Re: Constitution Void in D.C.

[Amici]

Re: Constitution Void in D.C.

or, "We had to destroy the Constitution in order to save it:

"Associated Press/AP Online

By BRETT ZONGKER

WASHINGTON - A federal court that refused to block a police checkpoint program in a crime-plagued Washington neighborhood has been told to reconsider.

The ruling Friday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit says the police checkpoints program is likely unconstitutional. It sends the case back to the U.S. District Court for a decision to halt the checkpoints.

In June 2008, D.C. police began stopping cars in the Trinidad neighborhood and refused to let in motorists who would not prove they lived in the area or did not reveal their destinations.

Police Chief Cathy Lanier has said she would continue using the checkpoints to deter crime until a court told her not to."

Pay particular attention to the last paragraph, freely translated thusly:

We will continue to flout the law and violate rights unless and until specifically prevented from doing so.

 

[red14]

'Freely translated'

What does 'freely translated' mean?

 

[Amici]

What does 'freely translated' mean?

Which part don't you comprehend; "freely" or "translated?"

 

[7003006]

Which part don't you comprehend; "freely" or "translated?"

I know what freely means and I know what translated means but I also have a tough time figureing what freely translated means.Also who is doing the translating,the reporter,the police chief or you?

 

[lcdrdanr]

Police Chief Cathy Lanier has said she would continue using the checkpoints to deter crime until a court told her not to."

Why is it that these appointed/elected public servants who refuse to follow court orders can merrily go along without criminal or civil sanctions ?? I'm reminded of the Mayor of San Francisco who continued to issue gay/lesbian marriage licenses despite a ruling of the California Supreme Court that stated it was illegal to do so.

Imagine a gun dealer in California or Washington, DC who said "Well, I think assault weapons deter crime and I intend to go on selling them until a court tells me not to". Just how long would that last ?

And, of course, any civil suits that are pressed against these persons will be paid by the tax payer........

Of course, in regards to the Washington, DC issue, when you have a Marion Barry for the Mayor I guess you can get away with anything.

What an arm pit of a town

Dan R

 

[Crazy K38]

well if this is happening in his own backyard, what will good ol BO let slide everywhere else

 

[red14]

freely translated

Quote:
Originally Posted by Amici
Which part don't you comprehend; "freely" or "translated?"

I know what freely means and I know what translated means but I also have a tough time figureing what freely translated means.Also who is doing the translating,the reporter,the police chief or you?
__________________
chad


Thank you, Chad. Freely translated to you (Amici), might be different than it is to me. My opinion, of any qoute, may be different than yours.

 

[Amici]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Amici
Which part don't you comprehend; "freely" or "translated?"

I know what freely means and I know what translated means but I also have a tough time figureing what freely translated means.Also who is doing the translating,the reporter,the police chief or you?
__________________

As it was the chief who was quoted, she clearly isn't translating herself.

Put VERY simply, I translated the chief's assertion into terms we all - well, most - understand: Arrogant disregard by a bully with a badge to hide behind.

 

[red14]

Arrogant disregard

Amici,

Arrogant disregard by a bully with a computer to hide behind.

There, that shows everyone (almost every one), how you appear to people who ask a simple question.

The ability to communicate is not someone who knows the most words, it is someone who can educate, not alienate, his listener.

 

[7.62foryou]

Amici,

Arrogant disregard by a bully with a computer to hide behind.

There, that shows everyone (almost every one), how you appear to people who ask a simple question.

The ability to communicate is not someone who knows the most words, it is someone who can educate, not alienate, his listener.

+1000 to that

 

[7003006]

As it was the chief who was quoted, she clearly isn't translating herself.

Put VERY simply, I translated the chief's assertion into terms we all - well, most - understand: Arrogant disregard by a bully with a badge to hide behind.

Instead of "translateing" for us why don't you tell us what she said and let us be the judge,I believe that even with my VERY simple mind I'm up to that chalenge.

 

[GatorFarmer]

DC Checkpoints Ruled Unconstitutional Here's a link to a story about it. Nothing overly dramatic. One court ruled the checkpoints kosher, a higher court said that they weren't, and the city is now going to appeal as the D.C. PD wants to be able to use them again if necessary.

The checkpoints in question were limited to a particular area that had a lot of shootings in a short period of time. Open season on the streets type shootings. Most of these were gang related. The D.C. PD then set up check points to check cars coming in and out to discourage the gang members. It more or less seemed to have worked and gotten a handle on the situation. That doesn't make it right of course, the paving matierial of the road to Hades and all that.

It was sort of a one off situation and not a general tactic in D.C., which really lacks the manpower, budget, and training to do much most of the time.

 

[BarbC]

Coincidentally, I was standing around at a neighbor's yesterday with a retired female Hispanic NYC cop, an Hispanic former fireman from the Bronx, and another Hispanic guy from the Bronx and they reminisced about the police checkpoints. They credited Guiliani for instituting this tactic and cleaning up the crime in the area so that it could eventually be rebuilt.

However:

Appeals court rejects DC police checkpoints

By BRETT ZONGKER – 13 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court said Friday that police checkpoints in a crime-plagued Washington neighborhood are unconstitutional and ordered a lower court to reconsider its refusal to block the program.

In June 2008, District of Columbia police began stopping cars in the Trinidad neighborhood, refusing to let in motorists who did not prove they lived in the area or reveal their destinations. The Partnership for Civil Justice sued on behalf of three drivers.

"It is apparent that appellants' constitutional rights are violated," Chief Judge David B. Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit wrote in the ruling Friday, citing several Supreme Court cases as precedent.

The ruling sends the case back to the U.S. District Court where a judge had refused to halt the checkpoints program.

The Metropolitan Police Department created the checkpoints in response to a string of shootings where suspected gang members drove into the neighborhood, opened fire and quickly left. The checkpoints were only used twice in 2008, city officials said.
D.C. Attorney General Peter Nickles said the appeals court decision effectively halts the checkpoints for now. He said city officials will consider whether to ask the Supreme Court to consider the case, change the policy or argue for the checkpoints before the lower court.

Police Chief Cathy Lanier had said she would continue using the checkpoints to deter crime until a court told her not to. On Friday, she said the department had attempted to abide by the Constitution.

"We certainly did not attempt to circumvent the Fourth Amendment in implementing the Neighborhood Safety Zones," Lanier said in a statement. "We all did what was appropriate and what we believed to be lawful to save lives."

The Partnership for Civil Justice called the court's decision a "major victory" in protecting fundamental constitutional rights.

D.C. residents "have the right to travel freely on public streets without being subjected to police seizure and interrogation" in the absence of any allegation, said Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, an attorney with the group.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of three of the 48 drivers who were stopped by police and not allowed to pass through the neighborhood because they refused to provide certain information. Those named as appellants in the case were Caneisha Mills, Linda Leaks and Sarah Sloan.

Courts have differed on the legality of checkpoints. In 1996, a federal appeals court said it was reasonable for New York City police to stop motorists at random hours in the Bronx to curtail drive-by shootings, drugs and robberies.

But the Supreme Court in 2000 struck down roadblocks in Indianapolis, saying general crime control is not enough of a reason to stop motorists. The D.C. appeals court found the Indianapolis case prevailed over other Supreme Court rulings on checkpoints.

It can't be denied "that citizens have a right to drive upon the public streets of the District of Columbia or any other city absent a constitutionally sound reason for limiting their access," Sentelle wrote for the three-judge panel.

Police officers who implemented the program have long considered it unconstitutional and damaging to their relationships with residents, said Kristopher Baumann, chairman of the D.C. police union.

"There is a line as police officers that we do not cross and this is one of them," Baumann said. "The officers — not the politicians, not the management — did not like this program because it was unconstitutional, and it hurt our relationship with people."

The Associated Press: Appeals court rejects DC police checkpoints