DC Metro Cops Who Attack Wheelchair-Bound Boozer Get Off

Back in May, the above footage showed Washington, D.C. Metro Transit cops pushing Dwight Harris out of his motorized wheelchair, wrestling to the ground, and cuffing him, all for the crime of drinking in public near a subway station.

The police originally also charged Harris with assaulting them but that charge - and the drinking one - were dropped after the video showed Harris didn't take on the cops in the least.

Now, reports Gawker and a local ABC affiliate, the arresting officers will not face charges for overdoing it.

DOJ spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa said there was insufficient evidence to pursue charges after investigators interviewed witnesses and reviewed training records, video and medical reports. "Accident, mistake, fear, negligence or bad judgment are not sufficient to establish such a criminal violation," she said. 

Gawker writeup here. Local ABC affiliate take here.

Hat tip: To the reader who sent me this link but whose email or tweet tip I can't find!

Reason.tv's take on "Cops vs. Cameras: The Killing of Kelly Thomas & The Power of New Media":

Comments

[Lost_in_translation]

negligence

I'm pretty sure there are several statutes that include this term in the criminal code. And really, there is bad conduct and it doesn't even warrant a misdemeanor charge or firing?

[Tulpa]

Strict liability is for little people.

[Property Values drive beatings]

Bums lower property values. Police and prosecutors are here to protect and serve property values.

Thomas Kelly died for your sins.

[The Hamilton]

Got Bacon?

[Police Praxeology]

Police Praxeology Protects Private Property.

That Liberalism aims at the protection of property... ~Ludwig von Mises, Classic Liberalism, p.59

Cops taking care of drunks on the street, who lower property values, are being classic liberals.

[Paul]

Harris represented 'blight'. And the cops eminent domained his ass. Perfectly constitutional.

[DCResident]

Obviously this guy doesn't deserve to get beaten up by the cops, but the wheelchair bound person in question is well known for being a huge asshole and regularly harasses/attacks people in the U Street area of DC, including women.

[Every Criminal in the World]

"Accident, mistake, fear, negligence or bad judgment are not sufficient to establish such a criminal violation."

Yippee!

[Fist of Etiquette]

Not so fast...

[Every Criminal in the World]

Not so fast...

Ha! What part of "bad judgment" do you not understand?

[Platypus]

"Negligence"? Now that's a funny word.

[SiliconJon]

Wait, did they just negate almost all of the criminal code for civilians, too?

Oh no, that's right, authority gets a special pleading.

[The Hamilton]

Indeed. Got Bacon?

[Proper Procedures]

I was there. Everything that happened was by the book and hunky dory.

No, really.

[Property values drive violence]

1. Bums lower property values.
2. Prosecutors get voted in by property owners and their donations.
3. Prosecutors and police know which side of their bread is buttered.

All proper procedure for the POLIS's POLICe.

[The Hamilton]

Got Bacon?

[RC Dean]

How is it that there is no criminal charge for falsely accusing someone of a crime? I'd bet good money that there are some affidavits around that were at least nominally under oath - that's perjury right there.

And, in most states, its a crime to file a false report with the police. Are cops exempted from that?

One hopes that there will at least be a civil case brought for this.

[sarcasmic]

Cops commit perjury all the time.
Ever read a police report of an incident that you witnessed?

It reads like fiction because it is.

[John Thacker]

True.

Although I'd say the same of any newspaper article I've read of any event I've personally witnessed, or which is about something in my field of work.

[Tulpa]

The difference here is that there is black-and-white evidence of perjury. The cop who lies on the stand about whether you were speeding is confident there will be no evidence that he was lying.

[sarcasmic]

The difference here is that there is black-and-white evidence of perjury.

So what? Seriously. So what?
They could have killed the guy and at worst been rewarded with paid vacations.

Police are in the business of force and fraud. That's what they do.

When the evidence contradicts them, then the evidence must be wrong.

[POLIS is the business of force]

City-States are founded and perpetuated on constant aggression.

Have you noticed yet?

Then why do you continue to support the City-State (civilization?)

[##]

The same reason that you do. Because hunting and gathering wild berries isn't fun and won't support our population plus I enjoy the personal benefits like sitting in front of a computer too much to give it up. Just like you.

[Using the tools of empire...]

...to bring down the empire isn't advocating empire culture.

Please make a note of it.

[##]

...enjoying the fruits of the empire while doing nothing more than paying lip service to bringing it down IS advocating empire culture.

Talk is cheap. Talk about going back to a primitive Neverland where children literally never grow old, doubly so. Please make a note it.

[ROADZZZZZ]

[Tanaru]

Sounds a lot like Champagne Socialism to me.
Oh, and y'know, when my dog is given the choice between untrammeled nature and civilization, she hits the food bowl and sleeps on the comfy couch. Apparently she's been brainwashed by empire, also.

[evil champagne]

[John]

Because people like Scooter Libby and Martha Stewart were convicted where there was black and white evidence of perjury as opposed to a he said she said issue. Come on Tupla.

[Anonymous Coward]

How is it that there is no criminal charge for falsely accusing someone of a crime?

Prosecutorial discretion. And professionalism. Lots and lots of professionalism. So much professionalism that it makes you want to puke.

[Property values drive prosecut]

....ors decisions. Bums = lower property values. Prosecutors know this.

Kelly Thomas dies for your sins.

[Joshua]

This is the reason Reason needs to switch to an account-style message system.

[wylie]

So much professionalism that it makes you want to puke.

If you weren't just so damn professional. True Professionals never puke on the job.

[Pablo]

I cannot recall the last time I heard of a cop being prosecuted for perjury or for filing a false report with the police. Prosecutors just won't do it because once a cop is convicted on any perjury or false swearing, that jeopardizes not only all open cases where he is a witness, but also closed cases where he testified.

[sarcasmic]

From the police and prosecutors' perspective convicting innocents is preferable to letting crimes to unpunished.

Wouldn't was to be accused of being "soft on crime".

Besides. If someone gets attention from the police, they're a scumbag guilty of something. At least that's a good way to rationalize lying your ass off in court to convict someone you know to be innocent. Sure they didn't commit the crime in question, but they're guilty of something.

[sarcasmic]

Just goes to show that people who seek out a job that allows them to cause physical harm without consequence do so because they take pleasure in causing physical harm.

Show me a cop and I'll show you someone in desperate need of a life threatening beat down.

[Idiot]

^

[Surly Chef]

"Show me a cop and I'll show you someone in desperate need of a life threatening beat down."

My old BJJ school used to run a biyearly clinic for cops. There was something that just warmed my heart about tapping 250lbs pigs, being that I'm a 140lbs drug user. Really it was just a marketing ploy to get more students. Work very poorly though as the cops that came were generally so humiliated they never came back anyways.

[Tulpa]

By that logic, Ron Paul must take pleasure in killing innocent civilians.

[PS]

Also by that logic, show me a person who voted and I'll show you a person who endorses the State, hence these cops, etc.

[Tulpa]

Silence gives consent, bud.

[Pedant]

That only works if you say it in latin.

[Tulpa]

timidi mater non flet

[T]

You forgot the ',bud'.

[Paul]

Silence gives consent, bud.

Shh.

[John Thacker]

DOJ spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa

That's quite a name. Aztec?

[Spoonman.]

Xochitl is, yes. My wife's former boss pronounced it "Sochee."

[Heroic Mulatto]

More importantly;
If she's the chick on the far right of the graduation pic, then she's pretty good looking. If she's the one in the blue dress, then after a few beers and or Four Lokos, you'll be good to go.

[adam]

Next time I slam some guy's face into the ground, I'll make sure to tell the cops that it was just "Accident, mistake, fear, negligence or bad judgment."

[P Brooks]

"Accident, mistake, fear, negligence or bad judgment are not sufficient to establish such a criminal violation," she said.

Probably not the first to say it, but somebody should tell that stupid mendacious cunt those are more than sufficient grounds to bring charges against civilians.

[POLIS Academy]

POLIS* = City-State
POLICe = City-State's enforcement of the POLI's (city people's) business

The contradiction that the religio-economic faith of libertarianism teaches, is that:

City-State (POLIS) = Good
City-State (POLICe) = Evil

In reality, the city, City-lization (civilization, or the city-State**) is a violence-based hell.

And it can't be fixed.

P.S. The "Voluntary City" is an oxymoron.
______________
* Polis is often translated as "city-state." https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Polis

** The word civilization comes from the Latin civilis, meaning civil, related to the Latin civis, meaning citizen, and civitas, meaning city or city-state.
https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Civilization

[POLI-tics Academy]

Meaning, the city-people's blood sucking ticks.

Etymology is so fun.

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

You would think they would get fired just for being stupid assholes who let themselves get filmed while giving a wheelchair bound drunk a curbie.

Accountability - a word unknown to vast swaths of government employees

[Blacks lower Property Values]

Bums are aggressors against property, just by their presence.

In fact, blacks are aggressors against property, just by their presence.

The founder of modern American libertarianism told me so.

In short; racialist science is properly not an act of aggression or a cover for oppression of one group over another, but, on the contrary, an operation in defense of private property against assaults by aggressors. ~Murray Rothbard

[John]

You could almost live with them not being charged if they would actually lose their jobs or there were any way to punish a cop short of prison to punish a cop. Instead they walked away with a few weeks free vacation.

Like many of our problems, this one goes back to unions.

[Union Busting is the Answer]

But don't these cops work for corporations? Therefore...

Like many of our problems, this one goes back to corporations.

[Tulpa]

RTFAing reveals that DOJ was only looking at "violation of civil rights" crimes which probably do require mens rea, and which ordinary citizens aren't eligible to be prosecuted for. (Still hard to excuse this as mere negligence though)

The real scumrat in this case is the DC prosecutor who didn't pursue district-level charges of assault.

[John]

But the DC prosecutors do work for DOJ. DC is not a state and DOJ has a special section that prosecutes ordinary crimes in DC in federal district court.

[Tulpa]

OK, but this is not what the spokesperson was talking about. It's the federal civil rights violation people who passed on it with the given "logic".

[Libertarian Cop Beatings]

Cops must be unleashed, and allowed to administer instant punishment ... unleash the cops to clear the streets of bums and vagrants. Where will they go? Who cares?

~Murray Rothbard
http://www.lewrockwell.com/rothbard/ir/Ch5.html

The city-STATE must protect and serve the hierarchical elite's privation property! WE NEED GOVERNMENT!

How's that working out for you?

[PermaLurker]

"4. Take Back the Streets: Crush Criminals. And by this I mean, of course, not "white collar criminals" or "inside traders" but violent street criminals ? robbers, muggers, rapists, murderers. Cops must be unleashed, and allowed to administer instant punishment, subject of course to liability when they are in error.

5. Take Back the Streets: Get Rid of the Bums. Again: unleash the cops to clear the streets of bums and vagrants. Where will they go? Who cares? Hopefully, they will disappear, that is, move from the ranks of the petted and cosseted bum class to the ranks of the productive members of society."

yanno context is a wonderful thing..I know I know. Don't feed the troll *sigh*

[Heroic Mulatto]

"Accident, mistake, fear, negligence or bad judgment are not sufficient to establish such a criminal violation," she said.

Holy crap. I don't know how it works in the Aztec Empire, but here in the USA, "Accident, mistake, fear, negligence or bad judgment" are sufficient to establish manslaughter...at least for us 'civilians'.

[Kelly Thomas died for your sin]

Your sin is the love of money, privation property, and the aggression it takes to keep up privation property values.

[Get that hippy off my street!]

Officer, am I free go gambol?

[WTF]

Shut the fuck up, you stupid, boring, bag of santorum and stop shitting all over every thread with your fucking inanities.

[Kelly Thomas died for WTFs sin]

[property values drive violence]

and you know it

and you evade saying it

[Chatroom Crank]

I like how they had to review training records. Do they teach a special class in "Not curb stomping cripples in wheelchairs"? And these guys hadn't got the chance to take it yet?

[John]

Having given use of force briefings to cops, I can say that yea, that is about what they are. Don't kill the civilians.

[Chatroom Crank]

Common sense, how do it work?

[sarcasmic]

Common sense - do what the nice man who sought out a job that involves carrying a club and a gun says, or you may end up lying in a pool of your own blood.

My first encounter with the police involved a nice man with a club and a gun standing behind me and whispering into my ear "Give me one reason. Please. I'm begging you. You know I want to. Give me one fucking reason. Please."

Needless to say my blood runs a bit cold whenever I see a cop.

[Property Values drive violence]

Cops and prosecutors know on which side their bread is buttered.

Kelly Thomas died for your property values.

[dunphy]

i thought it was from your idiotic grudge held to this day based on the fact that you got due process for a DUI you were guilty as fuck for, and it pisses you off.

otoh, you're a complicated man. nobody understands you, but the average 12 yr old. and yer mom

[sarcasmic]

No dunphy. That was a different incident.

And I wasn't ticked about the DUI. I was ticked about the police report having no mention that the kid who hit me ran a red light (not to mention the other fiction that was in there), resulting in me having to fix the car.
The fine and all that was my fault. I accept that. But fixing the car was bullshit.

One time while walking down the street a cop flagged me down and asked me to come over. OK, whatever. He said my pitching a cigarette butt into a mud puddle was littering, and then demanded my ID saying he'd ticket me for littering in addition to taking me in if I had any warrants. I didn't. Disappointed he then searched me (which I knew he had no legal right to do, but this was not long after having sweet nothings whispered into my ear by a sadist with a badge, so I didn't protest.). Finally he grudgingly let me go, but not before letting me know he was watching me. Fucking cock.

I could go on. Those aren't the only encounters I have had with the police.

Every cop I have ever encountered was a dick who could use a good ass kicking.

You are no exception.

[dunphy]

You proved that you were a stupid bigot BY that incident. Thus, I repeatedly mention it. Hth

[Hand Banana]

DUNPHY! You fuck stick. Going to tell us how cops get charged all the fucking time you asshole? Let me guess, these ass hats followed "procedure" and the god damned crippled had it comin'? Am I right? Fuck you and every piece of shit PIG on the planet.

[dunphy]

No. You are wrong. And thus proving yourself to be a kneejerking bigot. I do NOT support the cops in this case. But since you are a bigot you make a baseless,evidence free assumption. Thanks for proving my point. Hth

[dunphy]

No. You are wrong. And thus proving yourself to be a kneejerking bigot. I do NOT support the cops in this case. But since you are a bigot you make a baseless,evidence free assumption. Thanks for proving my point. Hth

[Tonio]

It's noteworthy that dunphy is always the first one to throw the ad-hom or otherwise try to discredit the speaker, instead of actually discussing the issue on the merits.

[dunphy]

It's noteworthy that this false and that you cannot back your claim with evidence

[Chatroom Crank]

Funny, my common sense tells me to not curb stomp people in wheelchairs. I guess I will never have the lack of critical thinking skills needed to be a cop.

[drunks lower property values]

Please make a note of it.

[.]

Monomania is a hell of a thing.

[Monomania]

Libertarians complaining about the actions of the city-State while simultaneously glorifying the wonders of the city-State.

That's monomania, every day here at reason.

[poetry]

is this the gamboling guy?

i noticed him first like, a week or two ago.. did i miss something? like, is this a joke that everybody takes part in, or, i dunno, what the hell?

[Clich? Bandit]

Uncredited hat tip shall be claimed by the first to respond it is thiers. Therefore, I claime this hat tip YEAHHH!

(Nick, I saw this in ML by sarcasmic

[The Hamilton]

Who is the head of the DC Bacon Brigade? This azzhat should be stomped and spat (and perhaps shat) upon repeatedly. WTF...How long, Oh Lord....

[Tonio]

It's even worse than that, TH: It's not the DC Metropolitan Police Dept (the cops for the govt of DC) who did this. It's the less-accountable Metro Transit Police. The Washington Area Metropolitan Transit Authoritah ("Metro") has it's own police force with actual police powers (WTF). These are the same goons who famously handcuffed a 12yo girl for eating on the subway.

[The Hamilton]

"Accident, mistake, fear, negligence or bad judgment are not sufficient to establish such a criminal violation," she said.

So these big bad porkers were afraid of someone in a WHEELCHAIR? Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

[drunks lower property values]

Afraid of Drunks in a wheelchair? Yes.

The POLICe and prosecutors know that they must maintain the value of the POLIS's property values, because the presence of drunks lower property values.

[0x90]

It was a motorized wheelchair. And likely, hot-rodded, perhaps even having been outfitted with hidden tasers and such. And this, being piloted by a belligerent drunk. A disaster waiting to happen, really -- those officers had no choice but to act.

[Tulpa]

They should be.

[the love of money...]

...is the root of all Police Beatings to protect privation property values.

[Pudgeboy]

As if the actual assault by police wasn't bad enough, they had to add a pretend charge of assaulting a police officer, when it clearly didn't happen. Pathetic and pathetic.

[Police Praxeology]

It's not assault when the POLICe are protecting the POLIS' property values from being driven down by the presence of drunk Indians gamboling.

[Pudgeboy]

Two dicks, acting as they normally do... nothing more than that.

[drunk wheelchair gamboler]

It's drunk White Indian gamboling in his wheelchair who is being beaten.

Enjoy it!!!

The POLICe keeping his type down raises your POLIS (city-State) property values.

[Kant feel Pietzsche]

If this was actually Pale Rider, I would be sorely tempted to give the Baconators a one-time hall pass.

[Joshua]

Nobody cares about anything you have to say. Please stop wasting our time.

[Diomasach]

Hey, it's all about fairness and equality. After all, not beating him up just because he was in a wheelchair would have made the other bums upset, and that would have been discrimination.

[gamboling guy]

officer, am i free to gambol dumb-fuck gamboling comments on unrelated threads?