TheAgitator.com
H.L. Mencken once wrote that Americans get the government they deserve, and they get it good and hard.
His quote came to mind this morning while reading reactions to my Fox column. Initial reaction was mostly positive. Then I recieved a flury of nasty email this morning, which makes me thing the column was posted on a police website or bulletin board.
I’m starting to think now that the map was a mistake. No matter how many times I point out that it is nowhere near, and isn’t meant to be anything at an attempt at a comprehensive accounting, people continue to interpret it that way, then apply amateur statistics to show why, since SWAT raids don’t end up terrorizing people 99.xxx percent of the time, they’re just swell.
Well, no. As I’ve explained before, part of the problem is the sheer number of raids in itself. And there’s every reason to believe they go wrong a large number more times than what’s shown on the map.
Just two examples: In the Buffalo raids I wrote about, 38 no-knocks turned up just 28 ounces of illicit drugs. That’s not one mistaken raid, it’s several. Last month in Chicago, police raided hundreds of public housing units in search of just a few gangbangers. That’s not one incident, it’s likely hundreds. Tulia represents dozens of botched raids, but it’s only one point on the map.
Sigh. In any case, a sampling of email after the break. Enjoy.
“Perhaps when upper class people begin to feel” . . . don’t patronize
me please —- and don’t be naive. Once INNOCENT people begin to
feel it, it will change.
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Another wonderful article. How any American can watch “Cops” and not be concerned with the brutal totalitarian tactics employed by “local” law enforcement, regardless of the magnitude of the circumstances, is surprising. It must come down to the packaging.
But the missing piece is the judge. It is the judges who issues the warrants. They need to be held more accountable and need to be more diligent in questioning the justification for the search. A judge can pretty much do what he/she wants, including, I imagine, interrogating the informant. Judges need to be more responsible and take the issuing of warrants (and restraining orders) more seriously. A judge demands respect of the law; we should expect judicious prudence from a judge.
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am a criminal justice student in college who will be going
into law enforcement shortly. I have read your essay on
SWAT raids, and while I agree that there are some mistakes,
and yes, sometimes innocent victims die because of these
mistakes, I ask you to consider two things.
The first is why the SWAT teams are making these raids in
the first place. There is a very specific reason that SWAT
has started to take over the handling of the war on drugs,
and that is because in the mid 70s many police officers (I
am afraid I cant give any exact numbers) were being killed
delivering daytime “knock first” warrants. Why – because
the drug dealers were awake and alert, and could prepare for
the police.
The other point I would like you to consider is that you
said that app. 40,000 SWAT deployments were made in 2001.
You also said that you could only find about 300 botched
deployments. I am sure that BOTH numbers are probably on
the low side, but on that basis, that means that 39,700
SUCCESSFUL deployments were made in which the right house
was
hit and innocents were not killed or hurt. However callous
it may seem, this is an acceptable ratio.
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Your story is dripping with sympathy for drug users. So it waters down any
issue you try to emphasize regarding SWAT teams.
Frankly I’d be in favor of allowing all dope users to freely ruin themselves
with dope if they didn’t try to force me to pay for universal health care.
You and they get no sympathy from me.
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I wonder if any psychological profiles have been performed on the type of personality
that wants to be a member of a SWAT team. My guess is that these folks are in need
of serious therapy.
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I completely agree with you about the swat teams and I’m not a drug
user.
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# 1 The officers are doing their job. Support them! Your article states as of 2001, there were 40,000 SWAT raids and only (using your current research data) 300 were botched! My calculation results is 99.25% success. I look forward to reading your article on how well the SWAT raids ARE working.
#2 They have to get a “No Knock” provision to bust in the door. (That is only granted by a Judge who deems it justified.)
#3 If you want to train the minds of the public, teach them to abide by the law….. then they will not have their door busted in by “Law Enforcers” for smoking a little weed….
By the way, the little pooch that may have been a problem, was likely a 70-100 lb pit bull trying to take off the arm of the Officer that was, again, just doing his job.
Have a good day!
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It is easy for people with the power of the press to condemn an action that you really know so little about. I didn’t read all of your story about SWAT because I became very angry with your verbal condemnation of such fine police officers that face drug dealers that have no rules and much less regard for human lives. Yes, occasionally the wrong house is raided and accidents will happen. My son is a police officer and risks his life everyday with something so seemingly innocent as a traffic stop not knowing if the person or persons will react with violence.
Drug dealers of today booby trap their doors with explosives, have sophisticated automatic weapons, grenades, machine guns and dogs trained to kill. What would you want them to do? Announce their arrival only to be met with a volley of cop killer bullets that penetrate a bullet proof vest like butter? Or perhaps let the dealers alone so they can continue their trafficking? Instead of helping them with your power of the typewriter you work against them complaining about the lethal weapons they carry!
Sir I tell you the dealers have more lethal weapons than the police have. Enough already! Put on a vest and go on the next raid. I’ll bet they’ll even let you “KNOCK ON THE DOOR?”
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And what I want to know is this……Who really cares if they are doing their job the right way……..I am glad to hear that this is happening. It is about time. It is sad for you and i feel sorry that people like you have such a closed ended mind. I think really you just want to bitch about someting but you really do not know what it is that you want to bitch for. Hearing your moaning and whining is just one of the draw backs to having a democracy. I am an American male almost 50 years old and…..I have seen alot and understand alot going on in the world.And your commrny are way off sae.
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It needs more blue dotsââ?¬Â¦ Damn shame more of these paramilitary bastards don’t die in these actionsââ?¬Â¦
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I have a growing concern about this and steriod use among young policeman. When I lived in LA, their arms were as big as my thighs.
A couple of weeks ago, within about 36 hours, there were reports of 3, two in FL, incidents where the building they had under siege turned out to be empty. In one they emptied a Travelodge Motel in the middle of the night.
When you can Google to read a license plate or find anyone’s SS# online, why can’t they confirm an address?
A citizen is forbidden from taking lethal action to protect “property” so why do police chase car thieves? Or couldn’t they call in an unmarked vehicle to follow without alerting them?
Another facet to the drug “war” is that it prevents doctors from relieving patient pain, leaving them desperate.
Thank you and I look for more on this issue.
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I am one who has worked as I.T. director at the prosecutorial level and so have seen how things are papered over, smoothed down, etc. when cops screw the pooch.
On my blog I regularly post instances where police misconduct is obvious. I have no tolerance for that gross negligence nor do I have any tolerance for outright sadistic behavior on the part of police officers. I want to see them fully prosecuted but that blue line means they’ll never have to answer for their crimes.
My instance of illegal search came when one day I get a call from my SO telling me that the police were just at my place. At that time I was WORKING at the state AG’s office – I checked with the chief of the criminal unit – cops had the WRONG address. Oh let me tell you, there was a major shit storm from that one. I got a very personal apology from the chief of police.
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Your recent article relative to the blotched SWAT team attacks was forward to me by John Chase of the Tampa, Florida area. I want to express my appreication for the courage you mustered to write about such an important topic.
I would encourage you to also take a look at the case of U.S.A. v. Leon Combs! While it may not fit into this specific research, I do think the fact that Leon Combs was sentenced to 31.5 years in prison to cover for the nephew of two Kentucky State Police who were involved in the raid on his home is noteworthy. Also, the fact that Leon Combs did his own pro se brief and was successful in getting the gun charges reversed by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals who described his case as a “hopelessly jumbled mess” and also charged the district court of “literally altering his indictment” only to have the same people re-indict him and the same judge convict him and sentence him to another 30 years disregarding totally the mandate of the 6th Circuit to re-sentence him per their opinion. Mr. Combs has now lost 5 years of his life, his wife and children but has not given up hope and just last week was finally granted the opportunity to file his pro se brief in his second appeal b efore the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals.
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Thank you for your work on this, and thanks to FOX News for running it.
Must be their libertarian streak showing.
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Thank you FOX News and Radley Balko for this study and report of the truth
about a war of aggression against our own people.
We need to disarm our fight against drug abuse.
Drug abuse, including alcohol, is a medical problem and we’ll do a better
job of keeping kids drug free and inebriated folks off the road with
compassionate policy offering helpful treatment.
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Sorry Mr. Shock Journalist,
you belong on a different web outlet. Have you ever served as a police
officer? Have you ever
been in a gunfight? Have you ever broken a sweat without the TV in front
of you with Richard
Simmons waving his butt at you?
The data you present may be true, but this is Stats 101. I can take any
topic and do this, and
make which ever side I want come out my way. Where is the total picture?
For example “There are NEARLY 150 cases…”. Ok, give me a break. How
many were there?
It sounded much worse to say “NEARLY 150″ instead of 129… And by the
way, 150 out of 2 million
is noise, and you were too chicken to say what the total was you pulled
your sample from.
What journalism school gave you a sheep skin? Where are you from? Ooooh,
“Radley Balko” is really a pen name for
DAN RATHER… I wondered what you were doing, Dan!
The American public is not nearly as stupid as you are.
Dear Fox News,
please go back to the other format, where we get to hear the whole story.
Whatever happened to “fair and balanced”?
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It would be a concern to me if I thought police were going to kick in my door in the middle of the night when I am sleeping. We do not use or condone drug use or any illegal activity. However, we sent a family member to prison for child molesting. He has threatened to burn down our house with us in it. He also is such a slime ball, it would be just like him to claim we are drug dealers. We have spent our lifetime being frugal and our home is paid for. We only need to work parttime. We have had neighbors ask us where we get our money. People do not believe that a person can get ahead honestly. Another cause for concern, is another family member dated a man from the Middle East that turned out to be violent and threatening. For these reasons I sleep with a gun under my pillow and an AK47 within reach. We live so far out that we basically have no police protection. I would hope that I would never be in a situation that you descibe.
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Its just not the kicking down of doors but the overall way in which the police act now. I have been pulled over for the usual traffic violations and 2 times I had police come with guns partially drawn. If I am pulled over now I make a point to keep my hands on the wheel until the officer approaches my car. Then the way they act and the general overbearing way in which they talk to me is very disrespectful. Its as if they are trying to get me to back-sass them. I see regular police in military fatigues with high capacity weapons and a belligerent demeanor . When I am around police I am very nervous and I have never been arrested for anything. It seems as if they think we are mindless sheep who, without them, would be criminal at any moment. You have to “respect” them and watch what you say, don’t look around too much because that’s suspicious and if I have to read where they beat or shot some person because the police had to “keep control of the situation” ill go crazy. Yes, the police face a tough job. Don’t take it out on civilians just because you got military type training and it makes you feel tough. Maybe a little less military training and more civil training would help. Is this all police? No, but they have guns and its happening so much you naturally feel threatened anytime any approach. The police have a cash cow now called the War on Drugs. They have little kingdoms all over the country backed up with military type squads who bust down doors to arrest a pot smoker then call it a “victory” in the war on drugs. At 3:00 AM a person doesn’t think well. If my home door blows off the hinges I would not be in a reasoning mood. My military training would take over and I would grab a gun. I know what would happen, and I am sorry if he has a family. But so do I. He would get a heros memorial whereas I would be a criminal.
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keep up the good work–I have heard and seen many such happenings in Texas where we used to live. We now live in Alabama, and my sons have experienced here mistaken arrest and some brutality just because they were out at 1:00 AM and they had long hair. They were not drinking or using drugs or breaking any law. We do onot need or want a police state!
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You do a great job of presenting one sideââ?¬Â¦.no dates, no dataââ?¬Â¦..what’s the ratio of total number of raids vs botched ?ââ?¬Â¦what is the timeline of your study? Typical ACLU stuffââ?¬Â¦not sure why FOX has an interest in your work. Although I’m absolutely sure there have been botched raids, your story seems to make a mountain from a mole hillââ?¬Â¦.all without data points for people to make their own decisions.
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Thats right the drug dealers and users are the victims and the police are once again the bad guys. I can’t wait till there are no more police around and lets see what happens to the innocent people. Everyone makes mistakes even the police and reporters. How many death have been caused by drug dealers or drug users probably to many to count. If the police knock down your door chances are they are there for a reason. In this post Katrina area in which I live, we have seen a 300% increase in drug activity involving all types of drugs. The police departments in this area do not have the manpower to maintain a swat team but a need for one is growing with the increase of recovery of high powered rifles and assault weapons from drug dealers. It is only a matter of time before they start using their weapons on the police as well as the other competition and they don’t care if they kill an innocent person. If you ever spent anytime behind the badge you would also know that by having a swat team that can be called on, can make the difference in everyone going home even the bad guy (the police). The days of talking to these thugs about “just say no” are over. A swat team projects strength of the department, for instance suppose you pull to a group of drug dealing gang bangers and get out with them. As soon as you step out of the vehicle they are already sizing you up, to see how far they can run you over or if this cop really knows his stuff. Once it has been learned that the department has a swat team that they can call on and have used. Word gets out that maybe its time to relocate their drug dealings to another city before they get arrested. Oh once again thanks for the bad press on the police no wonder the departments in this area can’t get anyone to apply to be the police and yes I do think that bad press only adds to the stereotype. The bottom line is that swat teams are a deterrent and yes mistakes do and will happen. How come no one ever reports on the good the swat teams do in removing a drug dealer or arrest a felon. No, because its more fun to report how the swat teams are the bad guys and the drug dealers and felons are the good guys who are being victimized by these evil swat teams.
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Sorry,
but America has no sympathy for drug dealers or abusers. Get a life and get off the backs of those who are trying to do something about it.
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Looks like the SWAT teams are doing a great job busting drug guys. How many lives have been saved by getting scum bags off of the streets? You conveniently forget to acknowledge that minor detail.
Hmmm ââ?¬â?? “minor drug offenses”. There is no such thing.
Please get a job at the NYT. It will make it easier to understand why you lack common sense, decency and responsibility
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If you’re taking drugs you deserve everything that comes your way, no matter what the time of day. You haven’t any excuse when you’re arrested for drug use, any possession of drugs, distribution of drugs or their manufacturer. There are legal remedies for those who, as your say, are mistaken by SWAT raids at wrong addresses. I’ve known two cases personally and both parties came away with hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages from the city and they weren’t traumatized! Too long has our legal system just slapped the hand of drug users or manufacturers. But what can you expect from judges that are trying to make laws rather than enforce them. It’s about time we increase our SWAT teams and put the brakes on a legal system that grows more ineffective each year. If it were up to me I’d either lock up anyone connected with the drug trade for long jail terms or better yet, to save time and precious monies, just shoot them. It wouldn’t take long to clear out drugs if there weren’t those in high places making money and/or gaining political influence on it in the first place.
In Texas we used to stop coyote raids on our farms by shooting one and stringing it up in a nearby tree and it sure stopped the coyotes. Maybe it would work for hardened drug pushers and users as well… nothing important to loose really.
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As a 9 year veteran of police work in the midwest, I am shocked as to your ignorance on the subject of “Botched Raids”.
I have personally executed numerous search and arrest warrants. Some were “no-knock” warrants. You are correct in your statements that these warrants exist, but you should dig into some of the case law associated with them. We, as police officers, are required to get a judge to approve “no knock” warrants ahead of time. We have to articulate our reasons. The high court has ruled, in the absence of these reasons, officers must wait after knocking and announcing their presence. 15 seconds is what we normally wait. Can you get to a firearm within 15 seconds? Can you flush contraband or other evidence in 15 seconds? It is sometimes DANGEROUS for police officers to wait until someone opens the door for us.
I have NEVER, in my entire career, seen any officer abuse anyone during a warrant execution. I have seen other officer and have been myself, assaulted in the course of my duties. Is it my job to be abused and assaulted?
I will protect myself and my other officers as best I can and to hell with the sensibilities of others. We will make every effort to put people to ease, but the bottom line is this, we have taken oaths to protect the constitutional rights of others and ENFORCE the laws of our respective jurisdictions.
We don’t have the authority to decide which laws we ignore and which to enforce. Medicinal marijuana? Illegal in my state, it’s called possession of a controlled substance. Don’t like it? Change the damn laws through your legislation. I don’t personlly have issues with persons smoking pot, but I have taken a lot of people to jail for it.
As for the puh-lease part, I invite you to visit my side of the argument. If it were your ass on the line and standing in front of the door, would you try for a no-knock warrant or would you say “no, I think that the doper in this house wouldn’t shoot me or the people that I am responsible for right behind me, even though he has been arrested 14 times for violent crimes”.
Try this on for size. I work in a somewhat rural area. Lots of country folk. Country folks = hunters. hunters = rifles. Most people in my area own and know how to use high powered rifles capable of shooting through doors, walls, balllistic vests, patrol car windows and across 300, 400, even 750 meters. I carry a .40 caliber glock, with an 8 inch drop at 100 meters. I need a patrol rifle to contend with this type of problem. A handgun or even a shotgun is NO match for this. I have been shot at with a rifle, at the time I wished for a howitzer to blow the S.O.B. away. I had a 9mm. All I could do was try to cram myself under an abandoned car in the front yard and make myself as small a target as possible.
Get real about your complaints. Pick a fight that really matters. If you want to improve police work, fight for police unions, try to improve the benefits for the officers in your jurisdiction. When a department pays to keep the quality officers, the smart officers, the experienced officers, the problem causing officers get squeezed out, Darwinian-style. Get your officers off of welfare. Me and my family of 5 are eligible for WELFARE…….????? Pay your taxes, stop fighting the police and work with them. Stop perpetuating bull crap lies and innuendo.
Yes, lies and innuendo. Tonight I was forced to use a Taser on a 20 year old that was running. He had 9 warrants that I knew about including one for BEATING his girlfriend and her father. I used the taser, put him in handcuffs and carted him off to jail. No excessive force, no ass whipping, no Rodney King. As soon as he was in jail, he accused me of beating him. That will never come to a complaint, but all it takes is one person to believe him. and one person to believe that one and so on and so forth. Soon there are lots of people that believe and will swear that I am a batterer of prisoners. See how it works? You are one of the believers.
Come to my department and ride around with the officers. We will tell you that the shotgun is ready in case you need it after I get shot and here is a bullet resistant vest in case you get shot. Come get a taste of Public Service.
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Your article said there were over 40,000 SWAT raids last year and you were only able to find 300 that were botched? That means there were at least 39,700 righteous operations by SWAT teams last year. Sounds like pretty goods odds to me. Maybe you should try to do some math before you go to print. The stats you gave in your own article proves that SWAT teams are correct 99.25% of the time. Oh, but you forgot to point that out. I guess while you were trying to agitate you missed those statistics hidden in your own piece of bullsh*t. That is fourth grade math by the way. (so is your research) It is a shame FOX let you put that crap on their site. Your article is so skewed it doesn’t even mention one good thing SWAT teams do. How obvious can a liberal left wing extremist’s article get. You clearly need to do some more research and talk to few people who have benefited from or have been saved by a SWAT team. It can’t be hard to find someone, unless you are sitting at home listening to Ted Kennedy’s top 10 ways to become an annoying liberal. FOX spotlights cops rescuing people everyday. Then your article might have some credibility.Do you remember the definition of credibility from Journalism 101? This is a perfect example of someone writing something they know nothing about. I am 99.25% sure you would not have the balls to go on one of those drug raids the brave men and women are conducting every single day to keep this country safe. I just pray none of your family are ever taken hostage by some lunatic with a gun because then they will need the services of your local men in blue. But if that were to happen, the team would undoubtedly respond and put their lives on the line for people they don’t even know while people like you are sitting safely at home writing your drivel.
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Thank you for bringing this issue to light on Fox News. I was pleased to see an intelligent article highlighting government abuses in the name of an expensive, largely failed “drug war”. I am a libertarian that had nearly stopped reading and watching Fox in disgust over the lack of reporting on freedom, liberty and free market. Rational inquiry into these issues helps keep the government small and honest.
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Sorry. Your arguments are not compelling compared to the tradgedies of drug use and trafficing. Find another relevant target or get a grip on the reality of the illegal drug issues.
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WHAT CAN BE DONE TO STOP THIS TYPE OF THING FROM HAPPENING?
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After reading your column concerning the tactics used by SWAT teams in their raids I was left with a couple of questions. In your year of research how many ride-alongs did you go on to personally see the tactics and intel that are employed by SWAT teams? And I know that you are writing to put your opinion out there for people to consume and it probably would not bode well with your opinion but how many cases are there in which, based on the actions of SWAT teams, were violent and dangerous drug dealers and gangs taken off the streets? Because it seems to me that you have taken some few incidents (relatively speaking) and made the SWAT teams look like the barbarians that with no creditable intelligents who would waste man hours and the safety of officers to bumble into some innocent persons home. If you understood the nature of the criminal element that they are confronting on a day to day basis you would bless these men and women for doing what they do to keep the peace. While, mistakes do happen, as happen in any job, it most assuredly does not outweigh the good they do. I hope one day you will understand the good they do and the need for them in this country. However it is more likely that you won’t because SWAT is out there taking out the most dangerous criminals and gangs so they wouldn’t be at your doorstep or destroying your family. So sleep peacefully tonight and don’t worry we’ll be out here taking care of the murders, rapists, thieves, and yes drugdealers while you blissfully ponder the evildoings of good men. Sweet dreams, sir.
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America is well on its way to becoming the most oppressive government in the world, replacing the old USSR.
The country I loved as being the bastion of truth and justice is no more.
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our article on SWAT and police tactics is interesting. I am in agreement with some or your opinions but find difference with others. I agree that for minor things such as marijuana possession, there isn’t a need to blast down a door at 0200 in the morning, however if the suspect is selling marijuana its guaranteed he or she will have weapons in the house therefore these tactics might be needed. When you talk about bad Intel or mistakes, where I work these things dint happen. I would be interested which departments are making these mistakes, and which state they occur in. My bet would be that these are east coast or Midwest departments. On the west coast we would be sued to no end not to mention be fired.
As far as the destruction of personal property and pointing guns at people, some things cant be helped. I am sure the suspect we are dealing with could care less about what is getting broken in his house all he wants is to get away with his drugs and cash. Did you mention how many families are torn apart by the product these people manufacture and sell ?. How about the amount of violent crime that is related to the use and sales of narcotics? Have you ever gone with a SWAT team on an entry into a house? trust me what you see on cops and Dallas SWAT is not how things really are from day to day.
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If a years research of yours discovers 300 “botched SWAT raids”, and if your years research covered a 10 year period, and if the Police as you state perform 100 at these raids per day, I would say that 300 “botched jobs” out of 352,000 raids is not too bad…..
If we lived in a perfect world no raids would need to be conducted, nobody would do wrong, and the media would not misrepresent the facts.
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Aloha. Thank you for shining some long-overdue light on a very dark and ugly subject.
Here’s some of my take on the situation FYI. The war on drugs is obviously a prejudice developed over time into this mess we have today. Nixon hated anti-war protesters and hippies so he went after their common sacrament, Cannabis. He threw the Schaffer Commission Report in the trash when it concluded Cannabis was harmless and must be decriminalized in order to prevent the very things we’re suffering today. The D.E.A. was created on his watch. Oh well…
The word “war” comes from an old German word for “confusion”. War on drugs = confusion on drugs. War on Iraq = confusion on Iraq, etc.
The war on drugs is in large part based on marijuana, and 90% of those arrests for marijuana are for simple possession of under one ounce! In other words, the bulk of the war on drugs is built on sincere people with a little herb in their gardens, or in their possession.
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Plenty of problems surrounding the War on Drugs. I’ve worked closely with LEO’s and I also am concerned with the “militarization” of municipal police forces. On the other hand I am not so nieve as to think that all the efforts made in the War on Drugs are genuine efforts to bring the drug use and trade to an end. Too much money involved in the drug trade.
I used to be a ” ski guide” for groups going skiing at various resorts in the USA and Canada. I once took a group from LA to Vail Colorado in the early 1980′s. To my surprise as I walked amoungst the ski shops and stores that cater to our politicians and social elite, I saw drug paraphanalia openly displayed in the store windows. Silver “coke” spoons, gold plated razor blades, bongs, etc. It suddenly became obvious that the major users of cocain and other recreational drugs in this country, are the ones who can afford it’s monetary cost, and are shielded by ther social staus, our upper class society. Our politicians, movie stars, college professors,MSM stars, the “rich and famous”. The very ones making a false efforts at drying up the drug trade. Yeah! Right!
Personally I think anyone who wants to dabble in drugs should be given the stuff in a quantity that they will eventually overdose, taking another idiotic user off the streets. Eventually there will be no customers and the market collapses. I have no sypathy at all for those who have chosen to go down that path. None!
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I agree with your article on this subject. I live in a small city that has been named the 10th safest city in America. However, we have our own Emergency Response Team (SWAT by any other name is still SWAT.) They are used mostly when felony warrants are served. In addition, they dispatch a fire truck and an ambulance to these events. These are not dispatched to handle any SWAT errors, but for safety of the Team. I have sat through the mandatory public hearings where grants have been applied for to purchase the military style weaponry needed by these teams. I am also the Chairman of the Board of our local Crime Stoppers unit and see the tips that are turned in that result in the warrants served.
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