[Peace-discuss] Raiding Homes with Tanks (fwd)

[C. G. Estabrook]

[Interesting story from "liberal" Portland OR.  After the Champaign police
beat or strangled an inoffensive man to death two years ago, the Champaign
city council decided that the only proper way to respond was to buy the
Champaign police a tank.  They did so, and the following press release
shows how useful it may be.  Regards, CGE]


For Immediate Release: April 30, 2003

Contact Lauren Regan, AAL (541) 687-9180

PRESS RELEASE

Police Illegally Raid Homes with Tank; Prompts Federal Lawsuit

The victims of an egregiously false police raid, and their attorneys,
announce an impending lawsuit against the Oregon State Police, Lane County
Sheriff, Eugene and Springfield Police Departments, Portland Police
Bureau, Oregon National Guard and others. In the pre-dawn of October 17,
2002, approximately 50 police officers from these agencies swarmed a
residential neighborhood in Eugene, Oregon, USA, armed with automatic
assault rifles and accompanied by a National Guard military Light Armored
Vehicle, which looks like a tank. Police claimed to be searching for a
marijuana growing operation within three homes.

Two couples, Marcella Monroe/Tam Davage, and Elizabeth Redetzke/Jor Havens
were awakened by "flash-bang" grenades being hurled into the back yards of
their homes located in a densely populated residential neighborhood, which
caused immense explosions that shook the windows of surrounding homes.
Without knocking, masked and armored SWAT police smashed in the doors of
three residences. Police forced the residents from their beds without
clothing and placed a black hood over the head of one of the women, while
police ransacked their homes for hours.

The police found no evidence of a marijuana growing operation, but, in a
blatant attempt to justify this outrageous invasion, arrested and cited
the individuals anyway, thereby exposing them to felony criminal charges
and the possibility of having their homes forfeited under Oregon drug
laws. (See 12/5/02 article in the Register Guard newspaper.) Eventually
all charges were dismissed by the State. The raids caused physical and
emotional injuries to the individuals, as well as extensive damage to
their property.

"The police clearly violated the 4th Amendment, which protects citizens
from unreasonable search and false arrest. We intend to hold these police
officers accountable, lest we allow them to further erode fundamental
Constitutional rights, and put this community in jeopardy of serious
physical injury at the hands of law enforcement," said Attorney Ben
Rosenfeld.

Meanwhile, outraged and frightened citizens are asking why military
"tanks" and tactics are now being deployed against U.S citizens in
residential neighborhoods for purposes of search and seizure. One
neighbor, a public school teacher, was walking to her car to go to work
that morning, "we opened the front door to find a swath of police
officers, a huge armored personnel carrier (i.e. tank), and several men in
camouflage lurking around the shrubbery with assault rifles." said her
husband. "I just want to make sure I'm not going to be shot leaving the
house," the teacher said, gesturing toward the men with machine guns
between her and her car. "I haven't shot anyone in two weeks," responded
the officer.

"Either the police just really screwed up, or they should have done far
more investigation before entering a residential neighborhood in this
manner," attorney Lauren Regan said. "Before you drive a tank up to
someone's house with 50 SWAT officers brandishing automatic assault
weapons, you should be darn certain that you've got very dangerous pot
growers in that house, and should be equally certain there is not a safer
way to conduct such a raid. This, and other recent SWAT incidents,
illustrate a total disregard for community safety where police are
endangering the lives and safety of the neighborhood residents." Attorney
Lauren Regan said.

The police attempted to defend what neighbors termed their "militaristic"
raid in the 12/5/02 Register Guard article; claiming their approach with
this raid was not much different, except in magnitude, than other drug
raids they regularly conduct. Lieutenant Lee Thoming of the Interagency
Narcotics Task Force contended, "Society at large wants us to do this, and
the community at large wants us to do this."

Contrary to Thoming's assertion, the Whiteaker neighborhood association
officially condemned the October raid at 5th and Adams. The Whiteaker
Community Council president stated, "We all need to learn more about the
encroachment of paramilitarized policing in the United States, we need to
watch law enforcement, we need to watch out for each others' civil rights,
and we need to work for a genuinely independent police review board. What
is at stake is not only the livability of our city, but also --
potentially -- the very life of any one of us or our children."

Critics contend that military tactics, ideology and methodology are
replacing traditional American civilian law enforcement. According to
reports published by the National Lawyer's Guild and others, the number of
people who have died at the hands of police increased 230 percent between
1990 and 1999. This frightening escalation of militarized police violence
has led the cities of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Dinuba, California, to
completely dismantle their SWAT teams, and Seattle, Washington, and
Dallas, Texas, have curtailed the activity of their SWAT units, taking
them off drug raids and suicide calls.

"This type of raid is contrary to the way our community wants the police
to conduct themselves. The deployment of SWAT units should be limited to
extraordinary circumstances such as a hostage situation, a sniper, or a
bomb threat. We hope that Eugene will follow in the paths of several other
cities and reign in the abuses perpetuated by rogue police agencies."
Regan stated.

"There is a deep sense of betrayal and loss of trust. We believed that our
police were supposed to protect our safety and our Constitutional rights.
Instead they attacked us with machine guns without cause. They have
destroyed my sense of security." Tam Davage said.

His wife Marcella Monroe added, "How can we ever feel safe again? What is
happening to our country?"

Attorneys Lauren Regan of Eugene, Oregon, and Dennis Cunningham and Ben
Rosenfeld of San Francisco, California, will be prosecuting these claims
on behalf of the homeowners.

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