Ex-transit cop accused of murder posts $3M bail

By TERENCE CHEA and TERRY COLLINS, Associated Press Writers Terence Chea And Terry Collins, Associated Press Writers – 1 hr 8 mins ago

AP – In this Jan. 14, 2009 file photo, Johannes Mehserle, right, appears in the East Fork Justice Court in …

• Slideshow: Oakland Train Station Shooting

OAKLAND, Calif. – The former California transit officer charged with fatally shooting an unarmed man was freed Friday on $3 million bail as protesters gathered outside City Hall railed against his release.

Johannes Mehserle, 27, was released from Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, according to Alameda County Sheriff’s Sgt. J.D. Nelson. He had been in custody since his Jan. 13 arrest.

Mehserle has pleaded not guilty to one count of murder in the Jan. 1 shooting of Oscar Grant on an Oakland train platform.

Prosecutors said Mehserle shot Grant, 22, in the back while the man lay facedown and restrained on the ground. Mehserle’s lawyer said his client may have mistakenly pulled his pistol instead of a stun gun.

The shooting, caught on cell phone cameras and broadcast on TV and the Internet, has sparked numerous protests against the former Bay Area Rapid Transit officer, including several that resulted in arrests for arson and vandalism.

Protesters outside Mehserle’s bail hearing last week had demanded that he remain jailed. Judge Morris Jacobson had said he set bail at a high amount in part because the former officer fled to Nevada during the initial investigation.

Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums called on protesters outside City Hall on Friday to remain peaceful. About 150 of them had gathered when Mehserle’s release was announced.

“We must treat each other and our city with respect and dignity while the outcome of this case is determined by judge and jury,” Dellums said in a statement.

John Burris, who is representing Grant’s family in a $25 million wrongful-death claim against BART, urged the public to “not create any social unrest as a consequence of this.”

“The family wants peace and the process to flow in the normal course of events,” he said.

As a condition of release, Mehserle was ordered to surrender all weapons.

It’s unclear where Mehserle was headed after posting bail. His attorney, Michael Rains, did not immediately return a call.

The judge has imposed a temporary gag order in the case until the next hearing, set for Feb. 13.

 

Boston cop accused of escorting porn stars to club

From The Associated Press via Yahoo!News

BOSTON – A Boston police officer is being investigated for allegedly helping two gay porn stars cut through traffic to get to a nightclub. Police said the officer, whose name has not been released, has been placed on desk duty for allegedly using his cruiser to escort a car from Logan International Airport to the Roxy nightclub last October.

A law enforcement official close to the investigation confirmed Friday the escort was for Aden and Jordan Jaric, a couple from Sacramento, Calif., who perform in live strip shows and pornography as “Brangelina.” The official was not authorized to speak about the investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.

A phone listing for the Jarics could not immediately be found.

Boston police learned of the alleged escort after a photo of a police cruiser in one of Boston’s highway tunnels, along with comments about the trip, were posted on a blog.

The night after the Jarics were at the Roxy, they performed a show at a Providence, R.I., male nude club called Trixx All Male Revue.

Providence police uncovered the photograph while investigating a report of explicit sexual activity at the Trixx show. When they realized the photo was of a Boston police cruiser, they contacted the city, the law enforcement official said.

The official said it appears the officer escorted the men from Logan airport to the Roxy, but not to Providence.

 

Fla. man issued 50 traffic citations in one day

AP – This undated photo obtained Friday, Jan. 6, 2009 from the Palm Beach County, Fla. Sheriff’s Office shows …

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – Elvis has left the vehicle. A man was arrested on more than 50 traffic citations — all in one day. Police said Elvis Alonzo Barrett, 46, fled from police trying to stop him for a traffic violation Thursday morning. Police said he ran through red lights, crashed into another car and a fence. Police said they found crack cocaine and a crack pipe in his car.

Barrett faces several charges, including fleeing and eluding and reckless driving.

He was also issued more than 50 traffic citations on charges including speeding, running red lights, and not wearing a seat belt.

Police said Barrett has a lengthy criminal history and his driver license was suspended.

A phone number listed for him was not in service Thursday night

Cop reaches into foamy sewage tank to rescue dog

Thu Jan 29, 9:01 pm ET

KALAMA, Wash. – A Kalama police officer reached into a tank of sewage to rescue a dog that had jumped inside. The officer, Jeff Skeie, was able to grab the sinking dog by the ear Tuesday and pull it out by the scruff of its neck. He had waste only on the sleeves of his uniform until the dog gave itself a vigorous shake, spraying him head-to-toe with sewage.

The dog was a stray that took off while its pen was being cleaned. It jumped in the sewage treatment plant‘s digester and was unable to swim in the foamy liquid.

After the rescue, The Longview Daily News reported, the officer took a long shower and the chocolate Labrador had a bath. It was adopted later in the day by a woman who named it Hershey.

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Information from: The Daily News, http://www.tdn.com

 

Court sides with police officers in search case

The Associated Press, Wednesday January 21, 2009

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that police officers in Utah who searched a suspect’s home without a warrant cannot be sued for violating his constitutional rights.

In ruling unanimously for five officers attached to the Central Utah Narcotics Task Force, the court also abandoned a rigid, two-step test that it adopted in 2001 to guide judges in assessing alleged violations of constitutional rights.

Trial and appellate judges “should be permitted to exercise their sound discretion” in evaluating such claims, Justice Samuel Alito said in his opinion for the court.

Under the 2001 ruling, courts first had to determine whether an action amounts to a violation of a constitutional right and then decide whether the public official, often a police officer, should be immune from the civil lawsuit.

Officials can’t be held liable in situations where it is not clearly established that their actions violated someone’s constitutional rights.

The case grew out of a search of the home of Afton Callahan of Millard County, Utah, in 2002.

An informant contacted police to tell them he had arranged to purchase drugs from Callahan at Callahan’s trailer home.

Wearing a microphone provided by police, the informant entered the trailer and signaled police that a deal had been made. They entered the trailer without a warrant and arrested Callahan on charges of possession of methamphetamines.

Utah courts ruled that the evidence that was seized from Callahan’s home could not be used against him. Other courts have allowed prosecutions to go forward under similar circumstances.

Callahan later sued the officers for violating his constitutional rights. A federal judge ruled the officers could not be sued because there is disagreement in the courts over whether the search was illegal.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver said the lawsuit could proceed because the officers should have known that people have a right in their home to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures.

The high court said Wednesday that the officers are entitled to immunity from Callahan’s suit.

The case is Pearson v. Callahan, 07-751.

 

US Supreme Court Holds That Non-Suspect Passengers Can Be Frisked

Associated Press, January 26, 2009

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court ruled Monday that police officers have leeway to frisk a passenger in a car stopped for a traffic violation even if nothing indicates the passenger has committed a crime or is about to do so.

The court on Monday unanimously overruled an Arizona appeals court that threw out evidence found during such an encounter.

The case involved a 2002 pat-down search of an Eloy, Ariz., man by an Oro Valley police officer, who found a gun and marijuana.

The justices accepted Arizona’s argument that traffic stops are inherently dangerous for police and that pat-downs are permissible when an officer has a reasonable suspicion that the passenger may be armed and dangerous.

The pat-down is allowed if the police “harbor reasonable suspicion that a person subjected to the frisk is armed, and therefore dangerous to the safety of the police and public,” Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said.

The case is Arizona v. Johnson, 07-1122.

 

US Supreme Court to Decide How Long Suspect’s Request for Lawyer is Valid

By Jesse J. Holland, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to clarify how long a suspected criminal’s request for a lawyer during police interrogation should be valid, taking on a case where a child molester asked for a lawyer almost three years before admitting to the abuse.

The high court agreed to consider the state of Maryland’s appeal of a decision throwing out child molester Michael Shatzer’s confession.

Shatzer was imprisoned at the Maryland Correctional Institution in Hagerstown for child sexual abuse in 2003 when police started investigating allegations that he had sexually abused another child. Shatzer requested an attorney and the case was soon dropped.

Three years later, the boy was old enough to offer details. According to court documents, when a different police officer questioned Shatzer again about the case, he was advised of his rights and signed a form waiving them before confessing.

After Shatzer was charged, he filed a motion to suppress his statements, arguing that he had asked for an attorney in the case before. A lower court did not accept his argument, but the Maryland Court of Appeals agreed with his position and threw out the confession.

“After a substantial period of time, however, the presumption that a defendant wishes to proceed only in the presence of counsel is not reasonable,” said Douglas F. Gansler, Maryland‘s attorney general.

State and federal courts have differed on how long a request for a lawyer is valid, Gansler said.

Shatzer’s lawyers say the request is permanent.

“A prior request for counsel prohibits further interrogation,” Shatzer’s lawyers said in court papers. “Even if it did not, this court should recognize, as other courts have, that a police officer who is resuming an investigation has a duty to determine, before questioning a suspect, if that person has previously requested an attorney.”

The Supreme Court likely will not hear the case until the fall.

The case is Maryland v. Shatzer, 08-680.

 

Police Officer Deaths Drop in ’08

By LARRY MARGASAK, Associated Press Writer Larry Margasak, Associated Press Writer – 2 hrs 54 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Fewer police officers died in the line of duty in 2008 compared to last year, reflecting better training and tactics, two law enforcement support groups reported Sunday.

The findings reversed the trend for 2007 when there was a spike in police deaths, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and another group, Concerns of Police Survivors.

The groups reported fatalities through Sunday.

Officer deaths this year totaled 140, compared to 181 in 2007.

Gunfire deaths dropped to 41 officers this year, compared to 68 in 2007. The 2008 number represented the lowest total since 1956 — when there were 35 — and was far below the peak of 156 officers killed by gunfire in 1973.

Traffic-related deaths also declined, with 71 officers killed this year, compared to 83 in 2007. It was the 11th consecutive year that more officers were killed in traffic incidents than from any other cause.

More than 61 percent of this year’s fatalities involved accidents and 39 percent resulted from criminal acts.

The only downside was deaths of women officers: 15 in 2008 compared to 6 a year ago. More women officers than before are in harm’s way, the groups said, because they’re taking on the same dangerous assignments as men.

Craig Floyd, chairman of the Memorial Fund, said in an interview that officers are getting better training and equipment.

More than 70 percent of policemen use bullet-resistant vests compared to fewer than half a decade ago, he said.

And officers are making better use of Taser stun guns and other non-lethal weapons that keep them a safe distance from violent offenders, Floyd said.

To avoid traffic deaths, officers are better trained in high-speed and defensive driving techniques. Police vehicles now have better safety equipment, including side air bags and a substance installed near the gas tank to suppress fire when the vehicle is struck.

The states with the most deaths were Texas with 14, followed by California with 12, then Florida and Pennsylvania with eight apiece,

Other factors cited by Floyd for the reduction in police fatalities:

_A record 2.3 million adult criminals behind bars, according to a study released earlier this year by the Pew Center on the States.

_A 2007 violent crime rate that held steady at the 2005 level, according to the Justice Department.

The Memorial Fund honors law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty and is in charge of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington.

Concerns of Police Survivors provides support and counseling to surviving family members of officers killed in the line of duty.

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On the Net:

Memorial Fund: http://www.nleomf.org

Police Survivors: http://www.nationalcops