It’s been a week since the NYPD disrupted a hip hop concert that was celebrating the release of Smif N Wesson and Pete Rock’s collective effort Monumental. If you haven’t seen the video by now take a moment to view before you read any further. The video is shocking, disgusting and disturbing.
The police that night were barbaric in their approach. They acted like gang members or vigilantes, in particular against woman. Mace was thrown, people were pushed, shoved and cursed out by officers as they attempted to clear out the venue Tammany Hall. It was totally uncalled for. What the NYPD didn’t expect that night was for white hip-hop fans to also be present and to witness their thuggish approach. Outraged fans of all races took to Twitter, blogs and the local news.
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This isn’t the first the time the NYPD has acted in disgrace against the citizens of Gotham. Thankfully no one was seriously injured or worse. What I saw last week conjured up bad memories of past incidents of police brutality by the NYPD. But not just the brutality but the excuses and tactics often made by politicians and the PBA to cover up the horrible deeds of its officers.
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Now it’s important to note that not all police are bad. But when these incidents of brutality happen, such as last week, it’s important to remind ourselves of the past in order to protect our future. So we examine some of the NYPD’s most infamous and heinous acts of excessive force.
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Mrs. Eleanor Bumpurs was a 66-year-old African-American woman who was shot and killed by the NYPD on October 9, 1984. As the story goes, the police were working with city to evict Mrs. Bumpurs from her public housing unit in the Bronx because she was late on her rent. Mrs. Bumpurs was mentally ill at the time and refused to allow entry into her apartment threatening to throw lye on anyone who entered.
A special unit in the NYPD for the mentally disturbed was dispatched with shields and a Y-bar to forcibly enter her apartment. According to officers, the 275 pound Bumpers attacked them with a butcher knife as they attempted to subdue her. She was first shot in the hand with a 12-Gauge shotgun. Then she was shot with the gauge in her chest which instantly killed her.
Outraged residents and community leaders called for an investigation. Mrs Bumpers was a senior citizen, mentally ill and 2 shots were fired at her from a powerful weapon at close range. Criticism was high so the PBA went on a smear campaign to portray Mrs Bumpurs as a criminal who attacked officers and left them with no choice. Ultimately the charges of manslaughter were dismissed in a highly controversial case the divided the city and heightened racial tensions. It should be noted that then US Attorney Rudolph Giuliani refused to investigate this tragedy on the federal level claiming ” there was no “proof of a specific intent to inflict excessive and unjustified force.”
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Patrick Dorismond was an unarmed Haitian man who was killed by an undercover officer March 16, 2000. The plain clothes officers asked Mr Dorismond and his friend if they knew were they could score some marijuana. This prompted Dorismond to respond that he wasn’t a drug dealer. The officers claimed at this point they were attacked for no apparent reason by Dorismond and his friend.
The friend, Kevin Kaiser, told a different story. He told of how the officers initiated the incident by first asking the pair for drugs and then when met with harsh words, one officer proceeded to attack Dorismond without identifying himself. In the melee that ensued, the undercover officer’s gun discharged hitting and mortally wounding Mr Dorismond.
Several things made this case really ugly. The Mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, released Mr Dorismonds sealed juvenile records in response to the criticism and outrage this murder caused. He did this to paint an unfavorable image of the now deceased Mr Dorismond. This tasteless and classless tactic by Mayor Giuliani and his administration was just an example of division between the police and the working class Spanish and African American communities of NYC. Mr. Dorismond’s funeral turned into a riot between police and attendees. The case was ultimately ruled an “accidental shooting.”
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Amadou Diallo was an unarmed African immigrant living in The Bronx who was shot 19 times by plain clothes officers in a hail of 41 bullets. This incident occurred February 4, 1999 in the early hours of the morning. The plain clothes officers approached Diallo thinking he was a serial rapist suspect that was being sought. Diallo took off running.
The police gave chase to a vestibule in which Mr Diallo took out his wallet. Officers claimed they thought this was a gun and began to fire indiscriminately at Diallo. They were firing so wildly, one officer tripped and fell backwards prompting his fellow officers to believe he had been shot.
In the aftermath, a Bronx grand jury indicted the 4 officers on 2nd degree murder and reckless endangerment. A New York Appellate Court determined the officers couldn’t get a “fair trial” in NYC due to the extreme publicity of the case. The case was moved to Albany were all 4 officers were acquitted. This sparked outrage in the country and lead to mass protests especially in NYC. Some of the protesters who were arrested included former NYPD cops, actress Susan Sarandon, Congressman Charlie Rangel and former Mayor David Dinkins. Guess who was Mayor of New York during this time?
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Alberta Spruill was a 57-year-old city worker who was getting ready to leave for work early on May 20, 2003. She was a church going lady who was very respected in her Harlem Community. Yet police thought there was a large stash of guns and drugs in her apartment so they raided early that morning. They went in with a flash bang grenade which is intended to disorient suspects during a raid. When the flash bang explodes it creates a deafening sound, smoke and a bright flash.
Instead of finding drugs and guns, the police found a terrified 57-year-old woman who was screaming she couldn’t breath. Police led her out in handcuffs and even though she told them she had a heart condition, they waited to call the ambulance. When they finally did, she was dead within 2 hours from a heart attack.
The police just simply got it wrong. They raided the wrong residence. This all was the result of bad and misleading information from a confidential “informant” and from the city’s bogus “No Knock” warrant policies. NYC had to pay the relatives of Mrs. Spruill as a result her death. Her death was ruled a homicide even though no one person was directly charged.
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Finally, Sean Bell was leaving his bachelor party on November 25, 2006 when he and 2 of his friends were shot by police officers a total of 51 times. The police were investigating (doing surveillance) on a club for possible prostitution. In the course of this an undercover officer claims he heard one of Bell’s friends mention ‘go get my gun’ after an alleged argument inside the club.
As the men left, the undercover says he followed. Once the men were in the car, the undercover says he pulled out badge and thought he saw someone in the car going for the “gun in question.” He yelled ‘gun’ in which he and fellow officers on the scene opened fire hitting all three men. No gun was found. 3 black men lay wounded and one lay dead. The dead man, Sean Bell, was to be married in hours to his longtime sweetheart.
In the aftermath stories were made up to try and substantiate the “gun in question” and to give the police an excuse for the shooting. The officers tried to say a fourth person was in the car and “managed to escape and take the gun.” There were even stories written about Mr. Bell to make him seem like a violent man, none of which was found to be true. The officers were acquitted of the shooting prompting several protest from community leaders and musicians all across the country. Mr. Bell’s other friends survived the shooting but are scarred physically for life.
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