The death of 35 year-old mother of two Alesia Thomas, and the brutal arrests of 34-year-old nurse Michelle Jordan and 20-year-old college student Ronald Weekley, Jr. have refocused national attention on Los Angeles, a city which was nearly brought to its knees following the acquittal of four officers who stood trial for the brutal beating of Rodney King in 1992, the ensuing riots, as well as the subsequent Rampart scandal, which saw shocking revelations of witness tampering and evidence planting brought to light.
These recent incidents have raised the question of whether Los Angeles’ age-old police brutality problem is making a comeback, a mere three years after a federal judge released the LAPD from the settlement obligations that ushered in an era of sweeping reforms meant to reduce corruption and incidences of police misconduct in the wake of the Rampart scandal.
Benjamin Crump, the civil right attorney who represents Trayvon Martin’s family, also represents Alesia Thomas’s family and Ronald Weekley, Jr., and he is increasingly concerned about this alarming trend –so concerned, in fact, that he wrote to Attorney General Eric Holder, and requested that the Department of Justice investigate what he described as “a recurring present day theme” of police misconduct by Los Angeles police department officers.
Crump maintains that the tragic death of Trayvon Martin opened people’s eyes and helped members outside the African-American community see that in his words, “a problem exists when it comes to profiling and equal justice.”
Crump points to the videos of two of the incidents as stunning examples of police brutality, and credits the public for recording and publicizing the videos. The video of Michelle Jordan’s arrest for a cell phone violation shows two officers dragging her from her car and twice slamming the young woman (who was wearing a dress) to the ground twice before giving each other a congratulatory fist bump.
The video of Ronald Weekley’s arrest shows police officers tackling Weekley for skateboarding on the wrong side of the road in front of his home, and punching the college student repeatedly in the face while onlookers pleaded for the officers to leave him alone and recorded part of the arrest.
As for video in the case of Alesia Thomas’s death, it is unclear what will be revealed because Crump’s efforts to obtain the surveillance video of the circumstances that lead to Thomas’s death have been met with resistance (though the LAPD has admitted that the video “revealed some questionable tactics and improper comments.)
Crump notes, incredulously, that the police have thus far refused to release the video, instead choosing to describe the contents of the video, “as if we need them to interpret it for us.”
“It’s just sad,” Crump said.
Crump hopes that public demand for justice will force the police department to release the video tape and account for the “questionable tactics” and “inappropriate comments” of the officers involved in Thomas’s arrest.
Crump has similar concerns about the less-than-forthright manner in which the LAPD is handling the Ronald Weekley case. In the course of his representation of Mr. Weekley, Crump requested that the LAPD conducted an investigation into the allegations by Mr. Weekley of police misconduct. In response, the LAPD has begun to conduct its investigation, but seems to be doing so in a manner that unjustly burdens Weekley’s constitutional rights.
Despite what appears to be clear evidence that police officers used excessive force against the twenty year old college student, the LAPD has not yet dropped the criminal charges against Weekley for resisting arrest. That the LAPD maintains these charges against Weekly seems calculated.
Charlie Beck, the Chief of Police recently informed Crump that the investigation into Weekley’s police misconduct allegations would proceed without any input from Weekley himself if Weekley continued to refuse to make himself available for an interview.
According to Crump, Chief Beck’s request that Weekley submit to questioning about the circumstances surrounding his arrest while criminal charges are still pending as a result of that very same arrest raises constitutional questions: if Weekley makes himself available for questioning in connection with the police misconduct investigation, he risks voluntarily relinquishing his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent.
Crump views the videos of these incidents of police brutality as well as the manner in which these incidents are being handled as part of a pattern of misconduct on the part of the LAPD.
Reggie Roberts, a Los Angeles attorney who is a partner at the downtown Los Angeles law firm, Sanders Roberts, and who has handled police brutality cases on behalf of both plaintiffs and defendants, has a slightly different take. Roberts notes that the LAPD is comprised primarily of upstanding police officers who follow the rules set for them, and do not engage in the sort of police brutality that one sees in these videos. “The police department provides a valuable service to communities in Los Angeles,” Roberts says.
Roberts acknowledges that these sorts of incidents occur, but he does not see a significant uptick in frequency as compared to ten years ago. He attributes media attention on these incidents to the prevalence of smart phones and mobile video-recording technology, which offer a relatively new and important weapon in the fight against police brutality.
Roberts says he viewed the video of Michelle Jordan’s arrest and that it presents a clear case of excessive force and abuse of authority. He notes with some chagrin that her arrest, specifically, may ultimately inure to the benefit of all victims of police brutality. Because Michelle Jordan is a young white woman, that in and of itself has raised awareness of police brutality, which is generally seen as a problem only in the black community.
Najee Ali, a local civil rights activist and spokesman for the Thomas family has been outspoken about police brutality in Southern California and disagrees. He sees these incidents as part of a disturbing trend. “The police have not learned their lesson since the days of Rodney King,” says Ali.
Ali agrees that smart phones and technology have helped shine a light on police brutality, but his concern that these incidents are occurring with increasing frequency is not diminished. Still, he hopes that YouTube and smart phones will lead to increased awareness and, ultimately, a solution.
As for Ben Crump, he hopes that renewed public interest in police brutality in Los Angeles will result in the release of the video in the Thomas case, and ultimately, in justice for Mr. Weekley and Alesia Thomas’s family.
Follow Imani Gandi on Twitter at @angryblacklady.