The bounty on dopers has reached such incredible heights that the Drug Warriors are now killing old men for operating funds.
The invaders who murdered Hampton, Virginia resident William Cooper swiped about $900 in cash. They seized his gun collection. They took the Lexus from his driveway. By some oversight they neglected to extract the gold fillings from his teeth.
While they made off with a decent haul, the robbers were doubtless disappointed that they couldn’t locate the large stash of illicit prescription drugs they had expected to find. They had the luxury of tossing the home at leisure without worrying about being interrupted by the police — on account of the fact that they were the police.
William Cooper, a 69-year-old retiree who suffered from the familiar variety of afflictions attendant to age, was startled awake on the morning of June 18 by two men who had barged into his home with their guns drawn and ready. Since he lived in a neighborhood in which home invasions (of the non-State-sanctioned variety) were commonplace, Cooper slept with a loaded handgun on his nightstand. He made an entirely proper but regrettably ineffective use of that weapon in an effort to repel the intruders, and was gunned down in his bedroom.
The police raid was triggered by an unsubstantiated tip from a still-anonymous informant that the NASA retiree — who walked with a cane and, according to his neighbors, never seemed to have any visitors — was illegally selling prescription drugs from his home.
And here is the kicker:
The “Asset Forfeiture Addendum” to the PNETF’s most recent “Memorandum of Understanding” specifies that “TASK FORCE investigations should result in the seizure of forfeitable assets.” It is also expected that the plunder will be distributed “in a fair and equitable manner,” with a little more than one-third going to the city governments of Hampton and Newport News, a little less than a fifth going to the State Police, and the rest being lavished on the “Peninsula Association of Commonwealth Attorney’s Association” (redundancy in the original). At least some of the boodle would be used to cultivate other informants, as well.
Was there some kind of due process for confiscating this man’s stuff? Of course not. This is the Drug War and they don’t need any goddamned due process. The citizen needs due process to get his stuff back. Fortunately for the robbers Mr. Cooper will not be contesting the seizure.
Cross Posted at Power and Control
Comments
6 responses to “Drug War Einsatzgruppen”
Just another over reaching police department not protecting and serving the public.
What did the judge hear from the police before signing the warrant? The informant was obviously wrong based on what wasn’t found in the home. Did the police even do a drive by of the home, look into a window or do any type of investigation prior to raiding the home. Did the informant buy drugs from the old man while under direct supervision of the police? Many more questions need to be asked after something like this happens.
Anyone can be dangerous, ragardless of age but did the police think about maybe entering the home during the day and serve the warrant. Was the old man that big of a threat in the eyes of the police?
This could happen to any of us. It is no wonder people have little respect for the police today.
It’s another example of the corruption the drug war has made possible.
You surely aren’t suggesting that the WOD is, in part, perpetuated due to the perverse incentives created by asset forfeiture laws? The LEO’s, DA’s, judges, etc. of this great nation are immune to moral hazards. Didn’t you get the memo?
Occurs to me that if someone wanted to murder the old man, tipping off the police was a perfect way of doing it.
Just like hiring a hit squad, except that it’s free. And the police won’t try to find you and charge you with murder one.
The perfect crime. I wonder just how many of those murdered in their homes were victims of a “tip”…might be worth looking into.
Looking into by the non-corrupt cops I mean – just in case anyone was taking that as a suggestion on how to Commit the perfect murder.
This sort of thing is happening too often.
There needs to be repercussions. If officers enter a home by force in the dead of night and kill or wound the inhabitants of that house, then there damn well better be sufficient cause for them to have gone into that home to begin with.
If not, then the officers involved should be arrested and charged with home invasion and use of a fire arm in commission of a felony. If someone died, then murder is also appropriate.
It’s a bad thing for the police themselves, and the courts in general, to be eroding the citizens’ respect for the rule of law and the enforcers of same.