theinvisibleheart
New member
This is an argument for why police should be privatized. Just changing couple of personnels does nothing to change the culture and infrastructure of an organization.
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http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,316946,00.html
FOX News.com
Investigators: Texas Cops Made Homeless, Prostitutes Sign Blank Tickets
Saturday, December 15, 2007
DALLAS — Two Texas police officers frequently made homeless people
and prostitutes sign blank tickets so they could later fill them out
with whatever offenses they chose, according to a Dallas Police
Department investigation.
Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle said investigators concluded the two
officers used the blank tickets as a law-enforcement tool against
habitual offenders. If those offenders always had unpaid tickets, then
officers could obtain arrest warrants and take people into custody at
any time, Kunkle said.
"It's hard for me to understand any circumstances where that would be
appropriate," Kunkle told The Dallas Morning News. "It certainly
violates fundamental fairness if people don't have the opportunity to
know what they're being charged with or get proper notification."
A formerly homeless man interviewed by investigators said he was a
frequent target.
"They had me signing blank tickets every time they seen me," said the
man, R.B. Barton.
The two accused officers are Senior Cpl. Timothy Stecker and Senior
Cpl. Jeffrey Nelson. Stecker had previously been cleared of charges
related to his ticket writing but was placed on restricted duty
Friday. Nelson is already on restricted duty for a pattern of
misconduct related to ticket writing, police said.
They are likely to face disciplinary action; a hearing on their cases
is scheduled for Tuesday.
An attorney for the two men said they are good officers who have been
treated unfairly by the department's investigators.
"The way this investigation has been conducted, the length of time
that it has taken the department, and just the way that this
investigation was initiated and continues to be modified continually
by the department has been very unfair to the officers," said the
attorney, Haakon Donnelly.
_____________________________________________________________________
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,316946,00.html
FOX News.com
Investigators: Texas Cops Made Homeless, Prostitutes Sign Blank Tickets
Saturday, December 15, 2007
DALLAS — Two Texas police officers frequently made homeless people
and prostitutes sign blank tickets so they could later fill them out
with whatever offenses they chose, according to a Dallas Police
Department investigation.
Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle said investigators concluded the two
officers used the blank tickets as a law-enforcement tool against
habitual offenders. If those offenders always had unpaid tickets, then
officers could obtain arrest warrants and take people into custody at
any time, Kunkle said.
"It's hard for me to understand any circumstances where that would be
appropriate," Kunkle told The Dallas Morning News. "It certainly
violates fundamental fairness if people don't have the opportunity to
know what they're being charged with or get proper notification."
A formerly homeless man interviewed by investigators said he was a
frequent target.
"They had me signing blank tickets every time they seen me," said the
man, R.B. Barton.
The two accused officers are Senior Cpl. Timothy Stecker and Senior
Cpl. Jeffrey Nelson. Stecker had previously been cleared of charges
related to his ticket writing but was placed on restricted duty
Friday. Nelson is already on restricted duty for a pattern of
misconduct related to ticket writing, police said.
They are likely to face disciplinary action; a hearing on their cases
is scheduled for Tuesday.
An attorney for the two men said they are good officers who have been
treated unfairly by the department's investigators.
"The way this investigation has been conducted, the length of time
that it has taken the department, and just the way that this
investigation was initiated and continues to be modified continually
by the department has been very unfair to the officers," said the
attorney, Haakon Donnelly.
