Dying Suspect Berated by Police After Taser/Gun Mix-Up

robjvargas · Apr 22, 2015

Don said:
"To Protect and Serve" went out of fashion somewhere around the ramp-up of the Drug War. I've taken too many drugs to remember if it was the Nixon ramp-up or the Reagan ramp-up, though.

Don will now be offline for a few days as his local police have received an "anonymous tip" that he is a drug user.

ShaunHorton · Apr 22, 2015

robjvargas said:
Don will now be offline for a few days as his local police have received an "anonymous tip" that he is a drug user.

That is soooo 80's. The thing these days is to report a hostage situation with an armed gunman.

LittlePinto · Apr 23, 2015

clintl said:
Here's an interesting development. If this report is accurate, Bates was investigated in 2009 after complaints from fellow officers about his behavior. I don't know if it will make much difference in the criminal case, but it certainly could in a civil case, if substantiated.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/tulsa-sheriffs-office-had-investigated-robert-bates-in-2009/

Also, it sounds like he may well have have been basically an entitled jackass paying to play cop.

From the link:

The investigation concluded Bates' training was questionable and that he was given preferential treatment.

And:

When confronted [about his questionable behavior in the field] Bates said that he could do what he wanted, and that anyone who had a problem with him should go see the sheriff.

And:

The investigation concluded that high ranking officers created an atmosphere where employees were intimidated in order to violate department policy.

As a bonus, Bates told Matt Lauer in a Today show interview a few days ago who signed off on his training. (Starts at about 6:20)

I have a written piece of paper that a Mr. Warren Crittenden--now in jail for first degree murder forty miles east of here, in Mayes county--signed off to say I had done a good job.

I can see the lawyers salivating from here.

Lyv · Apr 23, 2015

clintl said:
Here's an interesting development. If this report is accurate, Bates was investigated in 2009 after complaints from fellow officers about his behavior. I don't know if it will make much difference in the criminal case, but it certainly could in a civil case, if substantiated.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/tulsa-sheriffs-office-had-investigated-robert-bates-in-2009/

Also, it sounds like he may well have have been basically an entitled jackass paying to play cop.

The sheriff's office responds:

Sheriff's office confirms prior internal review of reserve deputy Robert Bates

When asked about the allegations in the CBS report, Tulsa County Sheriff’s Maj. Shannon Clark said he had learned that a past undersheriff ordered “some type of internal review” into Bates but that it was never classified as an investigation and that there was “no further action” in the review.

“The Sheriff’s Office has no documented record of a report being generated,” Clark said.

Tulsa County Sheriff Stanley Glanz mentioned a report regarding Bates made by the same undersheriff in a Monday news conference, but he said he believed that report concluded that Bates received “no special treatment.”

Well.

Also:

Judge assigned Eric Harris case weighs recusal because of ties to Sheriff's Office

He worked as a deputy under Glanz.

The judge's disclosure form (PDF) is almost funny. No, he hasn't taken any trips with Glanz or Bates, hasn't received any valuables from either.

LittlePinto · Apr 23, 2015

“The Sheriff’s Office has no documented record of a report being generated,” Clark said.

Do these guys do any sort of paperwork at all?

ShaunHorton · Apr 23, 2015

I get the feeling there's a loose thread in there somewhere which, if someone were to pull on it, would unravel the entire Tulsa county justice system.

Yeah. Thinking this is only the tip of the corruption iceberg.

robjvargas · Apr 23, 2015

Lyv said:
Also:

Judge assigned Eric Harris case weighs recusal because of ties to Sheriff's Office

He worked as a deputy under Glanz.

The judge's disclosure form (PDF) is almost funny. No, he hasn't taken any trips with Glanz or Bates, hasn't received any valuables from either.

Which is legalese for, "I want out."

Lyv · Apr 24, 2015

A local media source has obtained an internal memo from 2008 about Bates that's revealing. (This is simply a memo, not the 2009 report.)

Bates, a "new hire," outfitted his personal vehicle with "Tulsa County car radio, deck light, visor mount light bar, and fog light mounted lights" and making stops, though he was not trained for any of that. This was about three months after he'd been hired. The sergeant who wrote the memo writes, "This deliberate indifference has continued from the hiring of Reserve Deputy Bates, no entry testing, screening board and now continues through allowing him to equip her personal vehicle to work out of." He says reservists have been disciplined in the past for such things and that other reservists have been asking to equip their vehicles like Bates. He ends with, "What is the purpose of having policy if members of our office do not follow it and we as supervisors allow violations because of who persons are?"

Indeed.

The Harris family attorney said new documents would be released today, so there may be more to come.

Lyv · Apr 24, 2015

And the 2009 report is out:

According to the investigation report obtained by News On 6, the deputy overseeing Bates's training says he signed off that Bates had 150 hours more training than he actually completed.

A report from 2009 claims there were red flags right from the beginning. It states when Bob Bates "started operating at the advanced [reserve deputy] level, several other reserves voiced their concerns."

The report concluded, "Policy has been violated and continues to be violated by...Huckeby and...Albin with regard to special treatment shown to...Bates."

There is an image of the report itself in the article, but I can't read it. Will update when I find a better copy.

Lyv · Apr 24, 2015

And then there is 2012, when Bates committed an infraction requiring immediate suspension (he was short an hour of training). He didn't get suspended, but he did win "reserve deputy of the year."

No worries, though:

All of the polices and procedures are signed by myself and reserved by me. I can change policy tomorrow if I want to," said Glanz.

asroc · Apr 24, 2015

According to Tulsa Police, Harris' killer, Bates, is classified as an advanced deputy.

Reserves are 'basic', 'intermediate', or 'advanced'. The qualify for 'advanced', officers are required to have a minimum of 320 hours of training and 25 hours of training a year.

During the annual field training program, they are tested on how to use and identify lethal and non-lethal weapons.

With the same power as paid deputies, reserves can conduct their own investigations, make arrests and work on task forces.

This concept is absolutely bizarre. The idea that any random guy with only 300-odd hours of training can get full police powers, as long as he's willing to do it for free is insane.

You want a gun and a badge, go through the police academy. If no academy wants to touch you because you're too ancient to tell the difference between a gun and a Taser, take a hint.

This guy is a whacker of the worst kind. The Sheriff indulged him because he has money and now a man is dead. Bizarre.

Lyv · Apr 24, 2015

Here's the PDF of the 2009 report. The one Sheriff Glanz says he thought concluded Bates received "no special treatment." Spoiler alert: He did.

nighttimer · Apr 24, 2015

As reprehensible and unbelievable as the Bates revelations have been, it certainly has had the upside of taking all the attention from the cop who sneered "fuck your breath" while Davis was bleeding out.

Unlike Deputy Dawg Bates, that guy never said he was sorry.

So I guess there is that...

Lyv · Apr 24, 2015

I haven't forgotten about them, but I did forget to update that part of the story.

Two deputies were transferred for their own protection (is there such a thing as rage-typing, because I keep making typos)

Glanz added that the sheriff’s office will review how the two deputies acted during the incident and will “take administrative action,” though he did not elaborate on what that might entail.

Or when anything might happen, as I can't find any updates.

ShaunHorton · Apr 24, 2015

Lyv said:
I haven't forgotten about them, but I did forget to update that part of the story.

Two deputies were transferred for their own protection (is there such a thing as rage-typing, because I keep making typos)

Or when anything might happen, as I can't find any updates.

I'm guessing an insincere apology, and then all will be forgiven.

onuilmar · Apr 24, 2015

nighttimer said:
As reprehensible and unbelievable as the Bates revelations have been, it certainly has had the upside of taking all the attention from the cop who sneered "fuck your breath" while Davis was bleeding out.

Unlike Deputy Dawg Bates, that guy never said he was sorry.

So I guess there is that...

In fact it's the cold blooded response of the official police in this instance and all the other instances, like the shooting of Walter Scott, that indicate just how frequently these instances occur.

It's just another day to these cops. No big deal.

And even more so, it develops because there are no individual repercussions for such behavior.

And I don't want to hear about how many good cops there are and how we need them. I absolutely, whole-heartedly agree. Let's just stipulate that.

It's the 'bad apples' that rot and infect the whole damn barrel that I'm talking about. Power without HARD limits morphs into something very very ugly.

LittlePinto · Apr 24, 2015

onuilmar said:
And I don't want to hear about how many good cops there are and how we need them. I absolutely, whole-heartedly agree. Let's just stipulate that.

Found 'em for you.

On a more serious note, I agree with you about there needing to be stronger limits on people in a position of power. One of the big problems with law enforcement is that its power is checked by the courts and judges and prosecutors are extremely reluctant to work against the interests of departments.

onuilmar · Apr 24, 2015

robjvargas · Apr 24, 2015

There *are* some good ones, even in the USA :sarcasm

Like these ones:
http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2015/0...iola-officers-pull-woman-from-burning-car.cnn

There's also the story of Officer Jesse Kidder.

LittlePinto · Apr 28, 2015

Every time you think the story can't get more appalling, a new report comes out.

"It's kind of a thing that I need to go back to, to scare the s--- out of me, to make me feel good about life," Bates said, chuckling, of his work as a volunteer deputy. "I love that. That was just great."

I'll be honest. I don't think someone who does law enforcement work because it "scare ~~the s--- out of [him]" is someone you want carrying a gun.~~

ShaunHorton · Apr 28, 2015

LittlePinto said:
Every time you think the story can't get more appalling, a new report comes out.

I'll be honest. I don't think someone who does law enforcement work because it "scare ~~the s--- out of [him]" is someone you want carrying a gun.~~

They want to say the recording is irrelevant to the shooting?

I think it perfectly shows that Bates is a thrill-seeker who flaunts his money with no sense of morality or respect for anything or anyone.

Big game hunting not enough for you? Just pay off the local sheriff to set up a time and place for you to go human hunting. That's EXACTLY what this guy and his sheriff buddies did.

frimble3 · Apr 28, 2015

ShaunHorton said:
They want to say the recording is irrelevant to the shooting?

I think it perfectly shows that Bates is a thrill-seeker who flaunts his money with no sense of morality or respect for anything or anyone.

Big game hunting not enough for you? Just pay off the local sheriff to set up a time and place for you to go human hunting. That's EXACTLY what this guy and his sheriff buddies did.

So, this is what George Zimmerman would have been, if he'd been a rich buddy of Sheriff Glanz's. Maybe someone should be looking at unsolved vehicle-related homicides in the Tulsa area, because Bates was so very eager to do traffic stops, and sounds exactly like the kind of person who wouldn't take any sign of 'defiance' at all well.

frimble3 · Apr 28, 2015

Lyv said:
Here's the PDF of the 2009 report. The one Sheriff Glanz says he thought concluded Bates received "no special treatment." Spoiler alert: He did.

Going by that report Sheriff Glanz and his boys, Chief Albin and Captain Huckeby should all be charged with... I don't know, something!
Favouritism towards Bates, harassing people into lying and faking reports, bullying people to work extra 'part-time' work, (which I gather is after-hours security work?).

And really, who is going to want sheriffs to provide a security presence? That's right, Glanz's rich buddies. Want to bet he gets them a deal on the price?

I'm thinking the only obvious boxes left to tick are sexual harassment, and bribes (other than cars and cash from Bates) from his deputies to get good assignments, and the public to get their crimes overlooked, but, hey, the guy doing the report probably had a deadline.

And in the case of Bates, they knew the problems in 2009, and knew that other people knew, and still they thought they'd be fine?

cmhbob · May 11, 2015

Problems going back to 2005 at least. A man was shot by a reserve deputy, and people involved raised questions about the reserve program.

And in other news, the TCSO PA deputy is on administrative leave.

RedRajah · Jul 14, 2015

The Latest Disturbing Twist in the Case of the 73-Year-Old Who Killed an Unarmed Black Man in Oklahoma

An affair that already reeked of cronyism got even more ridiculous on Tuesday morning, when the judge trying the case refused to recuse himself. Back on April 22, Tulsa County District Judge James Caputo disclosed that he worked at the sheriff's for a total of six years, that his daughter is currently a civilian employee there, and that he's known Tulsa County Sheriff Glanz for 23 years.

"I've never shied away from a case yet, and I don't intend to now," Caputo announced in court Tuesday. Perhaps realizing how shady this all looks, Caputo put out an official statement as well.

This might not be such an egregious conflict of interest if it weren't for shocking revelations that have emerged in recent months about Tulsa law enforcement. For instance, as part of a 2009 internal report unearthed by theTulsa World, Sergeant Rob Lillard was assigned with finding out whether Bates was treated differently than other reserve officers. He concluded that Bates should never have been given a gun in the first place, and uncovered evidence suggesting he basically bought his way into action.

Dying Suspect Berated by Police After Taser/Gun Mix-Up

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