Cops Charged In Slaying Of Elderly Woman (Atlanta, GA no knock raid)

[RamboLiberal]

Source: CBS News

A grand jury indicted three current and former Atlanta police officers in the shooting death of an elderly woman during a drug raid, the indictment unsealed Thursday shows.

Officers with a no-knock warrant raided 92-year-old Kathryn Johnston's home on Nov. 21 without warning after an informant said he had bought drugs there, according to police. Johnston fired at the plainclothes officers who burst in, and they fired back, killing her.

Gregg Junnier, 40, and J.R. Smith, 35, were charged in the indictment with felony murder, violation of oath by a public officer, criminal solicitation, burglary, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and making false statements.

Arthur Tesler, 40, is charged with violation of oath by a public officer, making false statements and false imprisonment under color of legal process.


Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/04/26/national/main2730525.shtml

[Wcross]

1. That is good news.

The police have to be held accountable for crimes they commit.

[ThomCat]

2. I agree.

These no-knock warrants are being abused, and far too many of them are being issued for the wrong addresses.
x(

[suziedemocrat]

18. Who listens to these informants? Who wears plain clothes to a no-knock raid?

This is complete insanity! Good for her for protecting herself from scumbags who break into her home. This is a recipe for disaster! It's like the cops just want to create situations where they will kill people. It's beyond horrible!

[FiveGoodMen]

3. Thank god she had a gun!

[Wcross]

6. She should have just called the Police..........

Oh, never mind.

[FiveGoodMen]

14. They charged into her house without uniforms, without knocking, pointing guns

She may not have thought she had time to call the police. She probably didn't realize these were police.

[FiveGoodMen]

21. Sorry, the first time I read your post I didn't get it.

:)

[MadMaddie]

19. And therin lies the rub......

The Gun didn't protect her from Gun Toting Thugs who happened in this case to be police officers out of control.

[Wiregrass Willie]

4. No-knock warrants should be outlawed.

I can't think of anybody outside of the KGB who would want to
enter a person's home without knocking.  

[jayfish]

8. Bad News.

In case you forgot.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/15/AR2006061500730_pf.html

The Constitution does not require the government to forfeit evidence gathered through illegal "no knock" searches, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday, in a far-reaching ruling that could encourage police with search warrants to conduct more aggressive raids.

The 5 to 4 decision broke with the court's modern tradition of enforcing constitutional limitations on police investigations by keeping improperly obtained evidence out of court. The "exclusionary rule" has been imposed to protect a series of rights, such as the right to remain silent in police custody and the right against warrantless searches.

But the broadly worded majority opinion by Justice Antonin Scalia, joined by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justices Anthony M. Kennedy, Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr., suggested that the nation has moved into a new era of improved policing in which such strong medicine may no longer be justified.

The ruling underscored the court's rightward shift since Alito replaced Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who seemed to disagree with Scalia about the case while she was on the court. And it once again focused attention on the pivotal role of Kennedy, a moderate conservative, who supplied a fifth vote to the majority while issuing a separate concurring opinion that disavowed a portion of Scalia's opinion and asserted that it did not portend any broader erosion of the exclusionary rule.

Jay

[jody]

12. Add to your concern, it’s easier for presidents to declare martial law and use the militia for

domestic law-enforcement purposes.

Insurrection Act

The Insurrection Act of 1807 is the set of laws that govern the President of the United States of America's ability to deploy troops within the United States to put down lawlessness, insurrection and rebellion. The laws are chiefly contained in 10 U.S.C. § 331 - 10 U.S.C. § 335. The general aim is to limit Presidential power as much as possible, relying on state and local governments for initial response in the event of insurrection. Coupled with the Posse Comitatus Act, Presidential powers for law enforcement are limited and delayed.

* * * * *

On September 30, 2006, the Congress modified the Insurrection Act as part of the 2007 Defense Authorization Bill. Section 1076 of the new law changes Sec. 333 of the "Insurrection Act," and widens the President's ability to deploy troops within the United States to enforce the laws. Under this act, the President may also deploy troops as a police force during a natural disaster, epidemic, serious public health emergency, terrorist attack, or other condition, when the President determines that the authorities of the state are incapable of maintaining public order. The bill also modified Sec. 334 of the Insurrection Act, giving the President authority to order the dispersal of either insurgents or "those obstructing the enforcement of the laws."

This is another step transforming the "unitary executive" president into a dictator.

[LiberalFighter]

22. Easy solution to that...

how many no knock warrants could we arrange on the 5 voting for it?

Unfortunately, the cops in general are going to support this. And they sure as hell wouldn't do a no knock search on federal judges to intimidate them into voting against it.

[LisaL]

23. It also seems very dangerous for everyone involved.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

5. Good

Hopefully it will help bring more attention to the vast amounts of problems with "no knock warrants".

[RebelOne]

7. That's good to hear. I've been following that story

since it happened. And those cops need to be sent away for a long, long time.

[MGKrebs]

9. Burglary?

I undersand that to mean breaking and entering with intent to commit a crime. What crime were they intending to commit?

[Wcross]

10. Breaking and entering is a crime. Not to mention homicide. n/t

[Roy]

15. apparently to kill or maim anyone inside who may resist the intrusion

I agree with you, they should be punished.

Regardless of their perceived intentions the fact is, this woman would in all likelihood have invited them in if they had knocked and announced their possession of a warrant and intent to search the premises for someone wanted by the authorities.

Gestapo tactics cost this woman her life and it should cost the freedom of all those involved.
The only regret is that those who implemented this no knock policy won't receive their share of accountability.

edit: clarification

[MGKrebs]

24. More info:

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2007/04/27/0427metjohnston.html

What started with a few bags of marijuana being planted near a suspected street dealer quickly spiraled out of control. Narcotics officers lied to a judge, illegally broke into 92-year-old Kathryn Johnston's house, fired 39 shots at her — and then one handcuffed her as she lay bleeding before he planted drugs in her basement.

Smith, 35, a former Georgia National Guard officer who served in Iraq, was indicted on 13 felonies, including four counts of felony murder, violation of an oath by a public officer, two counts of giving false statements, two counts of burglary and one count each of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, false imprisonment and perjury.

Junnier, 40, with nine years in the narcotics unit, was charged with three counts of felony murder, violation of oath by a public officer, criminal solicitation, two counts of burglary and one count each of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and making a false statement.

A third officer, Arthur Tesler, 40, is charged with violating his oath as an officer, making false statements and false imprisonment. Tesler, with eight months as a narcotics officer, vowed to fight charges against him.

[Debau2005]

11. Local news has reported for days

that 2 will plead to lesser charges, and one will plead not guilty. So this is not over by a long shot. It has brought awareness, at least in Atlanta, to the no-knock warrant and the rise in police related shootings here.

I think this is going to go higher then the three accused. The two that are pleading are turning state's evidence, according to local reports.

[Catherine Vincent]

13. Good!

[The Stranger]

16. Are Junnier and Smith pro-death penalty types?

What do you think?

[Eugene]

17. 2 Plead Guilty in Police Drug Raid Death - AP

Source: Associated Press

2 Plead Guilty in Police Drug Raid Death

Thursday April 26, 2007 7:46 PM

By HARRY R. WEBER

Associated Press Writer

ATLANTA (AP) - Two police officers pleaded guilty to
manslaughter Thursday in the shooting death of a
92-year-old woman during a botched drug raid. A third
officer was also indicted in the woman's death.

Gregg Junnier, 40, who retired from the Atlanta police
force in January, pleaded guilty to manslaughter,
violation of oath, criminal solicitation and making false
statements.

Officer J.R. Smith, 35, pleaded guilty to the same four
charges and to perjury, which was based on making
untrue claims in a warrant.

-snip-

U.S. Attorney David Nahmias said the recommended
federal sentence for Junnier will be 10 years and one
month in prison, and for Smith, 12 years, seven months.
The state and federal sentences are expected to run
concurrently for both men.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6589256,00.html

[MadMaddie]

20. This incident signifies that the War on Drugs is out of hand

This woman was killed because a so called informer said he bought pot (not cocaine, not meth, not crack) but pot....

[lfairban]

25. I started looking into this on the internet . . .

I Googled and found this very interesting discussion on Free Republic which included a link to a CATO Institute Study.

It seems the Freepers are more outraged than are we.

[MLFerrell]

26. WTF?

Freepers making even the slightest bit of sense? Isn't that one of the signs of the Apocalypse?

:shrug: