Last month, four Houston Police officers were shot and wounded during a no-knock assault on a home while serving a drug warrant. A fifth officer sustained a knee injury. Two suspects were killed in the shootout when about a dozen narcotics officers raided a home in southeast Houston in order to serve a search warrant.
As police breached the front door, a pit bull lunged at them and an officer shot the dog. A man in the home then began shooting at police, and a number of officers returned fire.
According to Acevedo, 59-year-old Dennis Tuttle and 58-year-old Rhogena Nicholas were killed after they attacked police. The dog also was killed.
Acevedo said that Nicholas was shot trying to take a weapon away from a wounded officer who had fallen on the couch inside the home, which belonged to Tuttle.
Now, Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo says his department will no longer execute no-knock warrants.
“The no-knock warrant’s going to go away, kind of like leaded gasoline in our city,” Acevedo said. He added that raids that stem from those warrants would only be used in very limited cases — and that they would not be used to nab people suspected of dealing small amounts of drugs.
“You’re going to see those going away,” he said.
Acevedo’s re-thinking of the no-knock raids may have also been influenced by the fact that the officer who applied for the no-knock warrant that resulted in the January shootout allegedly lied in order to get a judge to sign off on it.
As chron.com reports . . .
In a hastily called press conference, Police Chief Art Acevedo said Gerald Goines, the veteran narcotics case agent at the center of the controversy, will likely face criminal charges. The internal investigation revealed he allegedly lied about using a confidential informant to conduct an undercover buy at the residence on Harding Street. The buy led to a raid and a fatal gunfight at the house the next day, killing Dennis Tuttle, 59, and Rhogena Nicholas, 58, and injuring five Houston Police Department officers. …
In the initial HPD warrant, Goines wrote that he monitored a buy at the home by a confidential informant, who identified the substance that was purchased as heroin and said there was a 9mm handgun in the house. Police obtained a no-knock warrant —allowing them to enter unannounced — and burst into the small southeast home the next day to a hail of gunfire.
At the end of the shootout, both Tuttle and Nicholas had been shot to death, and five officers were injured — four by gunfire. Police found 18 grams of marijuana — about half an ounce — and a little more than a gram of white powder, but no heroin or trafficking paraphernalia. After the fatal operation, neighbors pushed back on assertions by police the residence was a drug house.
Goines, a 30-year police veteran, was one of the four officers who were shot during the raid. The FBI has opened an investigation as a result of allegations that Officer Goines lied on the affidavit requesting the warrant.
According to NPR, Acevedo faced a hostile crowd at a town hall meeting Monday night, “who vented their anger over the deadly raid and what they called the police’s overreliance on informants and searches rather than investigation.”
Acknowledging the anger and skepticism in the room, the chief said, “I promise you all, if you’ll have the patience, you are going to see good come out at the end” of the police investigation into the case and a review of its policies.
The deadly raid was not captured by body cameras; in the coming weeks, Acevedo said, his officers will begin the practice of wearing them during warrant-based entries to houses and other buildings.
No-knock raids are inherently dangerous, both for the targets of the raids and the officers executing them. In the heat of the moment, occupants have no way of knowing who just broke down their door and is charging into their home.
In a 2015 raid in Corpus Christi, Texas, the occupant opened fire on officers in a no-knock raid, shooting three of them. Again, there was no body cam video of the raid. The homeowner somehow survived the shootout and was later prosecuted for attempted capital murder and aggravated assault. He was ultimately found not guilty.
The use of no-knock raids should be minimized wherever possible. And the failure to use bodycams, as in the Corpus Christi and now Houston raids, only contributes to conspiracy theories and accusations that the officers had something to hide.
Art A–holeveda ruining the Houston PD the same way he screwed up the Austin. He should not be wearing a badge. If the officer lied on his application it is because Art created the culture that allowed this. Had no one been killed or injured you would not have heard word one about it.
True story. Can’t believe we picked up this POS here in H-Town.
The cop lied on the application because cops are trained to lie. This cop also had bags of drugs in his vehicle along with undocumented firearms. Rumors also say he had baggies of drugs in his assault vest.
The citizen’s revolver has not been listed on any list of evidence or confiscated items.
Acevedo is proof that Austin can get rid of its toxic waste by shipping it to Houston . . . .
That’s a possibility, but I would prefer Austin had never imported the POS from CA, we had plenty of TX lawmen to choose from, that was clearly going to lead to disaster, and it has.
No one would have died or been injured if the ILLEGAL war on drugs were completely ended. Let junkies OD and cops focus on real crimes. We’ll all be better off and waste a whole lot less money.
Agree. The Darwin method of drug control, must be accompanied by zero medical support for dopers, let’s quite deliberately *let them die*, close the prisons, fire the cops, just stand back and watch.
Y’all can probably tell, the last illegal drugs I consumed were sometime in early 1967, just before I turned 21 and could buy and consume booze legally.
Can we do the same with alcoholics? After all, booze kills 20,000 more people a year than all other drugs combined. Except for maybe tobacco.
“Can we do the same with alcoholics?”
That’s gonna be a much harder legal lift, considering the 21st Amendment was enacted, repealing the 18th Amendment, that outlawed alcohol.
The good news is, if they ever get their amendment outlawing the citizen’s right to own firearms, there is legal precedent for repealing it, thanks to the 21st Amendment…
Can’t do that. Multi Billion dollar business. Thousands of unemployed cops, judges, administrators. Can’t let that happen…
I believe I’ve posted before that , discounting anti-biotics, the drug store should be just that, a drug store, just like a liquor store. If you want to drink or drug yourself to death, more power to yah. That would eliminate a lot of illegal drug trade, and ,,,,, well you know some people just can’t get enuff until their flopping like a dying chicken , or drifting off to a never ending sleep
Really don’t care the reason, no-knock raids are terrible and I don’t have any pity for anyone killed when serving them. There’s no fucking way you can justify such behavior. If you shot my dog you better believe i’m pulling on you too. And what the fuck do you expect dogs to do when you barge into their homes?
Just ask yourself if YOU would want to be on the receiving end and then remember that mistakes happen.
No problem with police, I do have a problem with treating citizens as expendable and officer lives as invaluable.
Right on…H-town resident.
The police chief is a POS.
The dog is a hero in my book. Damn tragic all the way around
NO-knock seems to violate at least one, if not more, of the Bill of Rights. Don’t favor the drugies, but an action will have a reaction, or so I was told. I’m afraid I would be hurt or killed if the same happened to me. Not anti-cop but I am anti-STUPID, cop or not.
poor judgement all-around…do they really want to come for the guns?
The amount of facepalm in this story is leaving me with post-concussion syndrome.
“The abuse of power comes as no surprise.”
– Jenny Holzer
“Homeowners and dog shot and killed while their civil rights were being violated over the lies of a corrupt police officer.” Alternative title
The whole thing stinks. This guys videos are pretty instructive.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wR0DsdlsaFg
Wow, that looks bad. If it is as bad as it looks, may all the officers involved rot in hell.
This ^^^^ And no knocks warrants are a violation of the 4th Amendment. But then our scotus really does a poor job of properly enforcing the Constitution. As Ben Shapiro notes the scotus has an abysmal record when it comes to the enforcement of the Constitution.
What’s really sad is that’s the only thing they are supposed to do!
Even a blind squirrel …
Acevedo seems to show up a lot when things go wrong. They must shuffle bad cops around the way they do teachers and priests.
Gypsy cops
And when they get the wrong address which result in death(s) or injury virtually nothing is done about it. These types of raids should be outlawed nationwide.
Local friends suggest that 7815 Hardy was more likely the appropriate target than 7815 Harding. It seems the cavalry had a hard time figuring out where the party was.
that’s probably where archibald “dennis” buttle lives.
fly in the ointment.
And no one is charged with murder in this BS no knock raid…how many of us TTAG folk would do the SAME?!?
I had the same thought: the cop who lied on the affidavit which justified the warrant should go to prison for two counts of involuntary manslaughter.
cops and the Clintons seem to get away with things that put ordinary people in prison.
Premeditated murder would be more appropriate.
Chris Mallory,
The cop that provided the affidavit intended to cause a raid. Trying to prove that he intended to use that raid to cause murder will be next to impossible.
If you break into a person’s house armed and kill them, that should be premeditated murder. PERIOD.
Yep. If we hold accountable getaway drivers for the murderous actions of their buddies holding up a store, cops should also face collective punishment when an entire raid becomes criminal due to one cop’s actions. All equal under the law.
Felony murder applies because the getaway driver is a participant in the crime. If a criminal took an Uber to or from a crime, the Uber driver wouldn’t be charged because he committed no felony to attach the murder to. Similarly, officers who believed they were participating in an lawful raid would not criminally liable, but those who did know should be charged.
Anymouse : “Similarly, officers who believed they were participating in an lawful raid would not criminally liable,”
We decided this back in 1945. “Just following orders” is not a defense.
If you don’t have the moral sense to know that you don’t kick in a man’s door and shoot his wife and dog, then a prison cell is where you belong.
Anymouse, there have been people tried and convicted who had no idea that when they were giving their buddy a ride that a crime was going to be convicted. This is pure conjecture, but I would not be surprised if the officer talked to one another about the BS warrant application.
“The cop that provided the affidavit intended to cause a raid. Trying to prove that he intended to use that raid to cause murder will be next to impossible.”
I don’t know how Texas law works but in some states any felony crime that leads to someone dying means all involved are charged with murder, even the dead dude’s accomplices.
If Texas has the same kind of law, one I disagree with btw, then the law should be applied evenly and that means it has to be applied to the cop in this case. His actions are essentially the same as robbing a gas station where it all goes bad and your partner in crime gets killed by the clerk: you facilitated a situation where your buddy died so it’s on you.
Again, I don’t agree with such a law, but if it’s on the books in Texas then it should be applied to this case the same way it would be to thugs trying to rob a business.
Not manslaughter, but 2nd degree murder. People died during the commission of a crime. The officer’s conduct merits serious prison time
Come on – don’t you know that cops are above the law?
It’s NOT just involuntary manslaughter — Texas Penal Code § 19.02(b)(3) states that a person commits murder if he “commits or attempts to commit a felony, other than manslaughter, and in the course of and in furtherance of the commission or attempt, or in immediate flight from the commission or attempt, he commits or attempts to commit an act clearly dangerous to human life that causes the death of an individual.”
The initial felony was perjury on the warrant application. Since the deaths occurred as a direct result of that felony, the detective is guilty of two counts of MURDER.
Off topic but if your screen handle is reflective of the location in the former Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), the correct spelling is Xuan Loc, not Xaun. You have the a and u transposed. Been there. Just sayin’.
I checked: Texas does allow Felony Murder for perjury. If he lied he should get the death penalty. He knew there is serious risk to human life, especially to fellow officers, stemming from his criminal act.
Not to mention that all of the people now in jail(or those who have done time) due to this LEO that may have been fudging the truth, will soon be getting retrials and many will get paid plenty because of shortcutting by the po-po.
30 years of convictions need revision, at least revisit. He should be shot just for that.
Reason had an article about this today. A perjured warrant affidavit that results in death can earn this guy either life in prison or an execution. Additionally, 1,700 cases are being reviewed because of the specific officer’s actions.
No-knock warrants and asset forfeiture are the 2 worst things connected to law enforcement. Funny how they only become news when the victims of either fight back. As an aside, I’m sick of seeing these guys who somehow think that they are Generals.
SCOTUS ruled unanimously today that asset forfeiture was unconstitutional. RBG wrote the opinion. So that crap will stop.
I sure hope it stops, but as we’ve seen with many jurisdiction slow-rolling gun rights even after McDonald vs Chicago and Heller vs DC, the control-freaks still disregard the Constitution.
asset forfeiture is inherently corrupt because there is a built-in incentive for the authorities to lie and abuse it. it is an abomination that has no place in a free country.
Even Machiavelli was warning against it, as one of the most destructive actions for the society that the State can take.
No, the Supreme Court ruling just means that state lost this case, and future/other cases can use the USSC ruling as part of their defense.
It won’t put a stop to it because there is NO INCENTIVE to stop. Those that commit those crimes are not punished for their illegal activity.
Maybe you haven’t noticed, but states and other federal districts routinely IGNORE higher court directives.
Not quite. The SCOTUS ruled that a police dept cannot keep a $40k vehicle as part of a $10k crime.
It might be a step *towards* the end of CAF, but it is not the end of it.
Exactly. It’s a step in the right direction, and a pretty clear indication that the Court may be inclined to back Justice Thomas’ doubts on the constitutionality of the current CAF system, but it doesn’t come anywhere close to ending CAF.
The court ruled no such thing. The ruling only incorporated the 14th Amendment’s protection against “excessive fines” on the states, while also holding that these civil asset forfeitures do count as fines.
The Court had previously ruled in 1998’s U.S. v. Bajakajian case that when the federal government seizes property in this manner, the fine/forfeiture must not be “grossly disproportionate to the gravity of the offense.” Well.
This new ruling provides no standard for what is “excessive”, nor does it explicitly apply that federal “grossly disproportionate” standard to the states. States have only these words to go by and, if you don’t like the outcome, you’re welcome to spend years and whatever money you still have arguing over it.
Hopefully, the states will get the message signed by a unanimous Supreme Court and not play games, but who knows? It’s a great victory, the extent of whose greatness remains to be seen.
I encourage everyone to kick in a few bucks to the free market litigators at the Institute for Justice, who spearheaded this victory pro bono. I bet they could use a replenishment of the coffers right about now. Skip Starbucks today and drop IJ that fiver, instead. Every little bit helps!
Your take is interesting. I disagree. Here is the article:
https://hotair.com/archives/2019/02/20/9-0-scotus-rules-eighth-amendments-excessive-fines-clause-applies-states/?utm_source=hadaily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl&bcid=a82b01a47180f02b6fa6482c8e4b46fc
In this case, the LEOs argued that they were not subject to the prohibition against “excessive fines”, because they were not a federal agency. SCOTUS disagreed, saying that local and state police/courts are bound by the same rules as the federal government.
Your article goes on to say:
“The other potential earthquake from today’s opinion is how it might apply in court to civil asset forfeitures, a big revenue-generator for local governments and the scourge of civil libertarians. Clarence Thomas wrote an opinion two years ago inveighing against modern asset forfeiture practices; Neil Gorsuch is also a skeptic. It’s possible, if not probable, that there are five votes on the Court right now to rein in the worst asset-forfeiture abuses. Today’s ruling is an obvious jumping-off point for that inquiry.”
It clearly states that CAF might be on its way out, and that this might be the jumping off point for its departure.
It’s not the end of the CAF, tho. despite your opinion to the contrary.
Actually the SCOTUS ruling did not say that all asset forfeitures are unconstitutional only that the assets forfeited need to be in proportion to the crime. In the specific case, the police seized a $40,000 car from a guy caught with “$400” worth of heroin. The “street value” of drugs found by the police is always inflated, but even if the heroin really was worth $400 that made a $40,000 asset forfeiture clearly excessive. It wasn’t covered in the ruling, but in this case there was also no possible claim that the $40,000 car came from the “proceeds of crime” because he could show that he bought the car using life insurance money he got from the death of his father.
But, yes, this ruling should rein in some of the more aggressive police departments that rely on asset forfeitures for most of their budget. Seizing a car simply because one of the occupants was caught with a trivial amount of drugs for personal use would clearly be in violation of this ruling.
An open question would be the Florida practice of seizing cash any time they catch someone with a large amount of cash without an explanation that the police consider acceptable. Since having cash is NOT illegal, the people are often not charged with any crime but the cash is seized as under asset forfeiture laws. Some of those cases have gone to state court and a few have been overturned, but only on the basis of there being some good reason for the cash, not on constitutional grounds. Even with the new ruling that “excessive fines” are unconstitutional, there has still not been a real challenge of Asset Forfeitures where no crime was proven or in some cases no crime was even charged.
She did no such thing. She said that such laws cannot be used to take more than the maximum punishment for the crime. In that case, the police seized a new Rover that had been purchased with “clean” assets” on the basis it had allegedly been used to transport drugs. The maximum fine for his crime was $12,000, but the rover was worth 4 times that much. Such a penalty violated the constitution, not the forfeiture law itself.
What needs to happen–and which did happen here in California, is to return the burden of proof to the prosecutor to show beyond a reasonable doubt that the forfeited item (cash, property) was in fact used in or the result of illegal conduct. Currently, in the majority of states, the burden is on the defendant to show that it was NOT. Which is inherently unfair.
That is the best news I’ve heard in a long time!!! I’m still a few cases behind on my listening.
Way back 20+ years ago the appeals court ruled Affirmative Action was unconstitutional (concerning UT), SC refused the case, nobody else paid a whit of attention, still is in limbo, no final resolution, possibly ever. We may need a constitutional convention, just start over.
George Will wrote an op-ed piece in the Washington Post that pointed out asset forfeitures now exceed the total value of losses due to burglary in this country. Which would make the governments (combined) of this country the biggest thieves.
That was about 4 years ago… who knows how much it is today.
essentially burglars with badges…seen it all before…sometimes really hard to separate the good guys from the bad guys….
no-knock raids seem to be unconstitutional. surely the founders never envisioned such a thing.
The courts need to do a plain English reading of “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
it is clearly “unreasonable” to conduct what amounts to an armed home invasion over 1/2 oz of doobage. the occupants plausibly thought they were being home invaded by gangsters. that’s what I would think if armed people kicked my door in and barged in.
the only times no-knock raids should be legal is for life-and-death issues such as hostages or terrorists.
Troubling , 2 residents & dog killed over a small amount of weed & “a gram of unidentified white powder ” flour maybe , certainly not heroin. 4 officers shot in this no-knock raid. Was it worth it ? Excessive Abuse of power.
It is likely that the cops “planted” the drugs in order to “justify” the invasion. The Boston police department has been caught planting drugs on suspects.
It would not surprise me if police academy training included the covert suggestion that police officers ALWAYS carry a “throw-down” weapon (as they presently do) and a small amount of (illegal) drugs in order to “sanitize” a questionable scene.
News Now Houston claims to have talked to the couple’s dealer who said they would buy about $15 worth of pot a month to treat the wife’s cancer treatment side effects. The dealer said that was all they could afford. So the pot probably was theirs. Who knows what the powder is or where it came from.
The main dirty cop in this conspiracy did have unregistered illegal drugs in his vehicle and undocumented firearms in his police vehicle. Rumor also says he had at least one baggie of drugs in his assault vest.
If that’s true, then that’s an example of a cop who should be spending the rest of his life turning big rocks into smaller rocks… alongside anybody in his chain of command who can be proven to have turned a blind eye and any of his “associates” that covered for him.
According to local friends, the “suspects” may not have even been involved in the heroin buy that kicked this whole thing off.
Turns out, there were a lot of responders who had trouble figuring out if the blanket party was going on at the house at 7815 Harding Street or if it was actually at a house at 7815 Hardy Street.
The Hardy Street house seems the far more likely option.
Every CI (snitch) the Narc unit uses has denied making any controlled buys at this couple’s house.
“The Hardy Street house seems the far more likely option.”
Yeah, take a look at the Google ‘Street View’ of the Hardy street address :
https://www.google.com/maps/place/7815+Hardy+St,+Houston,+TX+77022/@29.8321483,-95.358307,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x8640b84d967564e3:0x70560171de2210ae!8m2!3d29.8321483!4d-95.3561129
At least two reports are now saying-
1 Home owners did not have any hand guns at all. (The warrant said they did). Hard to shot police when all you own are rifles in wardrobe.
2 police admit to shooting first and wounding their Labrador dog with shotgun. Wife seems to have been shot while trying to stop the dog from bleeding out.
3 Acevendo was asked if any police shot each other and said no. But it now appears all of the wounds are probably from other police.
4 The real “drug” house was five miles away.
OH, holy shit. I could not even make this shit up. Sounds like Acevedo may end up on trial for murder, himself!
He should!
quite a mess…hope they learn from this…doubtful…..
Check out the News Now Houston channel on YouTube; he’s been doing an incredible amount of legwork on this case. In general, I find him to be the best of the 1A auditors around. He’s well-mannered and polite when making contact with LEO’s, but doesn’t give them an inch when they exceed their authority. He also gives credit where credit’s due for agencies that do well during his audits.
He’s anti-gun ownership by civilians.
Haven’t you been keeping up?
The real story is corrupt cops got caught doing dirty shit…. I remember reading the comments here when this story broke. All those same knuckleheads are quiet as church mice now.
To be fair, cops should get the benefit of the doubt… and should be thrown in jail for a very long time when they abuse said benefit. In this case, every member of that team should be charged with felony murder.
Don’t really much matter now to the victims after the cops shot them and their dog in the face 60 times…. Apparently LE isn’t always your friend….
Only because cops who abuse the trust aren’t held accountable. Throw a few SWAT goons in super-max on multiple counts of felony murder and that will change right quick.
Why should any government employee be given the benefit of the doubt? Cops are trained to lie.
If I am on a jury, I will take the word of a citizen over that of a cop any day of the week.
Likewise, and I’ve been there for around 10 years now.
When/if the truth comes out and the search warrant is invalidated, all cops involved…on scene and leadership….should be tried for MURDER ONE….as accomplices. Should you be with a person that kills a cop, you are tried just as if you had pulled the trigger yourself. Same should apply for the cops.
Agreed. When obvious malfeasance by police is proven, those cops should be punished in the harshest manner available. They are granted the public trust. If they abuse the public trust, they should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law along with everybody else who did not act in good faith.
One of the things that has struck me about the comments on this story is the way that many people are focused on the no-knock warrant but are ignoring that the police officer, seemingly, lied to obtain the warrant. Wouldn’t that be a felony? If the officer has committed a felony and it leads to a death, doesn’t he have to face a greater charge than manslaughter?
Yes.
Notice the dog was a “pitbull”. Some reports are now saying it was a lab and that the woman was shot while trying to care for the dog.
Still no mention of the “357” the man used on the police.
The cops lie all the time to get people to say stuff that can be used in court. That lying seems to continue when speaking to the press too.
Pretty easy to get outraged about misbehavior like this. Stuff starts at the top. The chief should step down, maybe the mayor too. Police unions are often corrupt. If any unions should be busted it should be police guilds and unions
None of this “step down” bullshit. No, everybody in the chain of command should be charged as an accessory. They have a supervisory responsibility for the actions of their subordinates.
All unbadged dogs are pit bulls until ruled otherwise in a court of law.
Especially dogs near drug scenes.
If a cop pushes lies that predictably leads to death, the cop should be publicly tried, and then publicly hung.
When the phrase “no-knock raid” becomes shorthand for “some cops won’t be going home safe at night,” no-knock raids will stop. Cops may be crazy, but they’re not stupid.
No knocks should only be used in exigent circumstances, not for a little drugs. A shame tragedy has to happen over and over to realize this.
This should be a national change.
If you want to arrest someone stake out their house and when they come out for their paper or head to the store for smokes you can grab them on the yard. They probably won’t have a huge cache of weapons in their pocket and there won’t be a doubt whats going on.
The way they do it now you don’t know if it’s 5-0 or a bunch of crooks coming through the door. They have gotten more than a few addresses wrong and then there is the swatting craze to contend with. There are videos of cops shooting dogs, hogtying children on the floor, and destroying property when all they need to do is arrest the person outside the house.
I don’t participate in illegal activity so I’m not expecting a 5 am knock on the door or a 2 second warning of Sherriff Department Search Warrant. In the commotion I’m not going to assume people coming in the house by force are LEO and neither do a lot of victims. Don’t put us in this position, please.
Apparently, this couple *was* staked out. They had just returned from walking their dog when the party started.
and they couldnt arrest them in the yard?
“This should be a national change.”
A good first step would be to take the local cops completely ‘out of the loop’ on conducting a raid. Turn that job over to the U.S. Marshalls or similar.
They can standardize the protocols and training for conducting them, including looking over the warrants with a jaded eye…
Yes, because we know how accountable the various Federal secret police are. The Feds should not have any general police powers or authority to deal with anything other than treason, counterfeiting, and piracy.
Absolutely not. We do not need anything approaching a Federal police force to enforce local laws. If you cannot enforce the law, repeal it.
I dunno. If I was going to pick a Federal LE Agency to trust with this, out of all of them it would probably be the Marshal’s Service.
Besides, might even to meet Raylan Givens.
Sammy Weaver and his dog would disagree. If they had not been murdered by US Marshals.
Dunno about the US Marshals (tho that’s a better option than the FBI or ATF), but the Texas Rangers or other State Police options might be a good idea. Staties aren’t gonna believe locals without a critical look at the story, and they sure as hell aren’t going to allow themselves to be hung with some local LEO’s rope.
if the anti-gunners have their way you’ll be participating in illegal activity soon…
Damned good idea! Unidentified people bursting through your front door, especially at night, are very shootable. Legally shootable.
Actually, the chief isn’t ending no-knock raids. That’s just the spin.
He’s preserving them, only now he will have to approve the warrant applications first, instead of officers going straight to judges on their own. Who knows? He may delegate that authority so it’s not even him on the hook the next time one of these gets wrongfooted.
The raids may lie low for a while until the public scrutiny fades, but it’ll be back to business as usual in due course. The proof? Events like this have happened many times before in Texas and around the country. The data for a policy change has been there all along and nothing changed. It’s only the public outcry this time that made a difference. Once the heat is off, the raids will resume.
I am old enough to remember when people who dressed in blue and broke into people’s homes to look for drugs were called Crips.
So that’s what it takes? Good to know.
Finally, some cops with a little intelligence.
That headline though.
“Houston Police to End No-Knock Warrant Raids After Four Officers Shot”
instead of
“Houston Police to End No-Knock Warrant Raids After Two Innocent Citizens Murdered”
What, you’re ignoring the murder of the damn *puppy*? Despicable. Seriously.
With the tens of thousands of no-knock warrants issued each year and the prevalence of swatting, I’m surprised this doesn’t happen more often.
As much as I love law enforcement, there are many inside who really get a sense of excitement from tactics like this.
It used to be said that soldiers fight for the day they don’t have to. That sentiment has been lost.
I don’t know if it is a shift in where departments are pulling their recruits from, a change in the decades old training methods, an effect of the war on drugs, or a general decline in our population, but the warrior mentality has invaded law enforcement over the last 25 years.
As much as I love our local law enforcement, you would get the wrong idea about their goal if you studied their recruitment materials and posters. The images are not those of aiding in the suffering of the afflicted or protecting others, but of black masked swat members. I don’t even think they realize the image they are creating for themselves.
It’s not a warriors mentality, it’s a thug mentality. Warriors have discipline (observe that the kinds of cops who pull this shit are almost never combat veterans, despite their prevelance in the profession) and apply force intelligently against those who need it. Thugs just wanna feel like badasses with as little risk to themselves as possible.
The death of James Boyd is a PERFECT example. They rolled on him 7 deep in full battle rattle for illegally camping in the foothills. There’s no shortage of REAL criminals in ABQ, but the cowards didn’t want to actually fight, they just wanted to feel tough.
The bastards consider even the slightest degree of risk to themselves to be totally unacceptable while very strongly wanting to act out the fantasies of a rambunctious 8 year old boy, and they do this with absolutely no accountability and the hero worship of worthless retards. That’s a BAD combination
California I believe last year advertised for new officers stating the CHP we’re a paramilitary organization.i obey the laws,but if this happens to me and my family I do my best to make sure a few of them never make it home.i have always hated bullies especially those who are supposed to protect us.at the age of 72 I figure I have lived my life bully cops be damned
No knock raids are a necessary evil… in rare cases. They are used a lot more than those rare cases, however. Smart departments are moving away from them.
Watch the last half of Red State, if only for entertainment.
Knock or no knock would not have made much difference.
DEFUND THE COPS
THEY ARE NOT NEEDED IN A FREE AND ARMED SOCIETY
The raiding officers should be charged with murder. No other charges are reasonable.
This entire business of No Knock Warrants has always struck me as questionable, especially with a view to Wrong House/Wrong Address Raids, putting it in polite terms
The unfortunate truth is some cops wear a badge to protect them self from themselves.
I am a retired police officer, 25 years service. If you kick down my door without announcement , I will kill you . Period.
I don’t get it.
Why didn’t you just come out and say “The dead couple had an absolute right to try to kill every last one of them!”?
This article fails to mention that the police were in plain clothes or that this man was a disabled veteran. How the hell is he supposed to act when he thinks there are a bunch of thugs busting into his house, shooting his dog. Also all the neighbors said that these folks were great people who had lived there for 20 years.
Doesn’t actually matter if he/they were unarmed, bust in the house, nice puppy barks and is killed, nice lady goes to the dying dog she loves and is killed, disabled vet has nowhere to go and no defense, good job, boys! They should *literally* hang. As in forget recent silliness and construct a gallows which will accommodate them all, for a public execution. This is so far beyond “unforgiveable” I cannot even understand it.
I expect this kind of news to occur in various states that have passed “Red Flag/STOP/ERPO Laws….”
That means…
they never should have begun.
“If you can’t take the no-knock warrant heat, get out of the public payroll kitchen”
DEFUND THE COPS
NO NEED FOR THEM A FREE AND ARMED SOCIETY
Despicable behavior of the militarized police.
I’m a Texan and live just outside of the city limits (less than a half mile). Like many of you I sleep next to my wife and we both sleep next to our pistols (she’s as good a shot with a 9mm as I am with .45 and I’m ex-military).
Burst into my home in the dead of night and you’ll get shot, period. I wouldn’t believe you if you told me you were cops either until you provided your badge numbers and I could confirm it via phone to you HQ. If it checked out I’d clear our weapons and lay them on the floor and open the door for you.
Otherwise, I’ll shoot you and you’ll shoot me. We’ll just have to see how the numbers tally afterwards.
You keep a lousy handgun next to your bed?
Why not an AR15 in 7.62×39 with a “banana clip” and big old flash can?
Give yourself a real chance!
Sorry Art, you are the one in charge when the big mess happened. Clear out your desk.
The officer that lied, you should be charged with murder and attempted murder with injury to an officer in the line of duty. Stand trial for the two life lost and the 4 officers shot and injury to the fifth.
What is the difference between a ‘no knock warrant’ and an ‘armed home invasion’ to the people inside the home? I see none.
Well put man.
Well put.
. If you think this job is so easy why don’t you put on a badge and show us how it’s done./
clearly,..this is not how it should be done…..i’m sitting here right now with four guns within arm’s reach…and I stay up all night….
If by “suspects” you mean “innocent victims of a home invasion robbery that started with breaking the door down and firing shots into the home”…
https://www.ar15.com/forums/General/Houston-Narcotics-Division-Investigated-After-Officer-Lies-About-Drug-Busts-2-dead-Update-p-16/5-2194937/?page=1
I worry about those here in my home town as well. Someone goes smashing through my door, i’d like to pray i have the presence of mind to “know my target and whats behind it”
But bright lights, screaming, half asleep guy in his own home who has no idea what the hell is going on?….
No knock warrants are NOT a good plan. Not in the united states.
He lied to obtain the NK warrant, he should be prosecuted for lying to the Judge who signed it and prosecuted for MURDER of two citizens and the dog.
Good reason to have a safe room in the house.
You mean a safe room with firing ports aka embreasures?
Right?
*EMBRASURES
I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that (the M855A1 part).
M80A1 or M61 for the win!
Worst case scenario is you pay $80 for 10 rounds of M80A1 on Gunbroker and put them on top of your magazine or secondary magazine.
Me? I got lucky and got 200 pulled projos for $1 each a couple years back.
The iNtErNeTs told me m855A1 was BlAck mAgiC lol
Nailed it!
Those who hired, trained, supervised and failed to discipline this gangster cop need to be held accountable, as well. Way too often, these thugs are allowed to continue doing this kind of crap year after year. When they eventually cost a city or county too much money in judgments and bad publicity, they are allowed to resign, then they find another law enforcement job a few miles away. This blue line mentality, along with the evil, insane War on Drugs, has eroded respect for the law and eroded our rights as Americans.
Playing stupid games and getting stupid prizes doesn’t apply to just criminals, it seems. To me, No-knocks always seemed like a good way to get cops shot.
and that body armor won’t always save them….
Acevedo is a liberal nitwit who rivals Sheila Jackson Lee in his love for cameras and media attention. He is an idiot and a publicity hound. I’m sure Houston officers will be just as happy as the Austin officers were when he leaves Houston. But he’s obviously not leaving before he completely fucks up the department.
Right here in GA, back in 2014 – https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2014/10/06/meet-59-year-old-david-hooks-the-latest-drug-raid-fatality/?utm_term=.cc5c22ead818
A Facebook page was setup: https://www.facebook.com/JusticeForDavidHooks/
Totally innocent man.
This was also a no knock raid. Its 70 miles from my house. And I’m still angry about it. The only want to stop the no knock raids is to shoot as many cops as you can when they burst into your house.
Man Dies in Police Raid on Wrong House
https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=95475&page=1
This is how the tree of Liberty gets is “water”. Many people talk big sh#t about this statement. But this is what happened in Houston. An the overseers don’t want to get shot. So the raids have been stopped.
Many people will not like this, but the BEST WEAPON for self defense against an organized attack is NOT a semi auto weapon. The best weapon is a submachine gun. And the Bump Stock would have put a rapid fire weapon into the hands of the ordinary person. The sound of a machine gun is terrifying when it’s AIMED AT YOU.
May be 12 or 20 police would have been wounded and or killed in the NO KNOCK, UNCONSTITUTIONAL, police action. But the Tree of Liberty would be refreshed. And the rest of us would be living in a much freer country.
Read the Advertisement in this article. The Thompson was originally marketed to civilians with large estates and to LEOs
Thompson Submachine Gun: The Original Black Gun
https://www.recoilweb.com/the-original-black-gun-105591.html
It seems the tyrant who runs the houston PD, does not want to get shot. Is the 2A just for hunting and Three Gun???
Obama made sure the police every where got free select fire weapons. Those departments didn’t have to pay for surplus military small arms.
Machine gun $80,000
Bump Stock $175.00
“Goines, a 30-year police veteran, was one of the four officers who were shot during the raid.”
Too bad he didn’t meet his end that night. I have no sympathy for crooked cops.
QUOTE: “Houston Police to End No-Knock Warrant Raids After Four Officers Shot.” The title alone illustrates everything wrong with out society today. Ok, so 4 cops got wounded…huge problem that needs to be addressed…but I guess that the two deceased homeowners is no big deal? Why do we place the value of police lives above that of ordinary Citizens?
If this incident shows anything, it demonstrates that a singular firearm with limited ammo capacity is not enough protection against a cackle of thuggish cops storming through the door. Give credit where it’s due; the man of the house did a marvelous job trying to kill those no-good sons-of-bi*ches, but he was severely outclassed in terms of armament, and he and his Misses died as a result.
Don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m rethinking this whole “home defense” scenario, and one can be sure that my “at ready” options will include far more firepower than what that poor couple had.
“No-knock” warrants, other than for a hostage or active shooter situation for which it’s well-known a violent crime is in process, have no place in a free society. Such travesties will continue until they’re outlawed.
Comments are closed.