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AlterNet reports
On April 20, 2012, seven heavily armed Johnson County sheriff's officers conducted an early morning raid on the house of Adlynn and Robert Harte based on vegetative samples found in the couple's trash. It turns out those samples were tea leaves, and officers found a hydroponic tomato garden instead of marijuana.
The Hartes sued the county for $7 million on unlawful search-and-seizure claims, which a federal judge tossed after finding the officers were entitled to qualified immunity.
On [July 25, 2017], however, a three-judge 10th Circuit panel disagreed--and Circuit Judge Carlos Lucero offered a sarcastic summary in the ruling of the mistakes made by the officers.
"Law-abiding tea drinkers and gardeners beware: One visit to a garden store and some loose tea leaves in your trash may subject you to an early morning, SWAT-style raid, complete with battering ram, bulletproof vests, and assault rifles", Lucero wrote. "Perhaps the officers will intentionally conduct the terrifying raid while your children are home, and keep the entire family under armed guard for 2½ hours while concerned residents of your quiet, family-oriented neighborhood wonder what nefarious crime you have committed. This is neither hyperbole nor metaphor--precisely what happened to the Harte family in the case before us on appeal."
[...] The Hartes claim that officers lied about the field test results showing the tea leaves tested positive for THC, the principal ingredient in marijuana. Police failed to photograph the results and did not send the samples to a lab for confirmation, given the pressure to obtain warrants for the April 20 crackdown--facts not lost on [concurring Judge Nancy] Moritz.
(Score: 2) by TheGratefulNet on Saturday July 29 2017, @02:21AM (2 children)
since in most cases, cops who do bad things are still untouchable by the law, that makes them very bold and too power hungry.
this is NOT a good formula for any kind of justice.
and add to this that the cops cannot be personally sued (many authority figures cannot be sued, this is also a HUGE problem) - and you simply cannot have any trustable justice system.
we are lawless. we have been for a long time. and only now are some people finally seeing it.
but that matters not; nothing will change and this will only get worse and worse over time.
I feel very sad for the US. I hate seeing MY country turn to shit like this.
"It is now safe to switch off your computer."
(Score: 2) by epitaxial on Saturday July 29 2017, @02:45AM (1 child)
Start suing the cops individually in civil court. It directly affects their wallet and not the taxpayers.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 29 2017, @04:14AM
What's that they say about great minds thinking alike?
The suggested dept line was [soylentnews.org]
no-qualified-immunity-for-incompetent-cops
-- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]