SWAT Gone Wild in Maryland

SWAT Gone Wild in Maryland

reason.com

Late last month, Berwyn Heights, Maryland Mayor Cheye Calvo took the unusual step of filing a civil rights lawsuit against the police department of his own county. The suit stems from a 2008 SWAT team raid on Calvo's house that resulted in the shooting deaths of his two black Labrador retrievers. In pushing back against the abuse he suffered at the hands of the Prince George's County police department, the mayor is helping expose a more widespread pattern of law enforcement carelessness and callousness throughout the state of Maryland.

(visit the link for the full news article)



[edit on 14-7-2009 by DimensionalDetective]

Sheesh...I'm glad I'm not living in Maryland right now.

This was the MAYOR that these gung-ho goons raided and violated, based on farcical "evidence" and lack of data-gathering prior to charging into his residence, killing his two dogs, and tieing he and his mother-in-law up in cuffs like a couple of animals. Just imagine what has happened to others who didn't have the "official" status to fall back on.

I hope he goes after these thugs, big time.

reason.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Throw the book at them or better yet get your torches and pitchforks. Why would the see the need to shoot the dogs anyway, labs are the kindest of dogs. Sounds like a case where I would encourage criminal activity to be taken against the perps but since this is a civilized board I cant.

I usually respond to alledged police overreaction threads here on ATS with restraint but in reading the linked article I cannot respond as usual. This county's swat team is out of control!

Read these... this is outrageous!

• In August 2007 police raided the home of a Prince George's County couple to serve an outstanding arrest warrant for their son. The parents were handcuffed at gunpoint. Police later learned that the couple's son had already been in police custody for 12 days.

• In November 2007 Prince George's police raided the wrong home of a couple in Accokeek. Though the couple presented the police with evidence that they were at the wrong address, the police still detained them at gunpoint, refusing even to let them go to the bathroom. The couple asked the police if they could bring their pet boxer in from the backyard. The police refused. Moments later, the police shot and killed the dog.

• In June 2007 police in Annapolis deployed a flash grenade, broke open an apartment door, and kicked a man in the groin during a mistaken drug raid. When they later served the warrant on the correct address, they found no drugs.

And their reaction is infuriating!

Prince George's County Police Chief Melvin High actually praised his officers' conduct, insisting that if they had to do it again they'd conduct the Calvo raid the same way. "Our investigators went in and showed both restraint and compassion," he told a local TV station.

Prince George's County Executive Jack Johnson told a local newspaper that Calvo would get no apology for the slaying of his dogs. Johnson's puzzling explanation: "Well, I think in America that is the apology, when we’re cleared.... At the end of the day, the investigation showed he was not involved. And that's, you know, a pat on the back for everybody involved, I think."

[edit on 14/7/2009 by Iamonlyhuman]

Someone needs to do something about these guys. Having just read all of that, my stomach is churning and my head is hot with fury. My hands are trembling as I type this. Monsters. And monsters should be dealt with accordingly.

reply to post by Iamonlyhuman


The reaction gets me madder than the original crime does. And what is it with shooting people's dogs? It seems like they are out to kill folks pets. No remorse at all from them on killing the innocent people's pets.

yeah cops tend to overreact especially if they have a really bad source and are jumping at shadows trying to get a bust.

I grew up for a while in a nice area of los angeles called toluca lake. while I was living there one summer a famous black actress and singer moved two houses down (she was renting a house for a few months while she was filming a movie) this neighborhood has more black people in it now but back then it was racist. the country club wouldn't take minorities or jews back then, and a black person moving in especially one of this persons nature was the hub bub in the neighborhood home owners association meetings etc...

No surprise every time this lady (she was very nice and cool to me and my friends) would leave town to go to the source awards, soultrain awards, grammys or what have you like clockwork 20 minutes after she would leave. burbank and north hollywood PD would swarm her house (like 4 or 5 units, sometimes even a helicopter) they would surround her house and kick in her front door, raiding the place essentially.

they never found anything consequential once, and would always leave a bright yellow or pink note attached to her broken front door. sorry about your door, call this number and the city will replace it.

It was obvious the police were responding to bad intel (like a racist and tort inducing neighbors who didn't want her in their white bread neighborhood.) eventually she got sick of the harassment and left.

she's gone on to become a famous jazz singer after leaving the hip hop world behind and even plays at the hollywood bowl. but the police and the good old boys network in the neighborhood were always out of control and raiding her house to no avail. pathetic really. they must have had somebody watching her (there were apartments across the street) cause they new every time she was about to leave town. either that or they were tapping probably illegally her or her managers phones to get her itinerary.

so I am not surprised that the maryland SWAT are out of control. If this woman had had dogs I would have no doubt the cops would have "accidently" shot them. just to make a point.