February, 17 2011, 01:15pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Will Matthews, ACLU national, (212) 549-2582 or 2666; media@aclu.org
Diana Rubio, ACLU of Southern California, (213) 977-5252; drubio@aclu-sc.org
ACLU Calls on U.S. Attorney's Office to Investigate Brutal Beating of Inmate by Los Angeles County Jail Deputies
Jail in Need of Systemic Reform and Decrease in Population
LOS ANGELES
The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Southern California (ACLU/SC) today called on the United States Attorney's Office to launch an independent criminal investigation into last month's brutal beating by two Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) deputies of an inmate at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility, part of the Los Angeles County Jail system.
The Jan. 24 savage attack on James Parker, detained on a non-violent marijuana charge, was witnessed by ACLU/SC's Jails Project Coordinator Esther Lim, who is assigned to monitor all county jails, and another inmate. Both observed the two deputies beating Parker for about two minutes while he was lying on the ground limp, motionless and not resisting the deputies in any way. One of the deputies also repeatedly used a Taser against Parker.
"It is crucial that the federal government launch an independent investigation immediately," said Peter Eliasberg, ACLU/SC managing attorney. "A criminal investigation from an impartial outside agency will not only help the inmates but will also help all those deputies who work hard to do their job properly and who should not be painted with the same brush as those who may have violated the law by beating a non-resisting inmate."
Sheriff's department employees have made groundless public statements challenging the motivation and integrity of Lim, calling into question the impartiality of the LASD. Lim would necessarily be a key witness in any criminal case filed against the deputies and so the statements by sheriff's department employees could significantly harm any prosecution by the county district attorney that relies on an investigation by the LASD.
"It is odd, and indeed troubling, when a law enforcement spokesperson publicly disparages the credibility of a potential prosecution witness," said Daniel Richman, a professor at Columbia University's School of Law and former Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. "Such comments can undermine the appearance of impartiality critical to maintaining public trust in the criminal justice system. Moreover, if a prosecutor ends up bringing charges, the defense may try to use the comments to undermine the credibility of that witness, a problem that no prosecutor wants to deal with."
The sheriff's department has proven itself to be completely unwilling to investigate its own deputies aggressively. The ACLU has received hundreds of complaints over the past two years detailing deputy assaults of inmates similar to what Lim witnessed, dozens of which the sheriff's department has claimed to investigate.
But in each instance, the department has only stonewalled, asserting without presenting a shred of evidence to back up its claims that it has "thoroughly investigated" the complaints before finding them to be false.
"The subculture of deputy violence and abuse at the Los Angeles County Jail is extraordinary and unprecedented," said Margaret Winter, associate director of the ACLU National Prison Project. "It has gone unchecked for so long that deputies apparently feel emboldened to carry out a savage beating in full view of ACLU staff. This signals both the depth of the problem and the urgency of the need for an independent federal investigation, which we believe will be forthcoming."
Lim's sworn declaration, filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California is available online at: www.aclu.org/prisoners-rights/declarations-esther-lim-and-christopher-brown-regarding-january-24-2011-beating-twi
The American Civil Liberties Union was founded in 1920 and is our nation's guardian of liberty. The ACLU works in the courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
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Sanders Unveils Resolutions to Block US Arms Sales as Israel Rejects Cease-Fire Call
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U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and a pair of his Senate colleagues on Wednesday formally introduced resolutions aimed at blocking a series of proposed arms sales to the Israeli government as it bombards Gaza and Lebanon, deepening humanitarian crises there and pushing the region to the brink of all-out war.
The six Joint Resolutions of Disapproval, five of which were backed by Sens. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), would together prevent the sale of $20 billion of U.S. weaponry to Israel. The Biden administration approved the massive sale of Joint Direct Attack Munitions, tank ammunition, F-15 fighter jets, and other military equipment last month.
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On top of the legal case for scrapping the sales, Sanders said Wednesday that "there are also clear policy reasons not to proceed," noting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has obstructed cease-fire efforts at every turn.
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The Institute for Middle East Understanding Policy Project said Wednesday that the resolutions mark "the first time in U.S. history" that "there will be a vote in Congress to block weapons to Israel."
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Dylan Williams, vice president of the Center for International Policy, applauded the resolutions as "an appropriate, measured, and sadly necessary response to a security partner's repeated violations of U.S. and international law."
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Former U.S. President Donald Trump's threat on Wednesday to blow Iran "to smithereens" if he returns to power was condemned by a leading Iranian American advocacy group as "genocidal."
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While Trump is known for his boastful and sometimes empty claims, as president he also followed through on his 2016 campaign promise to "bomb the shit out of" Islamic State fighters and "take out their families," resulting in thousands of civilian casualties in countries including Iraq and Syria.
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All people affected by such an increase in the FRA would receive a smaller amount of Social Security benefits over their lifetime. Workers who chose to delay claiming their retirement benefits by the same number of months as the increase in the FRA would receive the same monthly benefit for a shorter period. Those workers who claimed retirement benefits at the same age as they would have claimed them under current law would receive a smaller benefit for the same number of years.
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