Tom Leykis describes himself as a Libertarian, and he is making the case of Kelly Thomas front and center on his new Internet-only show [here]. Tom has been on the radio in Los Angeles for about 20 years, and had developed a national audience that didn’t vanish when CBS dropped FreeFM.
Each caller is typically “blown up” as they leave the air, usually choosing the way they want to be blown up – the more tasteless the better. Tom has decided to make the situation that happened in Fullerton, California his “cause” and will be playing audio of what happened after each caller, blowing them up until he gets satisfaction from the Fullerton Police.
This case is important in part as police agencies around the country push for laws to make it a felony to record what they are doing on video. In this case, the damning video was recorded by the transit security cameras.
In the event you didn’t hear about it, here is the compare and contrast:
Rodney King was endangering other people fleeing police on a freeway – Kelly Thomas was a mentally ill vagrant with a long unkempt beard who hung around the Fullerton city bus center wearing a backpack who was an annoyance to the police (and probably the people riding the buses) and suspected of breaking into parked cars.
The “496” referred to in the video is section 496 of the California Penal code, which relates to being in possession of stolen property. Kelly did not provide the police with an ID and had mail in his backpack that he couldn’t prove was his (it was addressed to an attorney).
Here is the full 33 minute video. For the few people who actually watched the Rodney King trial, it’s important to see the entire video, not just the worst 3 seconds over and over.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/08/kelly-thomas-beating-video_n_1499771.html
[What kind of equipment was used to make this? The camera is a block away, but the audio is clearly recording conversations between the people a block away? – it sounds like someone was carrying a portable recording device that was synced to the video]
Kelly Thomas was uncooperative but did not physically resist the officers and consented to having his backpack searched. Rodney King exited his car and charged toward the police and after he was on the ground continued to be combative, trying to get up.
Kelly Thomas is dead, Rodney King is not. The lawyers for the police are trying to blame paramedics for mishandling his care (police allegedly insisted the Fire Dept paramedics treat their minor scratches first], or the doctors at the hospital for causing his death. Pay no attention to the pool of blood on the ground, the cracked ribs and broken bones in his face.
Rodney King accepted a large financial settlement to settle a lawsuit. Kelly Thomas’s father is an former officer in the Orange County Sheriff Department and wants justice, not the city’s money.
The officers who beat Rodney King (with perhaps 2 hits on the legs by one officer) were following department “use of force policy” to the letter – not escalating violence unless faced with further resistance, and stopping if and when the suspect stops resisting and submits to being taken into custody. The Fullerton police were initiating the violence. Officer Ramos tells the man sitting on the ground that he is about to be beaten up “My fists are going to fuck you up” as he is putting on latex gloves [See: Premeditation] by Officer Ramos for being uncooperative.
In both cases, police use tasers and assert that they failed to work because they believed the suspect was under the influence of drugs. I heard at least three times the officers say “He must be on something” as the rationalization for their use of force. No drugs or alcohol were found in Mr Kelly’s blood. While being something of a smartass, he appears coherent and aware of his surroundings prior to the beating. He died 5 days after the attack when the decision was made to end life support since he was brain dead.
John D Barnett is the lawyer defending officers in both cases.
At around 11:00 in the full video, another homeless guy who looks mentally ill tries to intervene saying he knows the guy, which probably wasn’t helpful and escalated the situation so they felt then needed to “do something” soon.
The escalation starts around 14:40… the “See my fists, they’re gonna fuck you up” is at 15:25. The mistake that ended his life happens at 15:42, when he stands up, triggering the two officers to begin the beating. He turns away from the officers – he isn’t acting is if he is going to assault the officers, but perhaps flee in fear, not unreasonable given the threat he just received.
The time could come in the not so near future when people have to ask themselves if their local law enforcement is their protection or a danger to their well being. Things can get very complicated very fast on knowing who you can trust and who you can’t.
Having now gleaned some of the relevant facts, I’m going to point much of the blame here on Dad.
I went to high school and worked in a restaurant with the son of an Iredell County sheriff. He made it about as clear as you could that he was able to get away with anything he wanted to because his dad was there to protect him. Kelly Thomas was well taught by his father (and probably experience living on the street) in knowing exactly where the lines are of what police and police can’t do to you. When Officer Ramos says “These first are going to fuck you up”, Thomas knows that it’s a bluff and immediately encourages Officer Thomas to “Start Punching Dude”. He’s maybe even hoping he will be punched so he can have a nice lawsuit.
Change the venue to where Kelly Thomas is “Kahlid Torchurass”, an unarmed suspected Taliban member in Afghanistan who is being “uncooperative” with U.S. troops, and they proceed to beat him to death on videotape with accompanying audio. What do you think the reaction of the media and courts would be?
[Putting on Alex Jones aluminum foil hat]
It concerns me a lot that Iraq and Afghanistan are being used as a training ground for technologies and techniques to use military force to control a civilian population. I think it is extremely probable that technology will quickly be adopted for domestic use within the United States given the right opportunity.