Omaha Cop Reinstated After Being Fired For Not Reporting Use of Force on Subdued Man Caught on Camera, Other Cops Ran Into Brother's Home to Confiscate Video

Good samaritan made sure the incident got on the internet anyway

Reason

The Omaha Police Department said it fired six officers after an incident of police brutality caught on tape went viral. Those cops may be starting to make their way back onto the force.

From KMTV Action 3 News in Omaha:

Omaha police officer Bradley D. Canterbury has been reinstated after being fired for a rough arrest at 33rd and Seward last Spring.

Action 3 News first broadcast exclusive cell phone video of a rough arrest. It shows a police officer pulling Octavius Johnson to the ground and punching him several times. It also shows several officers running into the Johnson home without a search warrant to confiscate video another Johnson brother was recording. Investigators believe officers destroyed that video. What police didn't know, a neighbor was recording the whole thing.

According to the TV report, an arbitrator decided in a 38-page ruling that Canterbury's use of force was justified, calling the strikes "hammer hits" and noting he didn't kick or elbow Johnson. The arbitrator also decided the city didn't have enough evidence to show Canterbury purposely failed to mention the second series of strikes, against an already subdued Johnson, in his report, even as two of the officers are facing charges related to the cover-up of the incident.

Video below, with the second, unreported strikes, coming in at about 2:55, after all the other cops have already run into Johnson's brother's house to take whatever he filmed of the incident:

h/t Raven Nation

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Comments

[Episiarch]

How many unreported strikes of corrupt and violent police officers getting back on the force are you going to hit us with today?

[Pro Libertate]

With all of the unemployed people these days, perhaps someone with some money should hire them to follow cops around.

[Loki]

Just speaking for myself, but you'd have to pay me a fuckload of money to be willing to risk my life that way.

[Pro Libertate]

Well, we can either seek out the desperate or, perhaps, make them into unkillable cyborgs.

[mr simple]

RoboHobos?

[Swiss Servator, Befehl!]

*applause*

[Pro Libertate]

Skidrobocop?

[fish]

I like this better!

[DEATFBIRSECIA]

Rohobos is what Sladek called them:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tik-Tok_(novel)

[Death Rock and Skull]

trolometer 666 fuckyou

[Loki]

No, fuck you. And your mom.

[JW]

perhaps someone with some money should hire them to follow cops around.

Something like this?

[Pro Libertate]

"Do you have anything illegal in your car?"

Like I've said, all cops are supposed to be are regular civilians who help prevent and investigate crimes. No more rights than anyone else. Until we get back to that, these petty tyrants will abuse us more and more.

[Loki]

"What happens when you talk to police like they talk to you? They leave."

Yet if you tried to drive away from a cop you'd probably end up getting shot.

[Juice]

or like this.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Internal policy allows you to hammer someone's head in anger, so obviously that wasn't the issue.

[Death Rock and Skull]

look how can the derb be done without SOME degree of force

we need it to ensur comp.

derk da der

smooches trooll

[Death Rock and Skull]

In all seriousness, how the fuck does calling it a "hammer hit" rather than a punch make it any better? Aren't hammers pretty fucking hard compared to a punch?

[Killaz]

They were doing what they were trained to do so how can their actions be judged to be beneath a reasonable standard of conduct and performance? Do you punish a barista because the coffee she serves scalds someone? /policeone derp

[MP]

OT: TigerDirect now accepts Bitcoin.

[JW]

Ordering a tiger sounds unwise, Bitcoin or not.

[Andrew S.]

Tiger Trouble? Better Call Saul! http://www.amctv.com/breaking-.....-call-saul

[Raven Nation]

Don't know if anyone watched the clip but, the original takedown is pretty bad. But, then, after the guy is lying face down on the ground, with his hands cuffed behind his back, the cop punches him two or three times in the head. And the arbitrator said the cop used an appropriate degree of force.

[Pro Libertate]

Look, maybe the two or three blows to the back of the head weren't necessary this time, but the punk will think twice about disobeying the absolute and total authority of law enforcement next time, right? Can I get a chest-bump?

[Raven Nation]

What's really infuriating is that once the original video came to light (and it's pretty clear that the OPD didn't know about it until it hit Youtube), the police chief did the right thing & fired them pretty quickly.

[Pro Libertate]

For each good act, there must be an equal and opposite bad act. It's the new cop rule. Or maybe that's twenty bad acts--I'm not a policiphysicist.

[Loki]

Perp was thrown to the ground... punches were thrown... lessons were learned...

[Ted S.]

Not passive enough. The perp was grounded; physical contact was made with the perpetrator's head area.

[some guy]

"Knocking him down won the first fight. I wanted to win all the next ones, too."

[Mad Scientist]

Where's Dunphy to explain to us bigorati that those were just love punches?

[PM]

Totality of circs. Olympic weightlifting. Morgan Fairchild.

hth

[Andrew S.]

NNEMUATBD*

*Not nearly enough made up acronyms to be Dunphy

[Death Rock and Skull]

typed from my cruiser computer on my five hour mcdonalds break

lol

[sarcasmic]

Peasants were beaten. Evidence was destroyed. Procedures were followed. Nothing else happened.

[Loki]

an arbitrator decided in a 38-page ruling that Canterbury's use of force was justified, calling the strikes "hammer hits" and noting he didn't kick or elbow Johnson.

Ssince there's no double standard for cops, that means that I could get away with beating someone up as long as I refrain from kicking them or elbowing them. Right?

Also, I was hopeful that the pig who killed Kelly Thomas wouldn't get his old job back. Thanks for the nut-punch reminder that cops almost never stay fired for long.

[Pro Libertate]

This is where everything has gone south so fast. A cop is, legally speaking, given some leeway in the use of force that would otherwise be a criminal and/or civil act of battery or worse, but that leeway is supposed to be very marginal in order to provide cops with the ability to defend themselves and others. However, kicking/hitting/shooting someone in a defenseless position isn't even remotely justifiable. If a little person did that, he'd be in jail and up on civil battery claims. Period.

[Episiarch]

They're a different class. Period. That's what they wanted, and they've gotten it. We now live in a society with a warrior/enforcer caste, a political caste, and then the schmuck caste, which is us. Then there's also the super-schmuck caste, or "schmendrick caste", which you are a member of, ProL. You and Hugh.

[Pro Libertate]

We're all little people. But, like Peter Dinklage, I refuse to accept any leprechaun roles.

[Zeb]

What about Oompa-loompas?

[pan fried wylie]

misread as Obama-loompas

[Zeb]

I don't want to know what that is.

[Episiarch]

How about a leprechaun who is also a schumck? You'd be perfect for that.

[Pro Libertate]

Did I mini-stutter? No fucking leprechauns. I see you as one of those mini-trolls with the funky hair.

[Loki]

Ewoks?

We know how you've always wanted to be a furry.

[Zeb]

What we need is some sort of reward for any cop who puts a bullet in the head of another cop who they observe hurting an already subdued suspect.

[Pro Libertate]

What we need is to foster an anti-cop mentality among cops. A bounty on busting other cops would be a good start.

[sarcasmic]

This is why I say there is no such thing as a good cop. If good cops existed they would turn in bad cops. Instead they all cover for each other. That means that no good cops exist.

[Pro Libertate]

It's worse than that, I think. I think the good people in uniform are flat-out scared to do the right thing.

[sarcasmic]

Good people in uniform don't exist. They either quit in disgust, are driven out, or worse.

[Pro Libertate]

I rather doubt that, in the sense that 100% of all cops are bad guys. But what I do think is that the culture is bad. Many love it, some are scared to fight it, some give up and go along because it's all futile.

That's not to suggest that the profession, such as it is, doesn't attract goons and thugs.

[DFG]

Like they say it's the 95% that give the other 5% a bad name.

[Raven Nation]

Like this guy:

http://reason.com/reasontv/201.....rities-fir

[Loki]

Given what happened to Serpico can you really blame them?

[Smilin' Joe Fission]

It's true.. and they act like other police are part of their team or family.

I was having drinks with my buddies buddy who is a cop in town here. I could not get him to say one bad thing about the city police. As far as he would tell you, they are all angels fighting the devils henchmen for us citizens.

He does seem like a nice guy. He is young, still one of the good ones. He hasn't had years of training to corrupt his morality.

[sarcasmic]

As far as he would tell you, they are all angels fighting the devils henchmen for us citizens.

Sadly, that's what makes him a bad cop. I bet he would excuse and defend absolutely any action of one of his fellow officers. Anything. From beating someone in handcuffs to shooting an unarmed woman. That makes him a bad cop. He doesn't think he's a bad cop, but I can assure you that he is.

Or, as Will Smith put it:

"Even Hitler didn't wake up going, 'Let me do the most evil thing I can do today.' I think he woke up in the morning and using a twisted, backwards logic, he set out to do what he thought was 'good.'"

His good intentions didn't make him any less evil.

[some guy]

This is why I say there is no such thing as a good cop.

A few truly "good" ones are out there. Unfortunately the moment they perform their first good act they are ostracized and forced out, if not fired and prosecuted.

[Zeb]

That's what I'm thinking. I'm being a bit extreme today because I am annoyed, but there's got to be some way to interrupt all the brotherhood of cops, closing the ranks, thin blue line bullshit. First legislators have to be convinced somehow that fellating cops won't always be a winning strategy.

[Pro Libertate]

Really, organizations like IJ or the ACLU (or new organizations) should focus on nailing bad cops and the governments that allow their badness.

[JW]

I've long thought that the Institute for Justice lawyers should wear capes in the courtroom.

[R C Dean]

there's got to be some way to interrupt all the brotherhood of cops, closing the ranks, thin blue line bullshit.

Stripping them of sovereign immunity and/or the right to form a union would be good start.

[Kyfho Myoba]

Ain't ne-e-e-ever gonna happen. The incentives are all wrong. TEAM is drilled into these cro-magnons at every possible opportunity. I'm sure they are selected for this quality. They are told that they MUST dominate, and if necessary, that their "brothers" will come and back them up. Woe unto the brother that does not back up his brother. He who does not back up does not get backed up. And "back up" means more than just show up and look (and act) threatening. It means sticking to the same story (TEAM). I believe that this, combined with officer safety, is the lynch pin. Nothing will change until we're allowed to remove funding. The treasury is the root of kings.

[Andrew S.]

Can anyone find titanium-lined athletic cups on the internet anywhere? I feel like i need one.

Also, (mostly) OT: Man sues for being wrongfully tasered. Cops' attorneys claim that he was screaming not from pain, but in joy and laughter.

[Loki]

Something like this?

[some guy]

Cops' attourneys should have been charged with contempt of court, because expecting a judge/jury to buy that crap is the definition of contempt.

I understand why there is no adversarial culture in the legal system though. Cops and prosecutors have the same goals. Most judges are former-prosecutors, paying it forward. Juries are primarily motivated by the desire to get home before dinner.

[Death Rock and Skull]

tortillity of my circumcision

hth fuckers

[The Late P Brooks]

These people cannot be forced into civilian life. The Eighth Amendment says so.

[The Late P Brooks]

And the arbitrator said the cop used an appropriate degree of force.

Funny how that is almost invariably the outcome. It's as if the "arbitrators'" decisions are foreordained.

DUE PROCESS!

[sarcasmic]

Aren't these arbitrators retired cops and union representatives? Totally unbiased.

[Zeb]

Motherfucker. I first read the headline as "Omaha Cop Arrested after..." so that was a big letdown.

If we are going to have the death penalty, these fucks are who it should be applied to. I'm serious. Put a line in the contract of anyone who works for the government that if they use their position to harm any member of the public, they will be taken out back and shot in the head. I think I could be OK with that.

[sarcasmic]

The public is everyone except any individual with whom the public servant is interacting with at any time.

So when they beat, shoot, or otherwise harm individuals, they are serving the public, because the public is everyone except that individual.

[Zeb]

OK, any person at all then.

[Zeb]

Maybe it woudl set off a never-ending chain reaction of cops shooting each other in the head. I can think of worse things.

[DK]

But what does Peyton Manning think about this?

[Loki]

What about Richard Sherman? He probably thinks they're mediocre cops.

[Ed]

They're actual thugs, obviously

[DK]

Sounds like a conversation for The Independents on their upcoming Super Bowl show.

[Episiarch]

I heard Sherm thought that everyone here was a MEDIOCRE commenter. MEDIOCRE.

[Loki]

He's the best commenter ever! Don't ever go up against him! DON'T EVER TALK ABOUT HIM!

[Smilin' Joe Fission]

I asked in the AM links if this is what Peyton had been yelling about all season.. but no one answered me.

[The Late P Brooks]

I heard Sherm thought that everyone here was a MEDIOCRE commenter. MEDIOCRE.

I prefer to think of myself as a jerk.

[Episiarch]

We should form the Jerk Squad. Taking being a jerk to a whole new level.

[The Late P Brooks]

Really, organizations like IJ or the ACLU (or new organizations) should focus on nailing bad cops and the governments that allow their badness.

I think the FBI should devote a large chunk of their resources to investigating and prosecuting malfeasance by state and local police agents.
But I'm crazy.

[R C Dean]

The FBI should be limited solely to investigating government agencies and employees.

I mean, its not like we don't have enough cops to watch the rest of us without the FBI piling on.

[MoreFreedom]

These cops - trained in how to break the law, and get away with it. Too bad we hired them.

Prosecutors, trained in not prosecuting government criminals, so they don't become targets themselves.

[Raven Nation]

Although in the Omaha case, the city attorney worked with the police chief on the original decision to fire the cops. And, based on their comments, they're not happy about this decision. City has 60 days to appeal the arbiter's decision.

[The Late P Brooks]

Would there be meetings?

Yes. With...

POPCORN!

[The Late P Brooks]

"A psychopath kills people for no reason. I kill people for money."

[some guy]

Eventually cops are going to realize that they need to always assume they are being recorded and that they need to spend more time and money lobbying legislatures to prohibit recording of cops. I mean, how can they be expected to do their jobs if they might be held accountable for their actions? They are government employees after all.

[David K Az]

That video makes it look like the whole department should be restricted from dealing with the public until the public can be assured that they will behave in a responsible manner. Bullying is not acceptable whether it is by a police officer or by a Republican thinking he can tell women how to behave. Go to court. It looks like this would be a slam dunk law suit for the individual that was beaten and by those whose privacy was invaded. The public has a right to view the actions of their government officials particularly in their relations with the public.

[Episiarch]

Meetings are for jerks. So...yes? There will also be punch and pie.

[Loki]

You're a jerk for even suggesting such a thing.