Walter Scott

New Jersey Judge Orders Newspaper to Take Down Article; Newspaper Refuses

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Here’s a very interesting case in which Bergen County Superior Court Judge Jane Gallina-Mecca issued an order directing the Bergen Dispatch to remove a news article. The newspaper refused the demand. Techdirt reports:

This seems to happen all too often, but a local judge has forgotten about the whole 1st Amendment thing. Last week, Bergen County Superior Court Judge Jane Gallina-Mecca ordered the Bergen Dispatch to take down a news article. The article was about a specific family court case, involving custody of a child. It’s not surprising that there might be some concern over privacy rights in such cases, but even so, that does not allow a judge to flat out order a newspaper to take down an article — even more so when the order came out of a closed hearing where no one from the newspaper was even present. In response, the Bergen Dispatch posted a fairly snarky article that reiterates some of the details from the case, and concludes with this wonderful paragraph:

While the Bergen Dispatch reviews its options we have confirmed that Bergen County does currently remain part of the State of New Jersey and that currently New Jersey is still part of the Union of states that is governed by the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. As such, Bergen County citizens continue to enjoy the right to freedom of speech and the right to a free press.

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464 Americans Have Been Killed by Police in 2015 – Here are Their Stories

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A couple of months ago, I highlighted the horrifying fact that U.S. police killed more civilians in March than UK police killed in 100 years. With May 2015 in the history book, we now have some updated stats, and the results are not pretty. 464 Americans have been killed by police so far this year, which amounts to more than three deaths every single day. If you don’t think this is a problem, I don’t know how to help you.

The Guardian put together an incredible list of all 464 people killed by date, as well as a summary of the circumstances of their deaths.

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Know Your Rights – How to Respond When Police Tell You to Stop Filming

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Something I wish I had more time to devote to here at Liberty Blitzkrieg is the topic of “know your rights.” Despite the establishment’s relentless assault on the Bill of Rights, the American citizen still enjoys more liberties than a large percentage of the world’s population. Nevertheless, as important as it is to have these rights, it is equally important to flex them. If we don’t constantly exercise our rights, they’ll ultimately fall victim to atrophy like a vestigial organ.

While the smartphone has proven an excellent tool for the surveillance state, its video function has conversely served as a powerful civil rights tool. So much so that police will often lie to citizens about their right to film them in public, and one State Representative from Texas went so far to try to ban the filing of police (see: Meet Jason Villalba – The Texas State Representative Who Introduced a Bill that Criminalizes Citizens Filming Police).

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Four Swedish Cops on Vacation in NYC Teach the NYPD a Lesson

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We’ve all seen the stats by now. U.S. police killed more citizens in March alone than UK police have killed in 100 years. We’ve seen the plethora of videos documenting unnecessary police brutality. There are so many in fact, I can’t even begin to document them all. We’ve also seen the militarized police in all its ghoulish display in Ferguson.

We’ve seen the wrong way to police in New York City, most recently when an unarmed Eric Garner was choked to death on the street in broad daylight for selling untaxed cigarettes. Now, finally, we see how real policing is supposed to be done, courtesy of four Swedish police officers who were on vacation in NYC.

First, a little background from the Free Thought Project:

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Video of the Day – Florida Citizen Pulls Over Cop for Speeding with a Broken Headlight

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Do you remember that huge story from a couple of weeks back about the unarmed South Carolina man, Walter Scott, who was shot 8 times in the back and killed by a police officer who later planted a taser near his dead body to cover up the crime? Well, Mr. Scott was initially pulled over for a broken taillight.

Now we learn that a Florida citizen, apparently annoyed for having been pulled over for a similar infraction, went ahead and pulled over a local police officer for a broken headlight. He videotaped the incident (warning, vulgar language at the end):

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Caught on Tape – Cop Who Shot and Killed Fleeing, Unarmed South Carolina Man Laughs About Shooting

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One of the biggest stories last week was the emergence of a video tape that showed a South Carolina cop shooting an unarmed man 8 times in the back as he fled (see: South Carolina Cop to Be Charged with Murder for Shooting Man 8 Times in the Back as He Ran Away). As he lay dead on the ground motionless, the officer went ahead and planted his taser next to the body to cover up the crime.

Now, audio tape has emerged of a conversation between the cop, Michael Slager, and a senior officer after the killing in which the officer is heard laughing about the shooting, and marveling at the incredible adrenaline rush it provided. They also discuss how to best handle the aftermath of the situation, and how nothing will really happen to him. Listen for yourself:

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Another Police Killing Caught on Tape – Oklahoma Cop Shoots and Kills Unarmed Man in Tulsa

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Just last week, I highlighted the extremely disturbing case of how a North Charleston, South Carolina police officer shot an unarmed man eight times in the back as he was running away and then planted evidence near the dead body to cover up the crime. In case you missed it, see: South Carolina Cop to Be Charged with Murder for Shooting Man 8 Times in the Back as He Ran Away.

If you’re like me, you would’ve hoped for at least a brief reprieve between citizen deaths at the hands of U.S. police, but you’d be sorely disappointed. I suppose it’s just an unfortunate reality of life in a nation where American cops killed more civilians in March alone than UK police have killed in the past 100 years.

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South Carolina Cop to Be Charged with Murder for Shooting Man 8 Times in the Back as He Ran Away

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The officer, Michael T. Slager, 33, said he had feared for his life because the man had taken his stun gun in a scuffle after a traffic stop on Saturday. A video, however, shows the officer firing eight times as the man, Walter L. Scott, 50, fled. The North Charleston mayor announced the state charges at a news conference Tuesday evening.

The video, which was taken by a bystander and provided to The New York Times by the Scott family’s lawyer, presents a different account. The video begins in the vacant lot, apparently moments after Officer Slager fired his Taser. Wires, which carry the electrical current from the stun gun, appear to be extending from Mr. Scott’s body as the two men tussle and Mr. Scott turns to run.

Something — it is not clear whether it is the stun gun — is either tossed or knocked to the ground behind the two men, and Officer Slager draws his gun, the video shows. When the officer fires, Mr. Scott appears to be 15 to 20 feet away and fleeing. He falls after the last of eight shots.

The officer then runs back toward where the initial scuffle occurred and picks something up off the ground. Moments later, he drops an object near Mr. Scott’s body, the video shows.

– From the New York Times article: South Carolina Officer Is Charged With Murder in Black Man’s Death

The video at the end of this story is really hard to watch. Not just because we see a police officer gunning down a man as he ran away, but because he repeatedly yells at a dead body to “put his hands behind his back,” and then seemingly plants his taser by the corpse to cover up the crime.

Just like with banker theft, unless people are held accountable with serious jail time, the criminality will not only continue, it will get worse. The rule of law must be restored and applied equally to the rich and powerful, or we are truly doomed as a society.

Coincidentally, this horrific incident came to light on the same day I posted that: U.S. Police Kill More Civilians in March than UK Police Killed in 100 Years.

Now from the New York Times:

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