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| NEWS > 10 December 2007 |
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Aboriginal actor's complaint a
Saskatchewan's police complaints investigator has dismissed a Toronto actor's accusation that he was a victim of racial profiling.
The investigator's office said Wednesday that while Gregory Odjig may have been inconvenienced one Sunday morning last fall, the officers who confronted and handcuffed him were not acting improperly.
Odjig was in Saskatoon for a project with the Saskatchewan Native Theatre Company.
Police looking for an assault suspect saw him leaving a convenience store and rushing down a sidewalk on the day in question.
All of a sudden, Odjig t... Read more
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Denver Post - Denver,CO,USA
10 December 2007
This article appeared in the above title/site.
To view it in its entirity click this link.
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Denver Police Department, CO
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Judge: City liable for cop tra
A federal judge's ruling has cleared the way for a jury to be able to find that Denver failed to train its police officers on decisional shooting and use-of-force policy and failed to discipline officers for using excessive force.
U.S. District Judge Lewis T. Babcock issued his 32-page ruling several weeks ago in a civil-rights lawsuit filed by the family of Frank Lobato, an unarmed 63-year-old man who was fatally shot by police July 11, 2004.
Denver City Attorney David Fine and Lobato family lawyer Kenneth A. Padilla said last week that there have been ongoing talks about a settlement, but the case may still go to trial.
Both lawyers declined to characterize the nature of the talks.
"The decision in regards to a settlement
Officer Ranjan Ford was suspended after shooting Frank Lobato. in this case will be whether the city recognizes the significance of this decision and responds appropriately," Padilla said.
Officer Ranjan Ford Jr. shot Lobato after police went to the apartment of his nephew on a domestic-violence call.
Lobato was in bed at the apartment. Ford thought Lobato had a gun. Questions remain about whether Lobato was holding a soda can at the time he was shot.
No criminal charges were filed against Ford, and he served a 50-day suspension for violating a use-of-force policy.
The judge's ruling came Oct. 31 after attorneys for the city filed motions asking Babcock to throw out portions of the lawsuit.
On training, Babcock wrote: "A jury could find that the City knew, or should have known, that its police officers were not being adequately trained regarding the use of deadly force."
On discipline, Babcock wrote: "Incidents of excessive force, such as that which arguably occurred in this case, are a 'highly predictable' and 'plainly obvious' result of a custom or policy of failing to discipline police officers for the use of excessive force."
Still, some of the claims in the lawsuit were dismissed, including that there was a failure to discipline police officers for false statements.
Claims that there was a failure to properly monitor repeated use-of-force incidents and a failure to hire competent officers also were dismissed.
Still, Padilla believes that the claims the judge upheld are significant.
"We have won substantial victories to have the court recognize that the city did not properly train and give annual re-training to police officers on the use of force," Padilla said.
While the family's lawsuit seeks monetary damages, Padilla said he hopes discipline and training for Denver police will improve.
Manager of Safety Al LaCabe, who oversees the Police Department, said he hopes to have an overhaul of the discipline system implemented by February.
Officers who commit certain offenses have been able to keep their jobs under the current "comparative discipline" system, which relies on past discipline decisions to guide how misconduct is handled now.
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