Police Acting Like Commandos

[Mike Frese]

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}