“I’m going to wear a powder blue fucking suit, and a white shirt and a red tie and a fucking breast cancer pin…”
Comes now the fight loser “Michael” (who appears to be on a first-name-only basis with DJ “JV“):
“First of all, I’d like to aPOlogize to AC Transit…”
It goes on and on, Black History Month, 5150, bygones, veterans, arthritis, murder, parole, apologies, brothers, stolen money, leaking, ass kicking, Strike Force(?) Showtime TV, 10,000 kids, cocaine - it goes on and on.
Can’t remember which morning-zoo / dawg-pound joint this screengrab came from. Oh yes, it was from WILD 94.9 FM:
Now-famous 62-year-old Bay Arean Thomas Bruso (akaEpic Beard Man, Tom Swift, and Tom Vietnam) picks fights as he rides AC Transit in the East Bay, of course, (incident video now available in high def) but he also has been known to take BART to visit San Francisco from time to time. For example, here he is near Market Street back when he was just 48, as seen by Caliber photographer Troy Holden:
“Back in 1996, I was working at the intersection of 2nd & Market. Each and every day the man pictured above would walk by my shop, wave a loaf of sourdough in my face, and scream obscenities about the San Francisco 49′ers.”
Let’s find out, courtesy of footage of Tom at an Oakland A’s game last year. Is this a proper use of a Taser? I don’t know. It ended up being a time-saver for the cops, certainly. Would they have felt justified in shooting Tom with bullets at that moment? Obviously not. The question after any Taser discharge is what would you have done if you didn’t have the Taser, right?
Speaking of Tasers and the East Bay, check out this excellent report from Demian Bulwa about how the BART Police Department ran the initial stages of its Taser program.
That’s a poorly-run operation. What about the California Highway Patrol? They seem to do be doing better with Tasers these days. For them, a Taser is just another arrow in the quiver. Check it, a CHP officer on San Francisco’s Octavia Boulevard with his two primary weapons, a Smith & Wesson Model 4006 semi-automatic and a TASER International X26:
So why shouldn’t the SFPD have Tasers? We already trust them with handguns and assault rifles, right? We’ll end up with a few more lawsuits but with fewer dead civilians. Sounds like a win, overall.
And finally, let’s hear from the RAND Coporation. They pondered the use of Conducted Energy Devices (CEDs) for the NYPD and had this to say:
“Our key less-than-lethal force recommendations:
We reviewed reports of about 455 NYPD shootings from 2004 to 2006 and identified 25 cases where we judged that had a less-lethal weapon been available, officers may have used it to subdue suspects instead of using their handguns.
We also note that when other departments have deployed Conducted Energy Devices or CEDs, commonly known by the brand name TASER, injuries to both suspects and officers have declined.
We recognize that some groups have criticized the deployment of CEDs, raising issues of safety, overuse, and misuse. As such we recommend that the NYPD undertake a pilot program for the deployment of CEDs.
Such a program should allow patrol officers in selected precincts to be trained and equipped with CEDs that can incapacitate suspects from a distance. We believe there is evidence that if NYPD officers had access to this device, some number of officer-involved shootings could be avoided, and injuries to both suspects and police officers will decline. A carefully designed pilot program conducted over six to 12 months in a few select precincts would give the department enough information to determine whether the devices would alter the way the NYPD officers apply force and whether the weapons could be used properly.”
It felt like a quick initial jolt followed up by three seconds of shaking to those of us in San Francisco. See what people thought about the latest rumblings of our San Andreas Fault over at SFist.com.
A light earthquake occurred at 10:09:35 AM (PST) on Thursday, January 7, 2010.
The magnitude 4.2 event occurred 10 km (6 miles) ENE of Milpitas, CA.
The hypocentral depth is 9 km ( 6 miles).
Milpitas, CA – 10 km (6 miles) ENE (62 degrees) Alum Rock, CA – 12 km (8 miles) NNE (12 degrees) Sunol, CA – 16 km (10 miles) SSE (150 degrees) San Jose City Hall, CA – 17 km (11 miles) NNE (29 degrees)
“The BART Police Department maintains several specialized units to deal with the variety of needs which may arise within the BART system. One of these units is the SWAT (Special Weapons And Tactics) Team.
The department’s SWAT Team was established to deal with situations within the BART system which require equipment, techniques and training which are beyond the norms for most police officers.
Personnel assigned to the SWAT Team and assigned personnel have other full-time assignments within the department. Personnel are selected from applicants based on a range of criteria including: physical fitness, firearms proficiency, and supervisory recommendations. Members of the team receive specialized training from several sources including local F.B.I. courses and joint training with other local teams. Personnel on BART’s SWAT Team have developed proficiency with a number of specialized weapons and with techniques designed to increase their efficiency and safety in dealing with situations unique to underground transit systems.
Team members train on scenarios which include situations on-board trains within tunnels, on elevated trackways, or in stations. In addition to situations unique to the BART system, the department’s SWAT Team is also utilized to make “high-risk entries” pursuant to warrants obtained by the department. When crimes occur within the BART system which lead to the issuance of arrest or search warrants, an evaluation is done to determine if the service of the warrant will present a risk to officers or the public. In cases where there is a high potential for violence, the SWAT Team is utilized for the initial entry.
The use of the specially trained team members decreases the likelihood for resistance and enhances the safety of police personnel, occupants of the residence and the surrounding community.
The department’s Hostage Negotiation Team works in conjunction with the SWAT team.”
If I ever get busted by the BART police, I hope it’s the SWAT team that does it…
“Following the fatal shooting of Oscar Grant on New Year’s Day by BART police officer Johannes Mehserle, Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) and Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) introduced much anticipated legislation today (AB 312) that would create a civilian oversight body for the BART police force.”
“The shooting of Oscar Grant is a sad and unfortunate reminder that the BART Police needs additional oversight as exists for other law enforcement agencies. Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time a young person has been shot and killed by an on-duty officer with BART. There have been other deaths and untold numbers of cases of brutality”, said Ammiano. “The BART Board’s proposed internal subcommittee to review BART police practices, while appreciated, is simply not enough. A young man was killed and the community is justifiably outraged, it’s long overdue for civilian oversight.”
“BART currently lacks adequate public oversight and accountability of its police department,” said Yee. “Complaints and grievances against BART police officers have been investigated and adjudicated internally without any independent review. This is a classic case of the fox guarding the hen house. Our legislation will finally end this untenable situation.”
Several major police departments in the state, including San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Jose, have civilian oversight bodies, but BART police do not despite the fact that BART covers four Bay Area counties.
Now for some photos, click to expand. These two kicked things off by getting down on the ground and attracting the attention of about 20 camera people. That’s some photojournalism right there. But Young Joe Eskanazi sees this as a problem. (Yes he failed to count himself, and others.)
With City Hall in the background:
This was the bulk of the crowd, conservatively(!) estimated at 150, per an IndyBay commenter. Throw in lots of media, about 50 Canon “L” (for luxury, about $1000 a clip) camera lenses and a ton of cops and you had lots of activity:
Foster Grant, Obama, and Malcom X:
The lone San Francisco Police Department uniformed officer on site in with the crowd was a Captain, leading from the front:
Two helicopters and the Evening Star rising so it’s time to march on over to Union Square and the Financh.:
The march to Powell Station, with more leadership from the aforementioned Capitan.
Orange “less lethal” shotgun with a clip of bean bag bullets. No TASER seen:
Can you see the garbage can? This youth dragged it into the middle of Kearny Street for some reason, inciting a what’s a matter you gesture from a taxi driver. Other youts threw some aluminum chairs for a bit in Union Square:
Next Tuesday, April 22, 60 volunteers from TransFair USA will hand out vouchers for free Fair Trade and organic coffee from Tully’s at six busy BART stations.
So if you’re riding BART from 6:00 to 9:00 AM and you’re at any of the following stations – Montgomery Street, Embarcadero, Powell Street, Civic Center, Oakland City Center/12th Street or Downtown Berkeley – make sure you get your Tully’s swag.
