Philly Officer Caught on Video Hitting Woman
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March 2015 Newsletter Events from February 2015 Friday February 27, 2015 LD Consulting held a winter training luncheon in Phoenix. Attendees rated the training as excellent with timely information for law enforcement professionals. For those who could not attend below is a recap. There were four sessions and a great BBQ lunch. The first session was by Detective Sam Palmer of the Phoenix Police Department. Sam demonstrated how social media can be used to obtain a wealth of information on people through a great intro video. He also went live and demonstrated software available to identify social web activity in our area, during the class, which was very impressive. Sam provided attendees with websites available to develop intel from social media. As I have stated before, if your agency is not using social media, you are missing out. Sam teaches a three day class on social media for law enforcement and can be contacted at [email protected] . Officer Rob Ferraro of the Tempe Police Department gave a presentation on law enforcement dealing with the mentally ill. He did a great job of presenting the current environment regarding use of force (UOF) and the mentally ill, and spoke of DOJ involvement in the issue, with regard to the Portland Oregon consent decree. He also provided attendees with some great local resources for law enforcement and had several individuals from those agencies present to meet those in attendance. Lt. Phil Fortner of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) provided an in depth look at the federal court order for the agency resulting from the Melendres decision, regarding racial profiling. He described his presentation as a “precautionary tale” for those in attendance. Lt. Fortner provided valuable information regarding what agencies should do minimize the risk of a similar court order or consent decree to include an Early Intervention System. To date the court order has cost MCSO millions of dollars. Lt. Mike Giammarino and Sgt. Darin Wunderle of the Phoenix Police Department provided a presentation regarding their research on officer involved shootings (OIS) over the last several years in their department. The department partnered with the Arizona State University and Phoenix City Auditor in their research. They described their methodology for the engagement, based in part on the methodology utilized by the Las Vegas Metro Police in their collaborative effort with the COPS / DOJ. They stressed the importance of being proactive in the analysis of UOF incidents. The final results of their work will be published in the near future. Thanks to IAPro, PCS, RMIN and PPSLA for their support to make this event possible. Over 50 people from the following agencies attended the training: AZ Department of Public Safety AZ Department of Transportation AZ Department of Agriculture March 2015 Newsletter LD Consulting LLC Page 2 of 38 Buckeye PD Arizona State PD Prescott PD Surprise PD Phoenix PD Pinetop Lakeside PD Mesa PD Maricopa County Attorney’s Office Gila River PD EL Mirage PD Sedona PD Goodyear PD Peoria PD Northern Arizona University PD Tempe PD Newsletter Categories: Audit related U.S. DOJ Oversight Technology Special Interest Misconduct Audit related: February 28: Internal audit slams DHS for canceling technology to fight bio- threats February 27, Washington Post: Ever since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 and the anthrax letters that followed, the government has struggled to develop a reliable and easy way to detect pathogens that could signal a devastating biological attack. Last year, a Silicon Valley start-up came close to producing what government scientists considered a breakthrough technology — a device the size of a ski boot that could test for tiny microorganisms at rapid speed, helping to safeguard the nation from bio-threats. But six months before the firm, NVS Technologies, was to deliver its first prototypes, the Department of Homeland Security suddenly canceled its contract. According to a draft audit report and government scientists familiar with the project, the decision was improperly made by a single agency official, without supporting evidence and over the objections of numerous experts within DHS’s Science and Technology Directorate. http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/internal-audit-slams-dhs-for-canceling-technology-to-fight-bio- threats/2015/02/26/43101e2a-bb8b-11e4-b274-e5209a3bc9a9_story.html March 2015 Newsletter LD Consulting LLC Page 3 of 38 February 26: Auditor criticizes SPD's hiring practices, disciplinary system February 24, King5: Seattle needs to move forward quickly to implement reforms in how the police department handles everything from hiring to promoting and disciplining officers, according to the independent auditor in charge of overseeing the police department's accountability system. Link to audit: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1676445-opa-auditor-semi-annual-report-july-december- 2014.html http://www.king5.com/story/news/2015/02/24/seattle-police-opa-audit-2014/23968091/ February 21: Police Property Room Inventory February 17, 2015, NY State Comptroller: Audit of 10 municipalities in NY: Auburn (City), Elmira (City), Hamburg (Town), Herkimer County, Irondequoit (Town), Johnson City (Village), Madison County, Newburgh (Town), Troy (City) and Watertown (City). Figure 1 provides relevant statistics for each municipality. http://www.osc.state.ny.us/localgov/audits/swr/2015/PPRI/global.htm February 13: IIA Practice Guide: Creating an Internal Audit Competency Process for the Public Sector Strongly Recommended Guidance Link to report: https://na.theiia.org/standards-guidance/recommended-guidance/practice-guides/Pages/Creating-an- Internal-Audit-Competency-Process-for-the-Public-Sector.aspx U.S. Department of Justice February 28: Holder defends DOJ's Ferguson investigation February 27, 2015, WASHINGTON (CNN) —Retiring U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is pushing back against critics who say he was too aggressive in the early days of the Ferguson fallout. He received from some corners for his handling of the Ferguson situation as unfair, especially those who said Holder played too much of an activist role. Holder was blasted by some for ordering an independent autopsy and opening a parallel investigation into the police shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown last year. Though not routine, Holder said, "I'm sure there have been other circumstances in which we have made use of independent investigative techniques." While it has been reported that the Justice Department will likely not bring civil rights charges against Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson who shot and killed Brown while March 2015 Newsletter LD Consulting LLC Page 4 of 38 on duty, Holder would not indicate either way, saying the investigation is almost complete and he expects to announce a decision before he leaves office. Wilson was not charged criminally for killing Brown. http://www.wptz.com/politics/holder-defends-dojs-ferguson-investigation/31517104 February 27: DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE INITIATIVES TO PREVENT AND COMBAT HATE CRIMES February 27, 2015, DOJ: The Department of Justice Civil Rights Division enforces federal hate crimes statutes. A summary of the prosecutions pursued by the DOJ under Eric Holder during his tenure is attached. http://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/opa/press- releases/attachments/2015/02/25/hate_crimes_fact_sheet_2.23.15.pdf February 27: Whoops! The Department of Justice Admits That It Misunderstood U.S. Citizenship Law February 26, 2015, Huffington Post: We all know that immigration law is complicated. We all know that human beings make mistakes. What we don't expect is that our government can't figure out who its own citizens are. But time and time again, the government disappoints. The latest culprit is the Department of Justice (DOJ), which employs the most powerful attorneys in the country. The DOJ has the authority to issue deportation orders. In a recent decision, the DOJ admitted that it has been misinterpreting certain citizenship statutes since 2008. As a consequence, DOJ officers have been incorrectly ordering U.S. citizens deported. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/laura-murraytjan/whoops-the-department-of_b_6763514.html February 26: Federal Officials Close Investigation Into Death of Trayvon Martin February 24, 2015, DOJ: The Justice Department announced today that the independent federal investigation found insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights charges against George Zimmerman for the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin on Feb. 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida. Prosecutors from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, officials from the FBI, and the Justice Department’s Community Relations Service met today with Martin’s family and their representatives to inform them of the findings of the investigation and the decision. http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/federal-officials-close-investigation-death-trayvon-martin March 2015 Newsletter LD Consulting LLC Page 5 of 38 February 26: ACLU asks Department of Justice to investigate Pasco police shooting February 24, 2015, Tri-Cityherald: The state American Civil Liberties Union has concerns about local police investigating the shooting of Antonio Zambrano-Montes and is asking for federal authorities to intervene. The ACLU sent a letter Tuesday to Attorney General Eric Holder supporting calls from others in the case to get the U.S. Department of Justice involved. DOJ officials can better investigate potential civil rights violations and the entire Pasco Police