It Doesn’t Stop Itself
10/25/21
Recently in the DMV…
10/2/21
Recently in the DMV…
Maryland Transportation Authority police killed a man during a car chase, MPD shot a man wielding a paintball gun with “mental health issues”, MPD shot a man in a car, a man died in custody at the Arlington County Jail, a Wicomico Co. correctional officer was charged with sexual abuse of a minor, a grand jury in Gaithersburg declined to indict officers for the murder of Kwamena Ocran, eight cars were damaged during a police chase, Disability Rights DC filed a complaint accusing DCPS of discriminating against incarcerated students with disabilities, a former MPD clerk was convicted of selling confidential information on traffic crash victims, a former Rocky Mount officer filed a lawsuit for retaliation he endured as a result of voicing opposition to the chief of police’s misogyny, Va. Beach PD installed new ShotSpotter technology despite internal evidence of its inefficacy, Cumberland police neglected to respond to a mother’s warning about her son’s “erratic behavior” that imminently led to three murders, racial aggression from a neighbor that the Va Beach PD had “no authority to intervene [on]” was deterred by a community rally, police in Harrisonburg and Leesburg threatened to quit if a federal employee vaccine mandate was enforced, and the Maryland Fraternal Order of Police president blamed the decline in recruitment of Black officers on the “diabolization of police.”
9/26/21
Recently in the DMV…
Two MPD officers were charged in the murder of Karon Hylton-Brown, a US Marshal shot a person in their car while serving a warrant, a uniformed Prince George’s County officer driving his personal vehicle threatened to shoot a woman for alluding to his bad driving, six US Capitol Police officers were found guilty for their support of insurrectionists on Jan 6, a (now former) Fairmount Heights officer was indicted on federal charges for sexually assaulting a woman while she was in custody, both candidates for Virginia governor said they “would not seek to make any changes” to qualified immunity for police, ten Black women (five currently serving officers, five former officers) sued MPD for perpetuating a culture that is “a living hell for Black female officers”, the DC Housing Authority PD was revealed to accept and encourage a culture of employee abuse, the leader of Fairfax County PD’s DWI Enforcement Squad arrested 290 people in the past three years for driving while high (despite no legal limit or test for marijuana intoxication), a Maryland State Trooper ran a red light and crashed into a motorcycle (sending its riders to hospital), a former deputy sheriff wearing departmental tactical gear was identified attacking the Capitol on Jan 6, Maryland PDs were shown to underreport (by five-fold) verified hate crimes to the FBI, Maryland PDs received ~$500k in federal highway safety grants, DC dissolved its Firearms Examination Unit, an MPD commander advocated for alternatives to policing, and schools in Montgomery County opened with no cops for the first time in two decades.
9/12/21
Recently in the DMV…
An MPD officer tased a man “at least twice” before shooting him to death, MPD chased and shot a man in his car, MPD refused to release the investigative report into the murder of An’Twan Gilmore (as it has done with its murders of D’Quan Young, Jeffrey Price, Marqueese Alston, Eric Carter, Deon Kay, and Karon Hylton-Brown) based on a FOIA exemption that MPD “might get sued”, MPD Sgt Nelson was heard in body-cam footage saying that George Watson was “definitely a mental health consumer” before murdering him, a report to the Montgomery County Council detailed MCPD’s systemic violation of the law to record traffic stop data, one of the cops that plowed into a fence street-racing down Anacostia Ave NE pleaded guilty to a reckless driving charge and was fined $350, while another contested the charge, the family of Korryn Gaines continue to seek (for the fifth year) charges against her murder by the Baltimore County PD, four citizens sued the Prince George’s County PD for illegally entering their apartment and shooting their dog, a searchable database of DC public employee salaries showed that MPD Chief Contee earns a salary of $270,000 (compared to Mayor Bowser’s $220,000), Mayor Bowser regulated away the power of DC’s local clemency board to influence pardons, Capitol Police recommended disciplinary action against six officers for their “unbecoming” conduct during the Jan 6 insurrection, BLM DC petitioned Mayor Bowser to hold MPD accountable for murdering An’Twan Gilmore…and in Atlanta, City Council approval of a massive police training facility on protected land inspired the historically conservative Atlanta Daily World to editorialize against police spending (h/t Sela L).
8/29/21
Recently in the DMV…
MPD murdered An’Twan Gilmore in his car, nine hours earlier a “brave officer who was out here doing his job” shot a man during a traffic stop, Maryland police officers were indicted for conspiracy to commit bank fraud and submitting false police reports, including an officer arrested in 2020 for murdering a man in custody, the case of a Gaithersburg plainclothes cop murdering Kwamena Ocran will “likely” be sent to a grand jury, nine months after the shooting and absent Ocran’s mother seeing the autopsy report, police report, or camera footage, Montgomery County public schools removed resource officers (i.e., cops), which disproportionately target Black students, a report published jointly by the Movement for Black Lives and the CUNY School of Law detailed a calculated plan devised by the White House to persecute the “Black movement by surveillance [and] by criminalizing protesters”, Montgomery County paid $26,000 to restore a bronze sculpture of a cop, and the Montgomery County Council President insisted that the state’s attorney general’s office investigate the July murder of Ryan LeRoux by four cops, citing “an inherent conflict of interest when law enforcement investigates itself”.
8/15/21
Recently in the DMV…
Montgomery County police murdered a man (while waiting for a crisis negotiator to arrive), MPD officers beat up a man during an arrest, which has “embarrassed” MPD Chief Contee, a Stafford County Sheriff’s Deputy hit and killed a pedestrian, Henrico County police chased and killed a man following a traffic violation, a Fairfax County officer was indicted for sexual misconduct with a minor, Harford County police raided a bookstore and arrested nine men for Perverted Sexual Practice (sodomy law), three Seat Pleasant officers were suspended after assaulting and tasing a man during a traffic stop, one of the officers was found guilty of another assault during a traffic stop, which cost the city $500K in damages, two of the six Seattle police officers that participated in the Jan 6 insurrection were placed on administrative leave, Virginia DOC boasted offering four hours of out-of-cell time in its prisons (but others disagreed), ACLU filed a lawsuit against MPD for using teargas and stun grenades (both banned) against demonstrators on BLM Plaza last summer, the father of Donovan Lynch amended his lawsuit against VBPD (for murdering his son) to underline that Virginia Beach has a “long-standing pattern of police misconduct”, MPD continues to use marijuana drug dogs to harass citizens during traffic stops (despite the legalization of possession in 2014), Mayor Bowser invited MPD to “use any overtime necessary”, the director of DC’s 911 system ordered mandatory overtime, PG County PD settled a $2.3 million racial discrimination lawsuit, DC cops took to scooters, DC Council introduced a bill that would require MPD to create a publicly accessible database of officer disciplinary and training records, Arlington County voted to create a Community Oversight Board to oversee police (but with no disciplinary powers), and Alexandria redirected funds from the police budget for cops in schools to hire mental health professionals.
7/4/21
Recently in the DMV…
Howard County exonerated a deputy sheriff who murdered a man wielding a “large tree branch”, PG County spent nearly $20 million since 2019 to fight lawsuits against officers alleging discrimination within the PG police department, an audit on Montgomery County PD claimed the department’s “mental health crisis response policy is outdated and inadequate”, an MPD officer was indicted for selling personal information on traffic accident victims, an investigation into use of force by the Fairfax County PD found that Black citizens received more severe and frequent use of force than white citizens and that (county-wide) use of force was excessive, DC Metro’s Inspector General alleged that Metro Transit police failed to process thousands of “victim and general complaints” between 2010-2017, a federal judge permitted litigation to proceed against MPD (but not federal law enforcement) for using unprovoked force against crowds in Lafayette Square on June 1, 2020, the Montgomery County Executive argued that a new council bill proposing 30 hours of training about community services and social justice “should not be a prerequisite for entering into the police academy”, and Arlington County School Board voted to remove police from schools.
6/20/21
Recently in the DMV…
Six Ocean City Police officers assaulted and arrested a Black teenager for vaping on the boardwalk, before assaulting and arresting three other Black teenagers who came to his defense, Nellie’s Sports Bar, through its private security, dragged a Black woman by her hair out of the bar, Baltimore PD chased and ran over a Black teenager, the MPD gang database was shown to include “supposed gang member[s]” who are “less than 1 year old, as well as 2, 3, 5, and 6-year-olds”, a new report reveals that, of the (at least) eight law enforcement agencies set upon protesters at Lafayette Park last June, only MPD was found to have used tear gas, Virginia’s Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission recommends harsher penalties for “excess” marijuana possession, MPD establishes a Director of Employee Well-Being Support to “fight against compassion fatigue” among MPD officers, a Norfolk police lieutenant was fired for donating to a fundraiser for Kyle Rittenhouse with the note “Every rank and file police officer supports you“, a man who was physically and verbally assaulted by a drunk and armed off-duty Prince George’s County cop is suing the PGCPD for their “unfair” investigation into the incident, the 2019 Sexual Assault Victims’ Rights Amendment Act has still not been implemented, the Attorney General decides (in a reversal) to prosecute Park Police officers for involuntary manslaughter in the killing of Bijan Ghaisar, who they shot nine times in his car in 2019, and Joel Caston becomes the first advisory neighborhood commissioner for district 7F07.
6/6/21
Recently in the DMV…
MPD murdered Vedo Hall in Congress Heights, MPD, MidCity private security, and Black Falls Special Police harassed and threatened Brookland Manor Apartment residents for screening a movie in their front yard, the Office of the DC Auditor determined that MPD’s murder of Deon Kay was “reckless”, included “no operational plan of any kind”, “squandered any opportunity to de-escalate the situation”, and was justified, MPD admitted to (and defended) using teargas on citizens in Lafayette Square Park last June, while maintaining that “MPD was not involved in the movement of the President from Lafayette Square to St. John’s church”, Montgomery County Circuit Court charged an FBI agent, who murdered a citizen on the Red Line following a “verbal exchange”, with second-degree murder, first-degree assault, felony firearm use, and reckless endangerment, the union representing Zoo Police say Zoo Officers “fear for their lives” due to claims of understaffing at the Zoo, hacked files revealed that MPD surveilled online accounts of clowns in order to “identify those who may be responsible” for being clowns, the Fairfax County Democratic Committee demanded that their new police Chief be fired due to his “history of racially charged use of force incidents”, Montgomery County commissioned an independent review of racial, ethnic, and gender bias in its Attorney’s Office, and the Capital Pride Alliance continues to ban uniformed police from marching in the Capital Pride Parade.
5/22/21
Recently in the DMV…
Baltimore PD murdered a man in response to a gender violence 911 call after “doing a great job of trying to de-escalate [for two minutes and 20 seconds]”, according to Commissioner Harrison, who doesn’t “know how this could have gone any other way”, the Va State Police are investigating the assault and arrest of Juanisha Brooks for driving with “dark tail lights” , the DC Housing Authority has installed “smart policing” through 24/7 CCTV surveillance of public housing, MPD pursued a person for reposting police files made public by hackers and the MPD police union has filed a Class Grievance against DC for their handling of the hack, Mayor Bowser calls proposals to shrink the MPD “unreasonable”, “extremist”, and “irresponsible”, the US House introduces an act to establish a permanent National Guard quick response unit at the Capitol, Montgomery County PD sues the county over new use of force policy, alleging that, for example, “using only proportional force” would affect police health and safety, Arlington County Manager advocates against a civilian police review board having the authority to launch its own investigations or discipline officers, the attorney for the family of Korryn Gaines, who was murdered by Baltimore police, is appealing to the Dept of Justice to revisit the “wrongful death” decision of a Baltimore County judge and uninterrupted career of the BPD murderer, St Mary’s County PD responded to a “barricade situation” (man in his house with two knives) with a SWAT team, a Bearcat, tear gas, and a drone, Montgomery County introduces legislation to require 30 hours of training on social justice for prospective police, which the police union says is “going to deter people from our department”, Montgomery County Council unanimously approved continued funding for police officers in schools, Va Attorney General has appealed to the US AG to prosecute two cops in the 2017 murder of Bijan Ghaisar, after the previous AG refused to pursue charges in 2019, the legalization of marijuana in Va has forced Fairfax County PD to retire 10 pot-sniffing dogs, Va, which abolished discretionary parole in 1995, failed to restore the parole process in the State Senate and so has made a website for requesting clemency, and Charles County Public Schools is partnering with CCPD to provide police-led summer camp for students.
5/9/21
Recently in the DMV…
MPD murdered Terrance Maurice Parker on a domestic dispute call, footage of the murder finds one of the cops telling the 911-caller “If he has a gun this is how it ends”, a PG County officer was indicted for assaulting a handcuffed teenager, the new Fairfax County police chief is questioned over his history of excessive use of force, one officer was fired and three remain under investigation for totaling their cars while drag racing on Anacostia Ave, MPD refuses to disclose whether they are negotiating with hackers that stole 250GB of police data, Mayor Bowser questioned whether DC needs an accredited forensics lab after the Department of Forensic Sciences had its accreditation withdrawn for widespread corruption, the time people incarcerated at the DC Jail are allowed outside of their cells increased to two hours per day, the DC Police Union decries resignations from MPD over last summer’s Police Reform Bill, and mothers rallied at Freedom Plaza to protest the “impunity that officers are now getting for killing our loved ones”.
4/24/21
Recently in the DMV…
A teenager was murdered by a State Trooper in Leonardtown, MD, a person in duress at the Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro station was violently restrained and pepper-sprayed by Metro Transit Police, a State Trooper was fired a year after physically and verbally assaulting a Black man in his car, students incarcerated in the DC Jail filed a lawsuit against the city for failing to provide them with adequate education during the pandemic, a journalist whose equipment was seized by MPD during a Black Lives Matter march sought “financial restitution, an apology, and a promise to enhance police training” and was awarded (only) financial restitution, a person was released from prison after Fairfax County learned that the arresting officer lied about the stop leading to his arrest (opening an investigation into hundreds of prior arrests by the same officer), PG County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy announced her office will create and keep a list of police that will not be allowed to testify on behalf of the state, two US Park Police officers that murdered Bijan Ghaisar in 2019 (and remain on paid leave) will have their case transferred from state to federal court, in order to seek dismissal of the case on the grounds of the immunity granted (by the US Constitution) for federal agents from state prosecution, and the Maryland General Assembly repealed the Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights and enacted a series of laws aimed at police accountability, overriding vetoes from Gov. Hogan.
4/10/21
Recently in the DMV…
A police officer murdered two people in Takoma Park, a lawsuit was filed against two police officers for the abuse of a five-year-old, the Office of the DC Auditor found that investigations conducted by MPD following fatal uses of force by officers had “serious holes” and “failed to fully investigate”, parents rallied outside the Office of the State Superintendent of Education in DC in response to having police called on a seven-year-old for removing his mask on a school bus, the DC Police Reform Commission released 90 recommendations to re-imagine DC law enforcement (including police out of schools), and a set of police reform bills were sent to Gov Hogan to sign.
