DC Businessman arrested for unregistered ammunition

[Benanov]

Agreed. Unfortunately Policing has become more about mindless enforcement and intimidating the general public than keeping the peace and defending the right of every individual citizen to life, liberty and property.

I see it everyday. Guys I work with get upset when they pull a law abiding, gainfully employed citizen over with a firearm in their vehicle and they can't make an arrest because the person was going to the range. They'll literally break out the Digest of Criminal Laws in an effort to find something to charge the person with. When that fails they call the Sergeant. Trying to have a conversation with these people is like talking to a brick wall. They truly believe they're doing God's work.

Tell me which county you work in, SO THAT I NEVER GO THERE. Thanks.

 

[jpo183]

Agreed. Unfortunately Policing has become more about mindless enforcement and intimidating the general public than keeping the peace and defending the right of every individual citizen to life, liberty and property.

I see it everyday. Guys I work with get upset when they pull a law abiding, gainfully employed citizen over with a firearm in their vehicle and they can't make an arrest because the person was going to the range. They'll literally break out the Digest of Criminal Laws in an effort to find something to charge the person with. When that fails they call the Sergeant. Trying to have a conversation with these people is like talking to a brick wall. They truly believe they're doing God's work.

Umm what the heck. Time to arrest some illegal troopers.

 

[jaybee]

Bad guys shoot back

so who do you want to go after

an arrest is an arrest in the record book

unbelieveable and the politicians don't care

 

[Scott4]

What a perfect example of abuse of power from the DC police....

 

[Brooklyn]

He SUPPOSEDLY threatened his estranged wife with a GUN she back channeled a TRO stating this. She lied and it was not figured out until after fact. This guy needs to have his record and and property returned.

Granting all ' facts'...as facts where is the justicstion for what is reported as a 30 man team?

Do they send 30 men for every domestic? Even a hot call would not get this response unless it was shots fired.

Then there is the concept of assessment of witness credibility- not much investigation done here. This smells.

 

[Benanov]

Then there is the concept of assessment of witness credibility- not much investigation done here. This smells.

It seems to me that the minimum level of witness credibility required to get a warrant for drugs or guns is at the lowest it's been in decades.

 

[Doctor_M]

Capital of the "land of the free"... it is a shame.

 

[EL1227]

Makes me want to stay out of DC. I guarantee you could probably find a stray spent casing or even a live round somewhere in my suv.

Or one may get 'found' in there accidently on purpose ...

 

[Old Salty Dog]

Agreed. Unfortunately Policing has become more about mindless enforcement and intimidating the general public than keeping the peace and defending the right of every individual citizen to life, liberty and property.

I see it everyday. Guys I work with get upset when they pull a law abiding, gainfully employed citizen over with a firearm in their vehicle and they can't make an arrest because the person was going to the range. They'll literally break out the Digest of Criminal Laws in an effort to find something to charge the person with. When that fails they call the Sergeant. Trying to have a conversation with these people is like talking to a brick wall. They truly believe they're doing God's work.

It is difficult to say how disturbing I find all of this. As someone who has either been in uniform or worked for the military for more than 40 years, NO ONE has a higher regard for, respect for and admiration of our LEOs than I do. No one.
My hat is off to all of you who put your lives on the line on a daily basis to guard the sheep.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

I am increasingly disturbed, however, by what seems to be the ongoing militarization of our police forces. The uniforms are now military. The weapons and armored vehicles are now military. The number of no-knock forced entries in this country has skyrocketed in recent years. The 'toys' being bought do beg being used to justify their budgets, and the scenes coming out of Boston after the marathon bombings were truly chilling. Just as when I watched on live TV the assault by the ATF on the Branch Davidians in Waco, I did not feel more secure as a citizen watching the police/army move through the neighborhoods in Boston with armored vehicles dragging homeowner after homeowner out into the street.

I also find quite chilling the increasingly heard mantra from LEOs that their mission is to "get home that night, no matter what the cost...." I thought the mission of police was to protect and serve. The 'get home at any cost' sets up an us/them mentality that is more that of an occupying army than those serving and protecting the citizenry.

How do we correct this? NOT by bashing those who put their lives on the line daily.

If it is not already too late to correct this, the fix is by electing officials who will set policies and ensure that those putting on the uniform are both properly prepared and are taught to understand their true mission.

I would hope also that our LEO members who are also concerned about this trend actively work within their departments to keep the protect and serve mission alive. I thank you if you are actively doing that already.

GET POLITICALLY ACTIVE. NOW. 2014 is closer than we think, and we need to ensure a massive, massive turnout of those who love the Constitution as written. Enough of a turnout to overwhelm the inevitable voter fraud that will take place. I fear greatly for our future if things continue as they are.

Rant over.

 

[crowleycr]

How would you know a no knock forced entry is the police? Even someone yelling police search warrant can be a criminal. Most law abiding citizens would assume the worst. Best to let them leave the house and pull them over.

 

[kcbrown]

How do we correct this? NOT by bashing those who put their lives on the line daily.

If it is not already too late to correct this, the fix is by electing officials who will set policies and ensure that those putting on the uniform are both properly prepared and are taught to understand their true mission.

At the end of the day, we are each responsible for our own actions.

If LEOs are insistent upon infringing upon the rights of the citizenry, then that action is ultimately on them. They made the decision to carry out that infringement.

To say otherwise is to give the Nuremberg defense credibility.

"I was just following orders" is never a defense against the accusation that you did wrong.


If LEOs are so concerned about their own safety, then there is an easy fix for that: they can simply choose to not do the things that put them in harm's way.

 

[Blaster229]

Umm what the heck. Time to arrest some illegal troopers.

Why do you say Troopers and not local or county police?

 

[Seth]

How would you know a no knock forced entry is the police? Even someone yelling police search warrant can be a criminal. Most law abiding citizens would assume the worst. Best to let them leave the house and pull them over.

You wouldn't, especially if it happens at 3 am. I can't understand how the LEOs on this site, especially RoadDawg, think these raids are safer for the police than a traditional stop or warrant serving.

 

[SS396]

You wouldn't, especially if it happens at 3 am. I can't understand how the LEOs on this site, especially RoadDawg, think these raids are safer for the police than a traditional stop or warrant serving.

Oftentimes a traffic stop or regular warrant service won't accomplish the goal. For example, if we're looking at a meth manufacturer, we want to serve a search warrant on the house to catch them in the act, and with a significant amount of product. There have also been cases where the police have set up a sting at the house as a result of the search warrant. In other words, as buyers continue to approach the home as the police are there, they are confronted and checked out.

Sometimes dealers and manufacturers also have elaborate "fail safe" plans that a traffic stop may trigger. It may be predetermined that if the suspect doesn't arrive at a destination at a particular time, or doesn't answer a call within two rings, etc., then the home gets dumped immediately. They may also have their own counter surveillance that could witness a traffic stop, and again, the home gets dumped. The police can't compromise the investigation with a stop, or a casual warrant service, not that any of them are done casually.

Typically SWAT will do "No Knock" warrants. They are highly trained, and while it is inherently dangerous work, the raid is so orchestrated, and so quickly executed, that typically they're done pretty safely. The people inside are usually under control within thirty seconds or less. It's also safer for them if you think about it; don't even give the targets a chance to think about a confrontation.

I know this wasn't a drug case, but I though that might explain why No Knocks are sometimes necessary. In my experience, No knocks aren't necessarily easy to get either, but I guess that depends on where you work.

As far as anyone being able to claim that they are the police with a No Knock warrant, well, that is true. It's also possible for a criminal to do a fake traffic stop; it happens all the time. We can't prevent every possibility. Typically though (stressing the word typically), good people aren't usually the subjects of a No Knock warrant.

 

[jpo183]

Why do you say Troopers and not local or county police?

Troopers, cops, police, etc whichever term you would like to describe. I was describing police in general based on the OP (not just arrest police just because, I'm not cop bashing don't worry)

 

[teratos]

Oftentimes a traffic stop or regular warrant service won't accomplish the goal. For example, if we're looking at a meth manufacturer, we want to serve a search warrant on the house to catch them in the act, and with a significant amount of product. There have also been cases where the police have set up a sting at the house as a result of the search warrant. In other words, as buyers continue to approach the home as the police are there, they are confronted and checked out.

Sometimes dealers and manufacturers also have elaborate "fail safe" plans that a traffic stop may trigger. It may be predetermined that if the suspect doesn't arrive at a destination at a particular time, or doesn't answer a call within two rings, etc., then the home gets dumped immediately. They may also have their own counter surveillance that could witness a traffic stop, and again, the home gets dumped. The police can't compromise the investigation with a stop, or a casual warrant service, not that any of them are done casually.

Typically SWAT will do "No Knock" warrants. They are highly trained, and while it is inherently dangerous work, the raid is so orchestrated, and so quickly executed, that typically they're done pretty safely. The people inside are usually under control within thirty seconds or less. It's also safer for them if you think about it; don't even give the targets a chance to think about a confrontation.

I know this wasn't a drug case, but I though that might explain why No Knocks are sometimes necessary. In my experience, No knocks aren't necessarily easy to get either, but I guess that depends on where you work.

As far as anyone being able to claim that they are the police with a No Knock warrant, well, that is true. It's also possible for a criminal to do a fake traffic stop; it happens all the time. We can't prevent every possibility. Typically though (stressing the word typically), good people aren't usually the subjects of a No Knock warrant.

I understand the theory behind no-knock warrants. In the right circumstance, they are a very useful tool. I also think they have been used without the proper amount of care, and bad things have happened as a result.