SWAT - Hey, we're kind of right most of the time.
Lima, Ohio:
More than a quarter of the 198 raids by the Lima Police Department SWAT team in the last seven years came up empty-handed without finding drugs, weapons, paraphernalia or money.
And nearly a third of the time, police do not find drugs or a weapon. Drugs alone were found in nearly two-thirds of the raids and a weapon, by itself, was found one-third of the time.
The Lima News reviewed 198 raids by the Lima Police Department Special Weapons and Tactics team from 2002 through June 2008, examining evidence inventory sheets.
Yes, this is Lima, Ohio, where police procedures murdered Tarika Wilson in her home and maimed her son.
Of course, the cops think there's no problem with that track record.
"That means 68 percent of the time, we're getting guns or drugs off the street," said Maj. Kevin Martin, who called the numbers a success.
No.
SWAT action busting in someone's home is an extreme option that should be reserved for the most critical dangerous situations, such as dealing with hostages, not as a method for conducting drug arrests.
The fact that one out of three SWAT raids is on innocent citizens is an offense to the Constitution, and should result in mass firings. What makes it worse is the fact that it appears that many of the "successful" ones only involved small amounts of drugs or paraphernalia.
It's really sad that there is an established belief out there that SWAT is an appropriate way of dealing with drug warrants.
6:54:05 PM | drug policy | Related | permalink |
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