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Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories

Submitted by Phillip Smith on (Issue #598)
Drug War Issues

A quiet week on the corrupt cops front, but the two stories we do have share a common theme: problems with snitches. Let's get to it:

In Gaffney, South Carolina, a Cherokee County sheriff's officer was arrested Tuesday and fired Wednesday for exchanging drugs for sex with a female confidential informant. Now former Officer Troy Cooper, 56, is accused of providing marijuana, money, and other contraband to the informant in return for sexual favors between March 2008 and last week. Investigators from the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) were called in by Sheriff Bill Blanton. A search warrant in the case indicates that SLED has recorded telephone conversations between Blanton and the informant.

In St. Louis, police commanders are at odds with the police union over departmental demands that up to 20 officers reveal details about their confidential informants. The department has acknowledged in court filings that "one or more" officers "have included false information in affidavits" for warrants, and says the investigation is aimed at stopping "the concerns of police abuse and violation of civil rights." At least two officers, Shell Sharp and William Noonan, have already resigned, and prosecutors have dropped 39 cases in which one or the other officer was involved. But the police union has won a temporary restraining order to block the revealing of informant information, saying it would endanger snitches and officers. Whether they can win a permanent injunction will be decided next week.

Permission to Reprint: This content is licensed under a modified Creative Commons Attribution license. Content of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.

Comments

Dan Scott (not verified)

In St. Louis, because police planted false information in affidavits to get warrants to search or raid Citizens' property, prosecutors have dropped 39 criminal cases. In light of this police corruption one can't help wonder how often police use "snitch information", (known to be false) not just to secure warrants, but to make Civil Asset Forfeitures using a "Preponderance of Evidence", little more than hearsay to take property. During this horrendous recession, budget strapped communities are laying-off police officers: there is a lot of pressure on police to keep their jobs. Have some communities made it tacitly clear to police, keeping their employment might depend on asset forfeitures? More lawsuits should be filed against snitches that knowingly provide false information to police; and against their police handlers. In this case, it would appear that persons in St. Louis who suffered searches by police resulting from false police affidavits, could sue St. Louis governments.

Fri, 08/21/2009 - 3:51pm Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

In reply to by Dan Scott (not verified)

We need to imprison them for perjury... it's the law... even the 10th commandment against 'bearing false witness' morally demands they be severly punished... with long imprisonments of 5 years for each offense!

Either we need to remove the 'grand jury' requirement or we'll have to start assigning grand jurys to all public or political officals before they speak in public.

We see them lie to us through the camera everytime they open their mouths it seems... and we've been made powerless to stop these crimes... by those committing the crimes?

Punishing the Punishers,
Thomas Paine IVXX

Wed, 08/26/2009 - 3:19pm Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

"The Constitution is just a scrap of goddamn paper"

George W. Bush, November 2004

Fri, 08/21/2009 - 6:21pm Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

The Bush probably did say that...
Thank god he is gone.
If the founders of the country heard him say that,
he might have been challenged to a duel.
And he probably would have lost...just wishful thinking.
On a personal note, I think the Bill of Rights is one of the most important documents in existence.

Sat, 08/22/2009 - 4:00am Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

The age of rugged individualism is over - joe biden

The declaration of indepence and the constitution with its bill of rights are under constant criminal attack by those sworn to protect it.

But they only have to protect it, the constitution, to the 'best of their ability' which is the same as not all... and a lower commitment then service members take when they take their enlistment oath... how telling!

Think bush also said something stupid like 'there ought to be limits on freedom'. Which is part of the conservative platform of 'freedom with seatbelts on' theory of freedom?

As someone who'se been riding bikes for over 30 years I can tell you seatbelts don't help when they put mac trucks in your path... and look out for that conservative train wreck... seatbelts ain't gonna protect us from that either!

Recently heard about a group of historians that have already determined bush will be the worst president in american history... history, like us, won't need a 100 years to figure that one out!

Choose Reality,
Pastafarian Knight

Sun, 08/23/2009 - 1:11pm Permalink
tempuser24008 (not verified)

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Just so you know, I had a friend who was strapped down in a VA medical hospital. Because he couldn't move, it killed him. I'm sure they did it knowingly. It isn't much different from what the pseudo-liberals are pushing onto us. (I am VERY liberal, but not a pseudo). For an example, a pseudo is someone that knows the school system sux, but doesn't have any alternatives except to throw more money at it. An economics book I was reading, said that because politicians haven't got a clue, nor do educators, that they keep the system and just build bigger, better looking buildings. When I was in high school, we called them the PPP, public puppet prisons.

Mon, 08/24/2009 - 4:51pm Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

In reply to by tempuser24008 (not verified)

Not looking to pick a fight but I have a theory... about why the 'public puppet prisons' cont. to happen.

Lawmakers keep using 'mythmatics' instead of 'mathmatics' and are spending leveraged taxpayer money supporting an expensive system that arguably needs some overhauling.

When 1+2+3=123 it's easy to see why they think they can continue pumping money into this system. I already feel sorry for my 3 yr old grandson... I hate to see what his annual taxburden is gonna look like! LAst time I read it was going to be about double what is is now... and will be around 80% of gross income if things aren't dramatically changed?

Cheers,
Thomas Paine IVXX

B.S. FYI: I responded to ur earlier post about my spelling. Scribe-On!

Wed, 08/26/2009 - 4:07pm Permalink
Robert Walker (not verified)

In Clark County, Nevada we have about 20 armed government police forces. I guess at 20 because there are federal forces that do not have a permanent presence here. But I can count at least 20 without referencing any documents, and lately I have noticed two more that use unmarked cars and pickup trucks. The trucks are designed to look like a vehicle that a handyman might use.
In addition, we have a number of private police forces that co-operate with the government forces.
The ineffectiveness of all of those police forces is plain. G S Wackenhut provides security for the court houses, and ride the public transit buses - armed and with the power of arrest.
Further proof of the ineffectiveness of our many police forces is the fact that paid informants are necessary to arrest alleged drug dealers, and even card cheats!
THIS IS NOT A POLICE STATE!! THIS IS NOT A POLICE STATE!!
Thank you,
Robert Walker

Sun, 08/23/2009 - 1:09am Permalink
tempuser24008 (not verified)

In reply to by Robert Walker (not verified)

I love you man, you are the greatest! When Clinton wanted 100,000 more officers on the street, I recognized it as a ploy to get elected. Unfortunately, it probably materialized. I think they need to get 500,000 cops OFF the street and into the prisons they most likely belong in.

Mon, 08/24/2009 - 4:54pm Permalink
karenjean (not verified)

In reply to by tempuser24008 (not verified)

i just wanna say im in agreement with you.our judges.lawyers,cops and families are just as bad as our citizens.but do you think they do time or even a court cost.heck they are slipped through the cracks somehow or not even given a a ticket.weve even got cops stealing our drugs.who knows what becomes of them.cops even lie and /or plant things just so they get their man.i say whats good for the goose is good for the gander.

Tue, 09/22/2009 - 3:42pm Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

In reply to by Robert Walker (not verified)

Heard a Drug Warrior say something asinine on tv... last week.

He was the only drug cop in the town and stated that in his opinion only 1 in 10 illicit drug users is being caught (try 1 in 1000 bud?). Then to polish off his statement then claimed" "HE WAS ON TOP OF IT!' He He He

So, if this were a sporting event and the narc is batting just 1 in 1000 then the only thing he is 'on top of' is his own self-delusion... for a gov't payhcheck.

Police are Punishers,
Thomas Paine IVXX

B.S. And sadly delusion is often contagious in our western civilization!

Wed, 08/26/2009 - 4:25pm Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

Sounds just as illegal as using mercenaries in war used to be. Funny how 'Executive Outcome' like mercenaries remain illegal by international law but when clinton used them unopposed in the 'Bosnian War' the inept bush crew had a precedent that democrats couldn't and probably didn't want to refute. The cost effectiveness of outsourcing is obvious... but blackwater style mercenaries remains illegal by interational law... last time i checked anyway. The criminals in power could have abolished it too for all I know... standards did have to be seriously lowered to keep up recruitment quotas... just like after vietnam too.

The abnegation of responsibility in the form of congress signing a resolution giving the prez authority to do his own thing is criminal negligence and exactly how we ended up in another quamire known as a vietnam. Bush and LBJ with their criminally complacent congresses have seriously sullied our democracy and caused great injustices, death, and anomosity in the interantional community.

It's also important to know that hardline prohibitionists want more 'paramilitary' style drug warriors and soldiers on the drug war streets not civil law enforcement that has to worry about nefarious things like our rights and the rule of law!

Always Dare to Disagree & Flout It!

Sun, 08/23/2009 - 1:41pm Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

For the Globalists plans to succeed, they have to get rid of all the Free people in America. Both poitical parties have been complicit in it for over 100 years.

"I don't read books"
Geo. W. Bush

Sun, 08/23/2009 - 3:30pm Permalink
tempuser24008 (not verified)

Follow the money--there is certainly something to be said for the federal government spending money--it makes the economy continue to grow or prosper or to pull out of economic morass. Usually, war is about other peoples property, even WWII was about other peoples resources. The present trend in more police and less freedom also comes from our government. It also has to do with the money trail--some of it simply to create jobs. But the problem is that some sort of research would do the world better, like the space race where all sorts of wonderful things were created even tho' it was a military program. Darpa also created the internet (not the former vice president.) Wonderful things have resulted in electronics that were undreamed of even 20 years ago. Unfortunately, I think, that we will soon have vid cams on every street corner and light post in America in less than ten years. Believe me, they WILL be looking into your windows. And watching every moment you are in your vehicle.

I think we should have government spending, but let it not be wasted on our horribly faulty schools, not on more cops, not of global corporatism. Spend the $$ on research--medical, space, jobs.

Mon, 08/24/2009 - 5:09pm Permalink

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