CROSSING THE BLUE LINE - As Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable President, I and other civil rights leaders on Tuesday called on Hawthorne Mayor Danny Juarez to conduct a fast track investigation into Hawthorne police officer’s conduct in shooting of dog [LINK] and arrest of dog owner, Leon Rosby.
Rosby videotaped officers making an arrest. He was committing no crime while videotaping officers from a considerable distance.
The officer’s conduct in the arrest and shooting raises serious questions whether Rosby’s civil rights were violated and whether the officer’s improperly overused force during the arrest and shooting.
The arrest and shooting by Hawthorne police officers is deeply disturbing. It is not a crime to videotape officers as long as there is no interference with officers carrying out their duties.
The arrest and shooting by Hawthorne police was unprovoked and were a gross violation of the dog owner’s civil rights.
The Hawthorne police department has a major credibility problem. This makes it even more imperative that Hawthorne Mayor Juarez make a fast track investigation into the Hawthorne officer’s conduct the city’s highest priority.
(Earl Ofari Hutchinson is an author and political analyst. He is a frequent political commentator on MSNBC and a weekly co-host of the Al Sharpton Show on American Urban Radio Network. He is the author of How Obama Governed: The Year of Crisis and Challenge. He is an associate editor of New America Media. Follow Earl Ofari Hutchinson on Twitter: http://twitter.com/earlhutchinson)
-cw
CityWatch
Vol 11 Issue 54
Pub: July 5, 2013
