Posts Tagged Philando Castile

The Yanez Verdict and the Bigger Picture

THE YANEZ TRIAL MAY ACTUALLY REPRESENT PROGRESS AND INTEGRITY IN CERTAIN ASPECTS OF OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM, AND REVEAL THE UGLY TRUTH ABOUT SOCIETY, NOT THE LAW As the Nation and World focus on a myriad of stories from the ongoing investigation of the Trump administration to the tragic shooting targeting members of Congress and staff in Washington D.C., the focus in Minnesota has been on the trial of Officer Jeronimo Yanez for his actions in the shooting death of Philando Castile.    The six day trial, the remarkably long five days of deliberations, and the ultimate verdict of not guilty on all counts, presents a unique analysis and opportunity for dialogue that, as is so often the case, has been lost to anger, division, and preconceptions.   There are legitimate emotions that bare upon the evaluation of the outcome.   The African American community has absolutely legitimate grievances in the disparate treatment of black individuals by law enforcement.   This has resulted in a well-founded distrust of the police, who in turn respond with frustration and a posture of defense of their profession and colleagues.  Most poignantly, a young man who, by all accounts, was an upstanding individual, a bright light to the community, and a friend to many children and teachers and staff at J.J. Hill Montessori, is dead.  Yet it can be said, as a matter of prosecutorial action and due process, the case as a whole actually may represent progress and a hope for our justice system.  It can also be said that the case raises more challenges going forward. Doubt and Skepticism, the heart of the criminal justice system. It is important to note, from the outset, that our justice system necessitates and demands the presumption that every single defendant accused of a crime is INNOCENT.  That is the premise for each case.  Every jury is told this, and we are all, collectively, the potential jury pool, and yet that is in profound contrast to how we treat stories when we read the newspaper.  We see that this or that person was booked for child molestation, or domestic assault, and we automatically judge them and essentially presume they committed the act alleged.  Essentially, Americans engage in a completely un-American thought process on a daily basis.  This is not an opinion that is allowed in the justice system.  You cannot be a juror if you cannot presume someone innocent.  That presumption of innocence remains with the defendant from arrest, to preliminary hearings, to the trial itself, all the way until the end of the presentation of all evidence and argument at trial.  The Jury is instructed on this several times. For a defendant to be found “guilty”, the jury must, after clandestine deliberation after analyzing all evidence, UNANIMOUSLY find the defendant guilty or not guilty.  There are no split verdicts in Minnesota, and indeed. most states.  We should be grateful for this standard.   Criminal law is the most powerful area of law.  It is the only mechanism under which the government… Read more {+}

From the United Airlines Passenger to Woodland Hills Brutality, People are Missing the Point

Well, spring is upon us, and that means increased travel, increased outdoors activities, and recovery from cabin fever.  People get outside, drive more, there are more birthdays in spring and school is winding down.  And it’s no coincidence that, at this time of year, police activity increases, and the phones begin to ring more here at the Law Office of Alex DeMarco. Dominating the headlines some weeks ago was the story of a United Airlines Passenger who was injured in the process of being forcibly removed from a flight.   In the fallout from the whole affair, the overwhelming consensus was that this brutality was unjustified and unnecessary.  Yet a small select handful of individuals continued to defend the airline and the officers involved, repeating the familiar ring, “if he’d only complied, this would not be a problem.”   This represents a profound divide in our society, a new partisanship, if you will.  A divide between those who can handle some minor disorder while maintaining freedom, and those who need absolute predictability, even if that means disproportionate violence on every single individual who does not do as they are told. Police Violence, Not Just for Crimes Anymore Dr. David Dao had committed no crime.   By all accounts, he had lawfully purchased a flight like any other traveler.   Announcements were made offering for passengers to “voluntarily” give up their seats for an incentive.  He refused.   He paid for that seat.   He had a right to be there.   Because of United Airlines’ inability to do math and their incentive to simply grab more money, he was ordered to leave.  He refused.  But it was not United Airlines who ultimately forced him to leave.   For any civilian to physically grab, beat,  and eject someone would be a crime.  It would be assault. Enter the immunity of the badge.   He was ultimately removed by members of the “Chicago Department of Aviation”, a division of the Chicago Police Department.   Dr. Dao suffered a bloody head injury, concussion, and missing teeth.  The chaos and disorder of that moment for all on the flight is palpable.  And yet, it was in the name of “order”, a failure to “comply” with commercial demands, that he was ultimately brutalized.  This very high-profile story is but a symptom of a much much larger problem, and that is, we rely on police officers to solve the majority of problems that we used to solve ourselves.  Armed Officers Are in Nearly Every Public School In America An example is school discipline.  For nearly all of our nation’s existence right up through the 1990’s, police officers on duty at school were unheard of.  To this day, there are no police officers in private schools, and yet there doesn’t seem to be more violence, drugs, or criminal issues in those schools where officers never set foot until they are called.  What DOES seem to occur more in public schools with officers present?  Escalation and violence.   Recently, we… Read more {+}

BCA completes investigation into Philando Castile death

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has completed its investigation into the officer-involved death of Philando Castile. Source: BCA completes investigation into Philando Castile death BCA completes investigation into Philando Castile death was last modified: October 13th, 2016 by Alex DeMarco