Questions Raised in Aftermath of Drug Raid Death

By TChris, Section Misconduct
Posted on Wed Jun 18, 2008 at 10:31:21 PM EST
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From Radley Balko's first post about Ryan Frederick:

Officer Jarrod Shivers was shot and killed while executing a search warrant in Cheseapeake, Virginia Thursday night. ... [Frederick said] in an interview from jail he had no idea the undercover cops breaking into his home were police. ... Though the raid was apparently part of a drug investigation, police aren't saying what if any drugs were found.

Turns out they were searching for a large marijuana grow operation. They found only a small amount of pot.

Botched drug raids by SWAT teams that employ military tactics too often end in tragedy. Whether or not there was good reason to think Frederick was growing some weed, there are ways to address that crime without senselessly risking lives.

Today's post points to evidence that raises serious questions about the murder charge against Frederick : [more ...]

WTKR TV reports:
The hands of six Chesapeake detectives present at the botched marijuana raid on Ryan Frederick's house have tested positive for "primer residue," meaning they had traces of chemicals on their hands sometimes left behind when a person fires a gun, according to a lab report filed in court. The lab report also said the residue can be left if a person is near weapon as it fires, or if a person handles a weapon with primer residue already on it. Police have insisted no officers fired during the Jan. 17 raid where police went looking for marijuana.

There's also evidence that police plugged a bullet hole in the house and that a spent cartridge could have come from a police weapon, but didn't come from any weapon in Frederick's home.

Frederick tells his side of the story here.

You can read all of Balko's coverage here. You'll find many interesting nuggets of information. Particularly compelling is his takedown of the common "knock and announce" tactics that treat any motion in the house as a "threat" justifying a violent entry after the SWAT officers yell "police, open up!"

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Questions Raised in Aftermath of Drug Raid Death | 9 comments (9 topical)

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I'll need more (all) facts before (none / 0) (#1)
by oculus on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 12:03:31 AM EST

chiming in on this one. Doesn't even sound like the internal affairs investigation has been completed yet.

if i read anymore about the police being just like (none / 0) (#2)
by thereyougo on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 12:54:29 AM EST

the criminals, I'm going to lose that much more respect I have for them.

I suppose its about the culture of corruption at the Congressional level that sets the tone for the nation. So I'm not too surprised about this kind of thing.

The fish rots from the head down (none / 0) (#7)
by MissBrainerd on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 08:10:27 AM EST

is the old saying. I also think Bushco has made law enforcement feel that can be abusive too, just like the President.


: Bushco? (none / 0) (#9)
by Rojas on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 09:13:47 AM EST

This has been corporate policy for three decades.
Broad bipartisain support.
The Fourth Amendement, it's more like guideline really.

there is a serious problem (none / 0) (#3)
by boredmpa on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 02:18:01 AM EST

with knock and announce. it's called headphones. or sleep. Unless there is a friggin loudspeaker with multiple announcements, you risk not being heard--or being mistaken for an intruder. If I had a gun, and woke up to sounds of my door being bashed I would be in my room with the gun aimed at the door. I mean a sex offender lives downstairs, I've been coldcocked a block from my house and mugged, and someone invading my home is a ask-questions-later deal for me. All it would take would be a false tip or wrong address for many people.

And if you're going for someone with an actual stash of drugs, they are not going to have time to flush all of it down the toilet, tub, etc. And you can LISTEN for that. There is no need to rush, no need NOT to use a loud speaker, no need NOT to flood the windows with flashing blue lights.

I don't agree with the war on drugs, but if they're gonna do this crap they need to have very clear and verifiable procedures, record every raid, and always knock and announce LOUDLY/VISUALLY to the whole area unless they have visual confirmation of someone going in/out with weapons and large quantities of drugs.

Cause clearly the official record in this case doesn't match the reports too well. And like usual, they had no real intel.

: Can you shoot the officers in Florida? (none / 0) (#6)
by MissBrainerd on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 08:09:19 AM EST

Or other states with laws about protecting your home against intruders?
I am not in favor of those shoot-first laws, but maybe if all states had these laws the police might think twice about breaking into people's homes with swat teams?

Does anyone know about the defense team (none / 0) (#4)
by Rojas on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 07:27:57 AM EST

Is the kid represented well?

Marijuana is NOT dangerous enough (none / 0) (#5)
by MissBrainerd on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 08:07:59 AM EST

to ever warrant military swat teams!

When will we get over ourselves! Even if pot remains illegal forever, there is never any need to use guns to arrest plants.

Cops are pigs. Drug cops are the worst (none / 0) (#8)
by tokin librul on Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 08:49:19 AM EST

kind of pigs, cuz they believe their press.