We have serval cases of police misconduct to discuss today.
The first comes out of Texas, where a cop shot a 93-year-old woman Wednesday, May 7, after allegedly seeing her holding a gun. Pearlie Golden was shot multiple times by Steven Stem after he was dispatched to Golden’s home on a report of a disturbance involving a gun. Witnesses reported hearing several shots, although exactly how many times the elderly woman was hit remains unclear. She did not, however, discharge her weapon, and witnesses could not confirm that she pointed it at officer Stem. Congratulations to officer Stem for ridding Hearne, TX, of a vile and dangerous criminal. You should feel great about yourself. NOT!
Portland: Department brass is defending the handcuffing of a 9-year-old girl. The incident occurred last year, but details are only now coming into focus. Police were initially dispatched to an area youth club on a report of a fight. Upon arrival, officers decided to handcuff one of the kids involved in the fight—a 9-year-old in a blue and white, two-piece bathing suit. The child was taken downtown, processed on an assault charge and held for about an hour. She was eventually released, and prosecutors did not take the case to trial. Now the girl’s mother and several civilian advocacy groups are close to filing suit in connection with the handcuffing and calling on the department to release internal documents surrounding an investigation of the case. The Independent Police Review Division, an internal department panel, found officers committed no wrongdoing.
A cop in Springfield, MO, is under online fire after a video surfaced showing him pushing and punching a young female outside of a bar last week. Courtney Lewis, 24, now faces an assault against an officer, while the officer involved—identified as Thomas Jordan—remains on duty. The female was among several dozen involved in a downtown disturbance on April 27, and a witness’ video clearly captures Officer Jordan violently pushing Lewis (backwards) to the ground. She gets up, begins screaming and throws a few (weak) punches. The officer responds by tackling the 110-poundish pissed off 20-something, punch her repeatedly and pin her down. The video then cuts out. An internal investigation has been requested to look into the incident. http://www.kspr.com/news/local/video-shows-sgf-police-officers-physical-confrontation-with-woman/21051620_25847516
NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams aired an in-depth feature story on Wednesday evening’s national broadcast exploring the police brutality epidemic in New Mexico—particularly Albuquerque. Boisterous protestors interrupted a city council meeting last week and plan to do so again tonight in response to a well-documented string of officer involved shootings during the past two years—including 26 killings. The report is attached to this post.
Daily Police Brutality Blog 