Palm Springs Police Chief Resigns Over "Bag A F*g" Incident

Well, that was fast! Just last week, Palm Springs Police Chief David Dominguez apologized for profane language he used to describe gay men who had been caught up in a homophobic police sting in the Warm Sands area of the city where several gay nude vacation resorts are located. Today comes word that Chief Dominguez has decided to retire early in wake of the ongoing scandal.

"After careful consideration of the recent debates surrounding the Warm Sands Law Enforcement Operation, I believe this decision is in the best interest of my family, my health, the Department and the City," Dominguez said in a statement. "It has been a privilege to be the Chief of Police and work with the professional men, women and volunteers in the Police Department who are extremely dedicated to the community."

Steve Pougnet, the openly gay mayor of Palm Springs, made his first statement on the controversy, saying:

"I support the decision by the police chief to retire and agree that it is in the best interest of the city and the department – to begin the healing process for the community. Yet, there remains much work to be done."

The question of what the final impact will be on the 19 gay men who were arrested during the sting operation should be resolved at a hearing on January 20th.

Palm Springs Police Chief Apologizes For Using Epithet

There is an update on the story about the Palm Springs public sex sting that MadProfessah has been following rather closely since this summer. Palm Springs Police Chief David Dominguez who had previously angrily denied the reports tat anti-gay epithets had been hurled during the public sex sting, has apologized for calling the gay men arrested "a bunch of filthy motherf***ers."

Palm Springs City Manager David Ready released a report which admits wrongdoing by the police department.

As a result of the accusations against the police department, the city opened its own investigation into the sting.  The city's report admits that "portions of the operation were not conducted according to professional standards."

The mistakes highlighted in the report include:

• Not notifying hotels, businesses and residents of the Warm Sands neighborhood of the complaints
• Using undercover decoys instead of just surveillance cameras
• "Disturbingly offensive remarks" were made during the operation

The report says disciplinary action has already been taken, and there will be more actions taken in the future.  However, under California law, names of officers and the punishment handed out cannot be released.
As a result of the city's investigation, no decoy operations will ever take place unless there is "careful pre-operation training."  All officers have received Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual sensitivity training.  The city will also create a "LGBT Employee Resource Group" in which city employees can provide a forum to discuss LGBT issues in Palm Springs.

Apparently there will be a hearing on January 20, 2011 to determine the status of the men who were arrested and whom the Riverside County District Attorney was insisting plead guilty to crimes which would lead them to be forced to register for life as sex offenders with the state of California. Their attorney, Roger Tansey, is seeking a dismissal of all charges due to the "discriminatory intent" the Palm Spring Police Department exhibited towards the gay men.

MadProfessah will continue to follow the story until it is completely resolved.

Celebrity Friday: Kasim Reed

Kasim Reed is the pro-gay Mayor of Atlanta who was elected in a startlingly close election last year.

Atlanta has been in the news recently for an anti-gay police raid that happened in summer 2009 and for which a federal judge has entered a $1 million judgment against the City. Watch video of Mayor Reed apologizing to the LGBT community for the police misconduct:




Hat/tip to Rod 2.0!

Celebrity Friday: Mitrice Richardson

The sad, mysterious story of Mitrice Richardson has come to an end with the revelation that skeletal remains found in a Malibu Canyon belong to the 25-year-old Black lesbian student and beauty queen who disappeared 11 months ago.

Richardson was arrested at Geoffrey's restaurant in Malibu after acting bizarrely and saying she was unable to pay her $89 dinner tab. She was released from custody shortly after midnight without her car — which had been impounded — or a cellphone or purse. Investigators believe she was spotted three times in the canyon area in daylight hours that morning. After that, she was never heard from again.

The remains — which include a skull — were found about two and a half miles from the last credible sighting of her on Sept. 17. The discovery casts an ominous shadow over the case of the missing woman.

[...]

The release of the Cal State Fullerton graduate into an area near a rugged canyon that she was not familiar with prompted widespread criticism of the Sheriff's Department. Her mother and father filed lawsuits accusing the Sheriff's Department of negligence in releasing her without transportation or conducting a mental health exam.

Geoffrey's staff told sheriff's personnel that Richardson was acting crazily at the restaurant. And police investigators said later that an examination of her diaries and text messages revealed she was probably suffering from a severe bipolar disorder and may not have slept for five days before her arrest.

Rod 2.0 posted this local ABC television coverage of the Mitrice Richardson story and decried "A young life lost over $89."

Palm Springs Police Caught Trying To "Bag A F*g"

In many areas of the country, there has long been an antagonistic relationship between law enforcement and the gay community; in fact resistance to a police action in New York City in 1969 is widely regarded as the beginning of the modern gay rights movement. This antagonism has typically not been present in Palm Springs, California, but apparently that is changing. Palm Springs is now considered to be the "gayest city" per capita in California, with an estimated 30 to 40 percent of its population openly gay and lesbian. It has had multiple openly gay Mayors and current has a majority city councilmembers who are gay pr lesbian.

But recently there have been increased tensions between the police and the gay community thanks to a sting operation which resulted in the arrest of more than 2 dozen gay men for "indecent exposure" and "lewd conduct."

The San Francisco Chronicle reported on Sunday:

Last summer, Palm Springs police used undercover officers to arrest 24 men in a gay neighborhood for allegedly trying to engage the officers in sex. While few in the gay community defend anyone having public sex - whether gay or straight - the anger is over the unusual charges in the case: The men are charged under Section 290(c) of the California Penal Code, making those who are convicted register as sex offenders for life, their names added to a police database.

That charge is essentially a life sentence, defense lawyers say, and has never been used against straight couples arrested for similar activity in Palm Springs.

Adding fuel to the community anger is surveillance tape shot inside a patrol car during the sting. One officer can be heard using an anti-gay slur, while another officer laughs.

The San Diego Gay and Lesbian Times broke this story more than two months ago:

All 24 men were charged with violations of Penal Code sections 314 and 647(a).

According to the defense, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office will only accept a guilty plea from the defendants, and even then, only to a 314 violation with its sex offender designation.

Herein lies a huge issue that is being alleged in court documents. More on that in a moment.

What is the difference between the 314 and 647(a) misdemeanors?

Penal Code section 314 - California's "indecent exposure" law - has remained virtually unchanged since its enactment in 1872, despite the fact that community moral standards have changed drastically in the 138 years that have passed since that enactment.

This law prohibits publicly "exposing" a person’s naked body or genitals with lewd intent. Typically, a conviction of "simple" misdemeanor indecent exposure under this code brings a sentence of up to six months in a county jail, a maximum fine of $1,000 and a lifetime requirement to register as a sex offender, pursuant to Penal Code 290.

Section 647(a) defines "lewd conduct" as the touching or displaying of the genitals, buttocks or female breasts with the intent of achieving sexual arousal or gratification. These acts are deemed illegal under this code when done in a lewd or lascivious manner in a public place - where a third party may be offended by its viewing. Unless there are overriding circumstances, a 647(a) conviction typically does not come with a sex offender designation.

The sex offender designation, however, can cause dire consequences for a lifetime. Those convicted have trouble keeping or finding jobs and homes, and those with green cards are usually deported.

Major allegations are being raised

The Riverside County Public Defender’s Office thinks something smells fishy about this undercover sting. As a result, court documents show that the defense is making some serious allegations:

 The Palm Springs Police Department (PSPD) exclusively targeted gay men in undercover sex stings.

 Heterosexual couples get a free pass on public sex in Palm Springs and throughout Riverside County.

 A backroom deal was struck with the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office to force those arrested in the sting operations to plead to a harsher charge, requiring lifetime registration as a sex offender.

These contentions are being raised in a Riverside County discrimination motion going before a Superior Court judge in Indio on June 14.

On May 4, Deputy Public Defender Roger Tansey, who is the attorney for the defendants, and Public Defender Gary Windom, filed numerous documents related to this case.

Tansey told SDGLN in an exclusive interview that he believes this case is about “homophobia” and that the Palm Springs police are out to “get the gay guys.”

I believe this is known as "bag a f*g" in the police world, and is absolutely unacceptable. SDGLN has even more evidence showing the discriminatory nature of the proceedings:

SDGLN has obtained a copy of the court document from Thomas Hughes, who was a Deputy District Attorney for Riverside County from 2007 to 2009 and who was assigned to the Indio branch. The document – which the DA is trying to get excluded from the trial -- provides an insider glimpse into how Palm Springs initiated its 2009 undercover sting operation.

Hughes describes a 2008 sting operation conducted by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, which provides police services to the city of Rancho Mirage. As with the Palm Springs operation, the Rancho Mirage sting was directed at men who have public sex with men, not at heterosexual couples.

Hughes said the county prosecutors settled a majority of the 2008 cases for violations of Penal Code sections 647(a) or 415. Those are much less serious misdemeanor charges than Penal Code 314, which requires lifetime registration as a sex offender.

In his document, Hughes states that he was informed that the Palm Springs Police Department (PSPD) wanted to ensure ahead of the sting operation that their cases would only settle for violations of the more serious Penal Code 314.

“I have been informed and thereon believe that during spring or summer of 2009, a meeting was therefore set up between the PSPD and the District Attorney’s Office,” Hughes states in the document.

“The DA’s Office was represented by Trisha Fransdahl, a Supervising Deputy District Attorney, who met with members of the PSPD. This meeting occurred before the sting operation took place and before anyone was arrested. At that meeting, it was agreed that all of those arrested would be charged with violations of Penal Code sections 314 and 647(a). It was also agreed that Defendants would only be allowed to plead to the 314 count. Based on my experience at the District Attorney’s Office, such a meeting, before anyone is even arrested, is unusual.”

Hughes also states that the DA’s Office decided that the Palm Springs sting cases would not be subject to negotiations or plea deals.

Bolstering the discrimination claim is this statement by Hughes: “I was also in my office when I personally heard Linda Dunn, head of the Eastern Division of the District Attorney’s Office and the supervisor of Ms. Frandahl, make homophobic remarks. This occurred when I overheard Lee Roberts, one of the District Attorneys on the Palm Springs cases, express a desire to Ms. Dunn to visit the scene of the sting.

“Several times I heard Ms. Dunn make disparaging remarks about ‘those people’ as she laughingly expressed concern for Mr. Roberts’s safety if he were to visit Palm Springs. Ms. Dunn did not want Mr. Roberts to go, stating that, ‘I don’t want you around ‘those’ people, we don’t know what they’re capable of doing. If you go, be safe.'”

Unbelievable! In 2009, the Riverside District Attorney and the Palm Springs Police Department thinks they can get away with this? In a city that is 40% gay?

Oscar Grant Trial Starts In Los Angeles

MadProfessah has been following the case of Oscar Grant closely since it became public in January 1, 2009. On that day a 27-year-old Bay Area Rapid Transit cop named Johannes Mehserle shot and killed Oscar Grant, a 22-year-old father of two in the back while Grant was face down on the ground being arrested by Mehserle. The shooting was captured by multiple cell-phone videos and the horrific incident became an internet sensation. Because of pre-trial publicity, the murder trial of Mehserle was moved from Alameda County to Los Angeles County and began last week.

Charlie Beck Officially Sworn in as LAPD Chief

Charlie Beck was officially installed as Los Angeles's 56th Chief of Police by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa at a ceremony at the new LAPD headquarters in downtown LA on Thursday.

The bunting-laced dais was packed with Beck’s family – a clan rooted deeply in the department. His father is a retired LAPD deputy chief, his sister a former department detective, his stepdaughter a young patrol officer and his son is scheduled to graduate from the LAPD academy Friday.

Many council members, civilian police commissioners and Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca also attended. Beck’s predecessor, William J. Bratton, returned from his new job as head of a police consulting firm in New York City for the celebration. Next to him was Daryl F. Gates, another influential leader of the department who served for 14 years until 1992.

As before, Beck was sworn in as the 56th LAPD chief by Villaraigosa, who, in his remarks, called the new chief “the right man at the right time to shape this department in the future.”

Council President Eric Garcetti took up the refrain, saying Beck – a 32-year veteran of the force – had the trust and respect of the department’s nearly 10,000 officers needed to solidify reforms Bratton introduced.

“For the first time in many decades, what we are asking of this chief is to continue the momentum of reform, rather than be the first to usher it in,” he said. Beck “embodies the new era of LAPD.”

For his part, Beck hit familiar, self-effacing notes from the many speeches and town-hall talks he has given since being selected. Saying he was “humbled” by the responsibilities of the new post, he praised his officers for successes in pushing down crime and portrayed the LAPD as a vital agency “inexorably tied to the city” that wants – and needs -- to collaborate with other city departments.

Congratulations to Chief Beck, let's hope he does a better job of reforming the LAPD than some of his predecessors!

Oscar Grant's Killer's Trial Moved To Los Angeles

Big news in the case of the former BART police officer who was videotaped fatally shooting an unarmed 22-year-old Black man named Oscar Grant on January 1, 2009. The judge has moved the trial of 27-year-old Johannes Mehserle to Los Angeles County from Alameda County:

The trial of a white former San Francisco Bay Area transit officer charged in the killing of an unarmed black man will be moved to Los Angeles County because of extensive media coverage and other possible distractions to trial participants, a judge in Oakland ruled Thursday.

The decision by Alameda County Superior Court Judge Morris Jacobson comes a month after he decided the murder trial of Johannes Mehserle would be moved out of that area.

State court officials recommended Los Angeles and San Diego counties to the judge as possible sites for a trial.

[...]

According to 2008 Census figures, 14% of Alameda County’s 1.5 million residents are African American, compared with 9% of the 9.9 million residents in Los Angeles County and 5% of 3 million residents in San Diego County.

MadProfessah helped organize a vigil and rally earlier this year in Leimert Park calling attention to the senseless murder of Oscar Grant.

LAPD Officers Get No Criminal Charges In 2007 May Day Melee

News You Might Have Missed: The Los Angeles Times reported on Hallloween that the Los Angeles County District Attorney has decided not to press criminal charges against any of the thirty or so officers it had investigated in the wake of the now-infamous 2007 May Day melee in Mcarthur Park.

They described the incident as "unfortunate and preventable" but said that the office was "closing our file and will take no further action in this matter."

Last year, Police Chief William J. Bratton said he planned to discipline 11 officers and called for the termination of four others for their roles in the melee in which police were accused of using excessive force to clear immigration rights demonstrators and journalists.

LAPD officers were videotaped wielding batons and shooting rubber bullets in an attempt to disperse a largely peaceful crowd. A scathing internal investigation into the incident blamed poor leadership and overly aggressive tactics by officers in the field.

Earlier this year, the Los Angeles City Council agreed to pay nearly $13 million to people injured or mistreated in the melee.

Under the settlement, the department must submit to court oversight of its crowd-control procedures -- another layer of federal involvement that comes as LAPD leaders are impatient to be free of a longstanding and more onerous monitoring program imposed after the Rampart Division corruption scandal.

Curiously, the original L.A. Now report on the D.A. decision which included the previous graphs has been modified ("updated") when the story was moved to the front page of the paper and became:

After a lengthy review, prosecutors said there is insufficient evidence to prove that any of the 30 officers who were investigated violated the law when using force, although some might have used "questionable tactics."

The melee, which occurred at the conclusion of a pro- immigration rally and received national attention, resulted from poor police training, leadership and communication, prosecutors said. Their finding echoed the Los Angeles Police Department's own scathing report on the officers' actions.

Officers were videotaped wielding batons and shooting less-than-lethal rubberized bullets in an attempt to disperse the mostly peaceful crowd after a small group of agitators confronted police. Dozens of protesters and journalists were injured as officers cleared the park.

The department's "planning, tactical and command failures" were the backdrop for the officers' actions against "both violent protesters and nonviolent protesters and media personnel," prosecutors said in their report. "The media had innocently and unwittingly positioned themselves in an area directly in the path of officers attempting to clear the park."

In the immediate aftermath, Police Chief William J. Bratton removed a deputy chief and commander from their posts. Deputy Chief Caylor "Lee" Carter retired shortly thereafter.

Bratton also said he planned to discipline several officers and called for the termination of others for their roles in the melee.

But internal disciplinary panels gave no officer more than a 20-day suspension. Some officers, however, were demoted, according to their attorney.

Earlier this year, the Los Angeles City Council agreed to pay nearly $13 million to people injured or mistreated in the May Day melee.

The Los Angeles Police Protective League is happy with the result that no more officers will be punished for their actions that day.

The LAPPL is pleased that District Attorney Steve Cooley exercised his prosecutorial independence and made the right decision to not prosecute any officers involved the May Day incident. His review sought only truth and justice, and was not influenced by any political agenda.

As the LAPPL has said all along, there needs to be a thorough review of the facts about what happened on May Day 2007 before passing judgment about officers’ actions. We are pleased and relieved at the outcome of the District Attorney’s investigation, as we were with the Board of Rights hearings in July.

We also said that the public should not be surprised by the final outcome. Removed from the political and media spotlight, the District Attorney and the Board of Rights, which included a civilian member, objectively reviewed the facts and rendered opinions of the officers’ actions based on long- standing Department policy.

The Department’s 2007 May Day report presented to the Police Commission acknowledged that the events that transpired primarily resulted from breakdowns in command structure, planning and communications, as well as training deficiencies.

The League went on record immediately after the incident pointing out the lack of continuous and updated training that partially contributed to the incident. Training is the backbone of good police work – ensuring that officers know not only what to do, but can properly implement the Department’s policies, procedures and expectations in any situation. As a result of the 2007 report, revealing the Department's ill-advised decision to abandon introductory training for new Metropolitan Division officers and to not train all officers for large tactical missions, the Department reinstated training as a fundamental priority.

We would like to point out that that there were many positive actions by officers on that day, as the Department itself has acknowledged. We commend those officers for their professionalism and restraint under difficult circumstances.

We'll see if this is really the last we hear about this incident (I doubt it).

Winner of the LAPD Chiefstakes: Charlie Beck

Multiple media sources are reporting that Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has selected Deputy Chief Charlie Beck to be his nominee for the next Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department.

Beck, 56, was previously reported to be on the Mayor's short list of three finalists (all white and male) to replace outgoing LAPD head William Bratton, who left his post on October 31st. The other two finalists were Deputy Chief Michel Moore and First Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell.

The Mayor will appear at three public forums with his nominee this week. The LGBT community is explicitly invited:

Tuesday, November 3, 2009
at the EXPO Center 3980 South Menlo Ave.,
Los Angeles CA 90037
at 4:00 PM Doors Open at 3:00 PM

Wed. November 4, 2009
6:00 - 7 :30 PM
Van Nuys City Hall
14410 Sylvan Street
Van Nuys, CA

Thursday November 5, 2009
6:00 - 7:30 PM
El Sereno Senior Center at
4818 Klamath Place
Los Angeles, CA

You might want to ask the Mayor and Chief Charlie Beck about whether they will cut ties with the Boy Scouts-linked, anti-gay Explorers program once and for all.

LAPD Chief Short List Revealed: All White, All-Male

Same as it ever was....

Despite having heard from several potential candidates for the LAPD top job who were Black (Assistant Chief Earl Paysinger), Latino (Deputy Chief Sergio Diaz) and female (Assistant Chief Sharon Papa), the Los Angeles Police Commission chose three white men for Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to select his choice of the new LAPD Chief from.

According to the Los Angeles Times they are:

Deputy Chief Michel Moore, 49, is a 28-year veteran of the LAPD and is widely credited with helping to push down crime rates in the San Fernando Valley during his more than four years in charge of the bureau. As a captain in 2000, Moore was assigned the difficult task of helping to run the department's notorious Rampart Division in the wake of accusations of widespread corruption and abuses.

Deputy Chief Charles Beck, 56, is a 32-year veteran of the force and the son of a retired LAPD deputy chief. As commander of the Detective Bureau, he is a popular figure with the rank-and-file, who generally view him as a serious crime-fighter, and with the city's civil rights leaders, who hold him up as a progressive thinker on community relations and police conduct.

First Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell, 50, has served in the department for 28 years and, in addition to Bratton, has been the public face of the LAPD for several years in his role as chief of staff. Widely respected in the department and beyond, he was a candidate for chief in 2002 and Bratton went on to use an extensive plan developed by McDonnell as a blueprint for reshaping the department. With Bratton's frequent trips out of town, McDonnell has often been called to stand in as chief.

Villaraigosa will interview them all and make a decision over the weekend, which needs to be ratified by a majority of the Los Angeles City Council.

LAPD Chief Bratton Announces Shock Exit

Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton shocked the city when he announced on Wednesday that he intended to leave his position by the end of October 2009. Kevin Roderick at LA Observed has the best coverage (including the full text of his resignation announcement)

Earlier today, Wednesday, August 5th, I met with Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to inform him of my intention to resign my position as Chief of our great Department effective October 31st, so that I may pursue new professionalization of policing opportunities in the private sector. There is never a good time to leave a job and a Department that you love and enjoy, but there is always a right time. That time has now come for me professionally and personally to seek new career challenges.

Since my appointment as Chief of this extraordinary Department in October 2002, by then Mayor James Hahn, we have travelled together on an exciting and successful journey - through good times and bad - meeting crises, challenge and opportunity with consistent optimism, confidence and resolve.

You and I committed to five overarching goals in 2002, and as of today, we can all take justifiable pride and satisfaction in knowing that we have in large measure met and continued to expand their impact in our ultimate purpose for being: to protect and to serve all the residents of this great City. We committed to reduce crime, fear, and disorder, and we have done that. We committed to keeping the City safer from terrorism and we have done that while establishing national best practices and initiatives. We committed to full implementation of the Federal Consent Decree, and while it took longer than originally anticipated, we have done that. We campaigned to grow the Department by 1,000 officers and with the focused leadership of Mayor Villaraigosa and the support of the City Council and voters we are doing that. We also committed to Bias-Free Policing, to ensure that all the residents and visitors to our City of Angels would be the benefactors of constitutional, compassionate, consistent policing in every neighborhood. The recent Harvard Study and Los Angeles Times poll have conclusively shown that a significant majority of all Angelinos feel that you are succeeding. It will not be easy to leave because, while much has been done, there is still much more that can be done. But having met the personal and professional challenges that I set for myself, I feel that this is an appropriate time for new leadership to move the Department forward and meet the challenges that lie ahead.

Thank you for the honor, the privilege and the enjoyment of working with you, and for the opportunity to tell your story during these past seven years. I hope that each of you in some way, no matter what your position, felt that you were part of what I believe will be a very special time in the history of the Department – our Department – a Department that is without question second to none. It has truly been an honor and a privilege to be your chief.

All the best,
WJB

Dude! He pulled a Palin! (Bratton's term did not end until 2012.)

Obama Stands By Remarks On Gates Arrest

President Obama today stood by comments he made at the end of his prime time news conference yesterday where he said the Cambridge, MA police officers acted "stupidly" in arresting Harvard Professor Skip Gates in his own home a week ago and charging him with disorderly conduct.

At the end of Wednesday night's prime-time news conference that was intended to be chiefly about health care, Obama was asked about the incident, to which he responded: "I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played in that."

But Obama went on to say, "I think it's fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry; number two, that the Cambridge police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home; and, number three, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is that there's a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately. That's just a fact."

Obama acknowledged that Gates is a friend and that since he was not there, he cannot know exactly what role race may have played in the incident. He also acknowledged that the Cambridge police acted appropriately in initially responding to the call that a man was seen forcibly entering the Gates home

Today, President Obama was asked about the controversy arising from his remarks last night and declined to modify or withdraw them.

"I have to say I am surprised by the controversy surrounding my statement, because I think it was a pretty straightforward commentary that you probably don't need to handcuff a guy, a middle-aged man who uses a cane, who's in his own home," Obama said.

In an exclusive interview with ABC's Terry Moran to air on "Nightline" tonight, Obama said it doesn't make sense to him that the situation escalated to the point that Gates was arrested.

"I think that I have extraordinary respect for the difficulties of the job that police officers do," the president told Moran. "And my suspicion is that words were exchanged between the police officer and Mr. Gates and that everybody should have just settled down and cooler heads should have prevailed. That's my suspicion."

The president said he understands the sergeant who arrested Gates is an "outstanding police officer." But he added that with all that's going on in the country with health care and the economy and the wars abroad, "it doesn't make sense to arrest a guy in his own home if he's not causing a serious disturbance."

The Cambridge police department and Officer Joseph Crowley who teaches a class on (how to avoid) racial profiling at a a local police adacdemy appear to disagree with the President:

Asked about Obama's comment, Cambridge police commissioner Haas said that "this department is deeply pained."

"It deeply hurts the pride of this agency," he told a news conference this afternoon at city police headquarters.

"Sergeant Crowley followed proper protocol and procedures in making the arrest," said Haas, describing Crowley as a "stellar member of this department. I rely on his judgment every day."

Somehow I don't think this story is going away anytime soon.

Skip Gates Appears on CNN To Discuss Incident

Professor Henry Louis Gates,Jr. appeared on CNN last night right after President Obama's prime time news conference to discuss the incident which ended with him being arrested on his own front porch last week.

Here's a transcript of his conversation with Soledad O'Brien:

O'BRIEN: You sort of had your own moment of truth over recent days. So I'd like to start with that. We know that you were on a lengthy trip to China and you were returning home. What exactly happened?

GATES: Well, I was filming my new documentary series for PBS called "Faces of Americans," it's about immigration. And we were filming Yo-Yo Ma's ancestral cemetery for a week in China. It was fantastic. And my daughter and I -- I took my daughter along. And we had just flown back from China.

I came from New York to Boston. And my driver picked me up. We got to my house in Harvard Square and the door was jammed. The door wouldn't open. And to make a long story short, I asked my driver just sort of to push the door through. I gave him his tip, he left.

I called Harvard Real Estate, which does the maintenance on my house because they own the house. And while I was on the phone, a Cambridge policeman showed up on my porch. I walked with the phone still active to my porch and he demanded that I step out of my house on to the porch.

That's all he said. He said, I would like to you step outside. I said, absolutely not. I said, why are you here? He said, I'm investigating a breaking and entering charge. I said, this is my house, I'm a Harvard professor, I live here.

He said, can you prove it? I said, just a minute. I turned my back. I walked into the kitchen to get my Harvard ID and my Massachusetts driver's license. He followed me without my permission. I gave him the two IDs and I demanded to know his name and his badge number.

O'BRIEN: And when you demanded that, what did he say?

GATES: He wouldn't say anything. He was just very upset. He was trying to figure out who I was. He was looking at the ID. He didn't say anything. And I said, why are you not responding to me? Are you not responding to me because you're a white police officer and I'm a black man?

He turned, walked out -- turned his back on me, walked out. I followed him on to my porch. It looked like a police convention, there were so many policemen outside. I stepped out on my porch and said, I want to know your colleague's name and his badge number.

And this officer said, thank you for accommodating my earlier request, you are under arrest. And he slapped handcuffs on me and they took me to jail.

O'BRIEN: Originally they put the handcuffs behind your back.

GATES: They put the handcuffs behind my back. And I told them that I was handicapped, I used a cane. They had a debate. There was a black officer there who was very sensitive. He persuaded them to move the handcuffs from around the back to the front. They took me to the Cambridge Police station and booked me, fingerprints, mug shot, which has now been all over the universe.

O'BRIEN: I've got to tell you, to see -- I mean, Professor Gates, I had him in college. And you know, to have that shot, your mug shot, it is quite a shock to see. What was that moment like for you?

GATES: It was terrifying. And I realized…

O'BRIEN: Were you afraid?

GATES: I knew that I was in danger but I knew, too, that as soon as my friends could get to jail, starting with Professor Charles Ogletree, who is my friend and lawyer, that eventually I would be OK.

But what it made me realize was how vulnerable all black men are, how vulnerable all people of color are and all poor people to capricious forces like a rogue policeman. And this man clearly was a rogue policeman.

O'BRIEN: The police report said he described you as behaving in a tumultuous manner.

GATES: Yes, look how tumultuous I am. I'm 5'7", I weigh 150 pounds. And my tumultuous, outrageous action, Tom, was to demand that he give me his name and his badge number. Soledad, why? Because if I had stepped out on the porch -- it is important for all people to know this about the police.

If I had stepped outside of my house, he couldn't come in my house legally without a warrant. He couldn't arrest me without a warrant. Had I stepped outside he would have slapped handcuffs on me for being under suspicion of breaking and entering because he was responding to a profile.

Two black men with backpacks were breaking and entering into my home. And when he see me, he just presumed that one of them was me.

O'BRIEN: A neighbor called 911. I mean, it was a neighbor of yours who said that description, two black men breaking into your house. Are you angry with your neighbor?

GATES: No. In fact I hope right now that if someone is breaking into my house this nice lady is calling the police. I have a lot of valuable art and books in that house. And in fact, I think I'm going to send this person some flowers. I hope she is watching. I know that she must be intimidated and she must think that I'm very angry.

It wasn't her fault. It was the fault of the policeman who couldn't understand a black man standing up for his rights right in his space. And that's what I did. And I would do the same thing exactly again.

O'BRIEN: The charges were dropped.

GATES: Charges were dropped and the mayor of Cambridge, God bless her, called me and apologized to me. And my lawyers and I are considering what further action. Because this is…

O'BRIEN: What does that mean? Does that mean lawsuit?

GATES: Perhaps. Because this is not about me. This is about the vulnerability of black men in America.

The latest news from the police officer Joseph Crowley is that he refuses to apologize and claims that he gave Professor Gates his identification information three times:

Though he harbors no “ill feelings toward the professor,” a calm, resolute Crowley said no mea culpa will be forthcoming.

“I just have nothing to apologize for,” he said. “It will never happen.”

Attorney Charles Ogletree, Gates’ close friend and fellow Harvard savant, told the Herald, “It’s regrettable and unfortunate that the officer feels that way, and I do hope that some progress will be made in healing this wound.”

What do you think should happen next?

All Charges Dropped Against Professah Gates

What do you call a Black man with a Ph.D.?

Yesterday it was announced that all charges resulting from a bizarre incident in which he was arrested after being accused of breaking into his own house have been dropped against Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

However the aftermath of the incident is reverberating all over The Darker Nation, as Yale Law Professor Stephen Carter has named Black America.

Gates himself is speaking out, threatening a lawsuit against the city and offering free tutoring on the history of racism in America in exchange for an apology from the white police offer Joseph Crowley.

Police Officer Who Killed Oscar Grant To Be Tried For Murder

Oscar Grant was an African American, 22-year-old father of two who was shot to death by a BART police officer named Johannes Mehserle in the wee hours of January 1, 2009. The killing was caught on video and was a cause celebre earlier this year. The Barbara Jordan/Bayard Rustin Coalition (a Black LGBT organization that MadProfessah is the board president of) organized a candlelight vigil in Liemert Park in support of justice being done for the man who shot a Black man at point blank range in full view of hundreds of other people for no apparent reason.

Today comes word that Mehserle will be tried for murder in the Oscar Grant case and the defense's motion for a change of venue was denied:

After listening to seven days of testimony, Judge C. Don Clay concluded that Mehserle hadn't gotten his stun gun and his service pistol mixed up when he shot Oscar Grant in the back at the Fruitvale Station in Oakland early New Year's Day.

"There's no doubt in my mind," Clay said at the close of the former officer's preliminary hearing in Oakland, "that Mr. Mehserle intended to shoot Oscar Grant with a gun and not a Taser."

The decision set up the first murder trial of a California peace officer for a line-of-duty killing in nearly 15 years. It prompted sobs of relief from Grant's family members, who spoke of having a sense of justice restored.

"This is going to be huge for people of color," Cephus Johnson, Grant's uncle, said outside court. "The community lacks faith in the judicial system when it comes to police officers.

Go and read the entire coverage of the preliminary trial in the San Francisco Chronicle. It looks like there will be many, many people following this case very carefully.

LAPD Caught On Tape Kicking Suspect In Head

Racism Is Not Dead, Exhibit #467

It took Pam Spaulding to point out this heart-wrenching story about that hoary cliché, a racist Texas sherrif in a small town, that appeared in my hometown newspaper yesterday:

David Guillory, an attorney in nearby Nacogdoches who filed the federal lawsuit, said he combed through Shelby County court records from 2006 to 2008 and discovered nearly 200 cases in which Tenaha police seized cash and property from motorists. In about 50 of the cases, suspects were charged with drug possession.

But in 147 others, Guillory said the court records showed, the police seized cash, jewelry, cellphones and sometimes even automobiles from motorists but never found any contraband or charged them with any crime. Of those, Guillory said he managed to contact 40 of the motorists directly -- and discovered that all but one of them were black.

"The whole thing is disproportionately targeted toward minorities, particularly African Americans," Guillory said. "Every one of these people is pulled over and told they did something, like, 'You drove too close to the white line.' That's not in the penal code, but it sounds plausible. None of these people have been charged with a crime; none were engaged in anything that looked criminal. The sole factor is that they had something that looked valuable."

Read the whole thing, it's stomach-churning.

LAPD May Day Melee Costs City $12.85 million

The ramifications of the "May Day Melee" on May 1, 2007 when the LAPD nearly caused a riot by acting inappropriately at a peaceful immigrants rights march in Los Angeles continue, with the City of Los Angeles agreeing to a settlement of nine lawsuits at a total cost nearly $13 million.

Los Angeles Times reporters Maeve Reston and Joel Rubin posted the following to the LA Now blog:

The settlement is another blow to the city’s treasury related to LAPD misconduct in the midst of serious budgetary problems. The settlement of the May Day cases comes on the heels of the council’s approval last week of a $20.5-million payout to four current and former police officers who claimed they were falsely arrested and mistreated in the wake of the scandal involving the police department's Rampart Division.

The council still faces other legal troubles related to the May Day incident--there were 27 pending cases related to the demonstration before today’s settlement, according to officials with the city attorney. Only one case involving a broken camera had been settled.

Forty-two people, including nine journalists, were injured as a pro-immigration march wound down in MacArthur Park on May 1. LAPD officials said the scuffle was set off by a group of agitators who threw bottles and other objects at police. The department’s Metro Division used batons and fired rubber bullets to disperse what was a predominantly peaceful gathering.

Chief William J. Bratton said the fracas was an aberration for the department, but promised it would lead to changes in policy and training. He called the decision of his officers to use that level of force a “command and control breakdown.”

In response to the incident, Bratton announced that he was disciplining 11 officers and calling for the termination of four. In another step toward preventing a recurrence, Bratton set up a new bureau known as the Critical Incident Management Bureau that overseas major events and protests.

WTF? I want to hear more about the $20.5 million to the four LAPD officers who were falsely charged and mistreated. Why are they getting paid more than the other nine lawsuits by civilians that was settled for $13 million?

Candlelight Vigil Wed 7pm In Leimert Park for Oscar Grant

The Barbara Jordan/Bayard Rustin Coalition is sponsoring a candle light vigil in Leimert Park to honor the memory of Oscar Grant, who was shot and killed in the very early hours of 2009 by a Bay Area Rapid transit officer in full view of other passengers while he lay on his back in handcuffs. Many blogger, especially Pam's House Blend has been covering the controversy extensively soon after it happened on New Years Day, including the video which shows the point blank execution of the African American 22-year-old father of two.

The vigil will be at 7pm on Wednesday January 14th at Leimert Park. Hope to see you there!

Here are more details:

Peaceful Candlelight Vigil TOMORROW (Wed. 1/14) from 7-9pm
in Leimert Park

as part of the National Day of Action to demand justice for Oscar Grant.

As you may know, a police officer shot and killed Oscar early in the morning on New Year's Day.

You can watch this YouTube video that tells the story in all its gory details: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKy-WSZMklc

Hundreds of people across the country will be gathering tomorrow to bring more awareness to this senseless killing and to demand:

1. Criminal prosecution of ALL officers involved in the incident at the Fruitvale BART station that resulted in the death of Oscar Grant III,
2. BART to hand over this investigation to the CA State Department of Justice,
3. BART to provide the community a forum to voice their concerns, and
4. BART to present to the public a policy that will ensure that this will never happen again.
5. You can help by forwarding this email far and wide or helping to spread the word about the vigil, showing up at the vigil, or getting your group to join the diverse coalition that is coming together.

Spread the word!