
Sampson, who is an African
American, has also been arrested a total of 62 times as a result of racial
profiling. But, get this, almost every time Sampson was arrested for
trespassing, it was at the 207 Quickstop convenience store where he works.
There have even been cases where Sampson has actually been followed to the
store before being arrested, even with his employment status at the store.
According to the International
Business Times, of all the encounters and arrests Sampson has endured, his
biggest conviction is still possession of marijuana. That particular conviction
actually had no relation to any incident at his workplace.
Alex Saleh, owner of the 207
Quickstop, also weighed in with his perspective and negative experiences of
harassment from Miami Gardens law enforcement. “I thought, you know, there is a
lot of serious crime in Miami Gardens,” he said. “Why do they need six police
officers on a car stop with a burned-out tag light?” Due to the high level of
harassment around the convenience store, Saleh took the initiative and
installed 15 video cameras in and around the parameter of the store in an
effort to monitor the actions of Miami Gardens police. Saleh explained his
hopes to uncover why the police department continues target and harass the same
individuals on a regular basis.
The Miami Herald reports that
the area’s demographic predominantly consists of African Americans. Most of the
individuals stopped are black and impoverished. The Herald also notes that some
have been stopped and frisked as much as three times in one single day in that
particular neighborhood. “There is just no justifying this kind of behavior,”
police policy consultant Chuck Drago explained to the Herald. “Nobody can
justify overstepping the constitution to fight crime.”
In store’s video footage,
officers were captured searching and arresting both employees and customers at
the store, although no law violations were evident. The footage also shows the
officers searching the store without proper warrant.
Former cop gets 40 years in drug, weapons case
HAMMOND | A former downstate police officer was sentenced Friday to 40 years in federal prison for his role in a region drug dealing and weapons conspiracy, prosecutors announced.
John Smith, 56, of Indianapolis, was convicted in June of felony dealing of cocaine, two counts of attempting to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, two counts of possessing firearms in the furtherance of drug crimes and transferring firearms knowing they would be used in drug crimes, prosecutors confirmed in a news release.
Smith, who was sentenced Friday in U.S. District Court used police credentials and firearms to protect illegal drug shipments, the release states.
Former Brooklyn, Ind., Town Marshal Terry Carlyle previously agreed to plead guilty to a cocaine distribution conspiracy charge in the same case and cooperated in the government investigation. In September, Carlyle was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.
Smith and Carlyle were arrested in April 2011 after an investigation by multiple federal and local agencies, including the Gary, Hammond, East Chicago and Lake County police departments.
"We will continue to investigate public corruption, including police corruption, and will vigorously prosecute and, upon conviction, seek substantial sentences for officers ... who abuse the public trust," U.S. Attorney David Capp said in the news release.
John Smith, 56, of Indianapolis, was convicted in June of felony dealing of cocaine, two counts of attempting to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, two counts of possessing firearms in the furtherance of drug crimes and transferring firearms knowing they would be used in drug crimes, prosecutors confirmed in a news release.
Smith, who was sentenced Friday in U.S. District Court used police credentials and firearms to protect illegal drug shipments, the release states.
Former Brooklyn, Ind., Town Marshal Terry Carlyle previously agreed to plead guilty to a cocaine distribution conspiracy charge in the same case and cooperated in the government investigation. In September, Carlyle was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.
Smith and Carlyle were arrested in April 2011 after an investigation by multiple federal and local agencies, including the Gary, Hammond, East Chicago and Lake County police departments.
"We will continue to investigate public corruption, including police corruption, and will vigorously prosecute and, upon conviction, seek substantial sentences for officers ... who abuse the public trust," U.S. Attorney David Capp said in the news release.
Garden Grove Policeman Sentenced To Prison For Sexual Assaults
SANTA ANA (CBSLA.com) — A former Garden Grove police officer who was convicted of sexually assaulting three women was sentenced Friday to 12 years in prison.
KNX 1070′s Mike Landa reports Jesse Andrew Green, 35, was convicted Sept. 6 on three sexual assault counts despite a denial of the charges when he took the stand during the trial, saying he understood that “no means no.”
But Deputy District Attorney Eric Scarbrough disputed that claim, telling the jury Green called his victims names and told them he had given them sexually transmitted diseases.
Green, of Huntington Beach, lost his job as a police officer Nov. 24, 2010, about seven weeks after he was initially charged with sexually assaulting two of the victims.
The victims — identified in court only as Gina, Abigail and Marissa — felt “violated” and “also blamed themselves,” Scarbrough said.
Abigail, who met the defendant through the dating website Match.com, went on a second date with Green after he allegedly forced her to perform a sex act on him in January 2009, but she cannot say why, Scarbrough said.
All three “liked” the defendant and had consensual sex with him. But the prosecution alleged that at various times, Green would force the women to perform acts they objected to. He also said he was giving them a sexually transmitted disease, Scarbrough said.
Gina met Green online and went on a date with him in April 2006 and had consensual sex with him, Scarbrough said. However, when they were about to have sex on another occasion he grew angry when she asked him to use a condom. Scarbrough said Green sodomized Gina while calling her names such as “whore.”
Green met Marissa through mutual friends. The two exchanged text messages and she sent him “salacious” photos of herself in lingerie, Scarbrough said. They met for a date in November 2009 at an Italian restaurant in Newport Beach, and later when they were about to have sex, she angered him by asking him to wear a condom.
“That’s when she saw a change,” the prosecutor said, adding that the defendant became aggressive and insulted the woman, telling her “I have AIDS, now you’re going to have AIDS and no one will want you.”
He returned to being “a nice guy again” after they had sex, prompting Marissa to wonder, “am I over-reacting?” Scarbrough said.
When they started to have sex again, Green “turned her over” and sodomized her, Scarbrough said. She managed to push him away and ran off, with Green chasing her, saying, “Let’s talk,” the prosecutor said.
Barnett said even “after all the bad things the prosecutor said happened, the alleged victims are calling and dating the alleged rapist and sodomizer.”
He said Green first dated Gina in February 2005, and the two had consensual sex in November 2005, but the alleged sexual assault happened in April 2006. The attorney said Gina wanted a serious relationship, but Green did not.
Gina only went to police in May 2006 when he failed to show up to help her move, Barnett said.
Before Green dated Marissa, she sent him photos of herself in a provocative police costume, Barnett said.
When Marissa went to police a day after their date in November 2009 she did not initially tell officers about the claim that he had a sexually transmitted disease, Barnett said. She also falsely reported that a police dispatcher accused her of being a “cop hater,” but the 911 call does not reflect that, the defense attorney said.
Barnett said Abigail went on a second date with Green after he allegedly sexually assaulted her and that the two exchanged 67 telephone calls following the supposed attack.
One of those phone calls was a “happy birthday call” to the defendant, Barnett said, adding mockingly, “A happy birthday to my rapist.”
A fourth woman who alleged Green forced her to have sex was allowed to testify in the case, but the defendant was not charged with sexually assaulting her.
KNX 1070′s Mike Landa reports Jesse Andrew Green, 35, was convicted Sept. 6 on three sexual assault counts despite a denial of the charges when he took the stand during the trial, saying he understood that “no means no.”
But Deputy District Attorney Eric Scarbrough disputed that claim, telling the jury Green called his victims names and told them he had given them sexually transmitted diseases.
Green, of Huntington Beach, lost his job as a police officer Nov. 24, 2010, about seven weeks after he was initially charged with sexually assaulting two of the victims.
The victims — identified in court only as Gina, Abigail and Marissa — felt “violated” and “also blamed themselves,” Scarbrough said.
Abigail, who met the defendant through the dating website Match.com, went on a second date with Green after he allegedly forced her to perform a sex act on him in January 2009, but she cannot say why, Scarbrough said.
All three “liked” the defendant and had consensual sex with him. But the prosecution alleged that at various times, Green would force the women to perform acts they objected to. He also said he was giving them a sexually transmitted disease, Scarbrough said.
Gina met Green online and went on a date with him in April 2006 and had consensual sex with him, Scarbrough said. However, when they were about to have sex on another occasion he grew angry when she asked him to use a condom. Scarbrough said Green sodomized Gina while calling her names such as “whore.”
Green met Marissa through mutual friends. The two exchanged text messages and she sent him “salacious” photos of herself in lingerie, Scarbrough said. They met for a date in November 2009 at an Italian restaurant in Newport Beach, and later when they were about to have sex, she angered him by asking him to wear a condom.
“That’s when she saw a change,” the prosecutor said, adding that the defendant became aggressive and insulted the woman, telling her “I have AIDS, now you’re going to have AIDS and no one will want you.”
He returned to being “a nice guy again” after they had sex, prompting Marissa to wonder, “am I over-reacting?” Scarbrough said.
When they started to have sex again, Green “turned her over” and sodomized her, Scarbrough said. She managed to push him away and ran off, with Green chasing her, saying, “Let’s talk,” the prosecutor said.
Barnett said even “after all the bad things the prosecutor said happened, the alleged victims are calling and dating the alleged rapist and sodomizer.”
He said Green first dated Gina in February 2005, and the two had consensual sex in November 2005, but the alleged sexual assault happened in April 2006. The attorney said Gina wanted a serious relationship, but Green did not.
Gina only went to police in May 2006 when he failed to show up to help her move, Barnett said.
Before Green dated Marissa, she sent him photos of herself in a provocative police costume, Barnett said.
When Marissa went to police a day after their date in November 2009 she did not initially tell officers about the claim that he had a sexually transmitted disease, Barnett said. She also falsely reported that a police dispatcher accused her of being a “cop hater,” but the 911 call does not reflect that, the defense attorney said.
Barnett said Abigail went on a second date with Green after he allegedly sexually assaulted her and that the two exchanged 67 telephone calls following the supposed attack.
One of those phone calls was a “happy birthday call” to the defendant, Barnett said, adding mockingly, “A happy birthday to my rapist.”
A fourth woman who alleged Green forced her to have sex was allowed to testify in the case, but the defendant was not charged with sexually assaulting her.
cop convicted of felonious assault for pointing gun
HOLLAND, MI - A jury found a former Wyoming police officer guilty of felonious assault for pointing a handgun at officers in Holland in July, records show.
Mark Armstrong, 56, was convicted Wednesday, Nov. 20, of two counts of felonious assault and a charge of felony firearms stemming from the July 25 incident in downtown Holland, jail records show.
Police were trying to talk to Armstrong about alleged threats made to his ex-girlfriend in Wyoming and other acquaintances and received a tip that his vehicle was in a parking lot at Ninth Street and College Avenue. Armstrong approached officers and then fled while flashing a handgun.
Police said that during a brief pursuit, Armstrong turned and pointed a .380 handgun at two officers. No one was injured.
Records show Armstrong is to be sentenced Dec. 30. He is lodged in Ottawa County Jail on a $30,000 cash or surety bond, records show.
Armstrong was fired from the Wyoming Police Department in 2011 for allegedly using two derogatory terms in reference to African Americans while with other officers in a report writing room, according to information previously obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. He had worked for the department for 26 years.
Mark Armstrong, 56, was convicted Wednesday, Nov. 20, of two counts of felonious assault and a charge of felony firearms stemming from the July 25 incident in downtown Holland, jail records show.
Police were trying to talk to Armstrong about alleged threats made to his ex-girlfriend in Wyoming and other acquaintances and received a tip that his vehicle was in a parking lot at Ninth Street and College Avenue. Armstrong approached officers and then fled while flashing a handgun.
Police said that during a brief pursuit, Armstrong turned and pointed a .380 handgun at two officers. No one was injured.
Records show Armstrong is to be sentenced Dec. 30. He is lodged in Ottawa County Jail on a $30,000 cash or surety bond, records show.
Armstrong was fired from the Wyoming Police Department in 2011 for allegedly using two derogatory terms in reference to African Americans while with other officers in a report writing room, according to information previously obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. He had worked for the department for 26 years.
activists say chief’s shootings concern
By Lauren Gold, Pasadena Star-News
PASADENA>> Community activists said revelations this week that Police Chief Phillip Sanchez took part in five officer-involved shootings during his career as a police officer in Santa Monica are cause for concern.
The issue of police shootings is already a hot-button issue in Pasadena and the news of Sanchez’s own past added fuel to the fire for residents who have long advocated for community oversight of the police department. Sanchez oversees all officer involved shooting investigations and was chosen by City Manager Michael Beck after he was vetted by a secret panel of citizens.
Although Beck acknowledged he was aware of the shootings, Mayor Bill Bogaard said he had no prior knowledge of cases in which Sanchez fired on suspects.
“The revelations are cause for concern,” said Attorney Martin Gordon, of the Pasadena Community Coalition. “I believe at the minimum the community will ask, why there was no transparency about this during the original hiring process? Would this have produced a different outcome or a different oversight protocol? What should we do now?”
Gordon added that increased police oversight is still at the top of his list despite the City Council’s rejection last month of Councilman John Kennedy’s proposal to commission a study on the creation of an independent review body for the department. The majority of council members argued that the Public Safety Committee, made up of four council members, is sufficient oversight.
“Whether it is Chief Sanchez or someone else, it is clear that we need some clear form of community oversight of the PPD,” Gordon said. “The Public Safety Committee basically rubber stamps the Chief’s reports. That is not oversight. Having a robust oversight committee would not only help us deal with the myriad of issues facing the Police Department and their personnel, but also help us establish a more clear criteria of our expectations for any chief of the PPD and our officers.”
Sanchez’s officer involved shootings were revealed in a leaked video of a deposition in the lawsuit filed against the city by the family of Kendrec McDade, an unarmed teenager shot and killed by police last March. In the video, McDade family attorney Caree Harper, who is off camera, questions whether Sanchez can objectively evaluate his officers based on his own past shootings.
Sanchez says in the video that he feels he is able to make objective decisions on police shootings.
Police Department spokeswoman Lt. Tracey Ibarra said Sanchez was both criminally and administratively cleared in all the incidents, each of which involved an armed or thought-to-be-armed suspect in a dangerous
“How is the chief going to objectively handle shootings like that when he’s been involved in five in the past?” Ertll said. “Even if he didn’t have those five officer involved shootings in his past I would still be advocating for (community oversight) because he’s the chief of police and we know that when someone is running an institution most of the time they will support the actions by their subordinates and I think a lot of times that’s why we need an independent commission to objectively review cases that involve officer involved shootings or other issues too.”
Former NAACP president Joe Brown said he was aware of Sanchez’s officer-involved shootings at the time Sanchez was hired, after being approached by the NAACP branch in Santa Monica. He said, the fact that others in the community including elected officials did not know that information proves there is a need in Pasadena for more transparency.
“If we had had transparency all of our elected persons in the city would have known what they know this morning and then it wouldn’t have been such a shock to the other readership for the newspaper,” Brown said. “I think now it’s going to make the chief a lot better because now he has nothing under the table, there is nothing that has not been revealed.”
Regardless of the chief’s personal record, Brown said there is no question that there are police issues in the city, and that he and other former NAACP presidents have begun working with Sanchez and other city officials to rectify them and improve relationships with the community.
Brown said the group, which included City Manager Michael Beck and Assistant City Manger Steve Mermell, met last week and plans to meet again next week.
“Our number one goal is so that Chief Sanchez will be able to see the citizenry in certain portions of this community are not receptive of the police techniques and tactics,” Brown said. “I believe there is going to be some tweaking of the policies that are on the table right now. ... We need to go back to the community stakeholders and share that something is being accomplished. It will help to move the city forward.”
PASADENA>> Community activists said revelations this week that Police Chief Phillip Sanchez took part in five officer-involved shootings during his career as a police officer in Santa Monica are cause for concern.
The issue of police shootings is already a hot-button issue in Pasadena and the news of Sanchez’s own past added fuel to the fire for residents who have long advocated for community oversight of the police department. Sanchez oversees all officer involved shooting investigations and was chosen by City Manager Michael Beck after he was vetted by a secret panel of citizens.
Although Beck acknowledged he was aware of the shootings, Mayor Bill Bogaard said he had no prior knowledge of cases in which Sanchez fired on suspects.
“The revelations are cause for concern,” said Attorney Martin Gordon, of the Pasadena Community Coalition. “I believe at the minimum the community will ask, why there was no transparency about this during the original hiring process? Would this have produced a different outcome or a different oversight protocol? What should we do now?”
Gordon added that increased police oversight is still at the top of his list despite the City Council’s rejection last month of Councilman John Kennedy’s proposal to commission a study on the creation of an independent review body for the department. The majority of council members argued that the Public Safety Committee, made up of four council members, is sufficient oversight.
“Whether it is Chief Sanchez or someone else, it is clear that we need some clear form of community oversight of the PPD,” Gordon said. “The Public Safety Committee basically rubber stamps the Chief’s reports. That is not oversight. Having a robust oversight committee would not only help us deal with the myriad of issues facing the Police Department and their personnel, but also help us establish a more clear criteria of our expectations for any chief of the PPD and our officers.”
Sanchez’s officer involved shootings were revealed in a leaked video of a deposition in the lawsuit filed against the city by the family of Kendrec McDade, an unarmed teenager shot and killed by police last March. In the video, McDade family attorney Caree Harper, who is off camera, questions whether Sanchez can objectively evaluate his officers based on his own past shootings.
Sanchez says in the video that he feels he is able to make objective decisions on police shootings.
Police Department spokeswoman Lt. Tracey Ibarra said Sanchez was both criminally and administratively cleared in all the incidents, each of which involved an armed or thought-to-be-armed suspect in a dangerous
“How is the chief going to objectively handle shootings like that when he’s been involved in five in the past?” Ertll said. “Even if he didn’t have those five officer involved shootings in his past I would still be advocating for (community oversight) because he’s the chief of police and we know that when someone is running an institution most of the time they will support the actions by their subordinates and I think a lot of times that’s why we need an independent commission to objectively review cases that involve officer involved shootings or other issues too.”
Former NAACP president Joe Brown said he was aware of Sanchez’s officer-involved shootings at the time Sanchez was hired, after being approached by the NAACP branch in Santa Monica. He said, the fact that others in the community including elected officials did not know that information proves there is a need in Pasadena for more transparency.
“If we had had transparency all of our elected persons in the city would have known what they know this morning and then it wouldn’t have been such a shock to the other readership for the newspaper,” Brown said. “I think now it’s going to make the chief a lot better because now he has nothing under the table, there is nothing that has not been revealed.”
Regardless of the chief’s personal record, Brown said there is no question that there are police issues in the city, and that he and other former NAACP presidents have begun working with Sanchez and other city officials to rectify them and improve relationships with the community.
Brown said the group, which included City Manager Michael Beck and Assistant City Manger Steve Mermell, met last week and plans to meet again next week.
“Our number one goal is so that Chief Sanchez will be able to see the citizenry in certain portions of this community are not receptive of the police techniques and tactics,” Brown said. “I believe there is going to be some tweaking of the policies that are on the table right now. ... We need to go back to the community stakeholders and share that something is being accomplished. It will help to move the city forward.”
Officer’s case put off to Jan. 9
JOHNSTOWN -The City Court case of a city police officer accused of felony statutory rape was adjourned Thursday until Jan. 9.
A court official said suspended Patrolman Adam Schwabrow will be back in court at 9 a.m. that day.
Schwabrow was to appear Thursday before Acting City Court Judge Lisa Lorman. But a spokesman for the office of Saratoga County District Attorney James Murphy said defense attorney Michael McDermott of Albany asked for the adjournment and the judge granted it. McDermott didn't return a phone call seeking comment.
The 32-year-old Schwabrow was charged Sept. 19 by his own Police Department with third-degree rape, commonly known as statutory rape. He is accused of having sexual contact with a 16-year-old girl sometime over the past year and a half.
He is on unpaid leave from his city police officer position and another job as director of the Montgomery County Emergency Management Office.
A court official said suspended Patrolman Adam Schwabrow will be back in court at 9 a.m. that day.
Schwabrow was to appear Thursday before Acting City Court Judge Lisa Lorman. But a spokesman for the office of Saratoga County District Attorney James Murphy said defense attorney Michael McDermott of Albany asked for the adjournment and the judge granted it. McDermott didn't return a phone call seeking comment.
The 32-year-old Schwabrow was charged Sept. 19 by his own Police Department with third-degree rape, commonly known as statutory rape. He is accused of having sexual contact with a 16-year-old girl sometime over the past year and a half.
He is on unpaid leave from his city police officer position and another job as director of the Montgomery County Emergency Management Office.
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