I’m not going to let them close her casket … They’re going to have to look at what the police did to my child.Martha Mae Williams, whose daughter was killed in Cleveland when police fired 137 shots into the vehicle she was in after the driver led police on a 25-minute car chase. Both Williams’ daughter and the driver were killed. According to Mansfield Frazier (see article at the link), records released after the incident suggest that police personnel violated numerous protocols, including department rules against involving more than two police cruisers in a chase, and ignoring direct orders to terminate pursuit of the vehicle. (via letterstomycountry)
Not enough information: Chief Justice Helen Winkelman ruled that the 70 search warrants used to raid the home of, and confiscate property from, Megaupload.com founder Kim Dotcom were too vague to be valid. In the decision, Winkelman also ruled that the FBI broke the law when it took confiscated items outside of New Zealand’s borders. As a result, New Zealand’s Attorney General has been ordered to formally request the the return of any/all confiscated items. So, do you think Dotcom will end up coming out of this ordeal unscathed? (Photo via CBS Tech Talk) source
Judge widens lawsuit against NYPD’s stop-and-frisk practice
The New York Times reports: A federal judge has granted class-action status to a lawsuit accusing New York Police Department officers of using race as a factor in stopping people on the street.
Photo: Robert Stolarik for The New York Times
In which a controversial policy gets its comeuppance.
» The waitress says it’s a tip, but the mother of five still reported the large sum of cash to police who told her to wait 90 days before spending it. After further inspection, authorities said the money smelled like marijuana, and are now holding it as part of a drug investigation. But Stacy Knutson has grown tired of waiting, and filed a lawsuit in Clay County District Court to have the money returned to her. What do you think — valid tip, case evidence, or both?
We’ve got to hand it to him, if we drank that much a) our circuits would likely short out and b) we certainly wouldn’t remember this Queen classic word-for-word. Here’s hoping that “being really drunk” was really all that landed him in this position, otherwise we’ll feel a bit guilty for giving this guy his 15 minutes. source
In which Occupy Wall Street protesters attempt to goad cops by making them “fish” for donuts, but instead jump the shark themselves. Painful to watch. Who thought this was a good idea? (ht @antderosa, via @palafo)
» Thanks to a paperwork mix-up, authorities in New Zealand may have been acting illegally when they seized approximately $200 million worth of assets during the raid and arrest of MegaUpload-founder Kim Dotcom. Although police did catch their mistake and apply for new paperwork prior to executing the raid, a judge has ruled the initial paperwork invalid. She’s granted a temporary legitimacy to the second order, but is expected to rule soon on whether or not Dotcom will have his assets returned to him.
Gunman leaves two dead, including himself: An unidentified gunman, who authorities believe acted alone, opened fire with two semi-automatic handguns at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic this afternoon. During the 15-20 minute ordeal, the man shot and killed one person, and wounded seven others before being killed by return fire from police. source
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Inmates working at a correctional unit’s print shop in Vermont sneaked a prank image of a pig into a state police crest that is emblazoned on police cars, and 30 cruisers sported the design for the last year, according to officials.
The official crest depicts a spotted cow against a background of snowy mountains, but the inmates’ version featured one of the cow’s spots shaped like a pig in an apparent reference to the pejorative word for police, state police spokeswoman Stephanie Dasaro said.
Read more: U.S. inmates hide pig in official police car decal
Moo.
OWS Invests In Unmanned Surveillance Drone Dubbed The ‘Occucopter’
For years we’ve seen images of the military’s unmanned aerial vehicles aiding soldiers in combat zones, and their evolution from surveillance tools to the heavily weaponized Predator drones. Now, the Guardian reports, Occupy Wall Street livestreamer Tim Pool hopes to use that technology as an additional set of eyes on the police department.
Tim Pool, an Occupy Wall Street protester, has acquired a Parrot AR drone he amusingly calls the “occucopter”. It is a lightweight four-rotor helicopter that you can buy cheaply on Amazon and control with your iPhone. It has an onboard camera so that you can view everything on your phone that it points at. Pool has modified the software to stream live video to the internet so that we can watch the action as it unfolds. [more]
(images courtesy of Time/iPhoneZA/GeekAlerts)
Wow, Occupy just stepped up its game. Be sure to read Manic, Chill’s full piece.
The must-read of the weekend:
WHEN I was 14, my mother told me not to panic if a police officer stopped me. And she cautioned me to carry ID and never run away from the police or I could be shot. In the nine years since my mother gave me this advice, I have had numerous occasions to consider her wisdom.
Agree with Sam. Another key line: “Maybe blacks and brown people look more furtive, whatever that means.”
The evolution of riot gear. (NYT)
The drawing style makes this whole thing look much friendlier than it actually is.
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