- Jan 15, 2013
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There are a couple of news articles that came out with new light on this and here is one in addition to the one below that I copied and pasted.
Some Are Saying This Surveillance Video Is Evidence of the Alarming Militarization of Local Police Forces in America
A dramatic raid by local police in Ankeny, Iowa, was captured on surveillance video last Thursday and it has critics warning of the continuing militarization of police departments in America.
Police were executing a search warrant at the home of a Des Moines family, where they thought theyd find $1,000 in merchandise purchased with a stolen credit card. Given the nature of the crime, some people, including the family, are asking if the excessive force was necessary.
The Des Moines Register has the latest on that volatile police raid that I wrote about yesterday. The raid was apparently for suspected credit card fraud. Ankeny Police Department officials are now speaking out. But Im not sure theyre helping their cause:
Ankeny police are defending the raid, saying they needed to use that approach to protect officers safety.
Ankeny police Capt. Makai Echer said officers knew at least one person in the house had a permit to carry a firearm. She said the department isn't currently investigating how officers handled the search, nor does the department have a written policy for executing warrants.
So they see nothing wrong with how the raid was handled, and the department has no stated policy for executing warrants. All of that is troubling enough. (The lack of a written policy also suggests a lack of training.) As is the officer safety justification, as if that in itself trumps the rights of the people inside the house.
But citing the fact that one of the occupants in the house Justin Ross had applied and was approved for a gun permit is probably most disturbing of all. First, hardened criminals who are a threat to kill cops tend not to be the sort of people who bother with permits, or to register their firearms with the government. I dont think that point needs more elaboration.
Second, Ross was not one of the suspects for whom the police were looking. It seems highly, highly unlikely that had the police knocked on the door, announced themselves and waited for someone to answer it, a law-abiding citizen like Justin Ross would be a threat to suddenly decide to kill some cops. But its much more likely that Justin Ross might feel the need to defend himself upon hearing unidentified parties break down two doors, followed by the sight of several armed men in his home. Indeed, thats very nearly what happened.
Finally, think of the implications if this were the policy everywhere. It would mean that if youre a gun owner, the police could cite that fact in and of itself as justification for them to violently tear down your door, rush your house with guns and point those guns at your family even if their warrant is for a nonviolent crime, even if its for a white collar crime, even if you've dutifully registered your gun with the government. In fact, given that Rosss permit is how the police knew he was armed in the first place, especially if you've dutifully registered your guns with the government. If I were a gun owner in Des Moines, Id be asking some questions.
Aside from the gun issue, the paper also asked William Moulder, Ankenys police chief, about how the officers dealt with the familys security cameras:
Covering or disabling cameras is standard procedure for officers executing a search warrant or raid to ensure people inside cant monitor approaching officers, Moulder said.
I dont know that this is true. It might be reasonable to cover an outside camera as they approach if they had a no-knock warrant. But this wasnt a no-knock raid. They had a knock-and-announce warrant. The entire point of a knock-and-announce warrant, at least in theory, is to give the occupants of the home the opportunity to answer the door peacefully, thus avoiding damage to their property and violence to their persons. (As I pointed out in the previous post, in many jurisdictions the knock and announcement have become perfunctory, but at least were supposed to have that protection.)
Even conceding the point, Im not sure how it justifies ripping a camera from the wall, or covering a camera once theyve already broken into the house. That suggests more that they didnt want an independent account of how the raid was conducted. And with good reason.
CORRECTION: The police cited Ross permit to carry a gun, not to own one. So the language in my post about him registering his gun with the government is technically incorrect. But the general point still stands. It was Rosss decision to get a government-issue permit that the police say justified the raid.
Link to News Article
Some Are Saying This Surveillance Video Is Evidence of the Alarming Militarization of Local Police Forces in America
A dramatic raid by local police in Ankeny, Iowa, was captured on surveillance video last Thursday and it has critics warning of the continuing militarization of police departments in America.
Police were executing a search warrant at the home of a Des Moines family, where they thought theyd find $1,000 in merchandise purchased with a stolen credit card. Given the nature of the crime, some people, including the family, are asking if the excessive force was necessary.
The Des Moines Register has the latest on that volatile police raid that I wrote about yesterday. The raid was apparently for suspected credit card fraud. Ankeny Police Department officials are now speaking out. But Im not sure theyre helping their cause:
Ankeny police are defending the raid, saying they needed to use that approach to protect officers safety.
Ankeny police Capt. Makai Echer said officers knew at least one person in the house had a permit to carry a firearm. She said the department isn't currently investigating how officers handled the search, nor does the department have a written policy for executing warrants.
So they see nothing wrong with how the raid was handled, and the department has no stated policy for executing warrants. All of that is troubling enough. (The lack of a written policy also suggests a lack of training.) As is the officer safety justification, as if that in itself trumps the rights of the people inside the house.
But citing the fact that one of the occupants in the house Justin Ross had applied and was approved for a gun permit is probably most disturbing of all. First, hardened criminals who are a threat to kill cops tend not to be the sort of people who bother with permits, or to register their firearms with the government. I dont think that point needs more elaboration.
Second, Ross was not one of the suspects for whom the police were looking. It seems highly, highly unlikely that had the police knocked on the door, announced themselves and waited for someone to answer it, a law-abiding citizen like Justin Ross would be a threat to suddenly decide to kill some cops. But its much more likely that Justin Ross might feel the need to defend himself upon hearing unidentified parties break down two doors, followed by the sight of several armed men in his home. Indeed, thats very nearly what happened.
Finally, think of the implications if this were the policy everywhere. It would mean that if youre a gun owner, the police could cite that fact in and of itself as justification for them to violently tear down your door, rush your house with guns and point those guns at your family even if their warrant is for a nonviolent crime, even if its for a white collar crime, even if you've dutifully registered your gun with the government. In fact, given that Rosss permit is how the police knew he was armed in the first place, especially if you've dutifully registered your guns with the government. If I were a gun owner in Des Moines, Id be asking some questions.
Aside from the gun issue, the paper also asked William Moulder, Ankenys police chief, about how the officers dealt with the familys security cameras:
Covering or disabling cameras is standard procedure for officers executing a search warrant or raid to ensure people inside cant monitor approaching officers, Moulder said.
I dont know that this is true. It might be reasonable to cover an outside camera as they approach if they had a no-knock warrant. But this wasnt a no-knock raid. They had a knock-and-announce warrant. The entire point of a knock-and-announce warrant, at least in theory, is to give the occupants of the home the opportunity to answer the door peacefully, thus avoiding damage to their property and violence to their persons. (As I pointed out in the previous post, in many jurisdictions the knock and announcement have become perfunctory, but at least were supposed to have that protection.)
Even conceding the point, Im not sure how it justifies ripping a camera from the wall, or covering a camera once theyve already broken into the house. That suggests more that they didnt want an independent account of how the raid was conducted. And with good reason.
CORRECTION: The police cited Ross permit to carry a gun, not to own one. So the language in my post about him registering his gun with the government is technically incorrect. But the general point still stands. It was Rosss decision to get a government-issue permit that the police say justified the raid.
Link to News Article
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