police brutality
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5 Reasons Why DOJ Probes of Police Shootings Have No Teeth
It’s become a routine American pastime: the spotlight of a federal Justice Department probe into grisly police killings of unarmed black people. Once you’ve seen those pixelated smartphone or half-working body-camera videos spreading like brushfire on social media, it’s safe to expect next an announcement from the U.S. attorney general. Like the iconic bat signal for…
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Former Atlanta Cop Indicted on Felony Murder in Death of Unarmed Black Man
A Fulton County, Ga., grand jury has indicted a white former Atlanta police officer on felony murder, among other charges, in relation to the death of an unarmed black man who was inside a vehicle, the Associated Press reports. James Burns was also indicted on charges of aggravated assault, making a false statement and two counts…
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Chicago Police Move to Fire 5 Cops Involved in Shooting Death of Laquan McDonald
Chicago police are looking to fire five officers who were involved in the 2014 shooting death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, The Guardian reports. Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson has filed administrative charges against five officers, including Police Officer Jason Van Dyke, who shot Laquan 16 times. As CNN notes, with his criminal indictment, Van Dyke…
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LAPD Creates Program to Support Families Killed by … LAPD
The Los Angeles Police Department says it will create a program to assist the families of people killed during encounters with police—the first of its kind in the nation—reports the Los Angeles Times. The program will be called the Family Liaison Program, and the LAPD said its goal is to foster better communication with loved ones…
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Watch: Did Okla. Police Go Too Far by Pepper-Spraying an 84-Year-Old Woman?
Muskogee, Okla., police are investigating a pepper-spray incident involving an 84-year-old woman in her home. Fox 23 reports that officers were looking for Geneva Smith’s son last week when it occurred. He ran into his home, where police used a Taser on him. Smith then came out to see what was going on, and one of about four…
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Newark, NJ, Police Chased 10-Year-Old Boy With Guns Drawn in Case of Mistaken Identity
A Newark, N.J., 10-year-old was left in tears after he was chased down an alley by officers who had their guns drawn after they allegedly mistook him for a suspect in an armed robbery, WABC reports. “Some police started coming this way with guns pointed at me, and then I ran into the backyard,” Legend…
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2 Body Cameras Captured Footage of Sylville Smith Shooting Death, Attorney General Says
Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel says that two body cameras captured the fatal police shooting of Sylville Smith in Milwaukee, CBS News reports. According to the report, the vantage points of the two videos are similar. Smith was shot to death Aug. 13 by an officer after fleeing a traffic stop. Authorities say that footage…
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ProPublica Releases Video Showing in-Custody Death of Vachel Howard
ProPublica has released the video of the in-custody death of Vachel Howard that, it says, the Los Angeles Police Department didn’t want released. Howard died June 4, 2012, while in the custody of the LAPD’s 77th Street Station jail. The 56-year-old grandfather of seven had been taken into custody for driving while intoxicated and had…
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Milwaukee Officer Who Fatally Shot Sylville Smith Knew Him From High School, Family Says
Sylville Smith, the 23-year-old man who was gunned down by a Milwaukee police officer over the weekend, and the officer who fatally shot him knew each other from high school, Smith’s family says, according to CNN. “The officer knew him personally from high school, and he still shot him,” Sherelle Smith, Sylville Smith’s sister, told…