Pro And Con: Does MD Need ConCon?

An article in The Daily Record by Steve Lash

Obstruction of Justice

With audio/video from Freedom Watch, Judge Napolitano interviews Radley Balko.

Concerns police beating of a University of Maryland student.

Watch the entire video.

Wrongful Termination???

What’s this? Politics affecting the Public Defender’s job?
Fired?

This is very, very bad.

I hope Nancy Forster is being fair and accurate, if so – there is something very, very wrong going on concerning JUSTICE! Or, is there going to be any Justice??

DNA Testing Takes Too Long

Baltimore prosecutors dropped charges against a suspect that was caught last year (May/June 2008) and had been in jail since then until being released this last July (according to 45 Fox News).

This was because it took so long for the DNA test results to verify that the suspect’s DNA did NOT match that of the perpetrator of the crime!

According to Margaret Burns of the City Prosecutor’s Office there simply isn’t enough lab staff, and criminal analysts, to do the DNA testing on a timely basis. So there has been a request of stimulus money to help alleviate this problem.

So, the “suspect” that is now free – does he have a case to take the City to court? How about his year long incarceration? Our tax money supported him there, right?

Seems there is quite a problem with money in the City, and it is getting worse with a case such as this.

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UPDATED*3: Knock Knock – No No

Remember this story? About Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo and his family? His two dogs being shot and killed by the police?

Well, apparently there has been resolution in this case just recently.
Chances are no one is going to like it.

This isn’t just a problem here. It is nationwide.

Short history:
Atlanta, GA November 2006 – Kathryn Johnston killed in a botched no-knock raid
Howard County, MD January 2009 – Mike Hasenei’s home, Australian cattle dog killed, cops found nothing

Just to name a couple.
I would think laws need to address this properly. As it stands, cops make a mistake like this, they don’t pay, the innocent victim does.

Update: The Mayor intends to respond to this latest review by the Sheriff’s Internal Affairs Division.

Update*2: Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo announced Monday that he is filing a lawsuit against Prince George’s County authorities.

Update*3:  SWAT Gone Wild in Maryland. The author of this article also has chronicled similar instances of no knock raids throughout the USA. If you aren’t aware of what the SWAT teams are doing and have done here in Maryland, read Radley Balko’s piece.

Criminal Behaviour

On the part of who? It would appear some Baltimore Police officers.

Not just according to WBAL TV News, after all there is surveillance video from the bar to back up this assertion. You decide.

The real question here (that I have) is exactly how is justice served by actions like this? Unwarranted police searches. Bad treatment of customers in a place of business, when their immediate target is one specific person.

Ultimately, how will the Police Department handle this outrageous behaviour? Will we be privy to the process and determination of the status of those officers? Will they come to trial? What’s more – will those officers learn from their mistakes, or just operate that way more “carefully” in the future?

Lastly, here’s a quote. See if anyone can tell me who said it.

“The law must apply to everyone, or it means nothing. Do you understand?”