Are Cops In Chicago Behind Many Of The Shootings That Are Blamed On Gang Violence?

This past Memorial Day weekend, many mainstream media outlets reported that 56 people were shot and a dozen died in Chicago. No arrests have been made, reports say.

For years there have been rumors and speculation about many of the killings that have occurred in Chicago. Many people in the Melanoid community suspect that police officers are really the ones behind some of these shootings. Chicago has become to go-to deflection talking point for white supremacists (and white supremacist supporters) who use the alleged “Black on Black” violence in Chicago to justify the violence and mistreatment of Melanoid people around the country.

So when we see these recurring reports coming out of Chicago every holiday weekend reporting that a certain “record” number of people were killed or shot  over a three day period,and no arrests were made,this raises many red flags with some in the community.

It’s not a stretch of the imagination to suspect that law enforcement in Chicago could carry out such corrupt deeds because Chicago police has had a long history of corruption. And when it comes to white police officers interacting with Black citizens, the corruption is oftentimes excused, ignored or covered up. Recently, several stories have come out about corrupt cops in Chicago and their racial attacks on Melanoid citizens.

There was the recent acquittal of an off duty white cop who shot and murdered an innocent Melanoid bystander named Rekia Boyd.

The city of Chicago recently had to pay reparations to Black torture victims who suffered at the hands of police officers.

So if white police officers have had a history of terrorizing,and killing innocent Black people openly,and in many cases, doing it with impunity, is it implausible to believe that law enforcement could also be behind many of the reported shootings that we hear so much of in Chicago?

A few years ago Illinois State Rep. Monique Davis publicly reported that she had heard rumors in the community that police officers were behind many of the reported shootings that were blamed on gang members in Chicago. After she went public with these allegations,she was swiftly criticized by many law enforcement officials and conservative pundits.

So do you think it’s possible that police officers are behind many of the shootings in Chicago?

Coroner's inquest to be held into death of Andrew Loku; Black Lives Matter 'applauds' decision

A coroner’s inquest will be held regarding the death of a South Sudanese man who was shot and killed by Toronto police in July.

Andrew Loku, 45, was shot by a Toronto police officer in an apartment building in the Caledonia and Rogers roads area on July 5, 2015.

In a press release issued Wednesday, the coroner’s office said that the inquest will “examine the events surrounding Loku’s death.”

A jury in the inquest may also make recommendations on how deaths similar to Loku’s can be prevented in the future.

Loku, a mentally ill man, was shot as he wielded a hammer in a hallway of an apartment building. According to the Special Investigations Unit, officers were called to the building after they received a report that Loku was threatening to kill a woman there.

The SIU said that once officers arrived on the scene, they approached Loku and requested he drop the hammer.

Police said Loku refused to drop the hammer and began moving toward the officers with the hammer held above his head.

Vigil, protest held after Chicago cop fatally shoots 16-year-old boy

There is outrage after Chicago police shot and killed a 16-year-old boy.

In Homan Square on Monday night, police pulled over a car that was connected to an earlier shooting. Police say Pierre Loury jumped out and an officer chased him.

Police say Loury then pointed a weapon at the officer and that is when he was shot. But a witness claims he saw officers "high five" each other after the teen was gunned down.

And now, protesters are demanding justice. A group held a vigil at the scene of the shooting and then marched onto the Eisenhower.

Even though the facts of this case are still far from clear, there are those on the side of Loury who claim this was not a justified shooting, despite what police say that he pointed a gun at an officer, and that the gun was recovered at the scene.

It threatened to turn ugly Tuesday night as protesters loudly and angrily confronted police in front of the station where the officers involved in the chase and shooting work. Police managed to keep order and move the protesters down the street.

Earlier, several hundred people marched down the alley to the spot where Loury was shot and killed as he ran from a police stop a block away.

“We do believe that this individual turned and pointed the handgun at the officer the handgun was recovered at the scene where the young man was shot,” said 1st Deputy Supt. John Escalante.

Police radio transmissions captured the intensity of the moment, and a neighbor facing the alley posted a video on Facebook of the scene shortly after the chaotic moment.

Loury’s mother, overcome with emotion, joined the vigil as supporters chanted against police and in support of Loury

Black man beaten to death within 48 hours in notorious Texas jail after he’s too poor to pay bond

trick Joseph Brown was arrested on a misdemeanor theft charge for stealing a guitar but in less than two days he lay dead on the Harris County Texas Jail floor. Brown had no violent criminal history but his bail was set at $3,000 nonetheless and he was thrown behind bars.

The Sheriff’s office spokesperson says it was cellmates Curtis Maxwell and Ebenezer Nah who beat Brown to death, according to the Houston Press. He also said that prison guards are supposed to check the cells once every 15 minutes and there is one guard for every 48 inmates. Each cell contains 20 inmates.

The problem beyond Brown’s death is that Harris County Jail is one of the worst places a poor person can be put in jail. Since 1979, Harris County has had a set of bail amounts already outlined so that people arrested can immediately be released. In most cases a judge would evaluate someone accused of a crime and set a bail amount based on the person and his or her situation. In Harris County, they look at a chart and there are no exceptions. So, Brown could have been released if he had the money. If a person doesn’t, even if he or she is a non-violent offender, they’ll still likely be sitting in the clink until your trial date.

Despite being required to check cells every 15 minutes, Harris County Jail is known for its unfortunate treatment of those being held for lack of bail money. Last year theHouston Chronical did a detailed expose on the Harris County Jail after one diabetic man was booked without his insulin. He vomited dozens of times before he eventually passed out three days later. Norman Hicks Sr. died because he didn’t receive medical attention after a guard hit him and failed to report the incident. Another man in the Harris County Jail was arrested because he spent too much time visiting with his children during his scheduled visitation. Three days later officers in riot gear invaded his cell and smothered him to death after accusing him of creating a weapon from a smoke detector.

All of this comes after a 2009 Justice Department investigation into the Harris County Jail. State Sen. John Whitmire, (D-Houston) held a hearing on jail calling it “unsafe and unhealthy” not to mention a danger to public health. Neither the expose, nor the hearing or the investigation from the Justice Department saved Patrick Joseph Brown this week

Fatal shooting of unarmed homeless man in Venice unjustified, commission says

The officer who shot and killed an unarmed homeless man in Venice last year was not justified in using lethal force, the Los Angeles Police Commission ruled Tuesday.

The board voted 4-0 in closed session to approve chief Charlie Beck's report, which said video footage contradicted officer Clifford Proctor's claim that Brendon Glenn was reaching for a gun when he was shot.

Earlier, this year, Beck, in a rare move, recommended criminal charges against the officer.

No law enforcement officer in L.A. County has faced criminal charges related to an on-duty shooting in 15 years. 

L.A. District Attorney Jackie Lacey's office said she has not yet decided whether to file. 

In Glenn's death, a body camera worn by one of the officers captured portions of the incident, as did a surveillance camera at the nearby Townhouse Bar, where the ordeal began.   

Last May, police responding to a 911 call about a man arguing with the bar's bouncer encountered Glenn, 29, who they said became involved in a struggle with someone on the sidewalk. 

The officers initially sent Glenn on his way then returned when they saw him turn back toward the bar and fight with the bouncer.

Man Shoots at Intruders, Turns Out it was a No-Knock Raid. Now He Faces the Death Penalty

On Friday, May 9, 2014, just after 5:30am in Killeen, Texas, Marvin Louis Guy was the target of a no knock raid.
The officers were looking for drugs, yet none were found in the home. There was some questionable paraphernalia, but nothing indicative of drug dealing- or anything damning enough for a reasonable person to feel the need to take an officers life.
Unfortunately the danger of no-knock raids is real. just ask the parents of baby Bou or the family of Detective Dinwiddie.
Detective Dinwiddie was one of the SWAT officers who broke into Guy’s house on May 9th, based on a seemingly bogus informant tip off about drugs being dealt from the home.
Likely alarmed by the men climbing through his windows at 5:30 in the morning, Guy and his wife sought to protect themselves and their property and fired on the intruders- in self defense.
Dinwiddie, along with three other officers were shot while attempting to breach the windows to the home, according to the department’s press release.
“The TRU was beginning to breach the window when the 49 year old male inside, opened fire striking four officers.”
Since the shooting occurred during the break in, a reasonable person would assume they had not yet identified themselves as police officers. How on earth is this not self defense?
Prosecutors are now seeking the death penalty against Guy. He is charged with capital murder in Dinwiddie’s death, as well as three counts of attempted capital murder for firing on the other officers during the shootout, injuring one other officer. Body armor protected others who were hit.
This announcement, given by the prosecutor in open court, comes one day after Governor Rick Perry presented Dinwiddie’s family with the Star of Texas award. This award is given out each year to police and first responders killed or injured in the line of duty, the Killeen Daily Herald reported.
Let’s flash back to December, in Texas, for a moment.
On December 19, also just before 6am, Burleson County Sgt. Adam Sowders, led a team in a no-knock marijuana raid on Henry Goedrich Magee’s mobile home in Somerville.
Also startled by these intruders, Magee opened fire, fearing for the safety of himself and his then pregnant girlfriend.

Sowders was unfortunately killed among the chaos.
In February, just a few months before the fateful raid in Killeen, all charges against Magee were dropped when a Texas grand jury refused to indict, based on them believing he feared for his safety and that this was a reasonable act of self defense.
With such similar circumstances and such intensely opposite repercussions one cant help but try to find the differences.
Most obvious? Guy is black and Magee is white. Also, take note of the difference in photos used in the press.

Self defense is a right for all, and no knock raids not only pose a danger to dogs, children, and communities in general- but officers as well. Maybe its time to
re-think that strategy.
We need to end the war on drugs and put an end to this violence.
Estimates show that the total number of SWAT deployments across the country has increased from a few hundred per year in the 1970s, to a few thousand per year in the 80s, and in 2010, the Washington Times reported estimates being as high as 50,000 per year.
Many of these are for nonviolent misdemeanor drug offenses, not big time drug kingpins. Should we really be risking lives of citizens and officers, over what someone chooses to put into their own body?
For more information on botched paramilitary raids, check out this shocking and interactive map from Radley Balko.

Self Defense Gets Sgt Derrick Miller Life in Leavenworth for Killing Afghan Insurgent

Army National Guardsman, Sergeant Derrick Miller was sentenced to life in prison at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas with the chance of parole by the United States Military. His actions saved his unit but instead of receiving a medal or a thank-you, he became a political prisoner in his own country. 

In September 2010, twenty-eight year old Sgt. Derrick Miller, of Hagerstown, Maryland,  took part in a combat mission in an area of Afghanistan known to be a Taliban stronghold. An Afghan national who had penetrated a  defense perimeter set up by the US Army was brought to Sgt. Miller’s attention by one of the soldiers under his command. This soldier recognized the man from a security checkpoint one day prior. He positively identified him as the driver of a truck which Miller’s security detachment had searched. That search revealed the vehicle was transporting armed combatants to a nearby firefight. Derrick’s men were, at that time, instructed to let the vehicle pass because of instructions handed down by his superiors in command at the time.

The Afghan man appeared to be gathering information, thus portraying suspicious behavior, ultimately leading to Sgt. Miller being sent to question him. At this time he was already confirmed to be an enemy combatant.

The questioning took place in an open area with another soldier and an Afghan interpreter present. During questioning, Sgt. Miller asked the man why he was within the perimeter. As the man began to speak, his story changed, not once, but twice. He originally claimed to be there to fix a power line that was down. Later he claimed he was there to fix a water pump.

Originally he was seen accompanied by two men whom he claimed to be his sons and helpers. However, both of these men left the perimeter without performing any work, and going separate directions to their village. These men were not present during Sgt. Miller’s questioning. While questioning the insurgent things began to get heated. The Afghan insurgent attempted to grab Sgt. Miller’s weapon, ultimately leading to him being shot and killed in the struggle.

Georgia Man to be Executed Thanks to Juror Who Stated: It’s “What the N––––– Deserved”

The state of Georgia will execute Kenneth Fults Tuesday after a racist juror said he’d vote for the death penalty during his trial.

Fults, a Black man, spent 19 years on death row for the 1996 shooting and killing of Cathy Bounds during a burglary. Eight years after the trial, a  juror signed a sworn statement in 2004 that said, “I don’t know if he ever killed anybody, but that n––––– got just what should have happened. Once he pled guilty, I knew I would vote for the death penalty because that’s what the n––––– deserved.”

Georgia stated that despite evidence of racism, it was too late to reevaluate the case. Fults will be executed via lethal injection April 12.

A clemency hearing is scheduled for Monday and Fults’ lawyers are asking the State Board of Pardons and Paroles to spare their client’s life, according to MetroUK.

Fults’ legal team established a website dedicated to saving him from execution, because he only reads on a fourth-grade level. The website names Thomas Buffington, who is now dead, as the trial’s racially motivated juror. Attorneys have been asking courts to review evidence of racism since the affidavit was signed, but no court has ever ruled on the claim since Buffington signed his affidavit years after the trial.

The Telegraph reports Fults’ court-appointed trial lawyer, Johnny Mostiler, repeatedly fell asleep due to being overworked. Mostiler’s actions only further lead to an unfair judgement. The situation shows thediscrepancies in the justice system when it comes to Black people in the courtroom.

In Georgia, prosecutors have excluded every Black prospective juror in a death penalty case against a Black defendant. In the last decade, attorneys have used peremptory challenges three times as often to remove potential Black jurors as others in Louisiana’s Caddo Parish, according to The New York Times.

Death Penalty Information Center says as of this year, more Black defendants are on death row than white ones. Black defendants also are the second-highest race of defendants executed in the U.S. since 1976.

SC Cop Shoots Unarmed man | Best Footage Walter Scott Shooting Extended ...

(Reuters) - A white former South Carolina police officer indicted on a felony charge over the fatal shooting of an unarmed black motorist was sentenced on Monday to three years probation over the February 2014 incident, local media reported.

Justin Gregory Craven, a former police officer in North Augusta, pleaded guilty to misconduct in office on Monday and was sentenced to probation as well as 80 hours of public service, local broadcaster WRDW reported.

The felony charge was dropped as part of Monday’s plea agreement, WRDW said. Craven faced one year in prison with a fine of up to $1,000, the Aiken Standard newspaper reported.

“We couldn’t ask for a better outcome as far as the sentence is concerned,” Jack Swerling, Craven’s attorney, told reporters. “(He) got probation, no house arrest, and he’s pretty much free to go live his life.”

The sentencing comes as law-enforcement agencies across the United States face increasing scrutiny over their use of force against minorities.

Kevin Hicks

APRIL 5, 2016

Kevin Hicks

 

DEMOGRAPHICS

Black Male, 44

LOCATION

1001 N Rural St

Indianapolis, Indiana

ARMED

No

 

CLASSIFICATION

Gunshot

POLICE DEPARTMENT

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department

Hicks was shot by an officer during a physical struggle at a gas station, according to authorities. The officer was responding to a call from Hicks's wife alleging that Hicks was hitting her. A witness reportedly claimed the officer started the struggle by striking Hicks first while handcuffing him. Authorities later said the officer tried to use a Taser on Hicks but that the weapon was knocked from his hand. The officer was treated for a bite to a hand and was being monitored for a possible concussion.