Cops Admit To Planting Marijuana on 92 Year Old Woman Killed in Botched Drug Raid

[align=left]the freedom is overwhelming.

Cops Admit To Planting Marijuana on 92 Year Old Woman Killed in Botched Drug Raid
Harry R. Weber
Associated Press
Monday, April 30, 2007[/align]
ATLANTA â?? Two police officers pleaded guilty Thursday to manslaughter in the shooting death of a 92-year-old woman during a botched drug raid last fall. A third officer still faces charges.
Officer J.R. Smith told a state judge Thursday that he regretted what had happened.
"I'm sorry," the 35-year-old said, his voice barely audible. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter, violation of oath, criminal solicitation, making false statements and perjury, which was based on claims in a warrant.
Former Officer Gregg Junnier, 40, who retired from the Atlanta police in January, pleaded guilty to manslaughter, violation of oath, criminal solicitation and making false statements. Both men are expected to face more than 10 years in prison.
In a hearing later in federal court, both pleaded guilty to a single charge of conspiracy to violate a person's civil rights, resulting in death. Their state and federal sentences would run concurrently.
The charges followed a Nov. 21 "no-knock" drug raid on the home of Kathryn Johnston, 92. An informant had described buying drugs from a dealer there, police said. When the officers burst in without warning, Johnston fired at them, and they fired back, killing her.

Fulton County prosecutor Peter Johnson said that the officers involved in Johnston's death fired 39 shots, striking her five or six times, including a fatal blow to the chest.
He said Johnston fired only once through her door and didn't hit any of the officers. That means the officers who were wounded likely were hit by their own colleagues, he said.
Junnier and Smith, who is on administrative leave, had been charged in an indictment unsealed earlier Thursday with felony murder, violation of oath by a public officer, criminal solicitation, burglary, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and making false statements.
The third officer, Arthur Tesler, also on administrative leave, was charged with violation of oath by a public officer, making false statements and false imprisonment under color of legal process. His attorney, William McKenney, said Tesler expects to go to trial.
Tesler, 40, is "very relieved" not to face murder charges, McKenney said, "but we're concerned about the three charges."
Both men could have faced up to life in prison had they been convicted of murder. Instead, Junnier will face 10 years and one month and Smith 12 years and seven months. No sentencing date was immediately set, and the sentences are contingent on the men cooperating with the government.
The deadly drug raid had been set up after narcotics officers said an informant had claimed there was cocaine in the home.
When the plainclothes officers burst in without notice, police said, Johnston fired at them, and they fired back.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Yonette Sam-Buchanan said Thursday that although the officers found no drugs in Johnston's home, Smith planted three bags of marijuana in the home as part of a cover story.
The case raised serious questions about no-knock warrants and whether the officers followed proper procedures.
Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington asked the FBI to lead a multi-agency probe. He also announced policy changes to require the department to drug-test its nearly 1,800 officers and require top supervisors to sign off on narcotics operations and no-knock warrants.
To get the warrant, officers told a magistrate judge that an undercover informant had told them Johnston's home had surveillance cameras monitored carefully by a drug dealer named Sam.
After the shooting, a man claiming to be the informant told a television station that he had never purchased drugs there, leading Pennington to admit he was uncertain whether the suspected drug dealer actually existed.
The Rev. Markel Hutchins, a civil rights activist who serves as a spokesman for Johnston's family, said the family was satisfied with Thursday's developments.
"They have never sought vengeance. They have only sought justice," he said.
Hutchins said the family is considering civil action against the police department.
"I think what happened today makes it very clear that Ms. Johnston was violated, that her civil rights were violated," he said.
Associated Press writer Jason Bronis in Atlanta contributed to this report.

Freedom hurts- i dont think i like this new freedom

Oh, how sad the world has become......those expected to uphold the law, are breaking the law. And the saddest part is that a "civilian" caught trafficing marijuana would do more time than these "pigs" are going to do for "murdering" an old woman. DISGUSTING!

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Originally Posted by Nor.Cal Smoker

Oh, how sad the world has become......those expected to uphold the law, are breaking the law. And the saddest part is that a "civilian" caught trafficing marijuana would do more time than these "pigs" are going to do for "murdering" an old woman. DISGUSTING!

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I happen to agree. No knock warrants are in themselves a violation of the constitution. The courts have swung so far to the right because of this mindless war on drugs. Here's my question: How can a right winger be on a Pot site professing their hatred of all things liberal, when the most liberal thing would be legalization of drugs. It is the mindset of right wing police and courts that have removed so many of our rights the last 60 years or so. How can these same people come on here and tear down liberal thinking without being hypocrites. As in yeah, we need all those stinkin laws for the bad guys, but let us have our pot. 80% of prisoners in prison today are there for drug related offenses, like burglary to get money for drugs, bad drug deals, crazy acts commited high or dope sick to get drugs, etc.

hey whats the excuse for all this .................. we have to protect you from the terrorist.....fukin BS....

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Originally Posted by medicinal

I happen to agree. No knock warrants are in themselves a violation of the constitution. The courts have swung so far to the right because of this mindless war on drugs. Here's my question: How can a right winger be on a Pot site professing their hatred of all things liberal, when the most liberal thing would be legalization of drugs. It is the mindset of right wing police and courts that have removed so many of our rights the last 60 years or so. How can these same people come on here and tear down liberal thinking without being hypocrites. As in yeah, we need all those stinkin laws for the bad guys, but let us have our pot. 80% of prisoners in prison today are there for drug related offenses, like burglary to get money for drugs, bad drug deals, crazy acts commited high or dope sick to get drugs, etc.

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Here's the answers to all your questions my friend. I voted for Clinton because after all, he toked but didn't inhale while his running mate Gore did inhale. I thought at the time being young and dumb that their past actions really meant anything regarding what their actions were going to be. But I didn't realize how far the Dems heads are shoved up the ass of health care. Kind of ironic how they care so much on what we put into our bodies as to what we have ripped out (abortion rights).

Clintons tax on beer, cigs and his VAST contribution to the war on drugs. All this combined with Tippers fight against the music industry on labels to protect us from the dirty lyrics. How about Hillary's fight against "Inappropriate Video Games". Compare anti-smoking laws in democratic states as compared to republican states once. Don't even try to tell me that this party is going to be the one to legalize anything!

If you want every aspect of your life scrutinized for your own good, vote Democrat!

Have a good one!:s4:

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Originally Posted by eg420ne

hey whats the excuse for all this .................. we have to protect you from the terrorist.....fukin BS....

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That is the feds job........to protect us from foreign threats. Their job ISN'T to protect us from ourselves.........

Have a good one!:s4:

P4B you can always move to Canada where u dont have to worry about going to jail for 20 years for growing a few plants.Isnt Arnold Scwartza****** a Rebulican look at their MJ laws.I dont know if he had anything to do with it,but it really doesnt matter who u vote for none of them are going to stop the war on drugs period.

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Originally Posted by fishman3811

P4B you can always move to Canada where u dont have to worry about going to jail for 20 years for growing a few plants.Isnt Arnold Scwartza****** a Rebulican look at their MJ laws.I dont know if he had anything to do with it,but it really doesnt matter who u vote for none of them are going to stop the war on drugs period.

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In Wisconsin now and plan on heading south.......NOT north. The older I get the more I hate the cold.

Arnold's a Republican but I don't really think he had much influence on Cali's mj laws.......I could be wrong but I think that was more of a grass roots movement. Just found this though:

Most notably, Republican gubernatorial candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger recently announced that he supports the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes.
Schwarzenegger, Other Calif. Gubernatorial Candidates Voice Support For Pot Law Reform<BR>Margolin And Camejo Back Taxing And Regulating Pot For Personal Use - NORML

Have a good one!:s4:

Dont blame you the South looks good to me to.I think Arnold smoked mj when he was young to so not all Rebulicans are anti mj.