NYC Cop Beats War Veteran Senseless

[Eric15210]

[Bindare_Dundat]

It was dumb on his part to confront the cop because they are lookling for this type of reason to beat you sensless but the pig did go totally overboard.

[Soul Crusher]

Awful. 

[12secGT]

By the looks of the video it does seem the cop went overboard. The vid does show the perp. looking like he confronts the cop. You can see the man behind him trying to hold him back. At that point, if the man said he will "KILL" ther cop, as per what the cops said he did say, then the cop has the right to use force, greater than that of the perp. to subdue him. Now, with that, the problem for the cop begins when he continues to beat him on the ground. I can not find any reason at that point why. NOW, I as well as you, WERE NOT THERE. You do not KNOW exactly what happened before and after this video was taken as the rest of the footage has not been made public. So, with that, I say let the truth be told in court. Let the rest of the video be seen. Let the jury determine with happened and make the best decision possible to attain justice. We as NYers tend to jump the gun on police cases and as it has shown, 90% of them aquit the police of ALL charges, if not the serious ones. Due process is the best course of action.

[Skeletor]

Cop’s lawyer claims hitting an Iraq veteran 20 times was ‘too little’ force

An attorney representing a police officer caught on tape almost two years ago viciously assaulting an Iraq war veteran suggested in court recently that his client had, perhaps out of "compassion," used "too little" force against the unarmed man lying on the ground before him in video released online.

The officer had alleged that Iraq veteran Walter Harvin was acting in an aggressive manner while trying to enter his mother's building on 93rd Street in Manhattan. Surveillance footage released by the district attorney's office shows Officer David London attack the man with his baton, hitting him repeatedly until he falls, then continuing to strike blows to Harvin's face, head and upper-body. By most media estimates, the unarmed war vet was struck some 20 times while on the ground.

Harvin's most aggressive action in the recording is to shove London away at one point. Officers claimed he was shouting threats and cursing at them while laying on the ground in handcuffs, which attorneys suggest justifies the continued beating Harvin received even as he lay restrained on the ground.

According to The New York Post, lawyer Stephen Worth asked the jury if the officer's level of force was excessive, to which he added:

    "I suggest to you that out of compassion, he used too little."

 Harvin's uncle, Earl Jones, stormed out of court in disgust when the video was shown. "You don't beat a dog like that," Jones, 55, said. "The public should see it. They need to see so they can be aware how cops treat people."

London is charged with lying on paperwork in claiming the victim struck first, and felony assault. Harvin, who allegedly suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, has not made an appearance at the trial.


http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0626/cops-lawyer-claims-hitting-iraq-veteran-20-times-too-little-force/

[240 is Back]

Cop lied on his report - said the man repeatedly hit and kicked him.

That right there nullifies his higher ground authority on the issue.

Then, the fact the man was lying on the ground for a good 10 seconds motionless - and still being beaten - is quite the criminal act on the cop's part.

I hope he does get the $45 mil he's suing for, and I hope the cop experiences man love in the pen.

[Agnostic007]

Based on the video of the incident, and based on my personal training and experience, I would say this is an example of excessive force. Having said that, there may be some unknown reason I am not privvy to as to why the officer felt the need to continue striking as long as he did. I am having trouble thinking of something that would justify such actions.. for example

The subject says "I'm gonna kill you!"- This is heard about 3 times a day by the average cop on a night shift on the east side. Whether he says he will kill me or not, if his hands are empty, I am clubbing him with a baton and he goes to the ground, the next logical step is to have me and my partner put hands on, get him on his stomach, and get him in handcuffs..

If the subject says "I have a thompson machine gun under my shirt and I'm gonna pull it out and kill you!" Again... hands are empty, subject is submitting, hands on, put him in cuffs. We have Tasers, which would probably be the go to weapon of choice anyway, but I'll assume the cop didnt.

In almost every possible scenario I can think of, I fall short of a way to justify the beating short of the subject went to "Your momma.." type jokes.. which the camera clearly can't show.  

 


Barring that, I have no problem drawing a conclusion based on the video. In almost every case officers are "monday morning quarterbacked". It's the nature of the business. We are given a great deal of authority and power, and we are subject to review of that authority and power on a regular basis.  

[240 is Back]

he lied on his report.  That alone should cost him his job.

I remember I was 18 when a cop threatened to give me a seat belt ticket because she didn't like my attitude.  I was wearing my seatbelt.  She smirked as she said it.  I'll never forget her name, nor the POS that she was.  I took the hit for the red light.  No argument there.  But I sat there for 7 or 8 minutes (construction zone in 1994, these things weren't automated back then).  I asked her if the light was ever going to change.

So whlie I have LEO in my family, I hate crooked cops with a passion.  I still hope one day years form now, in the nursing home I run into that cop so I can steal her tapioca or something.

[Skeletor]

So whlie I have LEO in my family, I hate crooked cops with a passion.  I still hope one day years form now, in the nursing home I run into that cop so I can steal her tapioca or something.

Or maybe call the cops so they can taser her on her bed like they did to that other old lady..

[Agnostic007]

Or maybe call the cops so they can taser her on her bed like they did to that other old lady..

Cops hate crooked cops with a passion..

[Skeletor]

I would like to think so but it depends on the cop's outlook. Not all cops realize the authority and responsibility they have (they only focus on the former, completely ignoring the latter) and there's the "us and them" mentality as well as the blue code of silence. A truly "untouchable" cop deserves huge respect but I doubt many of them exist. Plus he would be hated by a large majority of his "co-workers".

[Agnostic007]

I would like to think so but it depends on the cop's outlook. Not all cops realize the authority and responsibility they have (they only focus on the former, completely ignoring the latter) and there's the "us and them" mentality as well as the blue code of silence. A truly "untouchable" cop deserves huge respect but I doubt many of them exist. Plus he would be hated by a large majority of his "co-workers".

I suppose it depends on a lot of things. I can't really speak with any first hand experience except for my department and maybe Ft. Worth PD. My Dept is mid sized with about 1600 sworn officers. We consider ourselves very professional, and we get paid a professional salary. Our academy is just over 6 months long which is quite extensive. We do our best to identify the morally questionable during their academy training and the 3 month riding period. Sometimes a few slip through. Rarely do they make it to the 10 yr mark before getting terminated. I've been on this force for 17 yrs. It has evolved over the years from a "us against them" mentality to a customer service based mentality. We have video cameras in our cars, any questionable call, or any citizen complaint gets reviewed, any rudeness can get an officer suspended for a few days.

We have an IA division that fields citizen complaints. Most people are surprised to find that 80% of the annual IA complaints are generated by officers. We have a new generation of cops that are computer savvy and college educated. We HATE dirty cops and are more disgusted than the average citizen when one gets terminated and some arbitrator rules they get their job back, which ocassionally happens. Most of the ones that got their jobs back ended up screwing up again and getting the axe for good.

I recognize there are different levels of professionalism nation wide. We have a Sheriffs office adjoining our jurisdiction that still thinks it's the 70's. Some places you can be a cop with little or no training.. But of the 10's of thousands of cops nationwide, very few make the headlines or youtube..

[Soul Crusher]

I suppose it depends on a lot of things. I can't really speak with any first hand experience except for my department and maybe Ft. Worth PD. My Dept is mid sized with about 1600 sworn officers. We consider ourselves very professional, and we get paid a professional salary. Our academy is just over 6 months long which is quite extensive. We do our best to identify the morally questionable during their academy training and the 3 month riding period. Sometimes a few slip through. Rarely do they make it to the 10 yr mark before getting terminated. I've been on this force for 17 yrs. It has evolved over the years from a "us against them" mentality to a customer service based mentality. We have video cameras in our cars, any questionable call, or any citizen complaint gets reviewed, any rudeness can get an officer suspended for a few days.

We have an IA division that fields citizen complaints. Most people are surprised to find that 80% of the annual IA complaints are generated by officers. We have a new generation of cops that are computer savvy and college educated. We HATE dirty cops and are more disgusted than the average citizen when one gets terminated and some arbitrator rules they get their job back, which ocassionally happens. Most of the ones that got their jobs back ended up screwing up again and getting the axe for good.

I recognize there are different levels of professionalism nation wide. We have a Sheriffs office adjoining our jurisdiction that still thinks it's the 70's. Some places you can be a cop with little or no training.. But of the 10's of thousands of cops nationwide, very few make the headlines or youtube..

Sounds just like the Yonkers, NY PD where I live.    

[Skeletor]

Great post Agnostic007, and to up to certain degree it does give a glimmer of hope that indeed a different mentality (not just individuals) exists and is growing.

The 80% of complaints filed by officers against other officers is quite interesting, as well as the rudeness complaints that  can result in suspension, probably a first for any PD in the US.

[Soul Crusher]

Great post Agnostic007, and to up to certain degree it does give a glimmer of hope that indeed a different mentality (not just individuals) exists and is growing.

The 80% of complaints filed by officers against other officers is quite interesting, as well as the rudeness complaints that  can result in suspension, probably a first for any PD in the US.

If you want to see a professional gang in action, check out the Yonkers, PD, highest paid in the nation, beat the hell out people daily, and get promoted the more brutality complaints there are. 

I posted a thread yesterday about union people letting rats loose in the city hall.  Guess who that likely was? 

[Agnostic007]

If you want to see a professional gang in action, check out the Yonkers, PD, highest paid in the nation, beat the hell out people daily, and get promoted the more brutality complaints there are. 

I posted a thread yesterday about union people letting rats loose in the city hall.  Guess who that likely was? 

The article implies it may have been firefighters...

On a related note, my department voluntarily gave up their raise last October to help with the city's budget issues. Sorry to hear about how it is in Yonkers..

[Soul Crusher]

I have a friend who makes about 175k a year and will retire at about 42 y/o with a pension of 100k a year for life plus health benes.  The firemen get a similar deals. 

And they wonder why taxpayers are pissed off considering Westchester County pays the highest taxes in the nation?   

[Skeletor]

I have a friend who makes about 175k a year and will retire at about 42 y/o with a pension of 100k a year for life plus health benes.  The firemen get a similar deals. 

And they wonder why taxpayers are pissed off considering Westchester County pays the highest taxes in the nation?   

Wth, if I was living in that county paying all their insane wages and the huge taxes I'd be outraged.

Contrast that to what agnostic007's department did..

[quadzilla456]

Why the hell did he hit him over the head repeatedly? He could have hit him on the body instead. Definately excessive. Hopefully this cop gets fired.

[quadzilla456]

I have a friend who makes about 175k a year and will retire at about 42 y/o with a pension of 100k a year for life plus health benes.  The firemen get a similar deals.  

And they wonder why taxpayers are pissed off considering Westchester County pays the highest taxes in the nation?  

No shit. I know of a fireman that just opened his own restaurant. They are getting some nice deals.