| I read the police report of Prof. Gates arrest via Boston.Com yesterday.
My first reaction was kudos to the Globe for finally getting it right by providing the police report.
Then I read the report. Line by line.
A number of things struck me.
First, the arresting officer, and report writer, by the name Crowley was assigned to the "administrative bureau" at Cambridge P.D.
He was on duty (believe in plain clothes) riding in a police car ( I believe unmarked) on his way to somewhere when he heard the call sending real policemen in real police cars to check out the kind of thing that gets reported in middle and upper class neighborhoods. - A man outside a house acting suspiciously or something like that.
And ninety-nine out of a hundred times in suburbia and parts of Cambridge (not central square, but even there too), it turns out to be a false alarm. The person, for whatever reason was there legitimately and a panicky but concerned neighbor called the cops.
As I read the report I thought this was one of those situations which any half decent cop would straighten out in minutes.
I also read in the report that Officer Crowley asked for ID and Gates gave him a photo Harvard ID. Because of this ID, Crowley wrote in his report, he called Harvard University Police to the scene. Huh?
Now we have Crowley, assigned to the administrative office, controlling the scene as other police officers from Cambridge and Harvard arrived, Thereby creating a crowd, a necessary element for disorderly conduct charge.
As I read this report, which Officer Crowley wrote later at the police station, I saw what a disgrace this arrest was and how one incompetent police officer has given our part of the world a black mark.
This police report is a defense attorney's dream. Office Crowley should expect to be on the stand for days. I mean the first sentence, he tells us he was an administrator (there is always a reason, and not a good one, for desk duty) who just happened to be passing by. That statement alone is worth three hours of questioning by an average lawyer with a low profile case. Now we add the celebrity and high priced attorney to the mix.
And let's not forget the civil case and the civil deposition.
There is so much to know about officer Crowley which directly bears upon his ability to perform as a police officer.
And unlike the Dee Brown incident, in spite of many similarities, we deserve it here.
Of course the police were called because Prof. Gates was black. (just like Dee) And of course he should be pissed about that. And there is no law that says he cannot express that to a police officer as long as he does not interfere with police officer's duties. Crowley created this unnecessary scrape. Thank god Crowley was not the responding to the Dee Brown incident. How many shots would have been fired?
But anyway what I was really thinking after I read the report was the post I would write today outlining Officers Crowley's report line by line and point out why his own version of events written in the police report will not and should not hold up.
Then listening to some radio this morning I thought how unfair people were to Gates as the quoted from the newspaper blurbs of the report written by the police officer who had to justify the arrest.
I was also going to talk how the police code mandate that other officers had to stand around and watch as Crowley lit this fire. Then, under the code, they have to let him go through with it and make like they didn't see it.
Like The Fence
Now, that brings me to the point of this post. I went looking for the report today to point all this out for you. (I am pretty sure he said in the report he was in plain clothes and unmarked car) but I would need to report to verify.
And I wanted to link to it.
But it is not there!
The Tri-Lateral Commission strikes again?
Where is the report? Why did Globe take it down?
"Journalists", like Michelle McPhee, who are pawns of the police are dangerous to everyone, icluding you and me. There is no reason for this report to be covered-up from public scrutiny other than it shows how ridiculous the Cambridge Police are even in a 'cover-your-ass' report.
What is outrageous is mug shot is released and shown all over yet no police report which is full of exculpatory evidence - if one knows how to read a police report.
(BTW an aside to Prof. Gates. Seriously Sir, you took a good mug shot. Always a concern and you came out with flyying colors. It was good to see you didn't look into the camera like they told you.) |
