A Malabon City judge yesterday sentenced a man to die by lethal injection for possessing 25 kilos of dried marijuana bricks last March. In the 15-page decision of Judge Benjamin Aquino of Regional Trial Court Branch 72, Eduardo Limpin, 24, a resident of 42 University Ave. in Potrero, Malabon, was also sentenced to spend life in prison for drug pushing. The convict was also directed to pay a fine of P15 million for the two cases. Limpin's co-accused, Ricky America, 32, single, jobless, also from the same place, was sentenced to life imprisonment for illegal possession of dried bricks of marijuana and was ordered to pay a P5 million fine. [continues 115 words]
Federal law enforcement officials are looking into whether interstate drug interdiction officers in Crittenden County and West Memphis have skimmed cash seized from couriers along the lucrative "money route" through the Mid-South crossroads. West Memphis police personnel records indicate the FBI was investigating drug interdiction operations on the interstate highways well before three West Memphis drug enforcement officers were fired last year. Crittenden County interstates have been the source of more than $5.4 million in cash seized from suspected drug couriers in the past 2 years, records show. One focus of the probe is whether officers helped themselves to some of that money. [continues 1502 words]
DAVAO -- The House of Representatives approved death penalty on people in possession of 10 grams of illegal drugs as approved in third reading of the house bill amending the Anti Dangerous Drugs Act. Death will also be imposed on policemen and other law enforcers found to have planted evidence against suspected pushers. n an interview Saturday, Bukidnon Rep. Juan Miguel Zubiri said planting evidence, an act usually alleged to law enforcers by arrested drug pushers, is now considered a heinous crime regardless of the volume being planted. [continues 287 words]
THE House of Representatives approved death penalty on people in possession of 10 grams of illegal drugs as approved in third reading of the house bill amending the Anti Dangerous Drugs Act. Death will also be imposed on policemen and other law enforcers found to have planted evidence against suspected pushers. In an interview Saturday, Bukidnon Rep. Juan Miguel Zubiri said planting evidence -- an act usually alleged to law enforcers by arrested drug pushers -- is now considered a heinous crime regardless of the volume being planted. [continues 286 words]
SENATOR Vicente Sotto III has expressed apprehension over the proposed lowering of the minimum weight of drugs on arrested possessors to qualify for the death row, saying this could "be very dangerous." Sotto, former chair of the Senate Committee on Drugs, on Saturday said the on going amendment to Republic Act 6428 or the Dangerous Drugs Act which seeks the lowering of the weight of drugs seized on a person from a minimum of 200 grams to only 99 or five grams "would be very dangerous (as) we might be prosecuting innocent people." [continues 281 words]
LEXINGTON -- Davidson County's district attorney is preparing a request to clear the drug conviction of a local man because he says his arresting officers planted the evidence. This is the first case District Attorney Garry Frank is seeking to overturn since he began reviewing more than 70 charges linked to the arrest of three former Davidson County deputies who were charged with drug trafficking. Frank said he has information that drugs were planted on Darick Owens during his arrest in September 2000. [continues 258 words]
GREENSBORO - Three former law enforcement officers and two Lexington-area residents indicted on federal drug conspiracy charges changed their pleas from innocent to guilty this morning in U.S. District Court. Former 1st Lt. David Scott Woodall, 34, who headed the vice/narcotics unit for the Davidson County sheriff's office, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine, marijuana, steroids and Ecstasy; extortion; and using a firearm while committing extortion. Another former vice/narcotics unit member, Lt. Douglas Edward Westmoreland, 50, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana and extortion. [continues 521 words]
Davidson District Attorney Says Accused Deputy May Have Planted the Evidence LEXINGTON -- Garry Frank, the district attorney for Davidson County, said yesterday that he intends to ask a judge to overturn drug convictions against a man who may have been set up by at least one former deputy now charged with distributing drugs. Based on conversations and correspondence Frank had with the U.S. Attorney's Office, and state and federal investigators, he said that there is evidence that drugs were planted on Darick Owens, 34, before he was arrested more than a year ago. [continues 742 words]
A police officer suspected of committing a series of armed robberies and stealing money from drug dealers had five felony arrests before he was hired by the Police Department, court records show. Officer William Ferguson, 30, was arrested four times as a youth and once as an adult on burglary and theft charges, records reveal. The adult arrest in 1991 resulted in a misdemeanor conviction for attempted burglary and three years on probation. His juvenile records are not available to the public. [continues 269 words]
A Knoxville Police Department officer planted marijuana in his police cruiser so he could falsely arrest someone, a federal civil rights lawsuit claims. William Henry Smith, 51, and his wife, Elizabeth Louise Smith, sued officer Ray McClain, Chief Phil Keith and the city for false arrest, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, excessive force and other civil rights violations. City Law Director Michael Kelley said his office will investigate the allegations, vigorously defend Keith and the city and will likely provide outside counsel for McClain. [continues 425 words]
Cayuga County Sheriff Peter J. Pinckney is being charged by the state Attorney General's Office in connection with $4,000 worth of missing cash seized indrug arrests and other crimes involving abuse of the public trust. No doubt the sheriff's friends and supporters, as well as most people in Cayuga County, would like to believe that the sheriff is innocent or, at worst, that he's just "one bad apple in the barrel." What they may not realize though, is that, in some ways, Sheriff Pinckney is a victim himself. [continues 631 words]
Police: Federal and local investigators are pursuing allegations that the two officers robbed drug dealers at gunpoint in an ongoing scheme. Federal and local authorities are investigating allegations that a pair of Los Angeles police officers committed a series of armed robberies, stealing narcotics and money from drug dealers, according to sources and documents. Although Officer Ruben Palomares was earlier named as a suspect in the crimes, authorities are now probing whether he and Officer William Ferguson were involved in a criminal partnership similar to that of Rafael Perez and Nino Durden, the former LAPD officers at the center of the so-called Rampart scandal. [continues 1726 words]
WINSTON-SALEM - An investigation that led to the indictment of four police officers, including three Davidson County narcotics officers, is continuing and could lead to more charges and additional defendants, federal authorities said during court proceedings Wednesday. During a detention hearing for the four officers and two civilian residents of the Lexington area, Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra J. Hairston noted that there is evidence that law enforcement officers violated the Hobbs Act by abusing their authority. She also said prosecutors are considering filing a firearms charge against Wyatt Nathan Kepley, one of the civilian defendants. [continues 997 words]
Sheriff Gerald Hege made an important first step Tuesday in his effort to regain the trust of Davidson County residents following the arrests of three of his vice and narcotics officers on drug charges. Hege faces a difficult task. An affidavit in the federal and state investigation that led to the deputies' arrests detailed planted evidence, false arrests, break-ins, thefts and even assaults. The scope of the alleged wrongdoing is staggering. The fallout from the investigation is wide-ranging. Ninety-one court cases involving 35 people are at risk, since they involved the now-dismissed officers. The evidence used to make the arrests will be called into question. District Attorney Garry Frank has said he will review the cases on a case-by-case basis. Based on the information in the affidavit, Frank should strongly consider dismissing them outright and letting law enforcement officers start anew. [continues 385 words]
Is The Toronto Drug Squad Rife With Corruption, Framing Scores Of Poor Innocents And Pilfering From The Fink Fund? Or Is This Seeming Scandal A Classic Example Of Using An Elephant Gun To Shoot The Proverbial Flea? Could It Be That A Group Of Police Officers Just Broke Some Rules To Make A Broken System Work? The National Post's Christie Blatchford Investigates. When The Toronto Star breathlessly reported last month that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police had been called in to head an ongoing probe into alleged misconduct at the Toronto Police, it appeared the force must be embroiled in its worst scandal in modern history. [continues 3766 words]
Re: Letter from Douglas Leoni, Letters (July 26-Aug.1) While there may have been a day when the existence of a search warrant validated any type of police raid, that day is clearly in the past. Within the past 24 months a number of drug enforcement agencies have been exposed not only for their faulty tactics, but also for outright criminal activities. This includes units as near as the Sarasota Delta squad, which manufactured false warrants and planted evidence. The LAPD Rampart Division has had numerous officers indicted and convicted for similar offenses. The San Antonio police arrested eight officers in May, and just last week in Largo, a major marijuana cultivation case was dismissed due to the officers having submitted false testimony in order to obtain their warrant for entry. And it should be noted that these officers had been cited before for the same offenses. [continues 126 words]
John Tobin missed all the early warning signs: the unmarked white Lada idling in the snow outside his second-story apartment; the odd sounds on the telephone; the strange visit from the young Russian police investigator, who introduced himself only as Sergei and claimed he simply wanted to "hang out" with foreigners and listen to the Red Hot Chili Peppers. There were other ominous signals. Friends Tobin had made as an exchange student at Voronezh State University kept getting hauled in for questioning by the local branch of the Federal Security Service (F.S.B. in Russian), which used to go by the more recognizable initials of K.G.B. After a few shots of vodka, his older acquaintances and the parents of some of his friends would invariably fix him with a suspicious stare and demand, "What are you really doing in Russia?" [continues 4281 words]
New-Found Faith And Vow To Change Doesn't Sway Judge PRINCETON - A convicted drug dealer's assertions Friday that he "took the wrong road" but has found religion and vows to change his life failed to sway a judge in Bureau County Circuit Court. Associate Circuit Judge Scott Madson sentenced Chance T. Brown, 26, to six years in prison, saying his record negated his plea for mercy. "Mr. Brown, you're no stranger to the judicial system," Madson said. As the sentence was handed down, Brown smiled and nodded at the judge and left quietly for the jail with Deputy Cliff Morse. [continues 350 words]
The Hobbs Police Department has won a new trial in a lawsuit filed by a man alleging an officer planted a small amount of marijuana on him. U.S. District Judge Bruce D. Black this week dismissed a jury verdict in favor of Liberato Olivas, 52, saying jurors "relied on their own incorrect definition of planted evidence." Hobbs Police Chief Tony Knott sees the judge's opinion as a victory, but an attorney for Olivas views it as a delay and said part of the matter may be appealed. [continues 503 words]
138 Snared; Boucher Charged In 13 Murders Hells Angels leader Maurice Boucher no longer has two first-degree-murder charges to worry about. He has 15. The largest operation against biker gangs in Canadian history fingered Boucher yesterday for 13 additional killings and nabbed every member of his elite squad, the Nomads. Police conceded the operation won't cripple the Hells for long. "It's going to destabilize them at least for a while," said Capt. Michel Martin of the Surete du Quebec. [continues 1263 words]
But Police Say Disarray Won't Last Long Hells Angels leader Maurice Boucher no longer has two murder charges to worry about. He has 15. The largest operation against biker gangs in Canadian history tightened the noose around Boucher Wednesday by fingering him for 13 additional killings and nabbing every member of his elite squad, the Nomads. Police conceded the operation won't cripple the Hells for long. "It's going to destabilize them, at least for a while," said Capt. Michel Martin of the Surete du Quebec. [continues 471 words]
A federal jury in Albuquerque determined Friday that the city of Hobbs should pay $150,000 to a 52-year-old man who sued over alleged police harassment. Jurors deliberated a day and a half before finding officer Stan Durham liable of violating the search and seizure constitutional rights of Liberato Olivas. The allegation against Durham was that he planted evidence -- a small amount of marijuana -- on Olivas so he could be arrested in 1999. The jury awarded Olivas $50,000 in compensatory damages and $100,000 in punitive damages for Durham's alleged actions. The jury verdict, and subsequent reading of the jurors' note, sent shock waves through the defense. [continues 478 words]
One Concedes, 'we Were A Bit Confused' LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Some members of the jury that convicted three Los Angeles police officers in the Rampart corruption trial said they believe the judge was right to overturn the convictions. On Friday, Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Connor reversed the Nov. 15 convictions because she decided jurors discussed the wrong issue and failed to decide a key question -- whether two officers were struck by a vehicle driven by a gang member. Instead of discussing whether the accident occurred, Connor said, the jurors focused on whether any of the injuries rose to the level of "great bodily injury." That issue was never mentioned at trial. [continues 450 words]
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 16 -- A panel of experts issued a long-awaited report today on corruption in the Los Angeles Police Department, harshly criticizing what it characterized as the force's dictatorial and detached management and recommending a shift in power from the top officers to the civilian police commission. Although it did not cite them by name, the report focused its harshest conclusions on the chief of police, Bernard C. Parks, and the mayor, Richard J. Riordan, who has been a steadfast supporter of the chief throughout the corruption scandal and in the face of a consent decree that compelled the department to accept federal oversight. [continues 377 words]
Oakland Officers Victimized 8, Sources Say OAKLAND -- Fifty-nine criminal charges -- including conspiracy, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon and falsifying reports -- were filed Wednesday against four Oakland police officers who allegedly beat suspects, planted evidence and lied on reports. The four officers who allegedly called themselves "The Riders," Frank Vazquez, 43, Jude Siapno, 32, Clarence Mabanag, 35, and Matthew Hornung, 28, are expected to surrender to authorities today to be arrested. They have been on paid administrative leave since the alleged misconduct was brought to light in July. The city has informed the officers it intends to fire them, but they are appealing the action. [continues 884 words]
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A federal judge was selected to oversee the implementation of reforms aimed at ending brutality, racial profiling and other alleged abuses by the Los Angeles Police Department. The reform package, agreed to by city and federal officials after weeks of negotiations, is to be implemented by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Feess Jr., who was picked at random Friday. The package includes the appointment of an independent monitor by March who will be charged with overseeing the LAPD for five years to ensure the reforms are carried out. [continues 161 words]
Police Testimony Often Sole Evidence This is a typical drug case in Baltimore: A police officer is camped out watching a street corner. The officer sees a drug sale and comes out of hiding to make an arrest. The suspect tosses plastic baggies of drugs onto the street, or the officer finds drugs in the suspect's pockets. In a courtroom, the case boils down to the word of the officer against the word of the suspect. It happens thousands of times a year. Instances in which a suspect dumps the drugs as an officer approaches are so common that prosecutors and judges have a nickname for them - "dropsy" cases. [continues 1009 words]
The first trial against police accused of operating as rogue enforcers began today as prosecutors described how four members of the Los Angeles Police Department's elite anti-gang squad allegedly planted evidence, faked confrontations and repeatedly lied to send innocent men to prison. The officers' defense attorneys countered that their clients were good cops and innocent of the charges, and that their main accuser, a disgraced former officer convicted as a thief, is "the very face of evil." The high-profile trial is the first criminal case to be heard resulting from the ever-widening investigation of allegations that dozens of officers at the LAPD's Rampart Division, in an impoverished neighborhood near downtown filled with new immigrants, operated outside the law. [continues 982 words]
Defense Says Accuser's Credibility Is On Trial In Tainted Cases LOS ANGELES -- The police department scandal that has tormented Los Angeles for a year bursts into the open this week with the trial of four police officers whose freedom hinges on the credibility of their accuser, disgraced officer Rafael Perez. Perez, who bought leniency for himself by informing on others, has opened a floodgate on cases that had to be dismissed because he said officers had lied, planted evidence, shot suspects, committed perjury and filed false reports. [continues 413 words]
Trying To Enforce Drug Laws Can Sometimes Bring Out The Worst In Even The Best Officers One of the worst police corruption scandals in American history began with 3 1/2 kilograms of cocaine. That's what Los Angeles police officer Rafael Perez stole from a police evidence room. When he was caught, in August 1999, he agreed to talk, not just about the theft, but also about the shootings, robberies, ferocious beatings and other corrupt practices that were standard operating procedure for many of the officers of his police station. [continues 2566 words]
Federal Prosecutor Denies He Planted Evidence In Tacoma Case Saying a federal prosecutor tampered with evidence, a U.S. appeals court has overturned a Tacoma man's conviction for possession of more than 15 pounds of cocaine. "The fact that the prosecutor tampered with a crucial piece of evidence in this case undermines the integrity of the verdict," states the opinion, issued Thursday by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The appellate judges also raise the question of whether assistant U.S. attorney Bruce Miyake or Tacoma police planted the key evidence - a bail receipt in a black bag - used to convict Troy Anthony Edwards of possession with intent to sell the drug. [continues 993 words]
What's the difference between a corrupt police department's "blue wall" of silence and the Mafia's code of omerta? Apparently, very little, if any, according to a federal judge in Los Angeles. Judge William Rea has ruled that the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act can be used to sue the Los Angeles Police Department and the city. The case involves the department's Rampart Division, which polices a mostly Latino section of the city. About a year ago, stories began to break about widespread corruption by police officers in that division, of shakedowns, of beatings for profit and, in some cases, apparently for sport. [continues 608 words]
Ruling Could Boost Liability In Scandal LOS ANGELES -- A federal judge has ruled that the government's anti-racketeering statute, created to deal with drug bosses and organized crime figures, can be used in lawsuits against the troubled Los Angeles Police Department. Besides allowing one of the largest police departments in the United States to be dealt with like a criminal enterprise, the decision Monday by Judge William J. Rea of federal District Court drastically increases the city's potential liability in its worst police scandal in decades. The law permits a longer statute of limitations and could triple the damages the city could otherwise face. [continues 644 words]
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 29 -- A federal judge has ruled that the government's anti-racketeering statute, created to deal with drug bosses and organized crime figures, can be used in lawsuits against the troubled Los Angeles Police Department. Besides allowing one of the largest police departments in the United States to be dealt with as a criminal enterprise, the decision by Judge William J. Rea of Federal District Court drastically increases the city's potential liability in its worst police scandal in decades, since the law permits a longer statute of limitations and could triple the damages the city could otherwise face. [continues 675 words]
If he is elected president, George W. Bush plans to create a national commission that would examine controversies that have arisen in law enforcement and the criminal justice system in recent years. The commission could result in sweeping changes not seen since 1967, the last time a U.S. president convened such a group, several law enforcement officials and legal experts said. Democratic candidate Al Gore did not commit to establishing a commission but would deal with problems in a strong fashion if he saw evidence that action was needed, said Alex Zaroulis, Gore's Missouri spokeswoman. [continues 1923 words]
In just the last two years, cases of racial profiling, police abuse and corruption have flared up all over the country. In addition to the recent beating of a suspect by Philadelphia police that was caught on camera, here are a few other examples: The Los Angeles Police Department is embroiled in the worst police scandal the city has seen in 60 years. After former Detective Rafael Perez was charged in 1998 for stealing eight pounds of cocaine out of the police property room, he confessed to numerous illegal deeds. Perez and other officers in the Rampart Division had planted evidence on innocent people, falsified police reports, altered crime scenes and lied in court. [continues 740 words]
Last year's most talked-about drug bust didn't take place in the high-volume inner-city cocaine rings of Houston or Dallas, or in a major trafficking hub like Laredo. It happened about halfway up the hot, dusty highway from Lubbock to Amarillo, in a Panhandle county with more cows than people. The bust put tiny Tulia (population 5,000), previously known primarily for its bustling livestock auction, on the map, and made a star out of an equally unknown narcotics agent. [continues 7928 words]
Where the drug addicts at? Where the big houses at? Where the gold teeth? - -Donnie Smith I got debts no honest man can pay - -Bruce Springsteen When you think about crack cocaine, you think of burglaries, pawned televisions, and gang violence You don't ordinarily think of shoveling shit But that's what the drug life meant to Donnie Smith, who was, until an extraordinary and controversial drug sting last summer, part of the crack problem in the tiny Panhandle town of Tulia. [continues 8389 words]
A witness in an ongoing civil rights investigation into the Manatee County Sheriff's Office's anti-drug unit was ordered released from jail on Monday because of his cooperation with federal authorities. Robert Vanaken, 37, was being processed Monday afternoon and was expected to be released from jail by this morning. A judge ordered his release, but left him on probation, on Monday morning. Vanaken, who was serving a year in the Manatee County Jail for missing a court appearance, has been questioned by federal authorities. Federal prosecutors are pursuing allegations that former deputies in the sheriff's Delta Division planted evidence, stole possessions and committed other crimes when arresting suspects. [continues 433 words]
Only the foolishly optimistic could be naive enough to believe the civil rights movement ended racism in America. That lie is played out everyday around the country in the criminal justice system. Our justice system was originally intended to mete out punishment equally, regardless of a defendant's color, economic background or social status. But the cruel reality is that the system has evolved into one that punishes minorities much more harshly than their white counterparts. Over the years, the system has broken down into two separate and unequal systems - one for whites and one for minorities. [continues 409 words]
March 2, 1998: Six pounds of cocaine is checked out from property room at LAPD headquarters, ostensibly for use as evidence in a drug trial. * * * March 27: Police officials, concerned that the cocaine has not been returned, launch an internal investigation. * * * Aug. 25: LAPD Officer Rafael A. Perez is arrested on suspicion of stealing the cocaine. * * * Dec. 23: Perez's trial ends in a hung jury. * * * Sept. 8, 1999: As a jury is being selected for his second trial, Perez pleads guilty to stealing eight pounds of cocaine from LAPD facilities. He enters into a confidential plea agreement in which he is expected to receive a reduced sentence on the drug charges in exchange for identifying other police officers involved in crimes and misconduct. [continues 1395 words]
A petition filed Thursday in Superior Court contends that Veronica Chavez, 27, and her mother, Julia, were framed by officers in the Rampart area, the center of the ongoing police corruption scandal. "The Chavezes are decent, law-abiding citizens who had never been involved in the law enforcement system, ever, and they were terribly traumatized by what happened to them," Los Angeles County Public Defender Michael P. Judge said at a news conference. In a declaration filed with the petition, Veronica Chavez said she pleaded no contest to possession of cocaine in 1998 because she "saw no chance of a judge or jury believing my word over a police officer's." [continues 118 words]
A former Manatee County sheriff's deputy admitted on Wednesday that he planted evidence on a known drug dealer in retaliation for an internal affairs complaint. Lance D. Carpenter, 37, a one-time member of the sheriff's anti-drug unit, told federal investigators that he planted crack cocaine on Larren "Perry" Wade of Bradenton on April 2, 1998. About two months earlier, Wade had filed a complaint against Carpenter and other members of the Delta Division, accusing them of stealing $9,000 during an illegal search of his hotel room. [continues 178 words]
*Crime: Most involved disgraced ex-Officer Perez, who said police lied in their arrest reports. Some suspects served their sentences and were deported. Cases against 10 defendants who prosecutors believe were framed by officers from the Los Angeles Police Department's Rampart Division were dismissed Thursday, bringing to 60 the number of cases overturned as a result of the widening police corruption probe. Most of the cases dismissed Thursday involved arrests made from 1994 to 1997 by disgraced former Rampart Officer Rafael Perez and his onetime partner, Nino Durden. [continues 769 words]
Crime: Many of the names in the statewide database were compiled by LAPD's now-disbanded CRASH units. State and local law enforcement officials have created a computer database with files on more than 112,000 purported Los Angeles County gang members, 62,000 of whom were identified largely by officers from the now-disbanded Los Angeles Police Department CRASH units--including those in the scandal-ridden Rampart station, senior police officers say. The CRASH units were disbanded after members of the Rampart Division allegedly committed unjustified shootings, stole drugs, planted evidence and perjured themselves to frame innocent people. The heavy reliance by the database, called CAL/GANG, on intelligence gathered by such units raises questions about the reliability of the computerized information, which is available to agencies statewide. [continues 1379 words]
SOME CALL it the biggest scandal in the history of Los Angeles and it has some application to most cities, including Winnipeg. The scandal is the corruption and lawlessness within the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), described by critics as a story of malevolence and evil. I am not suggesting for a moment that Winnipeg police can be tarred with the same brush. In recent years, the image of Winnipeg police, in fact, has brightened with the appointment of chiefs of integrity, sensitive to the community. Police have a high rating in polls and face dirty and dangerous situations in their service to the public. But as in most centres, there is a resistance to outside independent investigation in cases of possible wrongdoing. [continues 664 words]
Confessed Killer Claims Dealings With Police Spanned 2 Decades Describing a relationship with Chicago police that he said spanned two decades, a street gang leader alleged Thursday that officers regularly ripped off drug dealers, fixed criminal cases and several times sprung him from jail so he could visit his girlfriends. The revelations were detailed during an hourlong proceeding in U.S. District Court in Chicago, where gang leader and confessed killer Nelson Padilla admitted being part of a Miami-to-Chicago drug ring allegedly run by Joseph Miedzianowski, a former gang crimes officer indicted last year. [continues 1071 words]
After Recent Scandals In New York And L.A., Minorities Say They Are Even Warier Of Police. Carlos Ortiz doesn't know what to think of the cops anymore. "Do I trust them? No, I don't trust them," says the South Bronx teenager as if the question itself was ridiculous. "I just try not to run from them, 'cause they're shooting now." To many, the depth of Carlos's distrust is indicative of a crumbling of the criminal-justice system in many urban areas - seen in the police's loss of credibility. From the shooting and brutality trials in New York to revelations of widespread corruption in Los Angeles, law-enforcement officials have been thrust into the spotlight as lawbreakers, undermining their legitimacy and the trust of the people they're supposed to serve, particularly in minority communities. [continues 929 words]
In a significant breakthrough in the Rampart corruption investigation, a Los Angeles police officer implicated in the scandal has corroborated testimony from former Officer Rafael Perez about an alleged beating by police in 1998, sources close to the criminal probe said. The development is considered good news by prosecutors and detectives who have been searching for witnesses to substantiate the allegations of Perez, an admitted perjurer, who has testified that a band of Rampart officers planted evidence to arrest innocent people, beat suspects, covered up unjustified shootings and perjured themselves, among other abuses. [continues 780 words]
