Police raid Md. mayor's home and kill his dogs

CptSternn · 08-08-2008, 01:46 AM

http://tinyurl.com/5ppdt5

BERWYN HEIGHTS, Md. - Mayor Cheye Calvo got home from work, saw a package addressed to his wife on the front porch and brought it inside, putting it on a table.

Suddenly, police with guns drawn kicked in the door and stormed in, shooting to death the couple's two dogs and seizing the unopened package.

In it were 32 pounds of marijuana. But the drugs evidently didn't belong to the couple.

Police say the couple appeared to be innocent victims of a scheme by two men to smuggle millions of dollars worth of marijuana by having it delivered to about a half-dozen unsuspecting recipients.

The two men under arrest include a FedEx deliveryman; investigators said the deliveryman would drop off a package outside a home, and the other man would come by a short time later and pick it up.

Now, federal authorities say they're looking into how local law enforcement handled the July 29 raid. FBI Agent Rich Wolf said late Thursday that the bureau had opened a civil rights investigation into the case.

A furious Calvo said earlier Thursday that he and his wife, Trinity Tomsic, had asked the government to investigate.

"Trinity was an innocent victim and random victim," Calvo said outside his two-story, red-brick house in this middle-class Washington suburb of about 3,000 people. "We were harmed by the very people who took an oath to protect us."

Calvo insisted the couple's two black Labradors were gentle creatures and said police apparently killed them "for sport," gunning down one of them as it was running away.

"Our dogs were our children," said the 37-year-old Calvo. "They were the reason we bought this house because it had a big yard for them to run in."

The mayor, who was changing his clothes when police burst in, also complained that he was handcuffed in his boxer shorts for about two hours along with his mother-in-law, and said the officers didn't believe him when he told them he was the mayor. No charges were brought against Calvo or his wife, who came home in the middle of the raid.

Prince George's County Police Chief Melvin High said Wednesday that Calvo and his family were "most likely ... innocent victims," but he would not rule out their involvement, and he defended the way the raid was conducted. He and other officials did not apologize for killing the dogs, saying the officers felt threatened.

The FBI will monitor how effective, fair and professional the law enforcement agency's conduct was during the incident, Wolf said. A police spokesman declined comment Thursday on the FBI investigation.

Police announced Wednesday they had arrested two men suspected in a plot to smuggle 417 pounds of marijuana, and seized a total of $3.6 million in pot. Investigators said the package that arrived on Calvo's porch had been sent from Los Angeles via FedEx, and they had been tracking it ever since it drew the attention of a drug-sniffing dog in Arizona.

Police intercepted it in Maryland, and an undercover detective posing as a deliveryman took it to the Calvo home.

Calvo's defenders — including the Berwyn Heights police chief, who said his department should have been alerted ahead of time — said police had no right to enter the home without knocking.

But officials insisted they acted within the law, saying the operation was compromised when Calvo's mother-in-law saw officers approaching the house and screamed. That could have given someone time to grab a gun or destroy evidence, authorities said.

Neighbors in Berwyn Heights, which Calvo described as "Mayberry inside the Capital Beltway," have rallied around the couple. On Sunday night, supporters gathered on a ballfield to pay tribute to the family and the dogs. A banner on the wooden fence around Calvo's yard read, "Cheye and Trinity, We support you, Friends and Citizens of Berwyn Heights." Around it were dozens of handwritten messages from supporters.

In addition to being the part-time mayor, Calvo works at a nonprofit foundation that runs boarding schools. His wife is a state finance officer.

"When all of this happened I was flabbergasted," said next-door neighbor Edward Alexander. "I was completely stunned because those dogs didn't hurt anybody. They barely bark."

The case is the latest embarrassment for Prince George's County officials. A former police officer was sentenced in May to 45 years in prison for shooting two furniture deliverymen at his home last year, one of them fatally. He claimed that they attacked him. In June, a suspect jailed in the death of a police officer was found strangled in his cell.

Calvo said he was astonished that police have not only failed to apologize, but declined to clear the couple's names.

His wife spoke through tears as she described an encounter with a girl who used to see the couple walking their dogs.

"She gave me a big hug and she said, `If the police shot your dogs dead and did this to you, how can I trust them?'" Tomsic said. "I don't want people to feel like that. I just want them to be proud of our police and proud to live in Prince George's County."

Joker_in_the_Pack · 08-08-2008, 01:51 AM

Ten....fucking....points....

CptSternn · 08-08-2008, 01:53 AM

This is BRILLIANT! Dave Chapelle did a sketch that resembled this years ago. His sketch was based on the idea of the police and justice system treating the Enron guys like they do crack dealers and crack dealers like the Enron guys.

This is great for many reasons. First, it gives the average American a look at how the police state works for people who don't have lots of money. It also shows how the police have gotten to the point they pretty much walk all over human rights and get away with it. Why? Because they go after easy targets - people who are too poor to get a good lawyer, too poor to attract media attention. As per the article the police say they do this sort of thing 'thousands of times a year' and its 'no big deal'.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/08/07/...ies&eref=yahoo

They also state, which is funny, that they had a no-knock warrant. Funny thing is, in Maryland, they were outlawed a few years ago. I guess the police and FBI didn't check their law books before mounting this operation. OR, like in most cases, they openly break the law thinking once they arrest a person that it absolves them of any illegal activity.

That seems to be the norm in America now. Cops knowingly break the law to make an arrest, and since most of the people involved can't afford a good attorney they end up in jail anyway.

Good to see finally a normal person get caught up in this and see first hand what happens in cases like this.

chelseagirl · 08-20-2008, 11:03 AM

I, unfortunately, live in Prince George's County, MD. That is terrible.

The article you posted didn't even mention the small fact that Calvo and his mother-in-law were handcuffed and interrogated for hours surround by pools of blood and their dead dogs' bodies. I just don't even know what I would have done in that situation, that's f'n horrible.

Tam Li Hua · 08-20-2008, 12:11 PM

Holy f'kin' crap...

There's something seriously wrong with the police department there. I mean, seriously, when they don't even recognize the mayor of the town? It's ridiculous! >_<

My condolences go out to the family regarding the dogs. Labs are perhaps the sweetest dogs on the planet, and for policemen to 'feel threatened' by them is ridiculous.

I seriously hope someone cleans out their department and puts someone sane in charge.

*is angry*

chelseagirl · 08-20-2008, 12:28 PM

I'm not trying to sh*t-talk police officers - I have a few friends that are D.C. cops, but every encounter I've had with PG police has been bad. I've been detained for no reason and pulled out of my car with a gun to my head and had my car searched. I've NEVER actually been arrested or anything though.

lol, just a month ago, I was parked at a meter spot while getting something from my neighborhood liquor store. I put change in the meter before I went in...so when I came out to see a PG cop writing me a parking ticket, I was confused. I went up to him and I said, "what happened, did I run out of time on the meter?" (which I know couldn't have happened). He tried to tell me that I had put change in the wrong meter - that the meter behind my car was for that spot (I had put change in the meter by my front fender). Now, I have lived here for many years now, and I KNOW the meters are in the FRONT of the parking spaces! He told me I was wrong. I actually had to go with him to where the metered parking starts to show him that the first parking space's meter was at the FRONT, not the back - thus meaning all spaces behind also had meters at the front. He just grumbled something and said, "I'll just let you go with a warning this time". I was infuriated! What, a 'warning' for being right and making him look like a tool? Of course though, I kept my mouth shut and left.

Imagine that, a police officer that f'g stupid!

Tam Li Hua · 08-20-2008, 12:41 PM

O__o...

It sounds like these 'police officers' have some kind of grudge against the world, and want to bully folks rather than actually protect them.

Joker_in_the_Pack · 08-20-2008, 04:17 PM

OH MY GOD STOP CENSORING YOUR WORDS! Son of a bitch if you're going to say fuck, say fuck. Don't say shit like f'n, what the fuck is that? Or Sh*t. Say fuck! FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK! Pussies.

Deadmanwalking_05 · 08-20-2008, 04:44 PM

Fucking JBT'S man,Fucking JBT's.

And they did this not over coke,crack,or any other drug (Not to say they couldn't or wouldn't)

But Weed.

Police don't swear an oath to protect anyone except themselves,and the law.

They actually don't give a shit for the public.

Renatus · 08-20-2008, 05:40 PM

We need to make the government afraid of it's people again, we need to make them realize they are our slaves to do what we the people want and need and nothing else.

Methadrine · 08-21-2008, 12:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joker_in_the_Pack

OH MY GOD STOP CENSORING YOUR WORDS! Son of a bitch if you're going to say fuck, say fuck. Don't say shit like f'n, what the fuck is that? Or Sh*t. Say fuck! FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK! Pussies.

*pats on head* There, there. Sit. Stay. Good boy.

Beneath the Shadows · 08-21-2008, 12:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joker_in_the_Pack

OH MY GOD STOP CENSORING YOUR WORDS! Son of a bitch if you're going to say fuck, say fuck. Don't say shit like f'n, what the fuck is that? Or Sh*t. Say fuck! FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK! Pussies.

Step one, instead of ass say buns.

Tam Li Hua · 08-21-2008, 06:06 AM

Frack. Friggin'. Frell. Fesking. Hades. Son of a Whore. Son of a female dog. Poo. Doo-doo. Pee. Urine. Feces. Son of a motherless goat. Farting in your general direction. Holy cow. Oh fudge. Crap. &*^%. @!#+. $^&=.

Why use the actual words when one can be so much more creative?

chelseagirl · 08-21-2008, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joker_in_the_Pack

OH MY GOD STOP CENSORING YOUR WORDS! Son of a bitch if you're going to say fuck, say fuck. Don't say shit like f'n, what the fuck is that? Or Sh*t. Say fuck! FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK! Pussies.

Well, gosh darn it all to heck, I was just trying to not corrupt the youngsters that read these forums. Thank you for reminding me that excessive cursing makes people cool. I shall remember that next time I post.

Tam Li Hua · 08-21-2008, 12:30 PM

Ya know, the truth is I was just being lazy and didn't feel like typing out the entire word. XD I didn't realize it was going to cause so much dr4m4. :P

HumanePain · 08-21-2008, 02:53 PM

I have actually seen the Los Angeles police off duty and having beer and pizza wearing custom made baseball caps that say:

"To serve and protect
when we fucking feel like it"

Beneath the Shadows · 08-21-2008, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HumanePain

I have actually seen the Los Angeles police off duty and having beer and pizza wearing custom made baseball caps that say:

"To serve and protect
when we fucking feel like it"

Sounds like greenshirts in training.

Sir_Vex · 08-22-2008, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HumanePain

I have actually seen the Los Angeles police off duty and having beer and pizza wearing custom made baseball caps that say:

"To serve and protect
when we fucking feel like it"

That is absolutely disgusting behavior. I'm ashamed that any of our police officers would act that way, but I can't say that I am even in the slightest surprised.

Why all the swearing? It seems to me there are better ways of exclaiming great emotion or surprise. Even if not better, at least more tactful.

JCC · 08-22-2008, 04:09 AM

Swearwords are great. They sound good, guttural and satisfying. Fuck, cunt, shit. Awesome.

Some offensive words sound good too, which is why it annoys me so much that they attributed such a malign meaning to n*gger. That's a great sounding word. If it meant, widescreen televisions or something, that would be awesome.

metum_capere · 08-22-2008, 02:05 PM

well, since it was a mayor that this sort of thing happened to -- it has now made the news. Many people are harrassed by police every day and it doesn't make the news. Unfortunatly it has to happen to someone with a voice to actually be brought to the attention of the public. It's almost a good thing this happened.
I'm not against police, but definately against a police state...

Sir_Vex · 08-22-2008, 07:43 PM

I think people have always been paying attention to police harassment, it's just that nothing has ever been done before. I can name instances as well as others that I know of police abusing their power, but none of us have done anything. This is an extreme case in an extreme situation, so now it's being forced into the media's limelight.

Also, I'm sorry, but swear words don't mean much to me, even as stress relief and I get absolutely no joy out of using them.

x-deviant-x · 08-23-2008, 03:10 PM

I have a feeling they'll just hide behind the patriot act and then receive medals for being so brave in a month or two.

Sir_Vex · 08-24-2008, 12:23 AM

They probably will hide behind some sort of act or law, but i doubt that they'll receive a medal for it.

CptSternn · 09-05-2008, 12:06 PM

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...=moreheadlines

Killing of Mayor's 2 Dogs Justified, Pr. George's Finds

The Prince George's County Sheriff's Office has concluded in an internal review that its deputies were justified when they shot and killed two dogs belonging to the mayor of Berwyn Heights during a July drug raid, Sheriff Michael Jackson said yesterday.

The sheriff said that one dog was engaging an officer and that the other was running toward a second officer at the time the black Labs were shot, but the ruling did not satisfy the mayor, who said the inquiry was incomplete and misleading.

Jackson released the results of the review in response to a scientific examination of the dogs' carcasses by a veterinarian with the Maryland Department of Agriculture at the request of Mayor Cheye Calvo. The necropsy concluded one dog was shot four times and the other twice, including once in the dog's back legs.

Calvo said the necropsy has bolstered his contention that neither dog was threatening law enforcement officers during the raid and that one dog was shot from behind as he fled into a back room.

There they go, trying to absolve themselves and a goosestep away from giving each other medals over this...