Judge says investigation into allegations of torture by Chicago police

[DoYouEverWonder]

May 20, 2006

CHICAGO A federal judge in Chicago has ruled the findings of an investigation into allegations of police abuse should be made public.
Attorneys for several officers involved in the case had argued against the release of the report. A multi-year investigation looked into accusations that Chicago police tortured 192 black men in interrogation rooms during the 1970s and 1980s.

Allegations include officers using suffocation techniques, such as placing a typewriter cover over a suspect's head, as well as electric shocks, beatings and mock Russian roulette to elicit confessions.

http://www.whbf.com/Global/story.asp?S=4928673&nav=0zGo


If anyone thinks Abu Ghraib was a new phenomena, think again. Torture and brutality has been a common occurrence right in our own country for decades. This story is just one example of what goes on in the police departments, in cities across the US.

[shaniqua6392]

1. My brother in law was killed while in police custody.

We brought a lawsuit against them which went all the way to the U.S. District Court down in Ohio. The judge dismissed it for lack of evidence. The autopsy report showed how badly he was beaten, but the coroner ruled that he died from asphyxiation on vomit. Natural causes my ass. He is buried across the street from us so we can see where he lays from our front window. He was only 34 years old. This kind of stuff happens all the time in Detroit area, but no one cares. It all gets swept under the rug. We did hire attorney Feiger for our case also, but he could not get past all of the lies in the police department, the coroners office and the court system.

[FloridaPat]

3. Our country is in one sad shape. Sorry to hear about your

brother-in-law. They did that to a young teen in a Florida boot camp and came up with the same ruling of death.

[shaniqua6392]

9. Thank you. n/t

[William769]

2. Just one example?

You make it sound as if it's the norm. :eyes:

I'm not saying it doesn'r happen, but with all the communications of today & outlets lets try to keep things in perspective.

[DoYouEverWonder]

4. It happens a lot more often then you think

Most times it never gets reported and it is rare that charges are brought.

Torture and brutality are almost impossible to prove in court and most of the people that are subject to this brutality do not have the ways and means to do anything about it.

[Asgaya Dihi]

6. More or less, it is the norm

If a room full of 5 or 6 cops say something didn't happen and a suspect with a record says it did, it normally never goes past an initial accusation. That doesn't mean it doesn't happen a lot more often than we hear about. Even when it's caught on TAPE we often don't hear about it, such as with this case. Local news at best.

Want to hear torture by cops caught on tape? Some cops apparently figured they'd go after a suspect on their own time so did a home invasion, the guy ran and while the cops caught him his wife turned on a tape recorder which caught the following. They tortured him to force him to sign a consent to search form.

A few details on it
http://hammeroftruth.com/2006/04/25/southern-fried-justice-becoming-epidemic/

Audio only, about 40 minutes long but it went on after the tape ran out. It's not pleasant at times.
http://wms.scripps.com/knoxville/siler/siler.mp3

[Asgaya Dihi]

7. Here we go

If one example doesn't do it, and I can't blame you for that given the conceptions people have about our media and such, here's a well researched report on it.

Human Rights Watch
Shielded from Justice: Police Brutality and Accountability in the United States
http://www.hrw.org/reports98/police/

An excerpt from it

The brutality cases examined, which are set out in detail in chapters on each city, are similar to cases that continue to emerge in headlines and in survivors' complaints. It is important to note, however, that because it is difficult to obtain case information except where there is public scandal and/or prosecution, this report relies heavily on cases that have reached public attention; disciplinary action and criminal prosecution are even less common than the cases set out below would suggest.

Our investigation found that police brutality is persistent in all of these cities; that systems to deal with abuse have had similar failings in all the cities; and that, in each city examined, complainants face enormous barriers in seeking administrative punishment or criminal prosecution of officers who have committed human rights violations. Despite claims to the contrary from city officials where abuses have become scandals in the media, efforts to make meaningful reforms have fallen short.

The rarity isn't the one that escapes attention, the rarity is the one that gets attention. That from personal experience followed by years of research into the system. If a tape isn't running and witnesses don't come forward it didn't happen, and the cops know where the tapes and cameras are most of the time.

Don't get me wrong, many are honorable people who just want to do the right thing. But, the system doesn't stop the bad ones, it protects them. If you've the time I've got a video link showing some stuff that happened in our prisons as well, looks an awful lot like Abu Gharib at times.

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article8451.htm

The rarity isn't it happening, it's us hearing about it.

[shaniqua6392]

8. My brother in law's murder never made the news.

At the time, our attorney Geoff Feiger had several wrongful death lawsuits going against police departments. Only one made the news at that time. It is not the norm, but it does happen far more often than you think. Add that to the ones who are beaten and tortured and do not die, and you have an ugly picture of something horrible that gets swept under the rug.

[Kingshakabobo]

10. My best friend's little brother is a Chicago cop...

....he's only been "on the job" for 4 years and he already has the system figured out.

He talks about "tunning people up" (beating), racial profiling and MOCK EXECUTIONS. He told me how his Sargent held an empty gun to some gang-bangers head and pulled the trigger. He said the kid pissed himself. And that's only after 4 years.

[ConcernedCanuk]

5. Gee - USA police officers torturing people - what a surprise

.
.
.

NOT

[EFerrari]

11. When Amy Goodman reported on this, she reported that

it is still happening. I believe that was early last week.

[951-Riverside]

12. Ever wonder why CPD never invites the crew of COPS to film in their city?

...as far as I can remember I don't think any show has filmed Chicago PD "in action".

[Asgaya Dihi]

13. A detail I thought interesting

I was going to post more research links but I doubt most will read what's already there, but I did run across something I thought interesting. Something to consider when we hear the excuses for it. My old job was more than twice as dangerous as theirs, I worked construction. They were supposed to protect and serve, not cover their own ass at all costs and no matter the damage to others.

http://home.austin.rr.com/apdhallofshame/occupations.htm

Many occupations more dangerous than policing



We frequently hear police officers complain how dangerous their jobs are, using guilt as a motivator to extract support for increased pay or protection from consequences of officer misconduct. After September 11, it became almost impossible to criticize police officers' misbehavior without prefacing comments with genuflections toward officers' relative "heroism." "They risk their lives for us every day," was the common refrain.



And of course, in a sense, that's true. Police officers' jobs are more dangerous than most -- 12.1 officers per 100,000 die on the job annually compared with 4.3 per 100,00, which is the national average for all occupations. But many common jobs are much more dangerous than a police officer's, including groundskeepers, farmers, airline pilots, construction workers, and truck drivers.



Police are trained to approach potential threats with overwhelming force, and are outfitted with numerous safety technologies (vests, helmets, etc.) that make their on-the-job deaths much less likely than for, say, lumberjacks. Multiple officers provide backup frequently even for routine traffic stops. And harsh punishment of copkillers -- both ill treatment while in official hands and the threat of capital punishment -- creates dramatic incentives even for the worst bad guys to avoid killing a peace officer. Indeed, a great many police deaths involve traffic accidents or friendly fire.



Here's a list compiled from federal sources concerning the relative danger of several jobs with higher-than-average fatality rates:



Occupations more dangerous than being a police officer

Number of deaths per 100,000 employed

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics,

Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 2000





Timber cutting 122.1

Fishermen 108.3

Airplane pilots 100.8

Farmers 33.0

Miners 30.0

Construction laborers 28.3

Truck drivers 27.6

Groundskeepers 14.9

Laborers (non-construction) 13.2

Ranchers 13.0

Bus drivers 12.9

Police and detectives 12.1

National average: 4.3







Data taken from BLS press release on the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries at http://stats.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cfnr0008.pdf, and the Census-derived table at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/cfoi.t04.htm.