Police brutality is killing us, says ACLU of Colorado

[Bluebear]

"Police Brutality is Killing Us." That was the stark message, laid out in black-and-white, in the editorial pages of the Denver Post yesterday. But this wasn't an editorial: It was an ad placed by the America Civil Liberties Union of Colorado, part of a new Race to Justice campaign designed to hammer home police brutality as a major issue in this mayoral campaign. The ACLU is calling for a town hall meeting on police brutality, and has set it for June 2, five days before Denver will elect a new mayor. Here's more of its message, laid out on the website www.race2justice.org:

Welcome to the Race to Justice campaign.

The recent incidents of excessive force and racial profiling committed by Denver's Police and Sheriff Departments simply cannot be allowed to continue. Denver needs a radical overhaul of our public safety agencies; one that rebuilds community trust and creates an atmosphere where abuse is never tolerated. The ACLU, along with many other community groups and local leaders, is demanding immediate action.

Why did we take out an ad in the Denver Post? Because reform cannot wait. We are encouraged by the Justice Department's decision to consider a formal investigation of Denver's law enforcement agencies, but this conversation needs to begin with the community.

As evidence of excessive force, the ACLU cites the case of Alexander Landau, who was pulled over for allegedly making an illegal left turn and brutally beaten, as Joel Warner first reported here; Denver City Council recently agreed to pay Landau a $795,000 settlement.

And then there's Michael deHerrera, the son of a sheriff deputy who was beaten as he left LoDo one night -- a beating captured on a stunning video. And Marvin Booker, whose death in Denver's new jail might have improved physical conditions but did nothing to improve attitudes.

http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2011/05/police_brutality_killing_aclu_colorado.php

[99th_Monkey]

1. Case in point - man in wheelchair brutally thrown to ground on his face

for the heinous suspected crime of drinking a beer in his wheelchair.

http://www.worldhomelessactionmovement.org/?p=80

[sabrina 1]

2. I was sorry I watched that video, it was so disturbing.

Seeing those big, tough cops standing there after knocking a disabled man out of a chair, injuring him and not even asking him if he was alright, just leaving him lying there in a pool of blood! And we criticize other countries. I heard one woman at the end of the tape expressing outrage. Those cops are inhuman.

Good for the ACLU, they are the only group of people these days who actually fight for our rights and as such the only ones I will donate to. I don't see anyone in DC fighting for our rights.

Today, a majority of Senators, something like 78-4 voted for cloture on the Patriot Act. The ACLU has been fighting to stop them, but where are all the people?

[barbtries]

5. i actually chose not to

i have been sickened too many times already by video of police brutality. i want them out there so consciousness grows. but i didn't have the stomach for it this weekend.

[sabrina 1]

10. I know what you mean and often do not watch these

videos for the same reasons.

[truedelphi]

12. Your point about the ACLU being the only ones doing anything

For our rights very much resonates with me. Especially given the nonsensical reasons that we have the "Patriot Act."

[sabrina 1]

14. Yes, when you see that our Representatives nearly unimously voted

to extend that anti-Constitutional law, while the ACLU are fighting it, I know who I will be donating to from now on.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

15. Wanna know the kicker? They claimed he "fell" out of the chair.

That was before the video surfaced.

No wonder pigs want to make it illegal to film them

[reggie the dog]

6. they guy jumped out of the wheelchair and tackled two cops

his has been charged with assaulting the two cops he tackled based on the words of the cops he allegedly attacked. i didnt see him tackle anybody in the video though, but according to the cops the guy in the wheelchair jumped them.

[mysuzuki2]

7. yes and he should also be charged with destruction of public property

for trying to crack the sidewalk with his head.

[99th_Monkey]

8. How can we believe our lying eyes when we KNOW cops never LIE. ~nt

[Mimosa]

3. Police in the US have become militarised.

SCARY.

[xchrom]

4. Recommend

[DevonRex]

9. Recommend. Ironically the new guy has said the police were at fault

in one recent beating. Strange, but that's a huge improvement over past investigations. I'm hoping the FBI investigation will help clean out the department of the bully culture it has had for as long as I've been here.

Dedicated to Jeff Truax, who was shot and killed by an off-duty Denver cop that was moonlighting as a bouncer.

[leftstreet]

11. K&R

[MindPilot]

13. K&R from a former Denverite

is that right, Denverite?