tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post3572321452367083900..comments2024-03-25T20:06:39.794-05:00Comments on Grits for Breakfast: Eleven unanswered questions about the botched police raid in HoustonGritsforbreakfasthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-19797994930975266042019-02-18T14:44:12.496-06:002019-02-18T14:44:12.496-06:00There is no reason to believe that the narcs found...There is no reason to believe that the narcs found some pot and a white powder -- no reason to believe that is true. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-9787227792186655562019-02-16T15:54:04.390-06:002019-02-16T15:54:04.390-06:00Do you need Finance?
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Contact him now via email at ekpentemple@gmail.com or on whatsaap +2347050270218.<br />Jeroldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00407059276676088427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-810182814725168382019-02-11T00:02:37.571-06:002019-02-11T00:02:37.571-06:00Where is the marked money in the supposed heroin b...Where is the marked money in the supposed heroin buy???<br />They make photocopies of money used in buys Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-74842727559956696992019-02-09T19:48:52.000-06:002019-02-09T19:48:52.000-06:00Since Tuttle fired at the cops it is reasonable to...Since Tuttle fired at the cops it is reasonable to believe the police report about Nichols reaching for the shotgun. You raise a good point though, Anon 2/08, but then again there is the informant's description of the house and the narc's observation of him leaving that address with a baggie of black tar heroin.<br /><br />Here is some additional information.<br /><br />18 grams of marijuana and 1.5 grams of an unknown white powder were found at the raided house. A couple of shot guns, a .22 cal. rifle and a 7mm rifle were also found. The white powder turned out to be cocaine.<br /><br />According to the search warrant affidavit, one of the narcs observed their informant leave the location before he handed them a baggie of black tar heroin. He said that "a large quantity of plastic baggies" of the heroin was in the house, along with a handgun, but no plastic baggies or black tar heroin were found. <br /><br />The raid is now and has been under investigation by HPD’s internal affairs unit. If they did hit the wrong house, I believe HPD will let us know it was a tragic mistake. <br />BarkGrowlBitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04830589594331819236noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-67715198487968280462019-02-08T19:57:46.502-06:002019-02-08T19:57:46.502-06:00The 911 caller on January 8th reported that her da...The 911 caller on January 8th reported that her daughter was doing drugs in the house and she was trying to look through the windows. However, when the police arrived they did not find the caller nor anything suspicious at 7815 Harding St. It's possible the cops misheard the address and were investigating the wrong house right from the beginning. <br /><br />We don't know for sure Rhogena Nicholas actually reached for a fallen officer's weapon. We also don't know for sure the dog was aggressive.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-59729980149337732672019-02-07T11:56:17.025-06:002019-02-07T11:56:17.025-06:00An investigative reporter believes there is a good...An investigative reporter believes there is a good chance the Houston narcs hit the wrong house. The house that was raided at 7815 Harding Street was a well-kept one-story cottage. Chief Art Acevedo suggested the occupants of that house knew it was cops breaking into their house because they had a sophisticated surveillance system. However, there were no security cameras anywhere on the outside of the house. Dennis Tuttle, 59, a disabled Navy veteran and Rhogena Nicholas, 58, his wife of 21-years were both killed in a shootout with the police. Tuttle had no criminal record and Nicholas only had a misdemeanor $145 hot check record. The narcs only found a small amount of pot and some white powder in the house.<br /><br />Tully’s neighbors spoke highly of him and his wife and said, "They never had company" and "There was never traffic at that house. Never" and "They never noticed suspicious activity."<br /><br />The reporter checked out the house at 7815 Hardy Street. That house was a dilapidated two-story house with its upstairs windows broken. The house was surrounded by a wrought iron fence and it had a number of high-tech security cameras on the outside. The occupant of that house had a long criminal history. To the reporter that looked like a drug house and he thought the cops should have hit the Hardy Street house. <br /><br />When I was a narc, we always found a substantial quantity of drugs, at least one scale, packaging materials and usually a large amount of cash. Since that was not the case in the Harding Street and with the descriptions of the two houses, it appears quite likely that the raid should have been conducted at 7815 Hardy Street.<br /><br />But not so fast there! The search warrant clearly listed the Harding Street address and described the place to be raided as a one-story house. The fact that the narcs found only some pot and a white powder does not mean Tuttle was not in the business of selling black tar heroin. There was nothing untoward in the use of the confidential informant who may or not have been paid. Based on the search warrant affidavit, the cops hit the right house.<br /><br />As for Rhogena Nicholas being unarmed, the moment she reached for the fallen officer’s shotgun she was dead meat. And the dog was shot because it was aggressive in trying to protect its masters and their house. <br /><br />The deaths of Tuttle and his wife and the wounding of four officers was a tragedy no doubt, but what is really sickening is that Grits has brought out the usual cop-haters with their ugly comments calling the cops murderers. <br /><br />Oh, by the way, a lot of criminals, especially dope dealers, are dirt bags. And those of you who call cops murderers are dirt bags too! <br />BarkGrowlBitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04830589594331819236noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-87866398074589297012019-02-03T13:46:44.208-06:002019-02-03T13:46:44.208-06:00So they synchronize a squad car to turn on a siren...So they synchronize a squad car to turn on a siren at or about the moment of breach... <br />This is supposed to alert the homeowner that search is being conducted by the police? <br /><br />I never... If I were to hear a siren followed or in concert with breaching noises the first thing that would come to mind is that someone fleeing the police were trying to enter my home. Get ready for someone desperate to enter. I would think that would be the normal response among occupants.<br /><br />Who thinks this shit up and I suppose more importantly, where do they publish the rules?<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-11411377836466221772019-02-03T11:19:05.532-06:002019-02-03T11:19:05.532-06:00Most SWAT teams are using "surround and callo...Most SWAT teams are using "surround and callout," which is pretty much what it sounds like, for most warrants these days. It's the industry standard, and is pushed by the state and national tactical officer organizations. That probably would have worked out better here, but it wasn't a SWAT team serving the warrant. Which probably points to some significant process errors in the organization if a "high risk" warrant isn't served by the high risk warrant specialists, or at least their input is required during then planning process. WHich is also the industry standard.<br /><br />I bet that most of the search warrants issued by a municipal judge are blood warrants for DWI arrests. Other than those, the types of search warrants they can issue are limited. While they CAN issue a warrant for narcotics, almost any decent narcotics investigator gets an evidentiary search warrant in a narcotics case, issued by a district court, because that opens up records, guns, stolen property, electronic media and all of the other things necessary to proving a narcotics business, as opposed to a narcotics only warrant, which only authorizes searching for and seizing...narcotics.<br /><br />The rest of what happened sounds fairly mundane and common practice, except it went really badly. And the lack of body cameras was, well, stupid is the only thing that comes to mind. Pretty much any agency that has body cameras mandates them for any arrest scenario. Better get on that, Art.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-53938054790898967162019-02-03T10:32:42.917-06:002019-02-03T10:32:42.917-06:00I retired as a Sergeant after 25 years with the HC...I retired as a Sergeant after 25 years with the HCSO and I'm currently the president of the Houston Peace and Justice Center. I'm also on the board of the Greater Houston Coalition for Justice headed up by the civil rights hero and icon Johnny Mata. Personally, I must speak out about something that hasn't really been addressed or forgotten about in all of the information in the press and in the numerous discrepancies about this entire situation. Mr. Gamaldi, as a police officer, described fellow human beings as "Dirt Bags" and this description is shared by many police officers who deal with people who commit crimes. In this process a disabled Navy Veteran and his wife who was suffering from cancer, both of whom had no prior criminal record were dehumanized and painted with that same brush that paints anyone who comes into contact with our criminal justice system. They were never read their rights. They never had a chance to defend themselves in court. They somehow became a type of sub-human, guilty in the eyes of the law enforcement community and that definition carried over to the public. We hold those first responders in high esteem and we appreciate what they do every day and we realize they are charged to protect and serve us, but somehow the balance of life has slipped. The saddest part is everyone accepted a description of a fellow human being as a "Dirt Bag" without question. <br /> Everything began with an anonymous 911 call, a confidential informant (C.I.) who gets paid for turning in his fellow citizens and a no-knock warrant. The no knock warrant came about during the war on drugs and it's main purpose is to prevent the destruction of evidence. This type of warrant exists for the police to be able to seize drugs before they can be flushed down the toilet and it is sometimes claimed it is for the safety of the officers. This war has had a high fatality rate from friendly fire and proven totally ineffective in stopping the availability of drugs. This drug raid went terribly wrong for everyone involved, both officers and the home owners, who were tried, convicted, and executed, without a trial and we as a society need to decide if it is more acceptable for us to flush human lives away than evidence. Is human life now reduced to the equivalence of a dirt bag because they may have committed a crime? Is it acceptable for a police official to enflame and target those who he feels doesn’t like the police? Are we ok with flushing our own humanity down the toilet along with human lives just to continue a failed war on drugs where we value evidence more that life?JRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00445020514697090497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-44536504260786812202019-02-03T09:52:58.733-06:002019-02-03T09:52:58.733-06:00¶5 - "regrettably"? Don't you mean ...¶5 - "regrettably"? Don't you mean "conveniently for the police?"<br />The race for media attention from the police chief to the AG's office and even to the White House issuing press releases praising the officers presumes the changing narrative of the police should be the end of the story. If anything this hyperactivity is reason to investigate further. Why no-knock warrant? Why wear outfits criminals might use instead of law enforcement uniforms? Are the police in Houston anything other than mercenaries? (Note: Harris County and Houston have programs where "extra patrol" [i.e., more than none] requires payment and a contract. The contract is typically with the HOA. This has long been troubling as to whether law enforcement (constables, sheriff, police) are just mercenaries employed by an HOA or whether they are government employees doing their job) <br />See, e.g., <br />http://www.constablepct4.com/extra-patrol-request.html<br />https://www.harriscountyso.org/Programs/programs_ContractPatrol.aspx<br />http://woodstreamvillage.org/crimewatch.html<br /><br /> IC_deLighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04545064681164387194noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-56594282318082878932019-02-03T09:28:09.945-06:002019-02-03T09:28:09.945-06:00@Stan Burton: Municipal court judges signed 17,567...@Stan Burton: Municipal court judges signed 17,567 search warrants statewide in FY 2018, so it's pretty common. See p. 56: http://www.txcourts.gov/media/1443455/2018-ar-statistical-final.pdf Gritsforbreakfasthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-85089254513110379082019-02-03T09:12:10.527-06:002019-02-03T09:12:10.527-06:00a few other issues. rule of thumb is that at least...a few other issues. rule of thumb is that at least two buys using different CI's is standard protocol to corroborate stories. there was only one buy.<br /><br />warrants are normally signed by county district court judges, this one was signed by a municipal court judge who is appointed by the mayor. again deviating from protocol. Rorschachhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11848860674369931761noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-84789094554132707132019-02-03T08:26:44.367-06:002019-02-03T08:26:44.367-06:00"Why does Fox and Friends give union boss Joe..."Why does Fox and Friends give union boss Joe Gamaldi a platform? The guy's a blowhard."<br /><br />You have answered your own question.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-35007707658214267312019-02-03T07:57:42.829-06:002019-02-03T07:57:42.829-06:00More innocent citizens will be shooting first now....More innocent citizens will be shooting first now. You're going to see more head and pelvic shots to people. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-42374186888389209142019-02-03T03:27:17.244-06:002019-02-03T03:27:17.244-06:00@Jim-
Those videos can be edited to blur the face...@Jim-<br /><br />Those videos can be edited to blur the faces of any undercover officer (similar to redacted documents that are available to the public.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-90516296674305032792019-02-02T21:04:25.565-06:002019-02-02T21:04:25.565-06:00Ahh, Johnny, also a 3 percenter? Posse Comitatus?
...Ahh, Johnny, also a 3 percenter? Posse Comitatus?<br /><br />Such a thing of course exists, despite your fantasy, wet dream or whatever.Gadflyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13075757287807731373noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-81986957671989644792019-02-02T19:36:17.728-06:002019-02-02T19:36:17.728-06:00I surmise that the narcotic officers did not wear ...I surmise that the narcotic officers did not wear body camera as many of those officers either perform undercover and/or covert duties. Wearing body cameras subjects those videos and officers on those videos to freedom of information act inquiries which can compromise their ‘faces’ to the public. <br />Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-43484053059406086752019-02-02T16:19:18.113-06:002019-02-02T16:19:18.113-06:00I hope they recover so that they can face criminal...I hope they recover so that they can face criminal charges for the murder of two houstonians.Johnnyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15744737020297462963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-36470547440072079522019-02-02T16:16:59.711-06:002019-02-02T16:16:59.711-06:00There is no such thing as sovereign immunity anywa...There is no such thing as sovereign immunity anyway. Apart from the fact that the government in the United States is not sovereign there's a fact that it's just a legal sophism used to justify Violence by the state. Johnnyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15744737020297462963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-4869749150304095952019-02-02T15:31:06.430-06:002019-02-02T15:31:06.430-06:00Tom says it all about Rambo cops.
Anon the third ...Tom says it all about Rambo cops.<br /><br />Anon the third is right on the body cams. Even with immunity provisions, can't relatives of the couple sue for something? And Acevado should be writing up cops for dereliction of duty on this.<br /><br />Gamaldi needs to be fired right now, and fück union and civil service protections. And, if he follows any person from a civil liberties group twice, having made his comments, he needs to be charged with stalking. Probably can't quite hang a terroristic threat charge on him right now.Gadflyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13075757287807731373noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-35132089597455679422019-02-02T14:14:07.320-06:002019-02-02T14:14:07.320-06:00"Acevedo said the officers involved in the ra..."Acevedo said the officers involved in the raid were not wearing body cameras."<br /><br />WTF.<br /><br />Who are the nimrods running this organization? Is there a reason body cameras were NOT worn (other than to muddy the waters when an illegal murder has occurred?)<br /><br />And if blowhard Gamaldi had any concern about his TARGETED officers or the (now dead) community his officers were protecting, then he would be screaming about the failure to have body cameras on the narcotics officers during the raid.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-36619424573086597592019-02-02T14:02:14.271-06:002019-02-02T14:02:14.271-06:00And a couple of other points:
1. This wouldn'...And a couple of other points:<br /><br />1. This wouldn't be the first time HPD's Keystone cops have shot one another during a raid. When will the ballistics reports become public Art?<br /><br />2. In the private sector, anyone who gets seriously injured on the job three times during their career (e.g. the cop who'd already been shot three times executing other raids and hailed as a "hero") is probably suspect as to their competence and regarded as a danger to those around him. They generally would have been removed from their position after the second incident.<br /><br />3. If cops want to wear military gear, all five US services have recruiting offices. These cops might not have been shot IF they’d have worn badges and police IDs. Cops, if anyone should know that criminal home invaders often disguise themselves as cops before entering a residence, so why did the cops dress up like home invaders, then wonder why they got themselves shot?<br /><br />4. Real “heroes” don’t shoot dogs or unarmed women. – Let me repeat that so that it sinks in - Real “heroes” don’t shoot dogs or unarmed women. <br /><br />5. If Aceveda doesn’t get a handle on this and his thug cops, the next thing we’ll see is HPD lobbing flashbangs into baby cribs (Yes – It’s happened…. https://www.copblock.org/155092/3-6-million-settlement-reached-in-flash-bang-grenade-raid-maiming-of-baby-bou-bou/<br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-40457631955646527032019-02-02T13:35:58.833-06:002019-02-02T13:35:58.833-06:00"Which bring me to this - Joe Gamaldi does no...<br />"Which bring me to this - Joe Gamaldi does not run the Houston Police Department - I do...." I heard this quote from Aceveda on 88.7 NPR yesterday. This is the first thing Aceveda has said about this incident that makes any sense.<br /><br />Gamaldi is the full time union president of HPOU. As such, and as a full time employee of HPOU he is acting as a private citizen working for HPOU, NOT a police officer. If he wants to threaten "activists" on anyone else who complains about HPD, then his sovereign immunity is out the window, as it should be. He and HPOU can be sued and prosecuted just like any other private citizen, and HPOU’s lawyers need to remind this loudmouth little pizza jerk of that fact before their pension funds get sued into oblivion.<br /><br />Also note that “activists” (e.g. ACLU, NAACP, MALDF, BLM, etc.) have lawyers and funds too, and they can “monitor” HPD and HPOU as they wish as long as they don’t make threats, as Gamaldi did.<br /><br />If the HPOU members are have any active brain cells left, Gamaldi’s days there should be numbered.<br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com