On February 11th 2010 in Columbia , Missouri a Swat team conducted a Raid on Jonathon Whitworth's home.
The following is a video of that Raid ( Warning Graphic video )
Investigators believed Whitworth was in possession of a large amount of marijuana and was considered a distributor, Deputy Chief Tom Dresner said in February. Police, who found a grinder, a pipe and a small amount of marijuana, shot two dogs upon entering Whitworth’s home around 8:30 p.m. Feb. 11.
SWAT team members encountered a pit bull upon entry, held back and then fatally shot the dog, police say. Officers said the dog was acting in an uncontrollably aggressive manner. A video of the raid shows that a shot was fired upon entry, but the pit bull was not wounded until later.
Whitworth was arrested, and his wife and 7-year-old son were present during the raid. Both his wife and child were living in the residence at the time, said Jeff Hilbrenner, Whitworth’s attorney. Dresner previously said that intelligence gathered before the raid did not indicate the child was in the home.
A second dog was shot in the leg but was not killed. The corgi is seen in the video and does not appear to be wounded. There is no indication when the dog was shot, and Dresner previously said he was unsure when the animal was wounded.
“Their focus right now is to get this behind them,” Hilbrenner said of the Whitworth family. “Obviously, this was a traumatic event for his wife and son. A final decision has not been made, but they are evaluating all of their options.”
http://www.columbiatribune.com/...
After the arrest, Dresner said he believed SWAT team members followed protocol and was awaiting an Internal Affairs investigation. Investigations are conducted each time a weapon is used by officers, said spokeswoman Officer Jessie Haden.
The investigation is expected to be completed within the next two weeks and has been prolonged because a SWAT team member is out of town for training. Internal Affairs is conducting the review because the incident involved multiple shots and was inside an occupied residence, Haden said. This allows Internal Affairs sergeants to review the incident independent from the SWAT command.
April 20: Whitworth plead guilty to possession of drug paraphernalia after charges of second-degree child endangerment and possession of marijuana are dropped. He was issued a $300 fine in addition to court cost.
The Whitworths have not filed a complaint with the department concerning the incident.
H/T http://www.columbiatribune.com/...
Is this really the Country were living in ?????????? Everyday in The United States Police conduct between 150-200 Raids like this one.
So let's take a stand against this meaningless War and here's how you can help.
If you live near Columbia , Missouri there is a City Council meeting on May 17th at 7pm.
The Columbia tribune is also conducting an online poll
http://www.columbiatribune.com/...
Contact your Congress Critters
http://criminaljustice.change.org/...
But what I think could be the most Important thing you could do would be to pass this video around to everyone you know to show just exactly who the War on Drugs is Hurting.
Here's some Helpful Links on the Issue
http://blog.norml.org/...
http://motherjones.com/...
Here's some Local News Reports on the story
http://www.columbiatribune.com/...
http://www.fox2now.com/...