Police abuse

Silence Speaks Volumes At Albuquerque Community Meeting

After months of protests against deadly police shootings, the Albuquerque City Council heard from outraged activists and a few police supporters Thursday night as it considered alternate ways to select the police chief. But it heard nothing but silence from at least seven activists who had signed up to speak -- some of whom turned their backs rather than address the civic leaders. They were ejected from the council chambers, cited for criminal trespass and banned from council meetings for 90 days. That penalty seemed to surprise at least some of the council members, however, and may be altered. “Silence is speech,” some audience members shouted, pumping their fists in the air as security ushered out the mute activists. The backdrop for the meeting was the Albuquerque Police Department’s 25 deadly shootings since 2010, and a U.S. Justice Department report, released last month, that found many of the shootings unjustified.

Stand With Mothers Whose Loved Ones Were Killed By NYPD

May 11, 2014 Staff, www.PopularResistance.org Resist! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Police abuse, police brutality

NY 1 Reports: Unarmed 18-year-old Ramarley Graham was shot and killed by police officer Richard Haste inside the teen's Bronx home in 2012. The officer was not indicted. On Friday, other mothers whose sons were killed by NYPD officers gathered for a Mother's Day Rally urging the Department of Justice to take action in the case. This Mothers Day weekend stand with mothers whose loved ones have been killed by NYPD. Ms. Baez, Ms. Diallo, Ms. Bell and many more, will demand the DOJ open a full investigation into the killing of Ramarley Graham. Moms of New Yorkers killed by NYPD over past two decades are uniting to demand the U.S. DOJ open a full investigation into the NYPD killing of my son, Ramarley Graham, and calling on the NYC Inspector General to investigate this pattern. At Foley Square mothers of Anthony Baez, Amadou Diallo, Sean Bell, and many more as we all demand the DOJ open a full investigation into the killing of Ramarley Graham. This Mothers Day weekend, stand with mothers whose loved ones have been killed by the NYPD.

DeBlasio & Bratton Increasing Marijuana Arrests In NYC

May 11, 2014 Erik Altieri, www.norml.org Educate! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Drug War, Marijuana, Police abuse

A new report released this week by the Marijuana Arrest Research Project reveals that marijuana arrests have actually increased in New York City under the new leadership of Mayor De Blasio and Police Commissioner Bratton. In March 2014, the NYPD performed more marijuana possession arrests than in any month in the last six months under the Bloomberg administration. In fact, March 2014 saw more arrests than in 10 of the 12 months in 2013 under the previous administration. The total number of arrests for first quarter of 2014 are higher than both the third and fourth quarters of 2013. These arrests also continue the disturbing trend of disproportionately falling on individuals of color. In Brooklyn, in predominately white Park Slope, police made just 7 marijuana possession arrests in the first three months of 2014. In Carroll Gardens and Red Hook they made 12 marijuana arrests in that same time frame. More affluent neighborhoods saw even fewer arrests. In Manhattan, Police only made two marijuana possession arrests.

Injustice In America: Cecily McMillan Found Guilty Of 2nd Degree Assault

May 5, 2014 Justice For Cecily, www.justiceforcecily.com Resist! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Police abuse

We are devastated by the Jury’s verdict today. It has been clear from day one that Cecily has not received a fair and open trial. The job of a judge during a jury trial isn't to guide the verdict to fit his opinion. Judge Zweibel, who consistently suppressed evidence,has demonstrated his clear bias by consistently siding with the prosecution. In addition to suppressing evidence, he imposed a gag order on Cecily’s lawyers, which is a clear violation of their 1st Amendment Rights, and placed the burden of proof on the defense, not the prosecution. He is rightly known as ‘a prosecutor in robes’. Beyond Judge Zweibel, it is disgusting to see vast resources from taxpayers wasted for over two years to prosecute Cecily. Manhattan DA Cy Vance has refused to drop this case, pursuing maximum charges against Cecily while ignoring police violence and misconduct. This is unfortunately not isolated to Cecily’s case but is indicative of a system concerned not with justice but with the unrelenting harassment of dissenters and the powerless.

Federal Grant Encourages Police Terrorism In Southern Town

May 4, 2014 Spencer Woodman, www.alternet.org Educate! Drug Policy, Police abuse

As Durham becomes a regional center for sophisticated culture and cuisine, the drug enforcement strategies of its police increasingly assign second-class status to the city’s minority communities. Over the past several months, protesters alleging police misconduct have pummeled the city’s police headquarters with rocks and met tear gas along the usually amiable streets of this city of 240,000. In seeking to understand the roots of the city’s divisive policing, lawyers at the Southern Coalition for Social Justice were astonished by what a recent round of public records requests produced. Not only was a federal grant subsidizing what they regarded as the most perniciously targeted drug enforcement operations of the department, but the grant — with a key “performance measure” emphasizing police report their sheer volume of arrests — also appeared to be incentivizing the department to raise its overall number of drug arrests, which overwhelmingly affect the city’s black community. SCSJ attorneys add that recently revealed evidence also indicates that the federally funded program included an illegal system of secret payments law enforcement made to witnesses who delivered successful drug prosecutions — another sign, they say, that the city’s policing has flown off the rails.

Cecily McMillan Testifies Officer Grabbed Her Breast, Threw Her To The Ground

May 1, 2014 Staff, www.PopularResistance.org Resist! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Occupy, Police abuse

Below are two articles describing the testimony of Cecily McMillan, the occupy protester on trial for assaulting a police officer. She testified that she was grabbed by someone from behind who pulled her down onto the ground by grabbing her breast. She does not remember hitting the officer with her elbow after she responded to having her breast grabbed. Below are two articles by The Guardian and The New York Times describing her testimony: "Cecily McMillan: I was labeled 'Paris Hilton of Occupy Wall Street'"; and "Protester Says She Doesn't Recall Hitting Officer With Elbow." Taking the witness stand for the first time in her trial for felony assault, Cecily McMillan told the jury that she advocated a course of peaceful demonstration and political engagement with the outside world that frequently set her apart from other members of the protest movement. “From the moment I showed up, I was very concerned that there was not some sort of mission statement – who we are and what we stand for – and particularly that we stand against violence,” she said, under questioning from her attorney, Martin Stolar.

Occupy Livestreamer Settles With NYPD For $55,000

April 25, 2014 Josh Boss, www.nydailynews.com Resist! New York (NY), New York City (NYC), NYC, Occupy, Police abuse

Josh Boss, 26, says Thomas Purtell, an assistant chief and Patrol Borough Manhattan South commander at the time of the 2011 arrest, tackled him while shouting, 'Don’t resist!' Boss sued alleging false arrest, excessive force and nerve damage to his wrists from handcuffs . A Brooklyn man arrested by a top NYPD cop while live-streaming an Occupy Wall Street march with his cell phone has settled with the city for $55,000, he told the Daily News Thursday. Josh Boss, 26, says Thomas Purtell, an assistant chief and Patrol Borough Manhattan South commander at the time of the 2011 arrest, tackled him and roughed him up while shouting, “Don’t resist!” Boss’s disorderly conduct charge was ultimately dismissed — and he sued alleging false arrest, excessive force and nerve damage to his wrists from handcuffs. He turned around and sacked me,” the Bushwick man said in an exclusive interview with The News. “I was standing in the crosswalk … I was definitely not resisting. I had a 250-pound officer on me with his knee on my face and neck.”

Testimony Of Key Witness In Cecily McMillan Prosecution

April 20, 2014 Kevin Zeese, www.PopularResistance.org Educate! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Occupy, Police abuse, police brutality

The key witness for the government, Officer Bradley Bovell, was the main focus of attention all week in the Cecily McMillan trial. Since this is a one witness case, his testimony and credibility are critical to the result. This week it also became evident which side of the trial Judge Zweibel is on – he’s almost like having another prosecutor in the room. Throughout the cross-examination the prosecutor objected to defense attorney’s line of questioning, people in the court room say there were scores of objections. The judge ruled for the prosecutor and prevented Stolar from providing any context to what was occurring in Zucotti Park and in the conflict between Cecily McMillan and Bovell. Judge Zweibel is worrisome. In the pre-trial phase he urged Cecily to plea to a felony, telling her if she were found guilty the sentence would be more severe. Now, he is carrying that pro-prosecution attitude into the trial.

Month Of Resistance To Stop Mass Incarceration

April 17, 2014 Staff, www.stopmassincarceration.net Resist! Mass Incarceration, Police abuse, Racism

The malignancy of mass incarceration did not arise from a sudden epidemic of crime. Nor did it result from people making poor personal choices. Instead it arose from cold political calculations made in response to the massive and heroic struggle for the rights of Black and other minority peoples that took place in the 1960’s and 70’s, and in response to the enormous economic and social changes brought about by globalized production. This cancer of mass incarceration has been, from the beginning, nothing but a new Jim Crow in place of the old one. Like the old Jim Crow, it drew on, fed off and reinforced the deep-seated roots of the racism that grew up with slavery. Like the old Jim Crow, it has been, from the beginning, unjustifiable, utterly immoral and thoroughly illegitimate. This must stop – NOW! Not the next generation, not in ten years, not any time off in some promised future that never seems to come. NOW!

30,000 Newly Released Photos Show History Of NYPD Spying

April 12, 2014 Sam Roberts, www.nytimes.com Educate! Police abuse, spying, Surveillance

The New York City Department of Records and Information Services announced the addition of 30,000 photographs to its on-line gallery. From the NYC Department of Records: Some of the more unusual images from this series depict political groups monitored by the New York City Police Department's "Alien Squad." These photos range from Communist Party rallies in Madison Square Garden to the Nazi summer retreat in Yaphank, Long Island run by the German American Bund. See all the Alien Squad photos. DOR staff and researchers from New York University's Tamiment Library are collaborating to identify people in the photos. If you recognize someone, please let us know by emailing commissioner@records.nyc.gov. These are among more than 2,000 photographs added from the NYPD departmental files and Emergency Services Unit (ESU), dating from 1928 to 1941.

Two Versions Presented In Opening Argument Of McMillan Case

April 12, 2014 Kevin Zeese, www.PopularResistance.org Resist! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Occupy, Police abuse, police brutality

On Friday, opening arguments indicated this is a case of the credibility of two witnesses Office Grantley Bovell and Cecily McMillan. There are two different stories of the incident and no witnesses to confirm either version. A video tape of the incident is so unclear that both sides say it proves their case. McMillan has corroborating evidence for her story, photographs taken by her doctor that show bruises on her body, most importantly bruises showing fingerprints grabbing her right breast. McMillan's version is that Bovell violently grabbed her breast from behind and she instinctively reacted throwing her elbow around to hit her assailant. Bovell's version is that Cecily was screaming at a female police officer when he arrived and he went over to escort her out of Zuccotti Park. He will testify, according to the opening argument, that Cecily asked her if the cameras were on, then knelled down, came up quickly and threw her elbow into his face.

Operational Plan For Canadian Police Raid

April 11, 2014 Miles Howe, halifax.mediacoop.ca Resist! Blockade, Environment, Police abuse, Tar Sands

he Halifax Media Co-op has acquired a copy of the 'Tactical Troop Operational Plan' for the RCMP's October 17th raid of the anti-shale gas encampment along highway 134 near Rexton, New Brunswick. Aside from being an interesting glimpse into the mentality of police who prepare such raid plans – where portable toilets are considered to be 'not insurmountable' fortifications, for example – the operational plan also contains valuable and heretofore unknown information. For example, a working group, led by an 'Independent Third Party Negotiator', was engaged in creating an agreement that would have seen SWN, the Houston-based gas company who's equipment had been blockaded inside a compound since September 29th, be “allowed to remove all their vehicles and equipment from the compound.”

Cecily McMillan Trial Update: Halfway Through Picking The Jury

April 10, 2014 Kevin Zeese, www.PopularResistance.org Resist! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Police abuse

The trial of Cecily McMillan – a prosecution that should not even be taking place – is in recess today and about half way through jury selection. “We are now up to 7 jurors, and we only need 9 more (the jury is 16 people - 12 jurors and 4 alternates). Cecily’s lawyers were able to once again bring up their desire to mention Officer Bovell’s history of violent conduct and gained permission to question him about it, which is really good for us. Just like anyone, there are good police, and there are bad police... and this one is pretty bad.” Bovell’s history is critically important because the prosecution is essentially a one witness case. Cecily’s case has finally gotten some major mainstream media coverage. The New York Times published a fair story that described Cecily as “a labor organizer, was a nanny and a graduate student at the New School when she was arrested. She has said she went to Zuccotti Park that night to meet a friend, not to join the protest.”

Release The COINTELPRO Political Prisoners

April 9, 2014 Charlene Muhammad, www.finalcall.com Resist! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Human Rights, Police abuse

Human rights activists are calling on the government to grant amnesty and unconditional freedom to all political prisoners incarcerated because of COINTELPRO, a secret federal law enforcement program that destroyed Black and dissident organizations in the 1960s and 1970s. Men and women who sacrificed their lives so others could enjoy civil liberties and human rights in America are now aging and suffering failing health as they languish in prison, some for 40 years, and many in solitary confinement cells, unfit even for dogs, said their advocates. It is imperative that those they fought for remember and fight for them, said the activists. J. Edgar Hoover, former head of the FBI, began the covert, illegal CounterIntelligence Program in 1956 to destroy militant organizations.

Cecily McMillan Trial Update, Judge Rules Against Defense

April 7, 2014 Staff, www.justiceforcecily.com Resist! Criminal Justice and Prisons, Occupy, Police abuse

Cecily McMillan, accompanied by approximately 50 supporters, was back in court April 7th for pre-trial motions. Judge Zweibel upheld hisprevious decision on motion 50-4(a), denying access again to Officer Grantley Bovell’s personnel files, on the grounds that this previous history of excessive force and corruption are not relevant to the case at hand. The DA argued that none of these cases were substantiated due to the recommendation from the internal affairs bureau, an arm of the NYPD. Approximately 50 supporters showed up to court this morning. Many were wearing a pink hand over their right breast, signifying solidarity with Cecily, who was sexually assaulted in this exact manner by Officer Bovell the night of M17. Judge Zweibel ordered that these signs of solidarity would be forbidden in the court room, as the claim of sexual assault is "unsubstantiated."

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