California cops found NOT GUILTY of beating man to death. Claim he died of "drug use"

23536

23536

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California cops found NOT GUILTY of beating man to death. Claim he died of "drug use"

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/...r-case-20140113,0,5661959.story#axzz2qKGF26Q8

An Orange County jury Monday found two former Fullerton police officers accused of killing a schizophrenic homeless man, Kelly Thomas, not guilty.

Manuel Ramos and Jay Cicinelli were charged with striking Kelly Thomas with a baton and a stun gun in a beating that left him comatose. He died five days later.

[Updated at 4:25 p.m.: Ramos, Cicinelli and their families were swiftly escorted out of the courtroom.

Ron Thomas, Kelly Thomas' father, said he was stunned by the verdict, saying he'd never seen such a miscarriage of justice.

Thomas also suggested that federal authorities should look into the case.

Ramos' attorney, John Barnett, told reporters: "These peace officers were doing their jobs...they did what they were trained to do."

Orange County Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas said prosecutors would not pursue charges against a third Fullerton officer accused in the Thomas case. That officer's trial was pending.

"I don't intend to proceed with another trial when the two officers here were acquitted," he told reporters.

The jury took less than a full day of deliberation to reach the not-guilty verdicts.

Rackauckas told jurors the former officers had abused their authority on the July evening when they confronted Thomas.

Ramos was facing second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter charges, and Cicinelli was charged with involuntary manslaughter and excessive use of force under the color of authority.

The incident, captured on surveillance tape, was shown repeatedly during the trial, but each side drew different conclusions as to what it showed.

Prosecutors said the video captured a real-time homicide with the officers beating a homeless man, even as he called out for help. Defense attorneys said it showed two policeman trying to restrain a violent suspect who possessed abnormal strength.

The coroner's office determined that Thomas died of brain damage from lack of oxygen caused by chest compression and other injuries sustained during his struggle with police.

Defense attorneys suggested that Thomas' death could be tied to a diseased heart damaged by previous drug use.


http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/...r-case-20140113,0,5661959.story#ixzz2qNu0JXZ0

Picture of victim:

NSFW:
7HkcO0M.jpg


Video of the incident:

 
Truely disgusting.
Cops are trained to violate rights and commit murder.
Another fail for the justice system. Those pictures are tough to look at, obviously un neccassary force.
 
This is sickening. Sadly, it is not suprising. I cant see the pictures cuz my phone never loads the nsfw tags for some reason, but i watched the video and its pretty awful. Yeah he might have been a bit of a smart ass but no one deserves this. He kept crying out for his dad too, i feel for his father that probably kills him to hear that.

Also, they tased him five times and he was already down on the ground with cops piled on him, wtf?
 
The video's not even the most shocking thing. 12 out of 12 jurors returned a verdict of not guilty.

Theory: the type of people that would find a cop guilty of something are the type to lie to get out of jury duty. For high profile cases like this, if you ever even had a countercultural thought once, you'd be rejected, so only middle-class schoolmarms make it unto these juries.
 
Fucking terrible, it pains me that this is only becoming more common...

^^and I agree on the jury loading thing--I'd convict a cop of j-walking on the testimony of their ex-wife, but I'd probably never end up on a jury to begin with...

How could anyone not wish to put these sadists in prison though? Even sheltered and naïve schoolmarms have children who they could imagine being bludgeoned to death by a pig high on their own power...
 
That's horrible. How can they be found not guilty with that video evidence? Jesus Christ, that was torture.

Many level headed and decent cops (yes there are some) would have handled that a billion times better, even if they did arrest him and take him to jail, what was the need for all that violence? Cuff him and take him into jail. Fucking psychopaths, Ramos saying see these fists, im about to fuck you up etc. Sad and brutal. The dad must be horrified seeing that and hearing his son call out for him as he is so badly assaulted.
 
23536 said:
The video's not even the most shocking thing. 12 out of 12 jurors returned a verdict of not guilty.

Theory: the type of people that would find a cop guilty of something are the type to lie to get out of jury duty. For high profile cases like this, if you ever even had a countercultural thought once, you'd be rejected, so only middle-class schoolmarms make it unto these juries.
Click to expand...

The jury system is - how do we say - an imprecise system for determining guilt. Although I'm torn on the issue, it's fair to say we have a very strong cultural attachment to the notion of being tried by your peers but seeing as though it's not 12th century Britain any more there is a good case for reforming it - although I'm not sure there is a government on Earth I'd want to entrust with reforming the basic pillars of Western Democracy, we not exactly being led by great Enlightenment thinkers these days.
 
Numbers, how does the jury selection process work in the US if you know?

I have actually been a jury member on a murder trial, and I wasn't asked any questions other than what I did. I just turned up on the day they told me and was given a number, for each case they draw a certain amount of numbers, I think it might be twice as many as are required for a jury, then you go into the court room and they draw numbers again, if you are selected then you have to walk past the defendant and up to the jury box, the defendant has a right to challenge a certain number of people without reason if he doesn't like the look of them. This is how it works in the Supreme Court of Melbourne, I could not comment on anybody else, I am not qualified in anything legal I just was lucky enough to be chosen.

Your statement about not being selected if you ever had a counter cultural thought once makes me think it must be different in the US, I can't understand why you would have to answer any questions though, it seems kind of contrary to the interests of justice to screen jury members like that.
 
^ I'm not 100% but I think the US uses a psych profile to determine if you're eligible for the cases of that day.

This is disgusting. My bet is that money changed hands for a 12/12 not guilty in less than 24 hours.

'Died due to previous drug use'... fucking weak excuse.
 
Drug Mentor said:
Numbers, how does the jury selection process work in the US if you know?

I have actually been a jury member on a murder trial, and I wasn't asked any questions other than what I did. I just turned up on the day they told me and was given a number, for each case they draw a certain amount of numbers, I think it might be twice as many as are required for a jury, then you go into the court room and they draw numbers again, if you are selected then you have to walk past the defendant and up to the jury box, the defendant has a right to challenge a certain number of people without reason if he doesn't like the look of them. This is how it works in the Supreme Court of Melbourne, I could not comment on anybody else, I am not qualified in anything legal I just was lucky enough to be chosen.

Your statement about not being selected if you ever had a counter cultural thought once makes me think it must be different in the US, I can't understand why you would have to answer any questions though, it seems kind of contrary to the interests of justice to screen jury members like that.
Click to expand...

All prospective jurors are vetted by both the prosecution and defense, and both sides must agree to a juror in order for that juror to make it onto the jury. So for instance, for a drug trial the prosecution can ask you if you believe cannabis should be legal. Say "yes" and they can summarily reject you--which is what most prospective jurors wanted anyway.

There are people who, out of a sense of civic duty, will desire to be on the jury, and will try their best not to get rejected. My hypothesis is that most of these people are soccer-parent prohibitionists who also believe in shit like dress codes for entire cities.
 
Vigilante justice....i hope a mob of homeless ppl break bottles of those pigs faces...not to advocate violence, but they killed a human and got off scot free...."did what they were trained to do" slick lawyer...fuck that.
 
The coroner's office wasn't even corrupt in this case, they stated a cause of death that had jack shit to do with drug damage. He died of hypoxia from those sociopathic thugs compressing his lungs, preventing him from being able to breath.
 
23536 said:
Ramos' attorney, John Barnett, told reporters: "These peace officers were doing their jobs...they did what they were trained to do."
Click to expand...

I find this quote disgusting. I thought police officers were there to uphold the law. Appearently this lawyer thinks this includes beating defenseless people to death. Oh well, it's his job to defend them but really...
 
This is unbelievable. Stuff like this makes me lose hope on the human race.

Thank fuck we're not all like that
 
23536 said:
protests in Fullerton

kelly_thomas_1.jpg


http://laist.com/2014/01/18/photos_video_kelly_thomas_protester.php#photo-1
Click to expand...

Can't believe some of the comments.

One particularly cold person (perhaps a sociopath) left a comment asking that why are the protestors bothering to protest for a "near-useless cause". Law Enforcement beating the tar (and life) out of a homeless, seemingly helpless, mentally ill person, and then being found not guilty (past drug use being blamed) is apparently no big deal to some. Swear this asshole is asking to have his skull caved in.
 
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