Drug WarRant

So while the killer of Tarika Wilson has been acquitted of any wrong-doing in a criminal court, he still faces civil proceedings. Additionally, now apparently, the Justice Department is taking a look at it.

The U.S. Justice Department will review the FBI’s findings in the case to determine if federal prosecutors should bring civil rights charges against the officer.

and

A separate internal investigation also is under way by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office in Dayton. That will help determine whether Chavalia will face any discipline by the police department. He remains suspended with pay.

Fine, so they’re having investigations. Peachy.
But where are the investigations of the higher-ups who green-lighted a domestic military incursion to prevent flushing? Where are the Justice Department investigations into, frankly, the Justice Department?
After all, they supply the kerosene that fuels the conflagration.

Charlie Lynch found guilty.
What a stupid world this is.

Officers cheer police shooting verdict in Lima

Lima, Ohio — A jury verdict that cleared a police officer in the drug-raid shooting death of an unarmed woman will allow other officers to do their job without hesitation, police union officials said.

Ah, yes. It would certainly be unreasonable to expect police officers to hesitate before shooting an unarmed black woman cowering on the floor of her home holding her baby. Particularly if fellow officers were busy shooting dogs downstairs at the time.
And it certainly would be unreasonable to find a different way to protect and serve other than home invasion.
But we don’t have to worry about that now, so Cheers!
Some commenters at that article know how to celebrate as well…

Bottom line = good guys win, bad guys lose. […] Why should a police officer have to put his life in danger when some idiot crackhouse mama acts aggressively? […] Miss Wilson (note NOT MRS. Wilson) was a train wreck waiting to happen. She got killed for poor life choices. Pure and simple. […] I agree with radfordstree. This woman’s life choices placed her and her children in mortal danger. These choices finally caught up with her. […] The real victim here is the police officer, for being persecuted for doing his job and putting his life at risk to do so

…
If any of these are residents of Lima, Ohio, they may be less excited, if the bill comes due…

A family member of the woman who was fatally shot during a police raid at her home seven months ago filed a lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Toledo against the City of Lima and police Sgt. Joseph Chavalia, claiming a violation of civil rights.
Darla Kaye Jennings filed the lawsuit on behalf of Sincere Wilson, her 1-year-old grandson who was injured when his mother, Tarika Wilson, 26, was shot. The lawsuit asks for compensation for Sincere‰s injuries as well as seeking an end to “police abuse by requiring that high risk search warrant executions be limited to situations where they are truly needed and where the least amount of force necessary to the situation is employed.”

Grandma — apparently the first person in Lima, Ohio, who really understands.

Ohio jurors acquit cop linked to death of mom holding baby

The all-white jury found Sgt. Joseph Chavalia not guilty of misdemeanor charges of negligent homicide and negligent assault.

Here’s the real tragedy:

Outside the courthouse, Wilson’s brother, Ivory Austin said he wasn’t surprised by the verdict.
“Now he (Chavalia) gets to get back on with his life,” he said. “He took my sister’s life.”
He said he was hoping someone from the police department would at least admit a mistake was made. […]
“I’m hurting deeply,” [pastor Arnold Manley] said. “The message I got out of all this is that it’s OK for police to go and kill in a drug raid,” he said.

It sure is. As long as they’re conducting a drug raid, they can kill anybody.

I’m enjoying hanging out in Chicago. What’s new in the world?
“bullet” Some Doubt Mayor’s Tie to Drugs — authorities are finally getting a clue as to what might have happened — too late for the dogs and the psychological health of the Mayor’s family. [Thanks, bogoman]

Apparently there has been a big problem all over the internet in the past day with anyone using Internet Explorer trying to access blogs or sites that have Sitemeter for tracking visits.
I’m hoping that’s a quickly resolved problem that won’t require me to uninstall Sitemeter.
Obviously, the other easy fix is for everyone to switch to a decent browser, but you may not even be able to read this to know you need to switch.
So what’s the scoop? Anyone out there with IE able to read this? Has the problem been fixed?
Update: Apparently the problem has been fixed.

Note: I’m taking a few days off to do some biking and exploring in Chicago with a friend, and don’t know how much wireless access I’ll have, but I’ll be stopping by when I can.
“bullet” Prohibition ups gang violence – nice article about LEAP’s efforts in Canada.

“Prohibition is not a failure, it’s a self-perpetuating policy disaster”

“bullet” Interesting post at Addiction Inbox on Drug abuse vs. drug dependence talks about 10 drug myths (drawn from a longer list by Dr. Carlton Erickson.
“bullet” From a couple of weeks ago — Bloggingheads: Just Say Yes to Drugs Ta-Nehisi Coates and Megan McArdle discuss drug legalization — a bit disjointed (McArdle seems to have a better handle on it). Interesting to see Ta-Nehisi try to struggle with the problem of wanting enforcement of violence in poor communities, yet knowing that drug enforcement isn’t the answer.
“bullet” Dan Gardner: Statistics only count when they prove your point Hmmm….
“bullet” Here’s another one that I didn’t get around to mentioning before, but has been in my mind (and I’ll probably talk about it more later). Study sees racial bias in traffic-stop searches. Not a surprise, of course, just more evidence.
Steve Chapman gives a great response in Consenting to be abused

Stopped on a lonesome stretch of highway, at the mercy of an armed man who has the power to arrest, very few citizens feel free to refuse. The Illinois State Police report that 94 percent of white motorists and 96 percent of minority ones “consent” to such searches.
Is that because they have nowhere else they’d rather be? Is it because they get a kick from watching a cop take apart their cars in an effort to put them behind bars? Or could it be because they suspect that refusing a cop is far too dangerous? […]
As the ACLU argues, abolition is the only solution. In Illinois, the burden of these searches falls disproportionately on racial minorities, but achieving perfect racial equity would not alter their oppressive nature.
In a nation founded on respect for the rights of every person, these searches give all priority to the power and convenience of the government, while mocking the liberties we are supposed to have. Why would we consent to that?

“bullet” Sometimes I get too tired to report these…. Drug Raid: Police Shoot Man, Find Nothing But Codeine Syrup and Marijuana Laws Killed Two People This Week [Thanks for doing it, Scott]
“bullet” Steve Young has an oddly amusing article: Prohibition: Empowering Gangs in Chicago for 90 Years
“bullet” Be sure to read David Borden’s nicely done editorial in the current Drug War Chronicle
“bullet” “drcnet”

“bullet” Reason TV on the travesty in the Charlie Lynch trial. Owen Beck is silenced in the courtroom. More detail.
“bullet” CNN video — Barney Frank talks about his pot decrim bill.
“bullet” Trial of Sgt. Joseph Chavalia for shooting Tarika Wilson:

A woman shot and killed by a police officer during a drug raid was likely on her knees and complying with a SWAT team’s orders to get down when she was hit in the neck and chest, two experts testified Wednesday at the officer’s trial.

Nick Juliano at Raw Story has great coverage of today’s press conference with Rep. Barney Frank, who is introducing a marijuana federal decriminalization bill (not expected to pass, but intended to open a dialogue).
The ONDCP apparently sent their big guns to immediately try to rebut, well, something else entirely.

ONDCP’s Dr. David Murray’s impassioned arguments that seemed more appropriate in Reefer Madness were greeted with plenty of puzzled glances.
Why did the White House feel it necessary to send at least three staffers to Capitol Hill to place in every reporter’s hand a copy of its 20-page, color-copied “2008 Marijuana Sourcebook?” RAW STORY posed this question to Murray.
“It is our responsibility to be aware of policy developments,” said Murray, who clarified that he had a PhD and was not a medical doctor.

Ah, so that is why the ONDCP rushed this bizarre 2008 Marijuana Sourcebook (pdf) to press (subtitled: Marijuana: The Greatest Cause of Illegal Drug Abuse).
The ONDCP is close to becoming its own worst enemy.
Here’s some footage from the actual press conference.