Here is a story from last Sunday's Washington Post Magazine about which we should all think carefully. I encourage you to read it all. For those of you not inclined to do so, here is my summary of the key points. A Prince Georges County Sheriff's Special Weapons Attack Team (SWAT) broke down the door of the Cheye Calvo, Mayor of Berwyn Heights, Maryland -- a small community just off the Beltway between College Park and Greenbelt -- killed his and his wife's beloved dogs, and forced her Mother to the floor at gunpoint. The SWAT had a warrant, issued because a shipment of marijuana intercepted at a shipping facility by law enforcement was addressed to the Mayor. The parcel was falsely addressed and intended to be intercepted before delivery by someone working at the shipping facility. The warrant was a knock warrant -- the signing judge did not know the serving officers would break down the door and no one in law enforcement seems to have known that the target was a political figure -- but the Mayor's mother in-law screamed when, through a window, she saw men in black crossing the lawn with long weapons at the ready. In a landmark 1995 case, Wilson v. Arkansas, the US Supreme Court ruled that under exigent circumstances -- such as when there is concern that occupants of the target house might destroy evidence or respond with dangerous force -- those serving a warrant may enter without announcing themselves. But the team was unable to produce the warrant until hours after the raid, so they didn't have it with them, and clearly had no intent of knocking and announcing themselves when they deployed and attacked the Mayor's home and family. So now you get my interpretation. The SWAT pulled on their balaclavas, picked up their weapons, and advanced on the house at the run. The Mayor and his family could not have interpreted those actions as anything other than a criminal home invasion. It says POLICE only on their backs, after all. Their alarm was no unreasonable. If the Calvos had been armed, and had killed the officer who burst through their door, they could very possibly been found innocent of the killing by a jury of their peers by reason of self defense. At least one person has been acquitted in similar circumstances here in New Mexico. Of course, Maryland is not New Mexico. William White, a friend and sometime reader of these missives, recently testified before the legislature in Santa Fe offering a list of procedural restrictions on the use of paramilitary tactics by police. His notes and presentation from his testimony are attached here with his permission. He writes Thank you for the kind words; please feel free to pass along any of the material you'd like. Regarding the article in the W.P., I just got that link last night from Cheye Calvo. He thinks the bill he is pushing in MD has a good chance of passing, and he asked if I would try to get a similar bill introduced in NM. I'm in the process of doing that right now, even though I think chances of passage are slim due to the timing, and the urgency of our budget shortfall. Even so, his hope is that if the bill is being considered in several states at once, it might generate some national coverage and awareness of the problem. With that in mind, you might want to urge your network of folks to contact their legislators to support or co-sponsor a bill. I'll keep you in the loop on my progress, if any. Actually, I'm optimistic of getting a bill introduced. Here are White's reform ideas and suggested restrictions on use of SWAT: Video of all SWAT raids. Liability insurance for officers Premiums by individual/other private source (Not risk management) Condition of employment Point system for substantiated complaintssliding scale Cumulative with time limit. Excess = no certification Prohibit acceptance of forfeiture assets within New Mexico. Prohibit use of National Guard resources for SWAT teams. Higher standard for anywarrant served by SWAT. ONLY for potentially violent suspects. No more raids for simple possession, traffic warrants, medical users, etc. No warrants based solely on snitch evidence. Too often unreliable. No SWAT for suicidal subjects, absent threat to others. No SWAT for welfare checks, absent threat to others. Any raid on a wrong address must be presumptively negligent. Burden shifts to agency. Criminal and Civil. Insurance for damage to property of innocent subjects mandatory for agency. Agency must be presumptively liable for repairs/restitution. i.e. fix it first, then fight it. (Not Risk Management). Require departments to keep statistics on all warrants executed. Purpose (drugs, illegal weapons, fugitive, warrants outstanding, etc). Limits (time of day, no-knock authorized, etc.) Basis (snitch, sworn statement of officer, etc.) Names of affiants, judge, suspect, witness, etc. Names of snitches, confidential informants to be redacted, except in raids of innocent subjects or incorrect address identification. These stats must be available to public under I.P.R.A. (Inspection of Public Records Act. This is New Mexicos version of F.O.I.A.). Limit power of police unions. Prohibit or publicize contributions/ endorsements. I urge you to contact your representatives in Maryland, New Mexico, and elsewhere to urge them to introduce, debate, and pass such a measure. {Dad, Mike}