So today
I get an email from my old friend and confidant mlle. Jenny, who says “can you call? I’ve just faced two cops with guns drawn”
Seems she was typing, and cops issued themselves a no-knock warrant and wandered in her back door. She is a medical transcriptionist, and had headphones on, and didn’t catch wind of this until the cops were literally in her hallway shouting “COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP!!!!” She did, and the cops, guns drawn, finger on trigger, safeties off, asked her if she belonged there. Of course she DID< but it turns out THEY didn't. They had been summonned to a house (lets say, 1089 Jenny Street) because the caller saw people loading stuff into a truck. At 1089 Jenny Street. The cops arrived at, and entered, 1130 Jenny Street. Where Jenny lives. Not 1089. And drew down on Jenny. And her brother, in his underwear, woken from a sound sleep from his night gig at the restaurant. So I'm trying to think of reasons why the cops arrived at 1130 instead of 1089. This is what I come up with so far: Local police dispatcher has mental disorder that causes her to add 41 to any number she sees. Jenny;s house smells nicer because she's always baking cookies. A string of burglaries have been occuring where the miscreant breaks in and DOES SOME WORK ON THE HOMEOWNER'S COMPUTER, and they heard typing, and figured they'd better put an end to it once and for all. Borat! There was more room for the squad cars in Jenny's driveway The light was better at 1130 Jenny drive. Your ideas?
22 comments Og | Uncategorized

I’m gonna censor myself on this one – my true thoughts on this don’t need to be associated with my real name.
Ugh. This kinda crap sickens me.
Maybe drop a note to Radley Balko?
Maybe somebody in the cop’s food chain was dyslexic? Seems to be am epidemic of that lately. Maybe too many (close)cousins being hired.
This sort of thing would end in one hell of a hurry if there really was such a thing as equal protection under the law in this county.
Breaking and entering, with a gun enhancement, brandishing. No excuse for “honest mistake.” Like the gun thief cops after Katrina, those idiots should be doing at least a few decades of hard time.
In a perfect world, I’d say sue the stuffing out of the police department and the town or city. I’ve read about way too many whoopsies like this, and they don’t even express any remorse, let alone pay for the door they kicked down – if it cost the city or department something, they’d be trained better to be a little more careful. Now how is she supposed to feel comfortable in her house ever again and not hear footsteps? Every time a stud pops or a rafter creaks, she’ll be awakened with eyes like saucers.
It’s an imperfect one, so if she sues, she’ll have to move. They won’t let her live it down, win or lose.
Oh, and to come in this way while investigating burglary? For an armed killer, yeah, but to just check out someone cleaning out a house, esp. when there’s no sign outdoors that a cleanout is in progress at this house? Who trained these cops? For the few incidents I’ve seen, they just wait outside and nab the suspects as they were getting away with the stash, no going in where they can get themselves hurt by a scared burglar.
Thanks for the comments, folks.
(I can’t sleep, that’s why I’m up in the middle of the night. Surprised?)
Actually I can’t sue ’em, as this is one of those counties where you have to get permission to sue. (Like that’s going to happen.) I also was so petrified one of those six officers (two inside, four outside) was going to shoot me that I neglected to collect names/badge numbers.
I’m sure my eyes were like saucers and spinning in my head on top of it; it’s not every day you get rousted out of your own house.
There’s lots more to this story but I’m not sure I should be telling it — I’m also afraid of retaliation should more of this story get out, like to their management.
I just want to live through this. Emphasis on the “live.”
Y’all be careful out there.
Jenny
your humble TubaDiva
Jeepers! What a load to carry.
It’s fortress time kids!
Reinforce the doors and add more locks on them and keep them locked while you are home?
BECAUSE THE Flippin COPS break in!?!
Need permission to sue!?!
You need a lawyer that can sue the state that allows that law to stand, as well as the cops that broke into your place and threatened you.
Or maybe I don’t know enough.
I am sorry for your troubles.
Mark
Claymores.
Just sayin’…
Sad deal. These are the people who are supposed to protect and serve. I realize they are not perfect and can make mistakes, but when they do, it can be a pretty bad mistake!
Good reminder why we all need the right to protect ourselves from ANYONE who trespasses!
Jenny definitely needs to sue the police department collectively and the invading officers individually. For lots and lots of money.
Police departments and municipalities need to start getting hurt for this kind of thing. If they get hurt often enough, they’ll put a stop to it.
Sorry, missed Jenny’s comment about suing.
So swear out a federal complaint for abuse of your civil rights instead. I don’t think you need permission for that.
Maybe Elmer Fudd and Barney Fife were working dispatch?
It could have been a deadly situation.
Glad it turned out ok.
must be in New Jersey or California. In any event elect some one who will put an end to your rights being taken away. It is illegal in every sense to execute a search with out a warrant. Defintely if it is a no knock break down the door. Contact a lawyer you trust and find out what you have available. Otherwise move some where the people are a little more sane (armed to the teeth).
Glad she got out okay. Shit happens, things fuck up. As long as nobody gets hurt and adequate apologies are issued in a timely manner, in my opinion, all is forgiven.
Hope it never happens at my address.
Just so ya know, I do like the claymore idea.
Jenny, wanna know about foogas?
She’s lucky. She was only baking cookies, and managed to attract to cops. Imagine if she had been making donuts …
Mmmmmm, donuts!
Does Jenny live in a one party town?
If not, I’m sure the next time that the mayor is up for election, the opposition would love to hear this story.
Maybe tell the story to a local newspaper reporter?
If Jenny wants to go public, I’d imagine Radley Balko and Glenn Reynolds would be happy to link to her story.
That being said, I don’t know that I’d want to do any of these things, because all they might accomplish is make the stupid pigs mad.
Appreciate all the comments but I’m got to let this go.
I’m still tremendously upset about it but my mother is a county employee and she is terrified of retaliation. This is one of those “employment at will” states and she could be fired for any reason or no reason at all anyway; certainly anything involving the police like this would not be good for her.
She’s close but not close enough to a good retirement and being fired right now would be extremely inconvenient, especially in these times.
So I’m shutting up about it and trying to, as she put it “get over yourself already.”
They didn’t knock down the door — the framing to the door on the sunporch is out of plumb and occasionally the door pops open all by itself. They walked through the open door, so they didn’t do more damage. (If you don’t count my nerves, anyway.)
I hate that little reminder that we are not as free as we might prefer. But I should have understood that anyway.
Jenny
I will never agree with the validity of a no-knock warrant. Sure as hell if that where to happen at my house someone would get shot. Probably me.
Nathan: Which civil rights law would this be under?
The only vaguely appropriate thing for this case appears to be 18 USC 241 (“Official Misconduct”), which requires that the action be intentional.
Given that there’s no evidence that this was more than incompetent, there’s no Federal civil rights case.
Using your power as a cop to bust into someone’s house, knowing you have no valid warrant or legal reaason to do so, would be a civil rights violation.
Being too stupid to find the right house just makes you incompetent, not a violator of civil rights.
(Much as I’m for punishing incompetents with guns, the “intent” part of the civil rights laws is important.)
(Though if the cops “issued themselves” a no-knock warrant, that might qualify – but they won’t have, since “responding to a report of crime in progress at location” would count as probable cause and there’d be no need of a warrant at all, would there?)
Sigivald, there are folks out there who file civil rights lawsuits on more specious grounds than this…but at any rate, IANAL :)
“Ineptitude.”