Why Cleveland is a Shithole

[Cynical Ninja]

Shetisha? Shirellda? Where the fuck do these names come from?

[HairOfTheDog]

Jesus, almost half of the on-duty police department involved in chase and killing of unarmed couple...

Seventy-four Cleveland police officers will face disciplinary action for a 2012 pursuit in which two people were killed in a hail of 137 bullets, police Chief Michael McGrath said Friday.

The news conference dealt only with the pursuit, not the use of deadly force, which is still under investigation and will be addressed at a later date.

A review of the incident shows that on the night of November 29, the police force had 277 officers on duty. Of those, 104 were involved in the chase, McGrath said.

"It was really a tragic pursuit," the chief said. "When those officers started their tour of duty that evening, they started it with good intentions."

The disciplinary actions for the 74 officers will range from reprimand to suspension, McGrath said. Their violations include insubordination, endangerment of pursuit, improper emergency response driving and leaving the city.

The incident began when officers saw a car speeding and heard what they thought was a gunshot, according to CNN affiliate WOIO. Police pursued the vehicle, and the driver, Timothy Russell, refused to stop, police told the station.

Though officers reported seeing a gun in the car, no weapon was ever found, WOIO reported.

The 23-minute chase took officers to East Cleveland, where 13 of them fired 137 shots, killing Russell, 43, and his passenger, Malissa Williams, 30, CNN affiliate WJW reported.

In June, 12 officers, including a captain and a lieutenant, were disciplined. Nine were suspended, two were demoted and one was fired, according to media reports.

Officers may face more disciplinary action once the deadly force review is complete, McGrath said.

[Duchess]

That's incredible! Overreact much?

[Cynical Ninja]

137 shots? Really?

When is that ever an appropriate response for some cops? Who the fuck did they think was in the car?, the Incredible Hulk?

This is why the idea of all cops being armed in the UK will NEVER catch on thank fuck.

[Duchess]

137 shots? Really?

If you think that's remarkable - we have a thread in Mock about a former police officer who killed some people in California, he was able to allude LEO's for awhile but while he was being hunted the police saw what they thought was him or his vehicle and opened fire on it. It wasn't him, it was ordinary citizens going about their day. Thank Christ no one was killed.

[Cynical Ninja]

Surely it should be police policy to correctly identify someone before opening fire? It sounds like the policy currently is “that might be them!?” Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

[NightOwl]

137 shots? Really?

Who the fuck did they think was in the car?, the Incredible Hulk?

Surely it should be police policy to correctly identify someone before opening fire? It sounds like the policy currently is “that might be them!?” Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

[NightOwl]

Business Insider has an article August 2^nd 2013, on the Cleveland Police being disciplined. Where in the hell has common sense gone? They just went too far! This couple in the car never stood a chance, talk about a terrifying experience. Hopefully the Attorney General of Ohio can bring change.
_____________________________________________________________

Business Insider
Cleveland police officials said Friday they're disciplining 75 of officers for their involvement in a police chase that ended in the shooting deaths of an unarmed man and woman, The Plain Dealer reports.
The pair were shot at 137 times while in their car, parked in a middle school parking lot. No officers were injured in what police called a "full blown-out" firefight.

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine told reporters in February that "there is nothing normal about this case. ... This is a tragedy."



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/cleveland...z2b3G8wKWu

[HairOfTheDog]

Forget the scarlet letter, "I am an idiot" is the new public shaming sign.

Judge Pinky Carr ^ of Cleveland refuses to let people out of her courtroom without making sure they know and tell the world that what they did was blatantly stupid. She's taking some hits for using public humiliation as a form of punishment.






I don't know how effective it is, but have no problem with it for drunks who threaten to kill cops and bitches who drive on the sidewalk and endanger a bus full of school kids because they're in a hurry.

[Duchess]

I don't have a problem with that at all. People who do fucked up things deserve to be shamed.

[JsMom]

I think it's funny as hell. I'd be the one to drive by and honk so they know I seen their sign.

[Duchess]

It is funny & I'd be willing to bet that some of those who have been shamed think twice before being bad again. They don't want to find themselves in that position one more time.

[SIXFOOTERsez]

Need a LOT more of that, Oh, and some more executions, for the ones that don't figure out the sign

[JsMom]

It is funny & I'd be willing to bet that some of those who have been shamed think twice before being bad again. They don't want to find themselves in that position one more time.

They'd never see my face again, I know that much. That is beyond embarrassing.

[HairOfTheDog]

JUST WHY?

Jesus, I think this guy may be in the right legally, but have a hard time personally understanding why anyone would want to encourage or enable drunk driving.

Anyway, here's the story...



A suburban Cleveland man says police violated his First Amendment rights to free speech when they cited him for holding a sign warning motorists to turn if they wanted to avoid a DUI checkpoint.


^ Douglas Odolecki, 43, warned motorists with the sign Friday night in Parma that said: "Check point ahead! Turn now!"

Parma police spokesman Kevin Riley said officers cited Odolecki after he refused to remove the "Turn now!" portion of the sign. Officers had previously consulted with city attorneys to determine if Odolecki violated any laws by displaying the sign, Riley said.

Odolecki plans to fight the citation for obstructing official business.

Odolecki has made it his mission to warn motorists about DUI checkpoints. He says he'll go "anywhere I'm called, anywhere I'm needed, anywhere I see injustice happening."

He said he was a "hell-raiser" as a young man, but has stayed out of trouble the last 24 years. He conceded he has animosity toward police officers because they have hassled him numerous times, he says for no reason.

Attorney John Gold is representing Odolecki for free. Gold said police must alert the public in advance of setting up a DUI checkpoint and that motorists are permitted to drive around them, which means Odolecki did nothing wrong when he held up the sign.

http://www.seattlepi.com/news/crime/arti...561895.php

[HairOfTheDog]

CLEVELAND PD -- DOJ INVESTIGATION RESULTS

Attorney General Eric Holder announced Thursday that "there is reasonable cause to believe that the Cleveland Division of Police engages in a pattern and practice of using excessive force," after Justice Department investigators examined nearly 600 cases of use of force that occurred between 2010 and 2013.

The investigation in the Cleveland Police Department was launched in March 2013, "following a number of high profile use of force incidents and requests from the community and local government to investigate the [police department]," the report released Thursday said.

The report cited specific incidents, including a January 2011 police chase of an unarmed man, who suffered "kicks to the head" after he had "surrendered to officers and was handcuffed and prone on the ground." None of the officers filed a report on the use of force, and none "were appropriately disciplined for failing to report the use of force."

In another incident from November 2012, the report said, "over 100 Cleveland police officers engaged in a high speed chase, in violation of [Cleveland Division of Police] policies, and fatally shot two unarmed civilians. [Cleveland Division of Police] officers ultimately fired 137 shots at the car, killing both its occupants."

The unreasonable practices the Justice Department found included the following:

-Unnecessary and excessive use of deadly force, including shootings and head strikes with impact weapons
-Unnecessary, excessive or retaliatory use of less lethal force including Tasers, chemical spray and fists
-Excessive force against persons who are mentally ill or in crisis, including in cases where the officers were called exclusively for a welfare check
-Employment of poor and dangerous tactics that places officers in situations where avoidable force becomes inevitable

Justice Department investigators also said the division doesn't adequately review and investigate the use of force by its officers or fully investigate misconduct allegations or identify and respond to patterns of at-risk behavior.

The Justice Department and Cleveland Police Department so far have only agreed to come to an agreement about how to address this problem. They will work out the details of that agreement -- the so-called "consent decree" -- in the coming months, but it will include a requirement for an independent monitor who will oversee necessary reforms.

Full story: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/holder-annou...stigation/

[HairOfTheDog]

Surely it should be police policy to correctly identify someone before opening fire? It sounds like the policy currently is “that might be them!?” Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

It all started because a clunker of a car backfired in front of Cleveland PD headquarters and police mistakenly thought it was gunfire.

More than 100 Cleveland police officers in 62 marked and unmarked cars got involved in a pursuit that saw speeds reach 100 mph during the 22-mile-long chase of the unarmed homeless couple.



The cop, ^ Michael Brelo, who shot the couple 15 times was acquitted of two counts of involuntary manslaughter by the judge in his bench trial today.

Thirteen officers fired at a car with Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams inside after a long, high-speed chase, but only Brelo was charged criminally because prosecutors said he waited until the car had stopped and the pair no longer a threat to fire 15 shots through its windshield while standing on the hood of the car.

Russell, 43, and Williams, 30, were each shot more than 20 times by police officers and died.

Although no police convictions were obtained, hopefully the DOJ investigation and mandates that came about as a result of this case are prompting Cleveland PD to get its shit together.

On a related note: the decision whether to charge either of the two officers who shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice to death in a Cleveland park nearly six months ago is expected to be handed down any day. So far, protests in Cleveland have been peaceful and contained. If no indictments are handed down in Tamir's death, I hope it stays that way. Tamir Rice thread: http://mockforums.net/showthread.php?tid=11616

[Duchess]

I think he's smirking.

[Jimbone]

I hope Cleveland can hold it together... between this and the Rice case they got a lot going on.

[HairOfTheDog]

I hope Cleveland can hold it together... between this and the Rice case they got a lot going on.

I hope so too Jimbone.

And, I very much hope that Cleveland PD and city officials are sincerely and actively working to reform the police department and policing policies.

This weekend, 71 protestors were arrested in Cleveland in response to using pepper spray and failure to disperse while demonstrating against the acquittal of the Cleveland PD officer who shot 49 times (15 at close-range through the windshield) at an unarmed black couple.

No one was reportedly hurt in the weekend protests, no looting took place, and city leaders commented that the protests were largely peaceful.

But, will the protests remain peaceful if the officers involved in the shooting death of 12-year-old Tamir Rice and the asphyxiation death of mentally ill Tanisha Anderson are not charged?

The deaths of 12-year-old Tamir Rice and 37-year-old Tanisha Anderson occurred just eight days apart last November. An investigation by the Cuyahoga County sheriff's department into Tamir's death is nearly finished and ready to be given to county prosecutors to decide whether to pursue criminal charges against the patrolman.

The status of the investigation into Tanisha Anderson's death is unclear. A medical examiner said she died of positional asphyxiation, which means she couldn't breathe, and ruled her death a homicide. City and police officials did not respond to messages Sunday seeking an update on the case.