Confused on my options on police misconduct

[GOlivares]

What is the name of your state? CA

On October 08, 2006 at approximately 1:30 AM two policemen, from the El Monte Police Department, entered my lawn to speak to me. I was holding a social event between friends and family and there were no more than twenty people at my house at that time. The police officer claimed a neighbor complained about the music. I apologized to the officer and told him we would keep it down and turn off the music. The officer told me he doesn’t care if we turn it down or not, he wants everyone to leave at that very moment. I asked him again in a very polite manner if by any chance most of them can stay because it was the previous arrangement that I had made with most people there. He sternly said no he wants everyone to leave right now and he gave me three minutes to get everyone out, then he walked out.

I am not aware of why the officers’ behavior was so malicious and rude when I was attempting to be extremely polite with the officer but it did scare me. I told my friends and family to enter my house, which they did and fit rather comfortably since it is a big house and there were not many people to begin with. I went to speak to the officer never stepping of my property and the officer told me I had one minute and thirty seconds left. I then proceeded by closing the gate and asked him to please obtain a warrant in a very polite manner.

This made the officer more upset than he was and told me “So you are going to play that game”. They then both proceeded to jump over the fence from my neighbor’s house and cuffed me. I panicked for a little bit since they entered the property forcefully and asked the officer if he would still let me let the people leave the house. He said it was too late and he was going to arrest me.

At this point I was extremely calm but was getting upset inside. I never thought I would ever have any problems with the police since I have always had a clean record with the law. Vanessa, a friend, asked the police under what charge are they arresting me. The police officer replied for being drunk in public, which was a false charge because in the first place although I did consume some alcohol, it was only about three drinks in a three hour period which I explained to the officer. The officer than told me that my response time is rather slow and my speech is not very clear. I explained to him the reason my response time is slow is because I am calm and taking a while to articulate my responses rather than responding through emotions and the reason my speech is not clear is because that is how my speech is regularly.

I was very upset inside and although they were claiming I was drunk in public I never ever stepped outside my property even when they had cuffed me, I was still inside the property sitting down. I have heard of many rumors of police abuse similar to my situations in the past in the City of El Monte but have always disregarded them because I believed there may have been more to the stories than someone would have told me and because I had confidence in the police.

The police officer then explained to me that they would let me go if I got everyone to go home. At this point I was extremely upset from the police tactics of coercing someone to do as they say that I was determined to be taken in to later be able to take it to court and challenge the authority of the police. I did not respond and stood sitting down silently. Vanessa told the officers that most people there were too intoxicated to drive and that was the reason why almost everyone was going to spend the night. She further stated that the El Monte Police Department have a strong policy in people driving under the influence and now at this point the police officer was not accepting compromise and wanted everyone out right away. The police then said to Vanessa to tell everyone to get a cab. He had also previously stated to me and asked me “Do you really believe we want to risk our jobs by forcibly removing the people here”. My response was silence

This is when my brother Miguel spoke to the police officer and told him that it was a very small social event and everyone was calm and quiet. The police officer than asked him if he would take responsibility if they have to come back to the house and give him a thousand dollar ticket. Miguel then asked the officer if he takes responsibility would they let me go. The officer responded with yes and it was so then agreed for my brother to take responsibility.

The police then decided to talk to me alone and said that if I would have come up with that compromise in the beginning we wouldn’t of have this whole problem. This made me upset because that is exactly the compromise I made with the police in the most polite manner possible but they refused to listen. Then he said the reason he cuffed me was that I came out with a very bad attitude which is also not true. Whoever knows me, knows that I always speak with a good attitude and don’t like making people angry.

So my question would be, was the conduct of these two officers lawful and if I have a strong case or a weak case? In my opinion the El Monte Police Department is so used to people not filing complaints or suits in the city of El Monte, due to the fact most people are Hispanic and don’t know their legal rights, that they use coercive tactics that cross the barrier between the law and the authority of the police. In truth I do not believe the police officer would of arrested me due to the fact that there were not any possible charges that the officer could of arrested me for, but he still crossed over to private property when he was denied admission and cuffed me stating I was about to be arrested if I did not give in to his demands. This, I feel, violated my rights.

On top of that I have a contact in the city and they asked the Chief of Police in El Monte about this event and he said that the police claim that they entered the property because there was a report of a shooting. Neither I nor any of my guests heard any gun fire at anytime that day and the police never ever mentioned anything about a shooting occurring even as they gave in and let us stay. In my opinion the police officers falsified that information to be able to get away with what they did. Please advice. Thank you.What is the name of your state?

[tranquility]

It gets complex and I don't really have the energy to step through everything right now as mor information would be needed, but there is a possibility the police violated your civil rights. If you are really, really, motivated, see an attorney who will advise you further. But, there is no big payday as you have little damages. While there are things like nominal awards in civil rights cases, attorneys are loathe to take all the risk of litigation and rarely take such a case.

You might want to make a complaint against the officers. But, even though they are not allowed by law to retaliate, it is not unheard of for people in such situations to get extra special police services. El Monte has a reputation for being a very aggressive police force that is politically powerful. I think citizens should stand up and do their duty to report police who violate the law, but believe you must balance the benefit and risk in this situation.

[GOlivares]

Thank you. I asked the same advice from an Uncle who has been advocating rights to the hispanic community and has tooken public offices all his life and he pretty much told me the same thing.

I just feel that the El Monte Police Department is so corrupt, there almost like their own gang. Alot of residents of the city know this and have had similar experiences if not worse but fear reprisal due to the deep corruption that is infested within the department. Many people within the city has heard of police misconduct with false arrests, harrassment, and even criminal activity being done by the police, but no one files any law suits because of fear of retaliation from the police.

Someone who holds a high public office within the city has recommended to me to file suit against the police department so they know that illegal police conduct should not be tolerated. Then again since I have little damages as you said, there probably would not be any attorney who would want to take my case as the fiscal reward would not be great. And with all the negative repercussions that could follow due to the already established conduct of the police, it is almost the wisest choice to not follow any suit which has been recommended by you and my uncle.

Even so, I feel its sad that we have to fear the police and due to fiscal and other restrictions cannot enforce our rights as citizens to balance the power of the police. Since the corruption seems to run deep, I dont believe just a complaint from me would cause the police department to enforce more lawful police conduct. Since I do feel strongly about this and do not really care if I recieve a big financial reward if I file a suit but dont have that much money to actually pay a lawyer myself, would it be possible for a broader investigation to be conducted from an outside agency. My main concern is since I have lived all of my 24 years within the City of El Monte, I feel obligated to find a meens to end or slow the deep corruption that everyone is already used to. Or should I file suit representing myself just to show at least one resident will stand up to them. Please advise, I value any opinon I recieve.

[tranquility]

In California, there has been a general improvement in the professionalism of police agencies in the last decades. When there is a problem, it is usually a problem with individual officers and not the department. Lawsuits and complaints are very effective in dealing with that kind of situation and I strongly encourage them. The purpose of the police is to enforce the law, not to violate the law. Just as a person who drives drunk, speeds or murders another, the police should be responsible for their actions.

Some communities, for whatever reason, have problems in their police department. When an officer violates the rights of another, sometimes it is not just the poor or illegal judgment of the officer but the culture of the department. For many reasons, some believe El Monte may be such a department. That's not to say it's true, as I have no personal experience there, but some who don't tend towards hyperbole seem to think so.

How does a person who cares fix that? One way is to elect leaders who will attempt to reform the department. The police union has pounded those who have been elected who attempted such things in your city. With the increasing gentrification of the community and the desire for safety, police unions can often make people believe they are speaking for the benefit of the community rather than the benefit of the officers. How can that be changed?

A lawsuit can always be a start of change. But, since yours would not have a high dollar amount, is it really going to be an impliment for change? The best thing you could do on this areas is to get experienced civil rights attorneys involved and attack the policies and practices or culture of the department. Talk to the ACLU, talk to hispanic organizations who support such litigation and talk to attorneys who still have the hunger of righting wrongs in their belly, you might find someone who can advise. Because such things are so fact sensitive, you need to get a person who practices in this area to advise you. Civil rights litigation can be very expensive, especially when you are trying to prove the hurt caused to you comes from the department and not the officer. Very expensive. Are you that motivated to risk it? For you, the risk is many thousands of dollars with a benefit of making a change and some small amount of damages. If you get an attorney on board on the hope of civil rights fees paid by the city, his risk is his time and his benefit can be the filling of his billable hours for months. The calculation is better from his point of view.

In this case, if you can't find an attorney who will take the case on the hope of fees, I don't think it would be worth it to sue. Better would be to become a leader and start a grass roots organization to challenge the policies and practices of what you call a "gang". I bet you uncle can help you with information and resources. If you are really, really motivated, go for it. Any choice you make is going to be very hard with a lot of risk and little probable payback beyond a good citizen's feelings of a job well done.