TheAgitator.com
More Aftermath Bumbling in the Cheye Calvo Case
Wednesday, November 5th, 2008Cheye Calvo, you’ll remember, is the Berwyn Heights, Maryland mayor whose home was mistakenly raided by Prince George’s County, Maryland police. Calvo’s two black labs were shot and killed, and he and his mother-in-law were bound at gunpoint for hours, even after it was clear that the police had made a mistake. The raid came after police intercepted a package of marijuana sent to Calvo’s address through a delivery service. Police conducted no additional investigation before sweeping in with the SWAT team.
When asked about Calvo’s case in an interview a local newspaper last month, Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson offered up a truly bewildering response:
Johnson said he didn’t think an apology was necessary and said he has not spoken with Calvo about the incident.
“Well, I think in America that is the apology, when we’re cleared,” he said. “The authorities have to be able to follow evidence. Sometimes we realize that people are victimized. … 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.”
He expressed condolences for Calvo’s pets but said he understood the actions of law enforcement.
“I try putting myself in the situation of the sheriff who entered the house,” he said. “They had one set of information at the time. … The thing we have to do is make sure those incidents don’t happen again.”
I’m having a hard time comprehending what sort of mindset you’d need to have to come to the conclusion that Calvo’s innocence equates to “a pat on the back for everybody involved.” As for making sure incidents like what happened to Calvo “don’t happen again,” the utter cluelessness of politicians like Jack Johnson is precisely why they do keep happening. Over and over. It also likely factors into why Johnson presides over the county with one of the worst police misconduct records in the country.
I last wrote about Calvo’s case in response to a Milwaukee police detective who had defended the raid in a letter to the editor of National Review.
Weird, lots of html stuff in the main page but looks correct after clicking on comments.
Johnson’s statements are about what I expect Obama will be saying in the coming years when he’s shafting America. Except it’ll be Obama justifying NSA surveillance and the FBI’s incompetence at domestic anti-terrorism.
To understand Jack Johnson, look at Cpl. Keith Washington.
Washington had a history of violence, and intimidation, yet Johnson saw fit to keep him on not only as a PG County police officer, but also as a personal aide to Johnson and even a senior Homeland Security advisor.
Washington was convicted in the murder of a furniture delivery man. He just flipped out and shot the guy.
If Johnson was so willing to promote this thug, why do you think he would be willing to criticize other excessive police behavior?
So, is the pat on the back to the officers for only killing the dogs and not the humans? Is this “restraint” the type of thing that needs a pat on the back? What if they hadn’t been “cleared”, would they be looking for a “do-over” or “no backsies”?
The childishness and stupidity of Johnson’s comments are mind-boggling. I think there might be blood coming out of my ears.
So apparently not actually killing him or his family (besides the dogs) and not locking him up for a crime he did not commit is adequate apology for what happened and how badly they fucked up? Is that what this ass face is saying?
Jack Johnson spoke perfectly clearly to me.
He has a loaded gun in his hand.
Letting him go means not having to say you’re sorry?
If Chief Wiggum ever grows bored with his duties in Springfield, I’m sure Mr. Johnson would eagerly recruit him. It would raise the bar considerably for PG County law enforcement.
and so should you
So, when is Johnson up for re-election? Are there credible challengers: what about Cheye Calvo, running on police brutality. Sure, Calvo is a white guy in a majority black county. But, I would guess that this is one issue that has a lot of resonance in the black community.
Johnson can also be challenged on all sorts of other issues. He played racial politics over the board that oversees supplies sewage to the Washington suburbs and sewage and water to DC residents. WASA’s malfunctioning was a significant cause of high levels of lead in DC water. Guess who suffered: mostly black children in DC.
your post is wrong
Cheye Calvo … home was mistakenly raided
that’s not how Mr Johnson or the police see it. the raided correctly. and based on the raid, they determined that Mr Calvo was not guilt of this crime in question. so thank heavens for the raid, its how the police proved that he wasn’t guilty.
apparently that’s how law enforcement works these days.
dsmallwood:
By what logic was the home “mistakenly raided”? The POLICE intercepted a package addressed to Calvo, then they delivered the package to the house, waited for it to be taken inside, then WHAM: raided. It was the correct house and the correct target (at least for investigation). What was incorrect was the lack of proper investigation, SWAT tactics, blatant killing of dogs etc etc: the sort of thing Radely writes about all the time.
“and so should you”
Great words Lee. Balance of power.
does this mean that they’re not going to change their policies and continue terrorizing innocent people?
fuckers.
thanks for posting a non-racial post though, Radley!
Mike T’s comment (#2) makes me frown.
Johnson is just doing what is legally responsible…never admit wrongdoing. He reminds me of the apologists that say the system is working perfectly when innocent people are finally released from 10 years in prison on appeal with DNA evidence. Hard to defend Johnson’s type as human.
There are over 10 billion people I did NOT shoot today. WHERE’S MY PAT ON THE BACK?!
Damn that Jack Johnson. His airy soft rock ballads won’t fool me this time.
Gee, I though it was their job to find the people who victimize others and put them in jail.
dsmallwood: my apologies for misconstruing your comment. My blood usually boils when I read Radley’s blog, and sometimes get a little hot-headed.
SJE
i re-read my post; its full of typos.
i’m with you on this one. the police think they raided the right house. they really do. i wish more people would get p*ssed at this. do the cops have to raid everyone’s home before people stand up?
(’cause they will eventually)
One of the reasons that the Obamamites took Virginia this year:
The ‘hood has moved to Northern Virginia…………..
Asshole of the Week: Jack Johnson, Power Junkie Extraordinaire…
…
Maybe I’m dense, but I don’t understand this quote:
“Well, I think in America that is the apology, when we’re cleared”
When WHO is cleared? The subject of the raid being cleared by the police or the police clearing themselves afterward?
I guess it doesn’t matter what it means, it still doesn’t sound like “I’m sorry”
It’s a two step process, Susan. First, you have to understand that you only have to apologize if you did something wrong. Second, the action of being “cleared” means that you have been cleared of any wrongdoing, therefore you are absolved of having to NEED to apologize.
Being absolved of wrongdoing IS the apology itself.
These SWAT defenders make Bush look like frickin Machiavelli. They’re so convinced of their rightness that they things as stupid as this instead of issuing even a mealy-mouthed hollow apology. Absolutely evil.
I get it now - forgiving yourself is just as good as apologizing. I’m going to start doing that more often - it seems way easier.
I’m not sure that’s what he meant, although now I’m not so sure. The original article said:
I interpreted “cleared” to refer to Calvo being cleared, but that might have just been a misunderstanding due to how the story was reported.
-TimK
So the police opinion is that Calvo no longer needs to apologize to the police because the police are willing to take being no charges being filed against the police as an apology? Awfully big of the police to not force the mayor to actually apologize to them, one of those poor officers may have been emotionally scared by shooting the mayors dogs or something.
In Americka, an appology is taken as as admission of guilt!
Thank you local attorney for such perception/reality! Because such caution was created by them.
I know that I was trained to never even say so much as “are you ok”, nothing humane was allowed, just the offer of professional medical services
BTW the number one reason for follow up lawsuits against any business, is the indifferent attitude that attorneys have trained employees to respond with.
Compassion has been reduced to potential legal action against the company you work for and indeed yourself potentially.
Never having to say your sorry equates to saying “Sue Me”!
They will and do.
…he didn’t think…
I guess that sums up a major consideration for employment in that particular police department, as it becomes plain that a lack of cogitation is evident throughout this whole sorry incident.
I was once taught by an inspiring public school teacher never to utter those words when offering an opinion, lest someone take you at face value, and immediately discount what you have to say. Maybe somebody should tell them that…
Anybody up for sending Jack a package? Maybe if he received a “package” he’d be more capable of understanding. When your always right you never learn anything.
Yes vote out Jack Johnson, he’s incompetent!
This election vote for John Jackson, he’ll make things right!
Damn! You just gave away the end of the Abe’s Turn story line! I guess there’s no sense in finishing it now.
-TimK
Google “tony creed task force raid” for the patriotic response to these type raids. (File a civil rights lawsuit). Hopefully Calve sues too. Bush/DC has been giving hundreds of millions of dollars to counties nationwide to form and equip goon squads and militarize police and sheriffs departments. The logical solution would be to hold offending officers accountable but somehow they’ve made themselves basically immune from individual accountability for their actions during raids. So, the only hope is between defending their officers and paying out millions in settlements it will become so costly that even the handful of elected representatives who support and promote our ever-growing problem of third world police tactics will withdraw their support.