TheAgitator.com
Lima SWAT Stats
Tuesday, December 9th, 2008I’ve been meaning to post this here, but since it’s up now over at reason, I’ll just copy it verbatim:
In January 2007, a SWAT team in Lima, Ohio, shot and killed Tarika Wilson, a 26-year-old mother, during a drug raid at the home of her boyfriend, Anthony Terry. When the unarmed Wilson was shot, she was kneeling on the ground, complying with police orders. She was holding her 1-year-old son, Sincere, who was also shot, losing his left hand. A subsequent investigation revealed that Officer Joseph Chavalia heard another officer shooting Terry’s two dogs, mistook the noise for hostile gunfire, panicked, and fired blindly into the room where Wilson was kneeling. Chavalia was charged with involuntary manslaughter, but acquitted.
As reckless and violent as the raid was, the police did at least find a substantial supply of illegal drugs inside the house, and Anthony Terry later pleaded guilty to felony drug distribution. A subsequent investigation by the Lima News showed that despite the inherent danger and small margin for error, SWAT raids conducted by the Lima Police Department frequently turned up no drugs or weapons at all. The paper found that in one-third of the 198 raids the SWAT team conducted from 2001 to 2008, no contraband was found.
Similar reviews in other cities have produced similar results: A surprisingly high percentage of raids produce neither drugs nor weapons. And the weapons that are found tend to be small, concealable handguns, with few raids resulting in felony convictions.
A Denver Post investigation found that in 80 percent of no-knock raids conducted in Denver in 1999, police assertions that there would be weapons in the targeted home turned out to be wrong. A separate investigation by the Rocky Mountain News found that of the 146 no-knock warrants served in Denver in 1999, just 49 resulted in criminal charges, and only two resulted in prison time. Media investigations produced similar results after high-profile mistaken raids in New York City in 2003, in Atlanta in 2007, and in Orlando and Palm Beach, Florida, in 1998. When the results of the Denver investigation were revealed, former prosecutor Craig Silverman said, “When you have that violent intrusion on people’s homes with so little results, you have to ask why.”
Lima police apparently aren’t as concerned. When told of the Lima News investigation, police spokesman Kevin Martin said, “That means 68 percent of the time, we’re getting guns or drugs off the street. We’re not looking at it as a win-loss record like a football team does.”
This was originally a short piece from the “Citings” section of reason. But in Overkill, I summarize several other studies that come to the same conclusion. Though they’re justified on the premise that they’re only used against the biggest, most violent, best-armed drug pushers, most of these raids turn up very little.
Two out of 146 raids result in prison time; out of that 146 how many went horribly wrong?
That police spokesman is dead wrong about “win-loss record.” By ignoring the damage these raids do, this guy and people like him aren’t being realistic. His comment insinuates that one “successful” raid justifies all others regardless of death, damage, injury, or even if they break down the wrong door.
Shouldn’t the bar be set that at least 99% of the raids are “successful” (huge amounts of illegal substances and arrests–with prison time–that could not have been realized by any other method)?
Not surprising they have it ass-backward. They start backward by having drugs illegal and using military raids on civilians.
Sounds like we need to do MORE of these things if it takes 100 of ‘em to get 3 people off the streets and behind bars! Good point, Radley!
- Det. Ima Hugh Jasshole
Everycity PD
Right, Kevin, so you wouldn’t mind if your own home were raided, right? Right? Kevin?
From 2001 to 2008 could be including 2008 or not. So, over the span of 7 or 8 years there have been 198 SWAT raids in a townwith a population of 40,081. That is 2.38 to 2.75 raids a month. This doesn’t seem excessive to these people?
That’s 6 or 7 years. The # of raids a month is correct tho’.
If 49 of 146 raids result in criminal charges, I wonder how many resulted in civil suits.
Be careful TomMil throwing those numbers out there like that. The police and government aren’t too good with math. You see, math is exact. It can’t be skewed. We better wait until they release the statistical analysis, then we will know the truth.
“heard another officer shooting Terry’s two dogs”
Written so casually. They always have to shoot the dogs don’t they? It must be written down in the police procedural manuals somewhere, eg.
“11.a When conducting a raid, any dogs found on premise must be shot. Failure to comply with this regulation will result in disciplinary action.”
First I want to say that I am sorry this SWAT officer died. It is sad and unfortunate.
But now someone has decided to rename a park after him.
Check it out:
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=85280@kcbs.dayport.com
The officer was killed back in February. Here’s the background story:
http://www.laobserved.com/archive/2008/02/randal_simmons_lapd_veter.php
Does anyone know if Anthony Terry was charged with murder in the death of Tarika Wilson?
does anyone know what happened to the elderly couple that had $400,000 lifted via asset forfeiture in Ohio?
I haven’t heard anything lately about Derrick Foster, either…
Look at the bright side. In at least one third of the raids, the cops didn’t plant any drugs or guns.