Denver Deputies Cleared from death of Inmate Booker - CLOSED

[AMD-65]

What do you guys think. Below I have included a link to the tape that was released today "his family made it sound like this tape was going to be like the beating of rodney king". I am happy the deputies got cleared. Dont get me wrong sucks the guy died, but he gets arrested for drug possesion, Resists against a female deputy and continues to resist. And of course is family is suing denver since loved him so much. I think its funny that when he was homeless doing drugs on the streets he was not worth saving but now that he is dead they see dollar signs.




http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-booker-jail-death-report-20110509,0,6930789.story

[rockhound]

typical

[Scanker19]

I couldn't sleep until now. Couldn't make it though the whole thing, anything else happen?



typical

Why yes. Yes it is.


On the subject of the movie and the fact it was filmed with a fish eye lens...............

oMHjryjc3U4

if you would like to count what he is PM me, its gross but funny especially when you email it.

[DOC]

I don't think those cops need to be so fat and break peoples neck other than that he shouldn't have started fighting with the cops, because they will bounce you off the floor and not bat an eye if you get hurt.

[BushMasterBoy]

Cops seem to be thugs up in Denver, I'll avoid it whenever I can. Cops beat a guy up really bad, get fired & then city pays $795,000. These cops killed this guy, should be worth a couple million...the city sucks.

[TFOGGER]

My stepkid is a Denver Sheriff, although he's not at the jail any longer(now doing technical and training, mostly). He saw the video long before the public, and said there's nothing in it to indicate excessive force. The "family" is trying to capitalize on this incident, with the assistance of "community activists", which translates as loud, obnoxious, button pushers playing a whole deck of race cards to further their own agenda. The couldn't give 2 sh!ts for him when he was alive, but because he died in custody, they can garner a sh!tload of free publicity.

[hurley842002]

My stepkid is a Denver Sheriff, although he's not at the jail any longer(now doing technical and training, mostly). He saw the video long before the public, and said there's nothing in it to indicate excessive force. The "family" is trying to capitalize on this incident, with the assistance of "community activists", which translates as loud, obnoxious, button pushers playing a whole deck of race cards to further their own agenda. The couldn't give 2 sh!ts for him when he was alive, but because he died in custody, they can garner a sh!tload of free publicity.

^^^This

And please Bushmasterboy, avoid the metro area, we don't need anymore with your train of thought up here.

[cstone]

A man in custody died and that is a tragedy.

Here is the official reason why he died: "A coroner's report said Booker died from cardio respiratory arrest. An enlarged heart, emphysema and cocaine were also listed as contributing factors."

I watched the video. Could anyone else who watched the video tell me the time marker when the deputies used excessive force? If they hadn't stunned him they would have used impact weapons (like a night stick) and control tactics to restrain him.

If this man had fallen down and struck his head on one of the many chairs, and there was no one else around him, it wouldn't change the family's desire for justice. No amount of money will change the fact that he is dead. The deputies were doing what they had the authority and training to do, and by law were required to do with people in custody.

Sadly, this has happened before and will happen again.

[Elhuero]

he had himself a "people that annoy you" moment that his body was not equipped to handle.

[sneakerd]

He fought the law and -guess what- the law won.

[sneakerd]

And the family couldn't care less about the publicity- they see payday coming, and they'll probably get one.

[Irving]

he had himself a "people that annoy you" moment that his body was not equipped to handle.

LOL. Using one awesome show reference to sneak in another awesome show reference.

[sic_semper_tyrannis]

I didn't even need to see the video to know pretty much exactly what happened. The guy had cocaine in his system (the media knew this the entire time, but good luck finding a news article over the last couple months that mentioned it... full disclosure and facts have no bearing on what the media vomits across your TV screen), was a homeless drug addict, was arrested on a warrant and fought with deputies inside the jail. The results are tragic, but that doesn't mean that blame should be put on everyone else other than the deceased, solely for the sake of blaming SOMEONE.

As expected, the media went apeshit (like they always do) and pasted the deceased's photo all over the nightly news and newspapers for the next 1/2 year (and not a photo of the guy in his normal state of being, which was a homeless drunk drug addict, but instead sought out the nicest smiling angelic sympathy photo they could find), referred to him exclusively as a "homeless street preacher" (it sounds sooooo much better than what he really was, doesn't it?), and then gathered up the typical group of ignorant raucous he-who-speaks-loudest-is-always-correct mouth breathers who always come out of the woodwork after a police incident to splatter all over the news talking about how that poor black man was murdered and blah blah blah yakitty yakitty we need a federal civil rights investigation bullshit something needs to be done OH MY GOD JEEBUS SAVE US THE POLICE IS MURDERIN MINORITIES UP IN HERE! Of course, none of these family members were anywhere to be seen when their loved one was out on the streets, homeless, smoking crack, getting arrested, etc. But the second they see dollar signs, oh lordy lord it's on. And lawyers jump all over it because the city will throw money at any-damn-one for any-damn-thing, so getting a settlement is the easiest payday around (aka "The Denver Lotto").

Just because someone stands on the steps in front of the jail and talks extremely loud into a microphone does NOT mean that that person has any idea what the fuck they are talking about... but it DOES make for great media sensationalizing, so you better believe that is what you're gonna see on the news that night. Remember: "If it bleeds, it leads!" The media has not given the slightest shit about actual journalism in decades, as all they really care about is causing controversy and MAKING news. The police have always been the media's perennial pincushion, and the local media in Denver have always been worse than average in that regard. The city of Denver, for their part, has only worsened the problem with their complete refusal to ever stand up for themselves and call out the local tabloids for their blatant bullshit.

This has been the case with all the other brutality cases the media has been monkey humping recently. The news talks up a whole lot of rabble rousing with their reporting, but have you ever noticed how completely devoid of factual substance the news segments are? If the "reporters" actually REPORTED the facts of the incident, there wouldn't be anything to scream and shout about. Instead, they intentionally bury the real story and replace it with sensationalism, because that is what gets the ignorant masses to actually tune-in every night. Can you imagine how utterly boring the news would be if it was just a variety of thoroughly researched and objectively presented daily events?



Cops seem to be thugs up in Denver, I'll avoid it whenever I can. Cops beat a guy up really bad, get fired & then city pays $795,000. These cops killed this guy, should be worth a couple million...the city sucks.
Hopefully you will never see a news segment on gun violence and hear about how guns are bad and kill people... you would obviously feel compelled to give up all your firearms and renounce your status as an evil gunowner.

[Byte Stryke]

[Pop]
...

[BushMasterBoy]

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/23438020/detail.html

[BushMasterBoy]

http://www.denvercriminallawattorney.com/2011/02/denver-police-brutality-on-the-rise.shtml

[OneGuy67]

http://www.denvercriminallawattorney.com/2011/02/denver-police-brutality-on-the-rise.shtml


Not to jump in the fray, but your source is an attorney quoting Westword?

[SA Friday]

Not to jump in the fray, but your source is an attorney quoting Westword?

[ROFL1] saw that coming...

[DOC]

If you see the video you can see him getting choked out while pulling his head back and his lifeless body being carried into a cell. Where it was found later dead. IDK all the details but I would have guessed a broken neck instead of respiratory failure.

[sic_semper_tyrannis]

bushmaster, your links are only helping me to prove my point. First off, a quick search would reveal a lot more than just a single The Denver Channel article on alleged brutality, so I'm not sure why you decided to pick that particular article. However, if you read even just that one article, you will see just how utterly devoid of information it is. All it tells you is that someone who could surely have made millions of dollars at trial, decided for some reason (and with the recommendation of his attorney) to settle for $40k. Why would someone looking at a sure-thing million dollar payday decide to pass it up and accept a $40k settlement (that his attorney will take a huge chunk of anyway)? Could it possibly be that the facts of his case would not have passed muster in front of a judge and jury, where all the intimate details and relevant facts of the case (instead of just media-induced hysteria) would be revealed? Do you realize that ALL big cities in the US have legal teams and budget appropriations dedicated solely to legal settlements against the city?

I can guarantee you that $40k is SIGNIFICANTLY less than the actual cost to the city of going to trial and effectively defending itself against the accusations. Therefore, the settlement was, from a strictly financial standpoint, a good decision. Now, there is certainly a "principle" standpoint that cities must overcome when they settle, but we all know that $$$ is the only real consideration. Therefore, the guy (and his attorney) gets his $40k settlement to go away, and the city saves money in the long run. And there you have, as I mentioned earlier, "The Denver Lotto". A good decision for the city from a financial standpoint, although at the expense of standing up for principle. Of course when the media reports it, the story is always butchered into an obvious admission of guilt and wrongdoing by the city (and therefore needing additional media scrutiny and sensationalizing!), instead of what it really is.

Oh, and your link to the criminal defense attorney page, which in turn links to a Westword reference, which in turn is a reference to a study completed by A SINGLE INDIVIDUAL IN SEATTLE THAT HATES THE POLICE, is just plain sad. I actually remember reading the Westword article when it first came out, and almost ripping my hair out at how absurd the story was. First off, the Westword is an "alternative" paper that doesn't even pretend to be a real news source (and their only real "claim to fame" is their resident Weed Critic that samples local marijuana and provides written critiques). Then, if you were to ACTUALLY READ the "study" that the Westword refers to, you would see that it has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH FOUNDED ALLEGATIONS OF BRUTALITY. Instead, the "study" is numbers put together by some hippy in Seattle that absolutely hates police. The numbers are based on "PUBLICIZED reports of police excessive force", for which the study finds that Denver has the highest rate of PUBLICIZED excessive force allegations in the nation. Now, the reason I highlighted the word "publicized" is because of how important the word is in this context: The study bases their numbers not on how many founded excessive force allegations are made, but instead on HOW MANY MEDIA REPORTS ARE BROADCAST of alleged allegations. In other words, all the study shows is that the Denver media reports on more incidents of alleged excessive force than the media in any other city in the nation, assuming the numbers are even correct. Which, if you haven't yet noticed, is EXACTLY WHAT I ARTICULATED IN MY FIRST POST! The media here goes apeshit with any allegation of police brutality, because it makes for interesting news. Then, the media has the nerve to actually cite a "study" who's only conclusion is that the media coverage of brutality allegations is higher here than anywhere else in the county. And that is NEWS! Do you see the circular logic the media is using here? The more THEY REPORT, the BIGGER THE PROBLEM BECOMES!

Now, if you actually want to base your opinions off of CONCRETE, OBJECTIVE, REALISTIC numbers, then maybe you should refer to the statistics on "incidents of force used per arrest", which actually shows that Denver is BELOW the national average for use of force incidents. Of course, objective data like that is just plain lame and boring, and does not make for exciting news headlines. So screw reality, lets just have us some good 'ol fashioned rabble rousing and sell some damn newspapers! [south park voice]"RABBLE RABBLE, RABBLE!"[\south park voice]

[Colorado Luckydog]

He was startled when the deputy tried to grab him. He pulled back and this was a reason for the cops to say he resisted. Then, they murdered him. If that was my father, they wouldn't need to worry about a law suit. They would need to hire some more cops because they would have some missing. They choked the poor old skinny dude down and flat out murdered him. They are without a doubt above the law.

[hurley842002]

He was startled when the deputy tried to grab him. He pulled back and this was a reason for the cops to say he resisted. Then, they murdered him. If that was my father, they wouldn't need to worry about a law suit. They would need to hire some more cops because they would have some missing. They choked the poor old skinny dude down and flat out murdered him. They are without a doubt above the law.

Are you freaking serious?? Either you've had one too many cocktails, are partially blind, or just flat out crazy.

"If that was my father, they wouldn't need to worry about a law suit. They would need to hire some more cops because they would have some missing."

Enough reason for me to never sell you a firearm.

[Colorado Luckydog]

They flat murdered the dude. They choked the him to death because he flinched when she tried to grab him. They are above the law.

[sic_semper_tyrannis]

Let me just add that I have no vested interest in this argument either way. I simply have a long-simmering hatred of the media and enjoy fronting them off any chance I get. At least I will be up front and admit that I am biased against the media, as opposed to many other people who refuse to acknowledge their biases. For instance, there are many people on this site who are severely biased against law enforcement, and will exploit any opportunity they can to demonize police.

My bias is a result of years of direct first-hand experience, and I have become sickened with what journalism has become in this country. Objective, substantive, ethical, moral reporting is simply not how the media works today, and there are a variety of reasons for it. I have had the (dis)pleasure of watching first-hand as the local news channels report something, without hesitation, that they KNOW to be wrong. It is all about creating controversy and upping their ratings, nothing more. Growing up I always wanted to be a journalist, but now there is no way I would disgrace myself in that occupation, due to what the industry has become. I have also traveled extensively and am an admitted news junkie, so I have my own opinions about regional media reputations. I can tell you that when it comes to local news, in my experience, Denver has some of the absolute worst reporting in the nation. I mean, just downright deplorable. As a general rule, reporting gets less professional and increasingly biased and subjective as the size of the organization decreases (national media orgs are generally the most reliable and professional, while local outlets and alternative sources are generally the least).

The point being: Do the police screw up? Yup, for sure they do. Are there cops on the job that shouldn't be? Plenty, no doubt. Should corrupt LEOs be singled out and handled appropriately? Absolutely. BUT, I'll be damned if I'm going to be ignorant enough to let the media tell me what is and isn't police misconduct. EVERYTHING is police misconduct in the eyes of the media, so long as it sells ad space and brings in ratings. The media will vilify and demonize any poor bastard wearing a badge without hesitation, and conduct a "trial by media" of the officers actions regardless of whether they were right or wrong, and regardless of whether the media even knows the details of the incident to begin with.

[sic_semper_tyrannis]

They flat murdered the dude. They choked the him to death because he flinched when she tried to grab him. They are above the law.

You'd make a great field reporter for any of the nightlies. Maybe you could be Brian Maas's intern or something. Actually, I would LOVE to work with Valerie Castro... she is just downright gorgeous! Whoops, sorry, my mind went off-track for a second there. You obviously know the truth about what happened there, those murderous thugs decided to just up and kill the guy. That is exactly what happened. The deputies were bored and decided to murder an inmate. They also were excited about having their lives and careers held in limbo for almost a year, their names and faces plastered all over the news (did you catch the one channel that actually showed the one female deputy's Facebook page? Because that was somehow relevant?), receiving death threats, having to live with second-guessing and hate for the rest of their lives... yup, that's exactly what happened. Thank God there are people as rational and reasonable as you to put it all in perspective.

[Colorado Luckydog]

If he "attacked" you or me, the way he "attacked" them and we killed him, we would be prosecuted for murder. That's a fact and everyone knows it. They are above the law and there is not much we can do about it.

[sneakerd]

Colo Luckydog- you damage your argument and your own rep (whether you care or not) when you imply that you would go out and kill a few police officers if this happened to your dad. The dude fought the law and the law won. I don't care who you think you are or how fked up you are, when a cop puts his hands on you you do what you're told and go in the direction he wants you to go.

The chokehold they use is standard. They thought he was just out cold. Heart disease and cocaine killed him, with an assist by a legit control technique.

[Colorado Luckydog]

When your dealing with an old drunk coke head, maybe you shouldn't use a "standard choke hold". Maybe you should use your head. If they would have shown one sliver of compassion, the old dude would still be alive. They are above the law. I'm done.

[sic_semper_tyrannis]

If he "attacked" you or me, the way he "attacked" them and we killed him, we would be prosecuted for murder. That's a fact and everyone knows it. They are above the law and there is not much we can do about it.


That is NOT a fact, and everyone does NOT know it. And the context of the incident has no application to anything you or me or any other Joe Blow citizen would encounter. The deceased guy was a prisoner in a detention facility, and was subject to lawful orders given by the jail staff. The deputies are sworn jail personnel tasked with maintaining order in the jail and controlling inmates' movements. The deputies told the inmate he needed to go somewhere, and the inmate decided he wasn't going. The deputies then attempt to enforce the movement, and the guy decides to fight. His decades of cocaine and alcohol abuse have done quite a number on his body, and unfortunately his brain started a fight that his body would ultimately lose. Unfortunately, this occasionally happens to old worn-out drug addicts, as their bodies tend to have lower trauma thresholds.

Since you or me or Joe Blow would never be in a situation where we walked up to a person on the street and said "I order you to come here", and then fight with the person when he resists, the analogy doesn't make sense. It's apples to oranges. A deputy enforcing the law inside prison does not compare to you or me on the street, nor SHOULD IT compare.

[Colorado Luckydog]

The koolaid has become some good over the years, most don't even know it when it's shoved down their throats. I would be willing to bet that 50% of the inmates in this facility should not even be there but they are. You can bet that there is some hotshot DA that is boasting about his or her conviction precentage. BUT EVEN, if you are there, you would deserve better than that old drunk dude got. I can't believe that many LEO's jumped on top of a dude that my 12 year old could have handled. Then they proceeded to choke him for several minutes. Then they act like they did nothing wrong when he died. It's a bunch of bullshit and the Federal, State and local government needs an enema.

[sic_semper_tyrannis]

When your dealing with an old drunk coke head, maybe you shouldn't use a "standard choke hold". Maybe you should use your head. If they would have shown one sliver of compassion, the old dude would still be alive. They are above the law. I'm done.


The first logical error here is that you're assuming the deputies have life bios on all the prisoners. As if they knew that this guy was a coke head with heart problems, and that if he resists they can only use such-and-such restraint. In fact, the onus is clearly on the prisoner to know his own medical limitations and not put himself into a situation where his heart might core out.

As for the choke hold, it might surprise you that it is one of the safest techniques available for restraining actively resisting people (not just in a law enforcement context, but in any physical confrontation you might encounter on the street). A choke hold puts both the choker and chokee at less risk of injury. Going fist-to-fist with someone is actually a HORRIBLE way to fight, and often leads to broken bones, bleeding, fractures, and long-term injuries. Same thing when impact weapons become involved. A choke hold on the other hand, when executed properly, can end a fight quickly and with minimal potential for injury to everyone. Obviously this was not the case with this particular incident (and similar incidents), but that does not change the fact that the results were both unlikely and unintended. Surely you wouldn't prefer that the officers would have whipped out their batons and started clubbing him? Or just start throwing fists and elbows at the guy? Maybe a couple knees to the jugular? Are these methods more "compassionate" than a choke hold?

The video was extremely tame. There was no brutality there. No fight ever looks pretty. It's not a dance competition. Hell, even the Denver Post ultimately conceded that nothing was done wrong (which would be like Obama admitting that he's actually been a Republican this whole time).

[sic_semper_tyrannis]

The koolaid has become some good over the years, most don't even know it when it's shoved down their throats. I would be willing to bet that 50% of the inmates in this facility should not even be there but they are. You can bet that there is some hotshot DA that is boasting about his or her conviction precentage. BUT EVEN, if you are there, you would deserve better than that old drunk dude got. I can't believe that many LEO's jumped on top of a dude that my 12 year old could have handled. Then they proceeded to choke him for several minutes. Then they act like they did nothing wrong when he died. It's a bunch of bullshit and the Federal, State and local government needs an enema.


So a 50% false arrest rate? That is a pretty serious allegation. You'd think that in a city with as much crime as Denver (and there is plenty plenty PLENTY of crime here) the police and DAs would have better things to do with their time than to trump up false charges on people just to fill the jail with warm bodies. Also, for what its worth, this incident happened in the general seating area of PADF (Pre-Arraignment Detention Facility), so actually there was not a single person in the room that had even been in front of a judge or DA yet (thus, they haven't yet had the opportunity to be wrongly convicted by the corrupt nothing-better-to-do DAs).

As a counter-bet, I would actually argue that a good 75% percent of the people at the jail would be completely open about admitting their guilt if asked. Many have been there numerous times, and understand that it is just part of the game. No hesitations, they know the results of their lifestyle and don't waste time trying to minimize it.

You may be underestimating the strength of long-time crackheads. Especially angry ones.

As for your last statement about all levels of govt needing an enema, finally there is something that I can completely and happily agree with you on... only for different reasons.

[Colorado Luckydog]

It's not about a false arrest rate. You just don't get it and probably never will. This country is going down hill fast. Their arrest rates aren't false! They are putting people in jail for any fucking thing they want to put them there for. I know all to well, that I can't undo the effect of thousands of gallons of koolaid in one thread.